Retirement Planning Thread

[Folster]

Lots of different articles on this.

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[Zeno]

Yet another reason to not count on Social Security as anything more than gravy in retirement.

 

[Jersey Girl]

Do you only have to got 10 years for full pension benefits?

Yes. You need to have 10 years in to be fully vested in the pension.

 

[Jersey Girl]

Yet another reason to not count on Social Security as anything more than gravy in retirement.

I think they're gonna have to figure out something though. Like many, I've been paying into that system since I was 15. I wish I had had the option to invest all that money on my own. I am sure my return would have been better.

 

[Dback Jon]

I think they're gonna have to figure out something though. Like many, I've been paying into that system since I was 15. I wish I had had the option to invest all that money on my own. I am sure my return would have been better.

Most people would have spent it. And had nothing.

 

[Jersey Girl]

And yet the GOP won’t do anything because they want to eSocial Security and Medic



Most people would have spent it. And had nothing.

I don't doubt it. Of course, if there isn't anything to be had when we retire, then the end result would be the same.

 

[Devilmaycare]

I think they're gonna have to figure out something though. Like many, I've been paying into that system since I was 15. I wish I had had the option to invest all that money on my own. I am sure my return would have been better.

I'd love to be able to invest it even if it was more like a 401k where I have a list of funds to chose from and not fully self managed. I'll even go for that just happening from here forward with the previous pay ins sticking with the traditional system.

 

[Russ Smith]

Lots of different articles on this.

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This is why IMO they need to raise the cap on FICA so that people who max out on it pay in more during the year before they max out. It's only the high earners that max out.

 

[Folster]

I think they're gonna have to figure out something though. Like many, I've been paying into that system since I was 15. I wish I had had the option to invest all that money on my own. I am sure my return would have been better.

It was never your money. Money that you paid in went to current retirees. It's a government run ponzi scheme and like all ponzi schemes, they collapse when there aren't enough inflows to cover the outflows.

That doest mean that those benefits will stop immediately as the government can just increase the deficit. But eventually that will have dire consequences.

 

[Folster]

And yet the GOP won’t do anything because they want to eSocial Security and Medic



Most people would have spent it. And had nothing.

Let's try to keep this apolitical.

 

[Russ Smith]

I'd love to be able to invest it even if it was more like a 401k where I have a list of funds to chose from and not fully self managed. I'll even go for that just happening from here forward with the previous pay ins sticking with the traditional system.

I've been saying this for years if there were a way to opt out of Social Security so you don't have to pay it and have to waive the right to ever get it, I would have done so years ago and been way ahead for it.

It's frustrating. A friend of mine for over 20 years asked me a few months ago why her rollover 401K wasn't doing very well. I said it must be the markets been way up and I referred you to the person at Fidelity who is managing mine so you MUST be way ahead. Turns out my manager has a minimum amount and she was below that, but she never told me that so I thought Fidelity was managing her money and it was in a holding account the whole time making almost no interest!

She's fairly risk averse because she has no experience with stocks so in the end I got her to put about 60% into FFFEX which is a time horizon Fidelity Fund for when she'll be 65. She actually should be MUCH more aggressive since she's playing catchup but I know she'd panic if the markets went down. I think she bought in at 19.90 not sure either that or 20 it's at 20.50 as of close yesterday so she's up something like 800 dollars I don't recall exactly how many shares she got. She's absolutely thrilled. I feel terrible I thought she was being managed for the last 18 months and she thought I knew she wasn't. So now I just gave her a list of things to consider for the last 40%.

She never grasped it's in a holding fund because before she rolled it over to Fidelity it was in the funds she had in her 401K. So she made money before, asked me to help her roll it over, I did and I just assumed she'd reinvested it when she hadn't. She probably missed 3 years of really good returns I'm not entirely clear how long it's been in that holding account

 

[Dback Jon]

Let's try to keep this apolitical.

