Would you rather retire earlier or spend more now?

[kiskis]

Spinoff from Swamp's comment in another thread.

But I don't really agree with his philosophy anyways. He said he's a business owner, so he wants to save enough so he can have fun when he's older. Why doesn't he just back it off a little bit and have fun now? Live on $100K and go on some vacations.

Obviously, it's not one extreme or the other, but where is your comfortable median?

I would prefer to be more on the frugal side now and be able to retire fully at an earlier age. I hate post-vacation letdown when I have to go back to work. It is the worst. Not to mention, I have vacation guilt the whole time, and my boss keeps calling me with questions. I also am not one of those who fears boredom in retirement. I really hope they have full-immersion gaming by then. Oh my god, that would be awesome.

[Deleted]

I don't mind working as long as I am able. I'd like to have lots of vacation time too but I don't need to be fully retired. I don't mind balancing out financial security and freedom.

[swamp]

Let me give you an idea where I'm coming from, though. My parents worked really hard their entire lives. My dad was a firefighter and my mom was a hairdresser. Their plan was to work really hard, sock money away, enjoy their retirement, and travel. My mom is now 70 years old and is developing Alzheimers. She also has cardiac disease, COPD from the hairspray/chemicals, and various other health issues. They still travel, but it's not nearly as much fun as they thought it would be.

I want to have some fun now while I still remember it.

[Savoir Faire-Demogague in NJ]

I've been socking away money for the last 18 years and having a grand old time.
I just established priorities and ignored the barrage of advice hurled in my direction.

[wodehouse]

Speaking from age 58.95, I agree, have some fun (lots of it) when you're in your 30's and 40's.

[Savoir Faire-Demogague in NJ]

Speaking from age 58.95, I agree, have some fun (lots of it) when you're in your 30's and 40's.

One can have tons of fun and not spend money. Much confusion exists by linking spending of resources as a requirement and necessity for fun.

[qofcc]

As long as I'm stuck in a 40 hr/wk job, I'm happy to be frugal now to reach retirement sooner. Owning a stable established business where you're no longer required to be there full-time is something different. I have a friend who works a full-time career job and also owns a successful business that has a couple dozen employees. He plans to retire next year at 55 from his job. He'll still manage his business, but he'll be "retired" because he can delegate things to his supervisory staff and take time to do what he wants when he wants. If I can get to the point where I'm owning an managing a group of rental properties and not have to go to work every day, I'll consider myself retired even if I'm still putting in many hours per month managing my investments.

[wodehouse]

SF, I agree. I could have traveled quite cheaply in my younger days (which I did not for other reasons). Now, I require places with private hot shower, clean bed, etc. OTOH, that hasn't described my two trips to the Philippines and Shanghai in the past few years.

[swamp]

May 24, 2011 12:29:43 GMT -5 Savoir Faire-Demogague in NJ said:

Speaking from age 58.95, I agree, have some fun (lots of it) when you're in your 30's and 40's.

One can have tons of fun and not spend money. Much confusion exists by linking spending of resources as a requirement and necessity for fun.

Taking time off from work costs me money since it's my business. However, it's a trade off I'm willing to make.

And I disagree that there are "tons of fun" to be had without spending ANY money. Cheap fun, yes, but free, no. You gotta pay to get wherever you're going. We have a garden, I still have to pay for the seeds and the fertilizer. If I take the kids fishing, I still have to pay for the equipment or bait. If I take the jetskis or boat out (which are paid for) I have to pay for gas. If I take the kids to the park, I have to pay for gas to get there.

[Frugal Nurse]

I have no problems working into my late 60's if it means I get to enjoy the ride to retirement. I'm in a good situation though. I only work 3 days per week, and in 2 years I will be able to move into a position where I make my own schedule. The only requirement will be that I work at least 40 hours per month and my pay will increase by $20/hour (but benefits will be gone). At that rate, I could work 20 hours per week and be fine financially, so I could always do that if I become unable to work the bedside 12 hours /day. As for right now, I'm young and healthy and I will enjoy right now. I do have retirement savings, as does DH, but I don't plan on living in poverty just so I can say I have $1 million in the bank.

