What are your (dreamy) retirement plans? (bit of fun)

[Sauerkrautsandwich]

Spoke with friend about retirement, both mid 30s, and our ideas fundamentally differ for various reasons including DH and I being childfree. Mainly because I plan to "spend it all" while she thinks of staying close to her kids (fully understandable) and downsize to nice small house with garden to help with deposits, save for Dgcs.

I am good with money so managed to actually save and gain even on low and low-ish wages, in few years my salary should go considerably up and DH's business should be fully established, profitable and taking care of itself. Plus by our calculations we should have few small investment properties by that time as well. We recently relocated to new country to help that (immigrants to UK from 2 different countries).

My "dream" plan. 😁
At 55 (DH60) latest sell own home and some investments and move to nice, quiet, good food, fresh air place like... Montenegro! DH vetoed Turkey...
Travel, travel, travel for first 5-7years, Japan, Mexico, Thailand etc for a month at the time. I checked and monthly studio rental can be same price as hotel for 2 weeks. Rent our Montenegro house out during that time to cover some expenses if needed or sell more investments. Wind down, grow your own veg, maybe buy chickens (I always wanted chickens!) travel more locally, enjoy life. Sell Montenegro house, spend it all on some last fun and dieing in peace in Switzerland.

Well.....69 and planning to work for a couple more years, then spend six months to a year in Australia, sell the flat and buy something within distance of London that's a bit bigger and has a small garden. Winters in the Med (already looking at studio flats to rent) and using that time to explore.

I'm getting the sense of 'time's precious, you can't do everything,' whether that's books or travel, so starting to make definite plans as to where and what I'm going to spend my time on.

Why Montenegro especially?

Similar age OP and I don't have any plans (but do pay into a pension), because with the state of the world/economy at the moment I don't think the future is in any way predictable. We're trying to reduce our hours at work so we have more leisure time in our normal weeks rather than wait till retirement to enjoy our lives. I've had two friends pass away this year (aged 33 and 43) and DH and I work in healthcare, so we're both very aware that old age isn't guaranteed, and even more so good health in old age. I think it's interesting that your friend is limiting her dreams to revolve around kids that may leave the country, and DGCs that may not exist if her kids are CF.

Ask me again in 20 years and hopefully I have a more positive outlook on it! Montenegro looks beautiful, I love Croatia so that may be my dream retirement destination in an ideal world.

That sounds lovely @MrsDanversGlidesAgain ! Do you have someone in Aus or will it be exploring trip?
Studio flats seem to be the best way to go for shorter times.

Why Montenegro? We haven't even been yet😂 (Though I have moved about 8 times now and visited the place I was moving to only in one case so... Bit if a pattern).
I like the food, it's mid way between our native countries, it's beautiful, I have same language family, DH will learn (he is good with languages).
Just get us fishing permit, little boat and it's a dream!
https://www.montenegroprospects.com/property/new-price-charming-stone-house-waterfront-kakrc

Tbf it can end up being Thailand, or Greece or whatever... Lots of time to go, but fot now, this is my fave.

Bit of both, really. I have family but I've not really seen much of the place apart from their state. Thinking of basing myself in a city flat and just doing the big stuff - top end, Uluru, and the train journeys, of course - I've already done the Indian Pacific but want to go to northern Queensland via train and travel on the Ghan.

I am sure if her kids emigrate she will change the idea of staying @Possimpible . Tbf she likes it where she lives, but young people have to often move nowadays.

Yeah, old age is absolutely not guaranteed! It's always good idea to enjoy yourself as well. We are so far balancing work/life ok so we get to visit places, do things etc. I am not into FIRE style. That's too harsh for me.
I am not trusting pensions to actually be there at the time I need/want them tbh so I am pulling more into other stuff. I like control 😊

@MrsDanversGlidesAgain sounds like a solid plan!

The dream is to open a cat sanctuary in Crete. It's a very big dream tho!

DH and I are 40 and 38 and can retire at 55 and 60 respectively. What's definite is that we'll be off to sunnier climes.

I'm late 40s and my DH late 50s. We hope to retire soon and spend our days gardening, beekeeping, cooking and eating, and joining in with the many events and groups in our local area.

And I'm going to read a lot!

Not particularly exciting plans, but those are the things that make us happy. 🙂

That's a lovely plan! I will visit and give cuddles @SoRainbowRhythms

Beekeeping sounds lovely. Do you already have some? Local fresh honey is just always 5* @NunsKnickers . W
You will live forever with supply of that!

We have 4 colonies of bees already and will probably expand that when we retire. 🙂

Plus we might get a couple of goats!!

Oh my god!!! So you already have your elixir of life.
Goats are devils😂

We've already got loose plans for retirement. I'll be 55, DH 50 and we'll probably follow the kids wherever they end up (currently live overseas), interspersed with stays in Asia, Australia, Europe. Live in a hot country now so weather wise we're not fussed.
DH will probably retain shareholding in his business and keep dividends, I'll be retraining and running a business that I can dip in and out when I want to.
Either way, retiring at 55 doesn't mean doing nothing, but it does mean doing whatever the fuck I've ever wanted to.