Sorry - that was a feature of the board - when you start a post, then end it, it keeps it in the memory. I only meant to have the last part - didn't notice the part I thought I had erased was still there -will fix

 

[Jersey Girl]

It was never your money. Money that you paid in went to current retirees. It's a government run ponzi scheme and like all ponzi schemes, they collapse when there aren't enough inflows to cover the outflows.

That doest mean that those benefits will stop immediately as the government can just increase the deficit. But eventually that will have dire consequences.

Considering it came from my working wages, I'd argue that it was my money (though I understand where it went and what you're getting at).

 

[Zeno]

Retirement is coming closer, as I approach 2 years until eligibility (July 2028) I am becoming even more focused on having everything in order. I run constant Monte Carlo simulations for future years earnings, I use AI to calculate taxes, pension (including my COLA), SS etc. I know I often overthink, but I want to be prepared for surprises and have as comfortable a retirement as I possibly can. My wife and I also don't have heirs so we want to make sure we spend what we saved without depleting it early at the same time not dying the richest people in the graveyard. That's a tougher thing to manage than I had anticipated, nobody knows when our time is up for sure but do i set my life expectancy to 85 or 90 and use that as the zero mark? All kinds of financial advisors have theories on this and they vary.

The good news is my TSP (gov employee 401K) has exceeded the amount I wanted the balance to be at in retirement, in fact I am about $175,000 beyond what I originally was aiming at with 2 years to go. Between my pension & TSP taking pretty conservative withdrawals I am actually on track to make a little more money than I do working and that is before social security kicks in. I also have a Roth IRA that is doing better than anticipated as well but I can't touch that until I am 59.5 (I will be 56 when I retire) anyway so I don't even use it in these calculations.

My wife retired last June, she also has a pension, TSP and a Roth IRA. She is enjoying life, hasn't made a TSP withdrawal yet since I am still working.

Taxes, down markets & inflation are a focus now and IRMAA & RMDs are a future concern that I feel like I need to plan for ahead of time.

 

[82CardsGrad]

Retirement is coming closer, as I approach 2 years until eligibility (July 2028) I am becoming even more focused on having everything in order. I run constant Monte Carlo simulations for future years earnings, I use AI to calculate taxes, pension (including my COLA), SS etc. I know I often overthink, but I want to be prepared for surprises and have as comfortable a retirement as I possibly can. My wife and I also don't have heirs so we want to make sure we spend what we saved without depleting it early at the same time not dying the richest people in the graveyard. That's a tougher thing to manage than I had anticipated, nobody knows when our time is up for sure but do i set my life expectancy to 85 or 90 and use that as the zero mark? All kinds of financial advisors have theories on this and they vary.

The good news is my TSP (gov employee 401K) has exceeded the amount I wanted the balance to be at in retirement, in fact I am about $175,000 beyond what I originally was aiming at with 2 years to go. Between my pension & TSP taking pretty conservative withdrawals I am actually on track to make a little more money than I do working and that is before social security kicks in. I also have a Roth IRA that is doing better than anticipated as well but I can't touch that until I am 59.5 (I will be 56 when I retire) anyway so I don't even use it in these calculations.

My wife retired last June, she also has a pension, TSP and a Roth IRA. She is enjoying life, hasn't made a TSP withdrawal yet since I am still working.

Taxes, down markets & inflation are a focus now and IRMAA & RMDs are a future concern that I feel like I need to plan for ahead of time.

