I retired at 58 and my husband was 62. He retired as a federal employee so we had health coverage. It’s great coverage and always has been. My best friend is 62 and says she cannot retire because she has to pay $1500 per month for health insurance and has huge deductibles. She also says she doesn’t know anyone her age (62) who has retired. I see so many people on this group who retired 62 or younger. How did you manage your healthcare expenses if you retired before you could take Medicare?

At being 35 it feels forever from now? Are you happier now? did you take social security at 62, 65 or 67?

Choosing between two neobanks that give at least some form of freedom for travel. Both seem to have their perks, and one is more EU-based and international, the other one more UK-based. If you used both, which one to stick with long-term?

... a factory owner wanted to cut his workers' daily wages but if he directly announced it, the workers would immediately go on strike and his entire factory would shut down. si the owner played a very frightening psychological game. he put a notice on the factory gate. due to heavy losses, the factory is being closed permanently. no one needs to come to work from tomorrow. the moment the workers heard the news chaos broke out among them. the fear of starvation was right in front of them. people started crying, they started talking about their children and they started falling at the owner's feet, begging him for two days. the workers begged just to save their jobs . then, on the third day, the owner came outside and he put on a huge act. with tears in his eyes, he said I can't watch your children go hungry? I'll bear my own heavy losses but I'll keep this factory running, I'll just have to cut a small part from all of your daily wages because I have no other choice. instead of going on strike, the workers happily started clapping and while crying, they thanked the owner. this is one of the most frightening truths about power and human psychology. if you directly take something away from people they'll fight back. but if you first show them the fear of losing everything and then take away only half of it they won't see you as their enemy they'll see you as their savior. a person becomes easiest to control when you take something away from them and at the same time make them feel like you actually showed them mercy.

All,

I'll be retiring next summer and I'm considering two different hobbies to take up. Did you decide on a hobby or hobbies or did you stumble upon one? Did you have plans and end up not taking up the hobby?

Thank you.

...the biggest scam of the world is convincing everyone to work for sixty years straight, sacrificing their youth, dreams, time with their loved ones and personal freedom, all while being told that one day after decades of labor they'll finally get to enjoy life. the reality? by the time they retire they're in their seventies. their bodies are tired, health problems have begun and the energy they once had is long gone. what's left is only a short window to live freely. but it's not true freedom anymore. you're shackled by age, medication and regret. all those moments with family, friends and past have gone. traded for a paycheck and when you finally have time, you're too old to enjoy it. that's the real cost of a lifetime of work. remember that time is the most valuable currency and trading it all for work without living fully is the real loss.

Genuine question. Why is everyone so focused on saving as much as possible for retirement instead of enjoying more of their money while young and healthy?

I'm 35 with $200k in my 401(k) and another $200k in employee stock. I feel like I'm saving a lot, but I often see the idea that you should max out every retirement account possible. Some of my friends save 80-90% of what they earn, and I know they're sacrificing their lifestyles to do that.

But what's the point of sacrificing experiences in your 30s and 40s just to have a massive pile of money when your 60s? Some people save for their future kids, and that's understandable. But otherwise, you might not have the same energy or physical ability to enjoy that money when you're older, so what's the point?

Genuinely curious to hear your opinions.

$2.3 million mostly pre tax 401k, $4k monthly expenses (includes everything except healthcare-currently covered by employer).

We can retire financially- medical and income covered from savings, investments and retirement accounts. But, we both love our jobs, people we work with, make our own hours, make more money each year than the last (comm based) and our investments have been making more than our generous income. I know, my lobster is too buttery, and I am very grateful- but I also don’t want to get too old to finally retire and enjoy not working. My mother retired at 62 and is close to 90 and still loving her life. And life seems to be passing faster and faster….anyone have the same thoughts?

Just have $4-5 Million dollars saved in your 401k/IRA brokerage account and pay off your house . Easy breezy. Anyone else sick of seeing videos where people are saying to retire at 55 so you can enjoy retirement when you are young enough to do stuff?

I’m 65 years old and still working part time. My husband is 71 also still working.We own a nice home near the beach with no mortgage. We’ve given our children each about 100 grand for their futures. We have about 1 million in investments and our home is worth about 600k. We’re thinking about spending about 500k to purchase a vacation home. Is this a bad idea?

My wife and I have different spending expectations for retirement. Our current monthly spend is 5500-6000 including our mortgage. We are pretty frugal overall but comfortable. I am 55 and she is 53. My goal is to retire at 59.5 and by that point the portfolio should be able to easily cover $7500-8k/month spend. For me, this is plenty and then at 62 I'll have another 30k/year in social security. She isn't comfortable pulling the trigger until the portfolio generates 10k/month. This would most likely add a few more years of work.

For those who were in similar situations, how did you manage? Scale back work slowly? Trial run? I realize a lot can happen in four years but I'm curious if anyone here experienced this.

Help! Simply put we're worried about forgetting something!

Most common mistakes people make?

Things to look out for?

Financially we've worked out the scenarios through Boldin, the numbers work. Rule of 55 will be at play. Both my wife and I will be retiring around the same time.

Pension and healthcare covered by my teacher wife, bulk of savings $2.3m covered by me.

Happy to give more details, whatever helps. Thanks!

21M just graduated with a marketing degree in 3 years and went into sales. Afraid I wasted my degree. I make $20.50/hour in a sales job with no upside right now. No student loan debt, paid off $17k car, $6k savings, $3100 in retirement. Live with my parents and afraid I’ll never retire. Want to go back for accounting but it would set me back 2 years. Thinking about selling commercial insurance. MCOL. Everyone tells me I’m catastrophizing but in this economy if you don’t do everything right it seems like retiring isn’t possible. Am I being nuts? Can I increase my income realistically and predictably without going back to school?

