When should people retire and where?
 

Is The Villages right for everyone? If someone is on a limited budget and are watching money closely, should they avoid the approximately $150 monthly amenity fee and live closeby?

How old is the right time to retire? What would be your advice as to when a person is ready to retire financially???

We were in our sixties and Husband was still working and I had just finished chemo and radiation or I would have been working too, when we retired as snowbirds in 2008. Hubs worked until last year..

There is no "right" time for us to do anything.

My wife and I are totally free spirits and we can do anything we feel like doing, as long as it is not too expensive. Today our choice was to work in the yard and remove some shrubs. Tomorrow, who knows?

:ho: Glad I got to read that one!

It's true. Not everyone can afford to live here and there are other options close to here. I think if I had to worry I would not have retired. It takes a lot of planning. ( I also find I have more money now that I don't put my 2 cents in so much ) :1rotfl:

One of my golfing buddies (who had 15 years on me) always told me, "Retire as soon as you can, you never know."



I have watched many people die too young and only enjoyed a few years of retirement.


My first visit to The Villages was in my 30's. I watched it grow. I made a plan and executed it.

$150/mth is not much for what you get, but there are some who just can't afford it.

Retire when you no longer enjoy, where you are living, you no don't need you're salary & or income where you are living

I hated all the jobs and the businesses I owned-- retirement really gave me FREEDOM--I was a slave to my customers,

Thank God I made enough $$ early and really enjoy life--alot of people worry do I have enough $$ to retire

You're lifestyle --determines what $$ U need--we are blessed we are beyond all worries

:agree:

One person I knew at work retired at 70 as he waited almost 2 years for a buyout after a merger, but decided not to wait any longer. He said he had enough saved, could afford to retire and wanted to spend as much time as he could with his family. Unfortunately his wife passed unexpectedly 6 months later. At least he had those 6 months with her versus staying at work.

Another sad case was of a colleague who did retire, but chose to not have a survivor benefit on his pension. Literally two weeks after retiring, and before his first pension check was even processed, he passed away suddenly from a previously non-diagnosed cancer. His wife, who was a housewife, did not get one pension check and had to rely on collecting social security.

There were other cases as well, some who had choices that others did not. I consider myself blessed every day that I was able to retire early and can live here in the Villages.

I agree I've been here 18yrs. and have seen many friends who worked into their late 60's early 70's not get to enjoy retirement very long before passing.. but everyone has a different story.. I was lucky i retired at 49 working 30 yrs. in an auto factory.. I loved my job but hated the weather.. I lived in Syracuse for 49 long cold dreary years.. I couldn't wait to get to fla. I was just lucky to find TV and all there is to offer

As a child I developed a philosophy that considers the time I have to spend however I like during my life is my most valuable and cherished asset. I have always tried to get "the mostest from the leastest" as I used to phrase it. This basically translates to the highest yield on time spent "slaving away". In my early adult life I tended to view my work as what I needed to do to provide for my family and myself; later on my work evolved into something I also did for the sheer the joy of it as I would have engaged in it for free, even in preference to most recreational activities. I feel I have been lucky. Most of the time I have enjoyed my work.

Now all that being said I first retired at age 35. After a few months I found myself pretty bored. One Wednesday morning I ran into a high school girlfriend in the pro shop of the country club where the golf pro, another HS classmate, was fixing me up in a foursome with retired guys, 65 -75, to play a round as all my contemporaries were at work. She asked me what I was doing. I told her I was retired. She started laughing, and told me I was too young to retire. Anyway, I soon found myself making another deal. I tried retirement again at age 41 but had a great opportunity at 48 which I accepted. At 52 I semiretired and it took. Since then I have traveled to 79 countries and enjoyed many recreational activities. At age 77 I still enjoy my work and spend as little or as much time as I choose at it. I think I will hang in there until my health won't let me

If you want to try the lifestyle rent for a year. No amenity fee or water/sewer bill, no landscaping, no bond or taxes, you only pay for gas/electric, cable, and wi-fi.

We hadn't planned on retirement as soon as it happened but work climate changed drastically and the "R" word was attractive. We'd already visited AZ and had done the life-styles here. The latter won out due to all the amenities and we've never looked back. We did the life-styles in fall of '08, went home and soon decided the retirement gig was attractive. Came down in Feb of '09 and bought a house and moved here in the fall of '09. Never thought about renting---which might have had a positive spin on it. Everyone is different in what they're looking for in life. One thing I do know is, we only have today as tomorrow isn't promised and yesterday is already gone.

Everyone is different. Some love their work. I retired at 56 (4 years ago) and have LOVED it. We were lucky to be financially prepared to make the leap. But that was based on 30 years of sacrifice and living way below our means.

Once you retire you just need to find what you love to do and not sit around and get bored. My weekdays are pretty full here and the week ends are open to whatever we want to do. It is a great lifestyle and I am blessed to have it at such an young age.

So many variables...
 

As others have said, everyone's situation is different. I have been working full time for 36 years now. If I could afford it today and did not need my employer's health insurance, I would retire from full time employment and get a part-time job (20-25 hours a week) just to stay out of trouble.