[Gardening Grandma]

May 24, 2011 12:20:04 GMT -5 swamp said:

Let me give you an idea where I'm coming from, though. My parents worked really hard their entire lives. My dad was a firefighter and my mom was a hairdresser. Their plan was to work really hard, sock money away, enjoy their retirement, and travel. My mom is now 70 years old and is developing Alzheimers. She also has cardiac disease, COPD from the hairspray/chemicals, and various other health issues. They still travel, but it's not nearly as much fun as they thought it would be.

I want to have some fun now while I still remember it.

swamp,
I am really sorry about your Mom. Esp at 70 - still relatively young retirement wise. DH wanted to retire, but he was also very, very worried about the financial aspect (his worry was not warranted). What really made up his mind was a friend who died just a couple of years after retiring.
It really IS about finding a balance between saving for a comfortable retirement, while enjoying life along the way. And when you still have kids, it's also about making memories.

[dancinmama]

May 24, 2011 12:29:43 GMT -5 Savoir Faire-Demogague in NJ said:

Speaking from age 58.95, I agree, have some fun (lots of it) when you're in your 30's and 40's.

One can have tons of fun and not spend money. Much confusion exists by linking spending of resources as a requirement and necessity for fun.

I'm with you. Who said that having fun has to cost a lot of money?

The trick is to save like crazy and prioritize what it REALLY important to you and get a lot of value for your money (a lot of bang for your buck). Staying out of debt is HUGE, but it means waiting until you actually have the money in hand to buy - that's not really giving up a lot of "fun". Neither is foregoing a new car every three or four years. I don't consider buying "stuff" fun.

For me, "fun" comes from experiences with people. Spending time with family and friends - now that's FUN and doesn't have to cost a ton of money. Throw some burgers on the grill, blend up a pitcher of margaritas - lots of fun for very little money. ;D

[kiskis]

May 24, 2011 12:20:04 GMT -5 swamp said:

Let me give you an idea where I'm coming from, though. My parents worked really hard their entire lives. My dad was a firefighter and my mom was a hairdresser. Their plan was to work really hard, sock money away, enjoy their retirement, and travel. My mom is now 70 years old and is developing Alzheimers. She also has cardiac disease, COPD from the hairspray/chemicals, and various other health issues. They still travel, but it's not nearly as much fun as they thought it would be.

I want to have some fun now while I still remember it.

I understand, and I'm so sorry about your mother.

I guess I come from totally different experiences. Both my parents still work because they love work. They're just freaking weird. I enjoy my work as far as work goes, but I much prefer not working.

My grandparents and in-laws all retired early. MIL is an empty-nested SAHM. My FIL retired a few years ago at 44. He is honestly loving it and is still young enough to enjoy it for years to come. Similar situation as my grandparents. (My grandma also now has Alzheimer's, but she was in excellent health up until her 80s.)

DH and I plan to beat them and retire at 40, but in order to do that, we are frugal almost to an extreme. No heating in the winter, A/C to 80. Cheap (but healthy) food. Very rare eating out and limited vacations (but DH is anti-travel so it's not that hard). It definitely is an effort, but I don't feel like I am suffering ...that much. Fingers crossed that it's worth it in the end!

[vacaquilts]

We have our priorities. We save and budget for a vacation every yr. We have decided that traveling is important to us, as neither one of us grew up with a yrly vacation. Our kids enjoy it as well. In fact, they remember things that occured during past vacations that we don't remember. We sit around and laugh about our adventures.
Probably the money would be better spent on our retirement accts...but I need at least a wk away every yr.

[whoisjohngalt]

I struggle with this issue a lot. I had a blast in my 20's. My 30's and 40" will be spend doing work/raising family stuff. I am hoping that by mid 50's we can "retire".

The problem is that with all the financial and otherwise planning the is one thing that none of us can predict and that's health. My grandparents were super active, my grandfather still rode his bike at 91 and my grandmother traveled until late 80's. My parents are in their 60's and still work. They would retire, if it wasn't for expense of health insurance.