Hello fellow retirees (or close to)!

I am close to retirment and, like many of us, am trying to figure out what will be enough vs too much money.

How old are you and what is your monthly budget (assuming a married couple)? Do any of you spend more than $10 - $12k per month ( excluding mortage)?

I've been thinking about this question a lot lately.

When did you first start thinking about retirement? Was it in your 20s, when you realized you didn't want to spend the next 40 years working a 9-to-5? Or did it happen later, after years of dealing with work stress, long hours, and the feeling that your life revolves around your job?

I feel like the idea of retirement has changed quite a bit lately.

For a lot of people, it's not even about reaching 60 or 65 anymore. With layoffs, rising living costs, and an increasingly uncertain job market, some people might not get to choose when they stop working. They could end up leaving the workforce because they lost their jobs, rather than because they're financially ready to retire.

And honestly, I wonder how many people are thinking about early retirement simply because they're exhausted by the whole system. The constant pressure to perform, worrying about job security, spending most of your waking hours working just to afford your life… it can get old pretty quickly.

At the same time, wanting to retire early and actually being able to afford it are two very different things.

I'm curious about a few things:

• How old were you when you first started seriously thinking about retirement?
• Was it driven by money, burnout, a bad work experience, or just wanting more freedom?
• Do you still have a specific retirement age in mind, or has the current economy changed your plans?
• If you could afford to cover your living expenses without working, would you quit your job tomorrow?

I'm interested in hearing real experiences from people at different stages of life. Sometimes I wonder whether more people genuinely want to retire early, or whether they just want a life where work doesn't consume everything.

Retirement can happen in stages when one person leaves work before the other.

On paper, keeping one paycheck may make the transition look easier. In practice, the household still has to decide how to replace the income that stopped and whether to start using savings.

Consider a hypothetical couple spending $5,000 a month. If the working spouse brings home $3,500, that leaves a $1,500 monthly gap - or $18,000 a year - before accounting for any other income or changes in expenses.

But the spending itself might change. Commuting costs could fall. Travel plans might remain limited by the working spouse’s schedule. The retired person might take on more household responsibilities or want to spend money on activities they finally have time for.

There’s also the question of what feels fair when one person is still earning and the other is beginning to use money they saved together.

If you retired around 63 while your spouse continued working, what financial adjustment made the biggest difference during that transition?

Interested in what actually changed in your household, rather than exact account balances.

Educational discussion only, not financial advice.

Should we pay off our house before retiring even if we don't have any children to leave it to?

Retiring next year with primary home paid off, 2nd mtn house with 2% small mortgage, (probably won't sell as market is in the dump). how to keep that mortgage and create an account that earns that much and autopay it? Seems stupid to pay it off or pay interest that we won't be able to write off as probably no income.

I "semi-retired" in 2022 when I was laid off, and my wife started working as a college professor. My package plus her teaching work, covered all the bases for us as far as insurance and expenses. I'm starting SS in Jan and have the option for tax withholding via SSA but was wondering if anyone has set up a DIY escrow account (HYSA). and just did periodic prepayment of taxes or just held on to funds for annual payment at tax time.

My wife's side-hustle is picking up steam, so we've also started doing IRS prepayments for that as well and will probably continue going forward. Already have an HYSA for general funds so was thinking of setting up an additional account just for separation and then put it on autopilot.

Would you retire as soon as you possibly can or continue working until you are no longer able to do your job?

I’m in my early 60s and debating whether to keep working at my low paying part-time job, cut back, or retire.
A major factor is whether the additional income is worth potentially losing ACA subsidies and paying much higher health insurance premiums.
I’m trying to balance financial security, affordable healthcare, and enjoying retirement until Medicare kicks in.
I'm interested in personal experiences. Has anyone faced this decision? What did you choose, and would you do it again?

Retired oct 2025 and so far I am loving it. Not getting up to an alarm clock except when I have early plans is the BEST! I retired w decent SS and a med pension, still put some cash away each month. I have taken myself to Korea for a Kpop concert, seen several more here in the states. Done road trips, visited family and friends and done a little apt. redecorating. Most of my friends are still working, so still wait till after 5 or weekends to hang out with them. I do like that I can take a walk into town for lunch, hit a museum, the mall, run errands at 11 or 2 and don't have to commute w the masses anymore. I retired financially ok, but not great, but I wanted out because of constant leadership changes and mandatory back to work. I left a good paying job w 5 weeks of vaca because sitting in a noisy, cold and dull office situation was sucking my soul dry. Medicare so far is okay. That was the only expense that really went up. Medical for work was about 200/month (Cigna HMO), now I pay about 425/mo for PPO part B, N & D. Spend same on gas and food as I was working. Less on clothes. Love being retired.

I do have one question, I have cobra dental ins for a few more months, in So Cal, anyone have dental ins they use and recomment? Thank you.

I am 55 married with 3 young adult kids and a great wife. I have accumulated enough retirement points so i am pension eligible. Thanks to my wife we have substantial retirement savings in our 401k and Roth accounts. Our student loans once at 500k are all paid off. We have enough money to make sure our two kids still in school won't need to take student loans. My wife wants me to retire and relax.

Sounds great but I am terrified of retirement. I feel like something terrible will happen. I also fear not being useful. Is this normal? Trust me it's not that I love my job nor is my career my identity. I always thought I would excited and running to the finish line but now I am here I am dreading it. Is this a phase?