Is living on the state pension really that bad?

[cateringday]

I mean, if you own your home then you’re getting around £250 a week just for bills and spends.
i have a tiny pension and DH has none. I am always worrying about this but then realised that we will have no rent or mortgage to pay.
im just wondering if it would be as awful as people make out? I hear stuff saying you need £300000 in pension pot to have a comfortable retirement, why would you need that much?

Good point re her help from my mum and aunties.

Why don’t you live that way for 6 months and decide?

Work out how much your mortgage costs, add £250 a week and then put the rest of your pay into your pension. You’ll know how doable it feels for you then.

I find the 40k for a couple baffling too. I work with people in their 20s who are paying extortionate mortgages on about 50k total wages. If you don't have rent or mortgage you don't need 40k to live a basic retirement life!

Well first off, not all retirees own their own home.

Everything else comes down to lifestyle and choices in general. Add up every penny you spend over the course of a month and tally that against your state pension entitlement…are you in debit or credit.

The 300k pot you’ve read about is likely following the 4% rule (take your expected outgoings at retirement, multiply by 25 and that gives you the ‘pot’ you are expected to need (bearing in mind it’s invested and assumes pot is growing each year through investment gains).

My current state pension allowance is £12,014pa, using the 4% rule that’s £300,350 over my 25yrs. And not everyone has made sufficient contributions so may not be entitled to the full amount.

Also need to factor in the unexpected-if one of you dies then unless you are in the earlier SP scheme there is no widow/er pension…how do you pay for a new roof if needed, just examples.

It depends doesnt it, if you wont have to pay mortgage/rent and have assets such as a home you own then your experience will be different to someone who doesnt. Weirdly someone who has all of their stamps isnt eligible for pension credit and similar, so a lot of the 'freebies' are cut off at a low level. Being at the mercy of state funded care if you have no property is also a lot different than having options should it be needed.

Pension credit is to top up to a minimum weekly income e.g. if state pension was your only income

www.ageuk.org.uk/information-advice/money-legal/benefits-entitlements/pension-credit/

I wonder if they say that you need 40k to live on is due to taking in account of inflation.

I think for me considering the state of the country and the lack of money going toward the pension pot due to us paying a lot for iIt parents generation and the huge amount of people not paying toward it I would be surprised if we got that when I retire. They can say triple lock all they like but money doesn’t grow on trees.

Frankly if you only have the state pension and are nearing or within a few years of retiring you’re probably better off not saving any more as you’ll get pension credit and all the stuff that goes along with that. You’ll also have any care home fees paid, ok you don’t get a choice of home but it’ll be free!

We have recently retired and although the state pension covers basic cost relying on it totally would require very careful budgeting. There would be little spare to cover much else For instance one big bill could cause problems last month I had some dental work our state pension would struggle to cover that. Holidays and the things that make our retirement enjoyable would be a definite no.

We downsized to a park home when I retired. Can't go any further down unless I get a tent.
We are managing but no eating out unless you count greggs. We do have National Trust memberships so go to nearest ones about once a month and have coffee and in summer we have food there because we don't need to buy a gas bottle.

I'd seen on here where people were going on Entitledto to see if they could get anything so I went on and it said we could get a council tax reduction. I did it and we got £20 a month off so even the government know pensions are not enough to live on. I did tell dh to get dd to apply for pension credit for him if I die first because financially that will be hell. As a pp said the only bill that reduce will be food.

Op, YABVU. Remember not everyone gets £240 a week.

My dm was lucky & lived in a 20yo bungalow so reasonably well insulated. Her monthly bills were
£160 Council tax
£120 groceries/ toiletries
£80 gas/ electric
£20 house & contents insurance
£15 TV licence
£30 water
£30 comms
£40 travel
£20 boiler care plan
£20 basic maintenance - pruning, clearing gutters etc
Then add in buying a new fridge/ cooker, repairs to blown down fences, redecorating (one room per year), replacing plumbing, roof flashing etc. (things seem to wear out after 20 years). Probably another £100 a month

That left her with about £300 a month for clothes, shoes, socialising, birthdays/Christmas, emergencies and an annual week's holiday by coach to somewhere like York or Edinburgh.

She was very proud that over 26 years retirement she managed to save enough for her own funeral.
The state pension provides an existence. Nothing more.

Do a list of all the essentials and what they cost. Im retired with an income after tax of £3500 pm with no mortgage and do not live an extravagant lifestyle. I cant wait to get state pensions. It will make a world of difference instead of spending savings all the time.

I would not want to live on just state pension, I'd be miserable.

It might be possible as two. But the big issue is what happens if your partner dies? You don’t pay half as much heating or electricity. It really is very insecure and I wouldn’t recommend it at all.

I think it really depends on your age and mobility really. For a 67 year old who is fit and active, yet wants to be retired, it's not much. It won't pay for holidays or significant car repairs/replacement or if the washing machine breaks down etc. It'll be difficult to live a full life on that little money. But if it's like a PP explained and an elderly person who doesn't go out or spend but lives in a council flat etc then it'll probably be fine.

That's why you should have a private pension or one from your employer if you want to retire at 67 and enjoy yourself.

'It is no bad thing to celebrate a simple life.' 🙂

Putting aside that not everybody “pays in their whole lives”, it’s not a pot. Today’s workers are funding today’s pensioners. NI buys you the right (hopefully) to get the same from future workers.

It wouldn’t be enough for a lifestyle I’d enjoy and I’m not frivolous but I do currently enjoy my lifestyle.

As well as all the basic bills and outgoings, I’m always paying out a lump sum for things to do with my car, my pets, household things like boiler repairs or replacements and decorating, and replacing things that have broken like my washing machine etc.

Owning your house doesn't mean nothing to pay toward it though - you're liable for all repairs obviously, so if the boiler breaks or the roof needs repairs etc, you have to pay for that, there's no landlord doing it.

But why should the state pay for people to have a nice life? As others have said state pension should be for keeping people out of poverty and to have food and shelter for the rest of your life. If you want the extras that make life more enjoyable but are not totally necessary then people should have their own savings/pension for that. You know, like working people have to.

My mum and her friends are living their dream atm. Group of about 10. Pack a picnic, get a free bus somewhere different every day. Walk.

The choice may be less but you'll end up in the same home as people around you paying privately. Only the extremely rich can afford the homes that are private only.

I think a lot depends on how well you are, which obviously you don’t know until you are old enough to retire and then it’s too late. My parents are not together. My mum is fit and active; goes out regularly to theatre, cinema, music etc, drives, volunteers and goes on regular holidays including long haul. She would struggle on just a state pension. My dad has a chronic condition and can’t really do anything. Both own their own homes and have full state and some private pension. Dads is bigger than mums but mum uses hers to the max!

Which is why when you work you have a private pension?

yes but you also have somthing from your late husband's private pension. Could you do it without that?