Thanks for the goat warning 😆🐐

Live in rural France with a nice pool in an old farmhouse with some chickens. And ride horses.
That’s my life already but I never get to spend enough time doing what I want. We both are jacking it in next year. Dc’s are at uni in our home country, it’ll be nice to go and see them more. And do Trusted house and dog sitters in Europe when we need a change. I don’t have massive travel plans.

People from the UK who plan to live or travel abroad, what are you doing about visas? I'd like to spend about 5 months in Europe over winter but I believe we can only stay for 3 months out of a 6 month period.

I'm 36 and working on my future 'wise old crone' self already 😅And I don't know if I ever want to entirely 'retire', but I'm imagining a future where 'work is optional'.

I want to have a property where I can run retreats for young women – medicinal plant growing, community-building, writing, thoughtful conversations, silly games... a place where the next generation can come as a breather from whatever life looks like, spend time in nature, and just be themselves, quietly.

I'm picturing a massive vegetable garden, treehouses, quiet little nooks and crannies for reading, an outdoor kitchen and massive long wooden table for meals together...

I don't want to be a mother, but I do want to be a grandmother – to lots of other people's adult children 😁

Where the money will come from, I don't know - but if anyone here wants to be my partner in crime, let me know!

I'm in the middle of making my retirement dreams happen, aged 55. Me and DP have just sold our house and have downsized to a mortgage free small apartment which we can lock up and leave when we go away. We both will be retiring this year now that we no longer have a mortgage.
Two years ago, after many happy visits to the region, we bought a plot of land on a beautiful stretch of coast in Senegal and we are developing a small scale rustic eco lodge on the site ( it's not spoiling a pristine but of coast, it had a ruined hotel on the plot which we have taken down. Our development will be more small scale and have less impact on the environment).
We plan to spend the winter in Senegal running the lodge and come back to the UK in the summer to see family and friends.
We've done all this on a fairly small budget. We're flying out next week to start the building of the guest accommodation. I can't wait to get started.
I had a serious health scare three years ago which radically changed my view of what I wanted to do with my life...we decided life really is too short and we should just go with what we want to do.
Who knows what the future holds or even if our plans will work out, but it's worth a shot and it will all be an adventure!

I want to go on the Ghan! I saw a BBC4 slow documentary about it and was hooked!

I'm not sure I see this as a childfree/parent issue, though -- I haven't lived in the same country as my parents for decades, and the existence of my son isn't going to determine where I live. He will be exploring the world for himself as an adult. I think it's going to be a 'women outliving their male partners' issue. I have a child, but have plans with female friends (both childfree and parents) to buy somewhere in the south of France collectively to live in together on the assumption we are more likely to be the last ones standing.

Some very exciting plans here!!!

Tbh if I could I would just get a homestead right now🙄 live off my own land, swap goods with others. Peace

@Possimpible "because with the state of the world/economy at the moment I don't think the future is in any way predictable."

I feel the same way. I have a long time to go until retirement and it's hard to make travel plans etc so far ahead with climate change having an increasing impact. In terms of financial planning there's the big question mark over state pensions due to rapidly aging populations.

However, retirement is something we prepare for as much as possible and we both pay a lot in to pensions. I love our house and gardens, it's our sanctuary and it has a large annex on the grounds which rents for 14k a year tax free currently so I don't think we'd sell unless it became too much for us to maintain. We're both the same age and plan to reduce hours at 55 and fully retire at 60.

We spent a couple years traveling around Australia in a small pop top camper van at the beginning of our relationship so we always said we'd do the same again in retirement (but in a fancy motorhome next time). Hopefully that will still be feasible in 25 years but it's difficult to know what travel will look like then.

I have kids but retirement plans don't involve them!

We plan to rent out the house in 3-4 years time, pack up the motorbike and head towards dover, aiming for Australia, might come across logistical difficulties due to warmongering but too early to work out a route, there's always freight as an option.

Another trip is to ship the bike to New York (wish Cunard hadn't got rid of vehicle transportation, they had it in qe2) and head for Argentina

Dc have mentioned the word babysitting, we used the expression no way!

We plan to spend the winter in Senegal running the lodge and come back to the UK in the summer to see family and friends.

@Violetsunbird re my visa question above, how do you get around the 90 day limit or are you only planning to spend 3 months of the winter there?

I would assume with land ownership and business they will be eligible for long term visa.

Even EU can be more than 90 days when you get visa. I am not sure of rules but general around the qorld is health insurance, proof of funds etc.

Even EU can be more than 90 days when you get visa. I am not sure of rules but general around the qorld is health insurance, proof of funds etc.

If you are from the UK you can get a 1 year non lucrative visa but you are then limited as to how long you can spend outside of that country (ie back in the UK). You also need to show a regular passive income (ie from pension or other investment. You are not allowed to work on a non lucrative visa.

I don't know about Senegal but in Spain you need a passive income of 2,400 euros a month (or equivalent in savings).

Or you can get a work visa but that that's not suitable for retirees.

I would assume with land ownership and business they will be eligible for long term visa.

I expect @Violetsunbird has all that in hand but I was interested in finding out what the requirements are which is why I asked.