I am 2 years and 11 months away from being able to start collecting SS, but I really don't want to start collecting at age 62. I'm hoping to wait until 65 to start collecting SS, even though my full retirement age is 67. I don't know if I have inherited more of my mother's genes (she passed away at 67) or my father's genes (he is 89), but I really don't want to wait until 67 to start collecting SS as tomorrow is guaranteed to no one. In the past few years, two friends of mine died unexpectedly. One at age 56, and the other at age 64.

And then the wild card in all of this is my job...my manager quite often brings up the topic of automation and elimination of jobs in my team sometime in the next few years. And I know whose job will be gone if automation/robotization comes to pass...mine. :(

I never enjoyed work either for others or when I was self employed-- what I really craved was freedom-- retirement gave me the freedom I always wanted-- made more than enough $, to retire before we finally gave up the rat race in 95--I was 53--and the and the Admiral was 47

The most precious commodity is time, everything else is secondary--retire ASAP, no one can buy tomorrow or the next minute

We're dealing with a forced retirement situation at my house. We would have retired in 2022, when he'd be eligible for social security, and his employer would have covered his health insurance until Medicare kicked in. They shut down the plant, and he's a skilled tradesman in an almost-obsolete trade so it's not likely he'd ever make even half of what he was making before they turned him out. Unfortunately, if he DID go back to work full time, we wouldn't qualify for ACA subsidies and our health insurance was $2000/month. Currently we don't earn enough for subsidies, but neither of us is the right age or disabled so we don't qualify for medicaid either. So I'm going back to work part time, gladly, and will happily accept a low wage. And then, we'll be able to get health insurance. Til then we're just hoping to stay healthy.

One of the ladies I used to work with at a previous job did not want to retire when she reached her mid-60's, even though Pat did not need to work for financial reasons.

About 5 years ago, Pat started to have serious problems with undiagnosed diabetes. Her doctor told her she needed to go to the hospital for a few days to get her blood sugar under control. She insisted that she had to go to work "I'm so busy at work. I can't go to the hospital." Finally her doctor convinced her of the severity of the situation. Flash forward about 4 years. A cancer that Pat thought she had beaten several years before had reoccurred and spread. A few months after the cancer returned, Pat finally retired at age 72. Pat's retirement lasted 1 month; two weeks of that month were spent in hospice. Then she died. I often told Pat she would die at her desk at work, and she almost did.

RIP Pat, I sure hope your employer appreciated you. Most employers don't appreciate their employees; for most employers their employees are just names and salaries listed in the HR database.

My advice financially is simple. Make sure you have enough money to last you, at whatever age you decide to retire.

When hubby works 16 hour days and does not want to retire yet (he loves his job) I remind him of Tom Petty, he didn’t get to retire. One of these days hubby will agree to either go part-time or retire. I am counting the days.

With me it was easy, as far as finances go, I worked enough years that if I worked anymore my further taxes would take most of the income.

Where was easy too. TV is family legacy.

Hey, you’re not the guy I met at the Webb pool about 20 or so years ago, are you? Cause you sure sound like him.

As soon as financially possible and wherever makes one happy.

I don't think there's any such thing as "should" for when and where someone retires. You "should" retire when circumstances dictate that you're retired, and you "should" retire to wherever you decide your circumstances allow best.

Life is short and money isn't everything. Do what you feel like doing. Money always works out if you're sensible. Enjoy life. You never know what tomorrow may bring.

When I read about situations such as this, I realise our much maligned Health Care System here in UK. is not so bad after all.
It may have many faults, but at least we do not live in fear of falling sick with a serious illness, and not being able to afford treatment, or worse still, being bankrupted for obtaining it, because you have no health insurance.

I dew pool-side seminars all the time.




:clap2:

With or without health insurance...............this is the hope of everyone.


:)

I loved my job, and would still be doing it if there was not for a required retirement age. When I get to 5000 post let me know to get a life

Retirement
 

Retired at 52 and never looked back. Go back and forth between Pittsburgh and The Villages.

I loved my job too, in my case I was tired of the 3 hour round trip commute, retired @ 62. Our original goal was 58 years of age to retire, we missed it. The ultimate driving force was the premature death of my 64 year old father who died a month before retirement. Have now been retired 6 years. I also lost 3 life long friends this year two aged 67 and the other 69.........happy I retired @ 62. I’ve had a very fulfilling life and have done everything I wanted to, if I pass today I have no regrets.

P.S. We have had homes in both On Top of the World and Oak Run both in Ocala. The costs to live there are less than TV, but there just isn’t enough activity at either retirement community like there is here.

I retired at 54 and my husband at 62. We moved to TV 2 weeks after his retirement. We made a good choice.

I retired the first day I turned 62. I worked 46 years and planned on early retirement 10 years before it happen. I got my son through college and graduate school, he’s set. We paid off all bills, loans, and house 10 years before we retired.
Actually in my situation I make more retired than when I worked. I suffer though last 10 years with medical issue, but I made it. IMO it’s not the amenities fees, it’s the other costs you have figure in (taxes, utilities, cost of living) Florida May not have no state taxes, but the make up for it in sales tax, county taxes IMO. Course I didn’t come from the NE.

