I went ahead and did it, now the wait...
bpost
Member Posts: 32,669 ✭✭✭✭
My full retirement age is 66 years 8 months. I turn 65 in March 2023. I applied for Social Security to start in March 2023 and will work an additional month or two after that to make sure I have a clean slate to retire on.
It is amazing how fast 65 years has gone by. I am losing money in my retirement accounts much faster than it can be replaced. There is going to be lean times for me in the future but I would rather retire and do the things I want to do rather than having to do the things I must for someone else.
The medical side of things in retirement is confusing but I think I will go with United Healthcare Plan "G" to cover the stuff that needs covered. It blows my mind how expensive medicines have gotten. We sure take the short stick when it comes to medical costs in the USA.
Shooting ARA Benchrest Rimfire has become a focus. I have the rifles, I have the range to practice, now all I need to do is to learn how to read the wind. A fart from a fly will move your 22 LR bullet enough at 50 yards to turn a sure 100 point shot into 50 points. The wind is the king. Now when spring hits I will have time to learn how to read the wind flags and spend more time fishing and doing the home projects I have stacked up.
I am looking for a 8 foot pick up bed camper that has the basics and a shower. That way when I travel to shoot in matches I won't be paying for hotels.
Comments
Retirement isn't for sissies. I've been so busy since that day I haven't had time to get all my relaxing done. 😆
Susie is right. I only work (at a job) 15 to 18 hours a week. I have no time to do most of what I want to do.
A lot of retired folks I talked to said they found they could live on a lot less than they thought. I was doing well the first few years after retirement, but the last couple of years I've seen my disposable income shrink.
Oh, well. Like a friend told me, " I want the last check that I write before I die to bounce."
When the kids are grown and on their own and you are debt free it does not take much to live well.Congratulations on your retirement.
When I retired I shot trap 5 days a week. I was shooting 100 to 200 rounds a day, and went from shooting in the 20s to going clean for 200.
Good thing I was working from a pallet of 40,000 rounds of Winchester AA.
Margaret Thatcher
"There are three kinds of lies: lies, damned lies and statistics."
Mark Twain
your 3 months older than i am , but i plan on waiting until full retirement just because i take such a big hit if I do it now ,
plus I just purchased a new truck this week and i want it paid way down or off before I quit working
That is why I spent like a drunken fool for the last year or so but paid down debt and paid cash for everything else. The icing on the cake was the generous Christmas bonus I got yesterday. It made a huge difference in my plans. My vehicles are paid off the boat will be in two months. For the last year or so I have purchased many (too many) things I wanted and they are all paid for. I even bought the paint, brushes and all sorts of construction lumber and stuff to finish projects on the agenda.
I really would not mind doing a commission only business to business outside sales gig part time. I have a lot of experience in business to business sales and something interesting will pop up when I least expect it. If I "work" one or two days a week, days of my own choice, to make a few bucks doing it I will be able to keep buying a bunch of stuff that may catch my eye.
I found the hit in reduced SS payments did not add up to me getting more in the end. If, say for example, your SS payment is $2,500 a month at 65 and $3,000 at 66 years 8 months old. You have left $50,000 on the table you could have collected. They have this game down pat. They know many will wait for that magic number then retire. Their hope is you croak before making up the difference and way too many folks do.
I can still earn almost 20K after I retire before SS starts taking some back. All the while I am getting my SS starting in March and collecting a pay check until the numbers add up to the max before penalty. I am going to bank every dime of SS money and keep working to collect as much as I can before pulling the plug.
Now you can go buy an airplane.
The next 15 years will go a hell of a lot faster, make good use of them.
Good for you, congrats.
I finally separated from work. On Veterans Day told them I wouldn't be back.
Bought a house in the woods. Should be the way I want it ten years. Life is good.
I retired when I turned 60 years old from the railroad, I’ve been retired now 13 years. At first it will seem a little strange account of your use to getting up each day and going to work, trust me that will pass. The secret to retirement is to keep busy, you just don’t want to sit on the back porch and worry about getting older. Congratulations and enjoy, you deserve it.
My pop turned 80 last July and has no plans to retire. I guess you just have to have picked the right profession.
And fiery auto crashes
Some will die in hot pursuit
While sifting through my ashes
Some will fall in love with life
And drink it from a fountain
That is pouring like an avalanche
Coming down the mountain
The way things are going downhill where I work it will be sooner then I initially planned
Mickey wouldn't put you out on the street would he???????
Can't say much but the changes haven't been for the better
Congratulations on retirement. Finances have a way of working their way out.
For the part time work try to find a service that people want but don’t want to do themselves.
You would be surprised about how much you can make doing a service that people don’t want to do.
For example I believe my wife would almost pay a small fortune to have someone wash the house windows.
I 'retired' @ 57 on a Civil Service early out offer, got our blind Son graduated from college, and got another federal service job. I'm now 12 years into a second career and have reached the highest step on that ladder with no potential for increase. Just floating along, working on the farm and shooting/hunting when I feel like it.
At 70 years old, 60 hours per week is getting tougher.
Retirement starts off a little scary, but when you realize you won't go hungry, it is GREAT. Good luck to you.
Wow, that's amazing. What does he do? @Mr. Perfect
He is a land use planner and community design consultant. He has worked in Snohomish, Pierce, and Kitsap counties (the latter mostly) in WA for over 40 years with an additional 10+ working in the public sector for Snohomish and Kistap.
And fiery auto crashes
Some will die in hot pursuit
While sifting through my ashes
Some will fall in love with life
And drink it from a fountain
That is pouring like an avalanche
Coming down the mountain
Oh wow. So he is is good at reading a crystal ball ? Kudos to him.
What do they want
what do they need
what does the future hold
what will my plans bring
???
And fiery auto crashes
Some will die in hot pursuit
While sifting through my ashes
Some will fall in love with life
And drink it from a fountain
That is pouring like an avalanche
Coming down the mountain