When is the best time to retire?
Outside of how much money you need for retirement and will you run out of money questions…
Lately we’ve been seeing an unusual trend…people who want to retire at age 67…
Hmmm…what’s significant about age 67?
It’s the qualification age for Centrelink age pension…
Now, I totally understand if you are eligible, and that’s part of your retirement plan.
But for many, that’s not the case…
There’s a critical problem with this line of thinking…
Retire too late and you may not have time nor be fit and able to enjoy the lifestyle you’d dreamt off in retirement.
Retire too early and you run the risk of running out of money and risking poverty in retirement.
I’m sure you want neither…
Outside of “How much is Enough?”. The next question on many pre-retiree’s minds is when can I retire.
Get your PDF copy of ENOUGH? here…
Retired in their 40’s…
A professional couple in their late 30’s and early 40’s came to us about 8 years ago.
They were driven to retire earlier than most..in their late 40’s.
A second marriage for the wife and the first for the husband with no kids living at home.
Their journey was not smooth sailing…they’d had a business which went bad in their early 30’s and left them on the canvas.
They picked themselves up and re-established themselves financially.
We started working with these folks to create a roadmap. One which would see them in a financial position to retire without having to worry about money.
They had one major concern…was this feasible?
A critical component of this roadmap was long term forecasting. In this case for some 40 or 50 years to identify any blind spots or issues that needed addressing.
They were in a privileged position where they had the financial resources to work towards their goal of retiring in their late 40’s. They were also comfortable returning to work later in life if they had too…
It wasn’t their financial position driving early retirement but the desire to live life while they were fit and able.
For this couple it was their love of sailing and exploring new countries and cultures.
Over their life, they had experienced the loss of their parents earlier than most.
After seeing their parents pass away so soon, they didn’t want to leave it too late to enjoy the life they wanted for themselves. While they were fit and able…
The point here is not the financial position they were in…they are in the minority who retire in their 40’s.
They were retiring too something…they had a plan and a roadmap.
What are you retiring too…
It’s likely you’ll fall into one of three cohorts of retirees…
- The “I’m done” crowd
- The “I have to” crowd
- The “I’m inspired” crowd
Whichever category you fit into is fine.
If you have nothing to retire too, what’s the point of retiring…
How are you going to spend your time?
After your retirement honeymoon, then what?
The modern retirement can last 20…30 years or more.
An exercise we take all pre-retirees through is designed to help explore the type of activities they will fill their weeks with.
There’s only so much golf one can play in a week…
Sure, you’ll have the mandatory overseas holidays and perhaps you have dreams of spending the winter months traveling in your caravan to warmer parts of Australia.
But after you’ve ticked off your bucket list destinations, then what…
What activities are going to occupy the rest of your days, weeks and years?
Perhaps it’s a new hobby…keeping fit…volunteering…a new skill or maybe it’s a career change…
The retirees we see live a successful retirement retire too something…not from something.
The retirement balancing act…
While you may have an idea at what age you want to retire, you’ve got to make sure you’ve got the money side sorted.
Imagine for a moment, you have more than enough money, to live the lifestyle you enjoy…
For the rest of your life..
You never have to worry about money again, ever…
The only trouble is…you just don’t know what your number is.
What would that clarity mean for you?
No more worrying about your super or investment balances. Constantly checking and worrying about whether you’ll have enough to see you through your retirement.
A Successful retirement…
Retiring successfully involves a fine balance between having enough and leaving enough time to enjoy your retirement. While you are fit and able too…
Earlier you’ll recall we were seeing a trend of people wanting to retire at 67 with no real reason or purpose. Other than 67 is the qualifying age for the age pension…
For some of these folks they were in position to take the plunge earlier than 67, for others they needed to make some important decisions.
Don’t you want to know whether you are on track to retire comfortably and confidently?
We’re also finding those who are wanting to retire within the next 10 years are struggling with putting a roadmap together.
They don’t have a GPS guiding them towards their comfortable retirement…
It’s hard to figure it out on your own…to zoom out and assess your current position and work out what’s right for you.
This is a serious problem…if you don’t get this part right, you don’t need me to tell how bad this ends.
This is why knowing your numbers can be enlightening…it gives you options and more important confidence to retire when you want too.
Perhaps you can start your retirement journey earlier than expected.
Maybe you need to work a little longer or work reduced hours as you transition over a period of time…
Or maybe you can retire now…
The right time to retire is when you have the financial resources and you are ready…
If you’re within 10 years of retirement and struggling to figure out your retirement roadmap.
Request a call by emailing me at gdoherty@jigsawprivatewealth.com.au or click here and request a call at your convenience.
Glenn Doherty – CFP – Retirement Planning Specialist | Retirement Planning Made Simple for Over 55’s powered by Life-Centred Financial Planning
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