My DH's parents, however, in their early 70's and have more doctor's appts than there are days in a month. And that scares the bejezus out of me.

Even though I don't like Robert Kiosaki (sp?), there is one very valuable thing I got from his books and that's to have multiple streams of income. We are working on that. If the plan works, it will be much easier to "retire".

Lena

[Deleted]

I think DH and I are balancing it pretty well. DH is 72 and retired, I'm 58. I intend to work till 65 or so, but one thing that's been left out of the discussion so far is whether you'll be able to work at a substantial job as long as you want to. I read so many sad stories from the financial crisis about people who lost a job in their 50s and never found another one. SS is also getting way more people than they expected starting to collect benefits at age 62. No job, so they file for benefits to get positive cash flow. For that reason, I'm saving a lot. It's a good feeling right now that if I did get dumped on the street and couldn't find another job we'd be OK.

Having a husband who's 15 years older and has some health issues keeps me from wanting to postpone all the fun till after I retire. He may not be around, or he may not be up for the same travel adventures. Our last trip (2 weeks in Spain with a couple of days in Zurich at the end), he came down with a cold that morphed into pneumonia after we came home and recovery is positive but slow. I dread the day when he's going to say, "Honey, go without me", but it may come at some point. So, we do try to balance saving with enjoying some of our money now.

[Savoir Faire-Demogague in NJ]

And I disagree that there are "tons of fun" to be had without spending ANY money. Cheap fun, yes, but free, no. You gotta pay to get wherever you're going. We have a garden, I still have to pay for the seeds and the fertilizer. If I take the kids fishing, I still have to pay for the equipment or bait. If I take the jetskis or boat out (which are paid for) I have to pay for gas. If I take the kids to the park, I have to pay for gas to get there.

You are talking incidental costs. Once you buy tackle and gear, the cost is sunk. Gardening, incidental costs. A day at the beach, gas money, tolls, beach tags... insignificant.

[swamp]

May 24, 2011 13:16:57 GMT -5 Savoir Faire-Demogague in NJ said:

And I disagree that there are "tons of fun" to be had without spending ANY money. Cheap fun, yes, but free, no. You gotta pay to get wherever you're going. We have a garden, I still have to pay for the seeds and the fertilizer. If I take the kids fishing, I still have to pay for the equipment or bait. If I take the jetskis or boat out (which are paid for) I have to pay for gas. If I take the kids to the park, I have to pay for gas to get there.

You are talking incidental costs. Once you buy tackle and gear, the cost is sunk. Gardening, incidental costs. A day at the beach, gas money, tolls, beach tags... insignificant.

Incidental does not equal free. But I agree with you that fun doesn't require a ton of money.

[thyme4change]

What do you consider "ealier?" I'm certainly not planning at retiring at 50 years old - I don't know what I would do all day. But, I don't plan to work until I'm 75 either. I told my husband I was retiring at 65, whether he wanted to or not. All my retirement calculators have me retiring at 60 - but only because I'm afraid some company will age-discriminate and I won't bother getting another job. My husband is younger than me, so he can support me until he reaches whatever age he will retire at. Both sets of our parents are very healthy and active at 75 years old, so we will likely have some time before too many health problems start kicking in.

[Taxman10]

May 24, 2011 13:21:45 GMT -5 swamp said:

May 24, 2011 13:16:57 GMT -5 Savoir Faire-Demogague in NJ said:

And I disagree that there are "tons of fun" to be had without spending ANY money. Cheap fun, yes, but free, no. You gotta pay to get wherever you're going. We have a garden, I still have to pay for the seeds and the fertilizer. If I take the kids fishing, I still have to pay for the equipment or bait. If I take the jetskis or boat out (which are paid for) I have to pay for gas. If I take the kids to the park, I have to pay for gas to get there.

You are talking incidental costs. Once you buy tackle and gear, the cost is sunk. Gardening, incidental costs. A day at the beach, gas money, tolls, beach tags... insignificant.

Incidental does not equal free. But I agree with you that fun doesn't require a ton of money.

