Retirement at 50?

[Otins]

Would you retire aged 50 if you could?

I am currently working it through with an IFA and I think I can afford to do it.

I have no children. I am in a relationship but financially independent and not married.

I had always planned to retire at 60 when my mortgage was paid off, but a recent inheritance means i am mortgage free now.

Would you retire this early if you could?

i have joked in the past that retirement is wasted on the old, and I could have 10 years now having fun, and I felt funds were getting a bit tight , i could go back to work aged 60.

My monthly 'retirement' income would
be around the same as my average monthly jncome over the last 10 years (self employed so it fluctuates) This wouldn't allow for luxury world cruises but a couple of holidays a year, plenty of eating out and culture, and some leeway for the occasional splurge seems plenty.

I could keep earning and have 'more' but it seems wasteful if I don't need more, and time is our most precious commodity.

Jeez if vascular dementia could “improve” by exercise and reduced stress, why would nursing homes and care homes be making a fortune at £1500 per week they’re charging my father.

🤷🏼‍♀️🤦‍♀️

Exercise, healthy diet is a possible risk reduction for SOME people to avoid developing some dementias. Recent , very new research, indicates people with high mental “ resilience “ have reduced effect of d veloping Alzheimer’s symptoms. Some dementia, including vascular/Lewy bodies can sometimes appear to b inherited but not always. But, right now, once the diseases develop nothing “ improves” the disease. Symptoms can go back and forth, worsen and improve, for no apparent reasons but the tend is down to the grotesque ending my dad is experiencing ( mixed vascular and Lewy bodies is the current working prognosis) . For some people SYMPTOMS may improve on some days with a little walk - but it does NOT improve their “ condition” similarly, There are a few new drugs that SOME people can see an improvement or slowing of symptoms on, but the effect can be very short lived. And it does not improve the disease- just symptoms for a while.
My dad had a brief “ reawakening” from his delusions for 3 short months, then the effect wore off.
He’s stressed alright. He is in a world of horrific persecution are waking nightmares that he can’t escape from, and I’m sure is very stressed that he thinks pretty much everyone is trying to kill him in a myriad of appalling ways.

stop with the snake oil theories. Dementia is still not understood, the best scientist are still only just beginning to crack some of the mechanisms. Pharma companies have a trail of failed clinical stage 3 candidates in their wake, and few meaningful efficacious results.

maybe, you meant this - so maybe Be more careful in your words- there is a big difference improving a condition vs management of symptoms. Know the difference .

it is distressing to read that my dad might get better if only he’d exercise or be a bit less stressed.

oh, and he did retire at 58. Fwiw. Much bloody good it did him. Or all those walking holidays he had until 6 years ago.

@Dartwarbler
I think saying you are a "bit confused" is a bit strong.🤔

No idea if there is an "official" definition of retirement but if someone has decided they have worked long enough, are financially secure and do not want to work any more then they are perfectly entitled to say they are "retired".

@Dartwarbler

No, vascular dementia cannot be improved once it's embedded.

However my father's started due to suffering strokes/heart issues. Is it not possible that a more active less stressful lifestyle might have avoided that? I say might, not absolutely definitely.

It matters to HMRC!
when you take your pension officially from a pension pot, you retire for their purposes. You no longer pay NI on that pension income

just saying…

I think most people understand when people speak of retirement they mean not working, not looking for work and financially supporting themselves independently.

I'm 60 soon and have been thinking about retiring for a few years. I currently work 4 days a week. No mortgage.

I've already identified two choirs, the U3A, art classes, a local Pilates Reformer studio and some volunteering opportunities to occupy myself. Can't wait. I'm very motivated and self-reliant, so no danger of drifting around with nothing to do - I've never been bored in my life! If you can afford it, I think it's a great idea.

This will be news for my DH who has been drawing his police pension since he was 51!

You never pay NI on pension income…

What does NI have to do with being retired anyway?