The details aren't important anymore as they were a few years ago when uncertainty surrounded us when an unexpected health issue forced the end to a great work-life. The fact that a beautiful landing spot such as The Villages had been prepared for us and that we found it easily was and is a miracle in our lives and we are very grateful in every way for it. I was only 57 when we were shocked that the work-life had to stop immediately. I kept going until I was 58 because I was built to work and just couldn't deal with the news that I had to stop. The Doctor put it directly to me and I stopped the next day.

I have had so many people in my personal and old work-life pass during 2019. I'm so sorry for their families but it makes me even more grateful that my situation had a softer landing. It's true that there are no guarantees. Today was the best I could make it and if I get tomorrow I'm going to try and make it even better. And onward we go!

This is a story of how a couple reached very early retirement using the FIRE approach. Zero To Millionaire in Ten Years - Root of Good

Although their story is rather on the extreme side I used a similar but less sacrificial approach so I could retire at 35. I always lived well below my means, drove an older used car and so on. Luckily I had a wife who agreed to do so as well. I had started investing in the stock market while in high school out of my own pocket from earnings from a part-time job. After I got married at 25, on my lunch hour I picked up a book that inspired me. https://www.amazon.com/Turned-into-M.../dp/1607964244
and we started investing in rental apartments, moved on to commercial properties from there and it all worked out.

I enjoy your posts and hope you have many more. I am hoping my posts don't annoy you.

I read better than I hear and very much enjoy this forum.

I was 47 and my wife 37 when we retired and we have never regretted it. We have lived on boats, RVs, Mexico, Central America, and of course the USA. Time is your most important asset. Money the icing on the cake. Less is more.

Everyone needs to pick there time and no, The Villages is not for everyone as we all see from the complainers. God bless you made it through cancer. I turn 56 next week and will be retired as of 1/15. I have been out of work since April and because of all my chemo, work is just not going to happen. I will continue my 6 1/2 year battle with the hopes of getting back to the Villages soon.

I have never met anyone who on their death bed said "I wished I had worked longer"

I worked to long. I started when I was 12 and always had a job until I retired at 66. Part time through high school and college and full time except for military until I retired. I could have retired sooner and should have. I retired for a short time when I was 51 as I had 30 years with IBM and they were changing the retiree medical plan the next year and they had a buy out package so I took it. But very soon got bored and went back to work.

So my answer would always be retire as soon as you can financially. And you do not need as much money as you think you need. That was my biggest concern and it has been a non issue. And I know I could be just as happy spending a lot less than we do if we needed to. Live in a smaller home, a lower cost community, and do more things that cost less. Happiness isn't about what you have, it's about doing those things that make you happy. And I can find many free things that I enjoy and make me happy. I probably would have sailed less, fly less, golf less, eat out less, but I would have climbed more mountains, hiked more trails, cooked more, given more time vs money, and I would have enjoyed life just as much.

So again retire as soon as possible.

After I retired at 35 I did soon get bored. One day I was playing golf at the local CC with three 75 year olds and ran into a lady I had dated in high school. She asked me what I was doing and I told her I was retired. She laughed and told me I was too young to retire. Actually, my biggest problem was finding other guys near my age in similar circumstances. After a year and a half I went back to work, retired again at 41 for three years and again went back to work. Then at 52 I hung it up for good and have never once regretted finally retiring over the 25 years since I did so. I love it!

The biggest problem for me was my huge health insurance premiums for so many years but I never went uninsured. I would encourage others to make sure they can obtain and afford health insurance!

I retired at 56, but could have retired at 45. I always had a good job, and I never spent more than half of my net pay. I only had one loan ever, which was $35K for a $55K house. I paid it off in 3 years because I couldn't sleep at night. The book that inspired me was "Your Money or Your Life" by Joe Dominguez. But, saving money becomes a life long habit that is very hard to break. How do you change your spending habits when you no longer need to save money?

Absolutely retire as young as possible. Know your income. If you are not at or more than $100,000.00 annual expendable income, I would stay clear of The Villages. I asked that question when we were looking here and was told by the villages realtor that we would need around $50,000.00 to live comfortably. Not True, that would have had us moving out in the first year. Don’t get me wrong, we love it here and live in a modest Designer, but we would not be comfortable with a combined $50K income. I would question the Comfortable reference even for a trailer on the historic side, But again, if you can afford it, we highly recommend this place.

:ohdear:All how you budget. Lots of people in TV enjoy life at $50k/yr. It just depends on definitions & spending.

Expenses
 

A lot depends on your monthly expenses. No mortgage or car payment lowers your outflow. The entertainment The Sharon vs Savannah Center price difference is significant. Our biggest expense is restaurant especially because we rarely eat at chains. Some of my friend go on several expensive vacations a year. I feel like I live on vacation so that limits our travel dollars. The other expense is Golf Priority and Green Fees 3 days a week. A major reason we moved here was for the 18 hole courses. The golf expense is going up not down.