You seem to be on a solid path toward a comfortable retirement phase of your life journey. I turned 62 today actually...and like you, I've been thinking about retirement more and more with each passing month, week, day...
ChatGpt has been incredible in terms of providing very sound, practical guidance (seriously, will there be a need for financial planners in the future??). I don't have the luxury of a pension and I also will not be inheriting anything of significance. My 401k has done very well, especially over the past 6 years or so. I also can begin accessing my deferred compensation plan when I turn 69, which, along with SS and my 401k (which I'll be converting to a Roth IRA), I should be fine. #fingerscrossed

 

[Zeno]

You seem to be on a solid path toward a comfortable retirement phase of your life journey. I turned 62 today actually...and like you, I've been thinking about retirement more and more with each passing month, week, day...
ChatGpt has been incredible in terms of providing very sound, practical guidance (seriously, will there be a need for financial planners in the future??). I don't have the luxury of a pension and I also will not be inheriting anything of significance. My 401k has done very well, especially over the past 6 years or so. I also can begin accessing my deferred compensation plan when I turn 69, which, along with SS and my 401k (which I'll be converting to a Roth IRA), I should be fine. #fingerscrossed

Its always nice to feel prepared. Much better than the alternative for sure.

I use ChatGpt a lot too, I run all kinds of scenarios--down markets, good markets, making higher withdrawals earlier in retirement when I am younger and more able/willing to travel and do stuff, making steady withdrawals, adjusting withdrawals based on inflation, it calculated based on the average last 10 years cost of living allowance for federal pensions my projected future payout amounts and I had it calculate my SS earnings based on me stopping working at 56 rather than the 62+ the annual statement figures (costs me a couple hundred $$ a month). AI is super helpful, if you feed it enough data and are clear about what you want its super helpful. I did have to correct it once when it was using 2025 tax year information rather than 2026 but otherwise I have had no issues.

Oh, yesterday I had it calculate working days until my December 2028 retirement date, 610 working days (not including weekends and vacation days).

 

[Shane]

Retirement sucks guys. Just keep working.

 

[AzStevenCal]

Retirement sucks guys. Just keep working.

I retired early and it was real up and down for me until my wife retired 12 years ago. Now, we do absolutely nothing but get to do it together and we love it.

 

[oaken1]

Retirement is coming closer, as I approach 2 years until eligibility (July 2028) I am becoming even more focused on having everything in order. I run constant Monte Carlo simulations for future years earnings, I use AI to calculate taxes, pension (including my COLA), SS etc. I know I often overthink, but I want to be prepared for surprises and have as comfortable a retirement as I possibly can. My wife and I also don't have heirs so we want to make sure we spend what we saved without depleting it early at the same time not dying the richest people in the graveyard. That's a tougher thing to manage than I had anticipated, nobody knows when our time is up for sure but do i set my life expectancy to 85 or 90 and use that as the zero mark? All kinds of financial advisors have theories on this and they vary.

The good news is my TSP (gov employee 401K) has exceeded the amount I wanted the balance to be at in retirement, in fact I am about $175,000 beyond what I originally was aiming at with 2 years to go. Between my pension & TSP taking pretty conservative withdrawals I am actually on track to make a little more money than I do working and that is before social security kicks in. I also have a Roth IRA that is doing better than anticipated as well but I can't touch that until I am 59.5 (I will be 56 when I retire) anyway so I don't even use it in these calculations.

My wife retired last June, she also has a pension, TSP and a Roth IRA. She is enjoying life, hasn't made a TSP withdrawal yet since I am still working.

Taxes, down markets & inflation are a focus now and IRMAA & RMDs are a future concern that I feel like I need to plan for ahead of time.

If you need an heir brother my services are available.
I can send Christmas/mother's day cards,...host 1 barbecue per summer, and supply 4 calls yearly as to why I can't make it.

 

[oaken1]

T

Retirement sucks guys. Just keep working.

THats my plan...cannot afford to fully retire anyway... best I'm hoping for is a side business and a P/T telecommute

 

[Superbone]

Retirement sucks guys. Just keep working.

