Stupidly risky early retirement - tell me I'm mad

Can't offer advice but following with interest as I'm considering when to scale back my work, though i need to look harder at my pension pot. No way would an annuity give me that much i don't think...

Just do it!  You have  good reasons:

a job that is destroying my mental health

give me more time to support my ageing parents

before the issues from her disability prevent us enjoying a later retirement

If you take your pension now and pick up some part time minimum wage work you will be as well off as you are now with more time on your hands.  Does your wife have any pension?

No one reaches their deathbed and thinks " I wish I had worked more hours and years"

Four years more work for an extra 9 per annum. I’m not sure that adds up. I guess you are putting in 5-8k per annum at the moment. I’m not sure that 20-30k on the principle is making the difference. I suspect it’s the compound interest.

How about a downshift and leave the date where it is?

You only live once. I see your missus has a disability and you are concerned... read below..

I have four pensions, two final salary ones. I'm turning 55 and my job is 'fine' and I get a good enough salary that my wife is only working a day a week in a sewing shop (due to a shitty previous employer - she'd had enough of working for a bit).

We're mortgage free, but still funding two adult kids at home. I do, however, have a back injury - missing part of my spine from an RTA bike vs car, and whilst I'm OK currently, the pain etc may get worse, may not. I'm 9 years since accident and I think it's going to limit activity at some point/need major surgery.

I've seen too many folk die before they could take any pension etc, so I'm taking the tax free amounts from a couple of pensions I don't need, and getting a van for 'lifestyle' reasons - I also need a new vehicle as my car is old. The 'van' is for us to go off on bikes/paddle boards etc - space for carrying it.

Two colleagues who retired more recently, both wives fell ill soon after, and they haven't had the 'active' retirement they wanted - both chaps still fit and healthy, but more a carer now. Sister in law and hubby still working - he's a bit farked as his heart is knackered at 60.

Go for it if you can manage it, and even minimum wage is a decent amount. Two other colleagues have gone early, one managing off downsizing proceeds at 60 till they draw full pension.

Get advice if you need it, and do it.  Luckily I don't need to leave my job, but I can't see me being there at 67 in 12 years.

Four years more work for an extra 9 per annum. I’m not sure that adds up.

Yeah, increasing your pension by 60% with 4 extra years seems wrong.

As per TJ's last sentence, I say do it. My Dad had the opportunity to take early retirement at 55. If he had stayed in work for another 5 years, his role would have had a heap more responsibility with little extra reward so the drop in salary to pension was worth it.  Mum also retired at the same time so it gave them the opportunity to spend several months in Spain each year with my sister & her family.

Dad had wanted to make it to at least 80 so he would have worked 50% of his life, but a heart attack took him at 69. He had 14 years of (ironically) healthy retirement rather than the 9 if he had carried on working.  Chances are if he had stayed at work, the extra stress may have cut that short.

If its a final salery pension it could be.  You get less per year if you take it early - so not just have you a smaller pot / years of contributions but you get an"actuarial adjustment" so if for example you have 20 years contributions at 60 you get x amount.  But if you take you pension at 56 instead with 20 years contributins you get significantly less.  I had to wait until 60 for this reason

Would get me away from a job that is destroying my mental health

For figures, my current take home is about £24k a year.

That's not really a lot more than minimum wage (assuming a 40 hour week), and less than minimum wage come April, so even if you decide you do need to keep working, I'd jump ship for something less stressful.

Just do it. If your job is stressing you than much go,  your Pension + PT job and you are at your current income now. Just because a job is lower paid doesn't mean there are not stresses It just means your giving a f..k levels are lower

I have a PT job more for the social interaction with someone other than my wife and it pays for nice things & holidays

Just do it. Be happy now, while you are both able to screw the best out of life.

Pension + PT job and you are at your current income now

I'm on the side of doing it, but you are probably going to want to sack off the PT job at some point too - would you be okay on the pension alone at that point?

JFDI. I did it at 53 and haven't looked back. You really don't know what's around the corner and your valuable time is best not wasted pissing around in the office.

JFDI

I’m on the side of doing it, but you are probably going to want to sack off the PT job at some point too – would you be okay on the pension alone at that point?

I took early retirement at 50 and did part time (and enjoyable) work for 10 years. Partly it was for money but I'd not have had as many great life experiences or met so many great folk (including many STWers) if I'd stayed in my old career.

I got made redundant in 2018 at 53 - got enough redundancy to pay the bills for about 18 months (no mortgage). In 2020 moved to Scotland, downsized the house which gave us a fair chunk of cash to live off until my pension (65).  I currently work part-time in a shop (£14k/year) and we need about another £10k/year from savings to pay the bills. Everything else is paid for, no loans, car, mortgages, pension payments and we don’t really take holidays but it’s enough for us to get by. I’m not planning to draw any pension until I’m 65, and will probably continue to do some part-time work. It really comes down to doing your sums, see what your minimum cost of living could be and whether you can get by on it? Most part-time work in retail etc is minimum wage at £12/hr and many employers treat you like $hit (I was a postie for 9 months) so bear that in mind.