Our mortgage is nearly paid off, but we have three teens hoping to go to uni so the next few years will be expensive for us. In 2031 the youngest should be finished and DH and I will be 56/57. That might be a good time to retire. I definitely feel too young at the moment!

Nonsense.

The definition of retirement is nothing to do with drawing a pension or paying national insurance (especially in the vast swathes of the world that have a different tax system).

https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/learner-english/retire

(And the Oxford one, for those with an allegiance to the dark rather than light blues https://www.oxfordlearnersdictionaries.com/definition/english/retire )

Many sports people retire in their 30s or early 40s.

100%. Some people love work, get a great amount of fulfilment and structure from it. I am not one of those people. I belong in a barn in my overalls growing veg with chickens and a donkey really.

I'm 52 & DH is 55. Original plan was to get youngest DC(17) through uni before retirement so another 5 yrs until we're 57/60. In reality, I'm ready to do it as soon as youngest leaves home for uni - another 2 or so years. I want to buy a campervan and travel for a few months at a time if not take a middle aged gap year or two.

My husband was in receipt of a war pension at 22!

Some vocations are allowed earlier access to their pensions - like sportspeople, ballerinas etc and some public services get pensions early.

I'm very lucky that my husband is retired but most of my family and friends still work. I see them in their time off and I'm busy doing my own thing whilst they're at work.

If I didn't have access to free museums, a garden etc then I would have sought out other ways to enjoy my retirement. I certainly wouldn't have preferred to stay at work.

I was talking generally, rather than you specifically - I realise it looks like that, so apologies. What I meant was, when people have fewer resources and fewer people to spend their retirement time with (which is understandable as 50 is still very young) then it’s often the case that people actively choose to stay in work to provide them with the financial means, stimulation and the company (unless they don’t enjoy their job obviously).

I am mostly clearing my back log of computer games! Keeps the mind active.

(Having just finished a professional exam I will use for part time roles -so earn enough to cover my fairly low costs for next 15 years before retirement)

@churchview, this is a very helpful comment for me. I’m 57 and almost certain that I’ll retire next year, I just have the occasional wobble, mainly when I panic about what I’d do by myself on a rainy day as I obviously wouldn’t be as fully committed as I am now.

However, it also stuck me recently that I am very bored with my job. It’s a senior role but nothing like as challenging to me as it once was and the problem with mainly wfh is that I’m still tied to the laptop, mainly sitting in boring meetings. At least if I’d retired and felt bored I could leave the house and find something more interesting to do!

Definitely do it.

No one knows how long they have.

I would in a heartbeat😊

I have so much I would like to do, so many places both in the UK and abroad I would like to see (with no time constraints). I am aiming to go at 58 (8 years) after my youngest has done uni plus 2-3 years to resave!!

Edited for spelling!

I would take a year or 2 out to travel but I couldn't retire at 50, I'd be bored senseless! I do only work PT anyway which suits me.

My husband retired at 50 after selling our business and he loves it. I don't work as lucky that I don't need to work but I home educate our daughter so kept busy. If it wasn't for this, I would want to work part time or at least do something. My husband on the other hand, loves not working, plays golf three times a week and loves his freedom.

It worries me to see how many people wouldn’t stop working as they’d be bored without it. Like that scary episode of Bob the Builder where the machines get a day off but all go to work as they’ve been so conditioned to do it. Or released institutionalised prisoners who immediately reoffend to get back inside. How would these people cope with redundancy? You need a life outside your job folks.

I had a few years when I didn't have to work. Had an inheritance and got health issues, anyway, so working is always very draining. I had a ball, playing guitar and flute, oil painting, life drawing, motorbiking, long dog walks, gardening, catching up with friends. Absolute bliss!

Yes, in a heartbeat if I could maintain the same level of living. I do live in a village with lots going on and lots of volunteering opportunities, plus great places to go nearby.

Wise words, could not have put it better myself.👍

I liked my job and was good at it but I was more than my job and in no way did I allow it to define me.