I hope this is sarcasm. I retired in 2023 at 60-years-old and it was the best decision ever! Life is good. I'm sure the fact that I had a heart attack at 58 (after game 4 of our Finals series against the Bucks) was a huge influence on retiring on the early side. Since then I've worked tirelessly on getting into fantastic shape. I moved back to Arizona in 2024. I have traveled to Europe and around the country. I'm a musician and joined a couple bands so that's been a blast. I recently got a girlfriend who is a little more than 10 years younger than me that is planning on retiring at 55 in a couple years. She's a big time traveler so I look forward to doing that with her.

I highly recommend Boldin (formerly New Retirement) retirement planning software. It will help you know when you can retire but I also advise getting a second opinion from a fiduciary retirement planner. And watch out for "one more year" syndrome. You can't take it with you. I was a little nervous about pulling the trigger but my net worth has actually increased since retiring from my job. I know I've been lucky as the market has been up as there is something called sequence of returns risk. Make sure you have a plan that can weather any market downturn as they WILL happen.

Just make sure you know what you're retiring to and think about how you want to spend your new freedom. But I highly recommend it when you can afford to do so and it might be earlier than you think.

 

[Shane]

I hope this is sarcasm. I retired in 2023 at 60-years-old and it was the best decision ever! Life is good. I'm sure the fact that I had a heart attack at 58 (after game 4 of our Finals series against the Bucks) was a huge influence on retiring on the early side. Since then I've worked tirelessly on getting into fantastic shape. I moved back to Arizona in 2024. I have traveled to Europe and around the country. I'm a musician and joined a couple bands so that's been a blast. I recently got a girlfriend who is a little more than 10 years younger than me that is planning on retiring at 55 in a couple years. She's a big time traveler so I look forward to doing that with her.

I highly recommend Boldin (formerly New Retirement) retirement planning software. It will help you know when you can retire but I also advise getting a second opinion from a fiduciary retirement planner. And watch out for "one more year" syndrome. You can't take it with you. I was a little nervous about pulling the trigger but my net worth has actually increased since retiring from my job. I know I've been lucky as the market has been up as there is something called sequence of returns risk. Make sure you have a plan that can weather any market downturn as they WILL happen.

Just make sure you know what you're retiring to and think about how you want to spend your new freedom. But I highly recommend it when you can afford to do so and it might be earlier than you think.

It was I retired almost 7 years ago at 46

 

[Superbone]

It was I retired almost 7 years ago at 46

OK, cool. Sarcasm it was.

 

[Zeno]

I hope this is sarcasm. I retired in 2023 at 60-years-old and it was the best decision ever! Life is good. I'm sure the fact that I had a heart attack at 58 (after game 4 of our Finals series against the Bucks) was a huge influence on retiring on the early side. Since then I've worked tirelessly on getting into fantastic shape. I moved back to Arizona in 2024. I have traveled to Europe and around the country. I'm a musician and joined a couple bands so that's been a blast. I recently got a girlfriend who is a little more than 10 years younger than me that is planning on retiring at 55 in a couple years. She's a big time traveler so I look forward to doing that with her.

I highly recommend Boldin (formerly New Retirement) retirement planning software. It will help you know when you can retire but I also advise getting a second opinion from a fiduciary retirement planner. And watch out for "one more year" syndrome. You can't take it with you. I was a little nervous about pulling the trigger but my net worth has actually increased since retiring from my job. I know I've been lucky as the market has been up as there is something called sequence of returns risk. Make sure you have a plan that can weather any market downturn as they WILL happen.

Just make sure you know what you're retiring to and think about how you want to spend your new freedom. But I highly recommend it when you can afford to do so and it might be earlier than you think.

I've seen Boldin advertised on YouTube ads when I am watching some of the financial advisors. It looks helpful for sure.

I may actually do the one time fee for a federal employee specific retirement advisor to outline our plan (my wife, retired last year as a Fed, I am a current Fed). My numbers all show we are fine but it'd be nice to hear that from an expert, especially one that is used to the federal retirement system.

That "one more year" thing hopefully won't hit me, right now I am ready to go, just need to be patient for the next couple of years.