I'm glad to see you 2 have stopped squabbling :-)

[kiskis]

May 24, 2011 13:41:33 GMT -5 thyme4change said:

What do you consider "ealier?"

It's relative. More costly expenditures now mean less money you can put towards retirement savings. More money going towards retirement savings mean less money you can spend now. This question is just asking where you find your balance.

[thyme4change]

The younger you are, the less likely you can pick a real number as the age you intend to retire. I'm in my 40's and I don't know what healthcare will cost in 10 years, so I don't know how much I need, so I can't for sure say if I could afford to retire.

[azphx1972]

Well, there are some important non-monetary factors involved as some people have mentioned: health, and creating memories for children. The other big consideration is whether you enjoy your career or not. I like my job most of the time, but there are days when I want nothing more than to tell my boss to shove it and walk out the door. In addition, I have no idea if my job will still be here in 10 or 20 years, and even if it is there's no guarantee that it will continue to pay well thanks to increased international competition. So I have to treat my income like lottery winnings and assume that this is as good as my earned income is going to get, and live accordingly. That means saving & investing most of what I earn and spending a little for enjoyment. YMMV.

[april47]

That's kind of a moot point to a lot of people. They don't have money to spend on anything but necessities now and they won't when they retire either.

[CPWnyc]

How about doing both? retiring a lil early and spend a lil more. I have no interest in working past 55 so I've been planning on retiring around 50ish. I've been maxing out 403b, IRA since 23 and after 30yrs of service, I'll eligible for a pension(if it still exits).

Working in a medical field, I know that nothing is a guarantee. I've seen people in 30s,40s and 50s had medical conditions that debilitated them that they couldn't do anything other than survive each day.
I'd rather do things that I enjoy the most when I am in my 30s than in my 60-70s.

Live for today but also prepare for tomorrows.

[NoNamePerson]

May 24, 2011 12:23:23 GMT -5 Savoir Faire-Demogague in NJ said:

I've been socking away money for the last 18 years and having a grand old time.
I just established priorities and ignored the barrage of advice hurled in my direction.

I did everything wrong according to most post on this board. But traveled and enjoyed life while young with a kid in tow and am thoroughly enjoying retirement.

I feel for those who are spending all their time worrying about every penny. Probably cause an early demise. Then your heirs can enjoy it all

[debtheaven]

How about doing both? retiring a lil early and spend a lil more.

This is our goal too. Not as early as you, but hopefully at 59 and 63, when our youngest child finishes college. We could probably swing it at 56 and 60, but DH feels that 60 is a bit too young. I was lucky enough to start a second career at 49, so I'd like to continue it for a while. We also have to factor in DH's business partner. He is two years older than DH, and in terrible financial shape. But he will inherit from his very elderly dad at some point, so that's a wild card.

Maybe all the trips we have taken together as a family will have put our retirement off for a year or two. But my only regret today is not having been able to afford more of them. My three older kids are quickly flying the nest, I have NO regrets for the wonderful times we have shared.

[Frugal Nurse]

May 24, 2011 14:30:44 GMT -5 april47 said:

That's kind of a moot point to a lot of people. They don't have money to spend on anything but necessities now and they won't when they retire either.

That is a sad and unnecessary reality. People could have extra money now and in retirement if they would just live within their means and increase their incomes.

[kiskis]

May 24, 2011 16:23:39 GMT -5 NoNamePerson said:

I did everything wrong according to most post on this board. But traveled and enjoyed life while young with a kid in tow and am thoroughly enjoying retirement.

I feel for those who are spending all their time worrying about every penny. Probably cause an early demise. Then your heirs can enjoy it all

When you are in your mid- to late-20s, how do you know if you are saving enough / too much? I guess I would just rather err on the cautious side, even though it takes a little sacrifice.

However, that being said, I probably still play a lot more than most seeing as how I live in a resort beach community. Lucky that DH's job comes with a lot of perks, like free use of boats, so we go fishing or cruising just about every weekend in the summer at no cost other than tackle.

[robbase]

better to have FU money than spend now. this advice was advice I was given and heeded in my mid-twenties, now nearing 40 I am almost at the point where I have FU money and it is feeling good