Four years more work for an extra 9 per annum. I’m not sure that adds up.

It's 4 less years of contributing AND 4 more years to drawing on the pension. So, hypothetically that's say £20K less contributed to the scheme (employer and employee contributions) and £60K paid out. Still no idea if it makes sense.

On the surface you sound like you have lots of reasons to go for it. But....in 4 years time when you hit what would have been your retirement age how will you feel about being £9K a year worse off unless you continue to the minimum wage job 2-3 days a week? Could you end up reliant on the money and actually end up working longer than you would have done if you'd just sat tight.

Finally, don't discount the stress of working minimum wage. I took a big step down (but remained in education) 5 years ago. I now work for £20K less for a line manager who I'd never have employed in my old job, stuck living with his crap decisions and powerless to make changes. It's a lot to get your head around and I'd imagine a lot of people who drop into minimum wages roles experience worse.

You're not mad and it's sensible to get this thought through as soon as practical. As you know, I understand your situation fairly well, the work, the financial stuff and some of the family bit too.

I think you're also already aware that I have done something vaguely similar this last year. You're definitely right that it's time to give it serious consideration; if you want to, call me to chat/ rant and you can let your thoughts run. I will be away on leave this coming week, back and switching on the work mobile again on the 12th. You've got that number.

I went part time last year aged 50. Wish I had done it earlier. Now just do tue-thu, 3 days of work and 4 of none is a much better balance!

I currently work part-time in a shop (£14k/year) and we need about another £10k/year from savings to pay the bills. Everything else is paid for, no loans, car, mortgages, pension payments and we don’t really take holidays but it’s enough for us to get by.

I haven't run numbers for a bit now, and I know the cost of things has gone up a load, but £24k/year for just the minimum with no rent/mortgage seems like a lot.

Interesting thread . I’m 51 currently being made redundant. (Saga in itself)

The last 4 months I haven’t been working g that hard.

What I’ve noticed is:

Its brilliant not stressing about work

its great for getting g out to do what you want to

All my mates are still working (ie can be quite lonely in the day time)

Im not ready to stop fully working

So far utopian jobs don’t exist

We would have to make big cut backs to lifestyle to make it sustainable

But if they offer my job back tomorrow (which looks like they might ) would I take it? Probably not

As a career civil servant of 58 years of age, I’m handing in my notice when I get back in on Monday. After a fairly big fubar by them late last year, bollocks to them. Probably not the best pension advice.

I’m on the side of doing it, but you are probably going to want to sack off the PT job at some point too – would you be okay on the pension alone at that point?

That is a downside - won't get state pension till 67 and any inheritance is likely to go on care fees.

I now work for £20K less for a line manager who I’d never have employed in my old job, stuck living with his crap decisions and powerless to make changes.

Pretty much where I am now, the salary doesn't change the frustration

I will be away on leave this coming week, back and switching on the work mobile again on the 12th. You’ve got that number.

Have a good break. I may or may not be back at work then.

I don't often agree with TJ but basically his first post sums it up. Just do it

andrewh - a stopped clock is right twice a day 🙂

One thing to consider is more time means you can do stuff more cheaply often.

Watching with interest. I'm constantly calculating when I think I can retire. Depends on so many factors, but key one will be the end of this year when my share options hopefully mature. If that stays where it currently is then I think I could go  at 54 .....

But then the missus wants to keep working, and being retired but stuck in Manc sounds ****ing horrible 🙂

Go for it. We're going to.

After Kevin's Alps accident it changed our outlook on work/life balance completely. The consultant told him his injuries won't get any better so we have decided to step back from work at the end of March. Not an easy decision but the right one for us. Plans so far are to use our 90 days in 180 for three extended trips in the camper into Europe intermingled with trips throughout the UK.

Fingers crossed it all goes to plan and we get to ride in some amazing places. It's a pity it took an accident for us to realise it.

I feel so relieved now we have made the decision.

That’s not really a lot more than minimum wage (assuming a 40 hour week), and less than minimum wage come April, so even if you decide you do need to keep working, I’d jump ship for something less stressful.

Take home could at this point include big pension contributions. Then there is tax and national insurance. So it could be well over minimum wage

I’m 58 and didn’t hate my job. I’m already down to 4 days a week. I’m also on teacher so it’s not like i never get away, I assume i won’t be fully retired for another 5 ish years.

Much as i didn’t like the idea that money matters my parents retirement has been great fun but they spent alot of money

OP any chance of finding a similar role that you didn’t hate?

But it’s so much your life not mine. All the best whatever happens

Do it !!

If your mortgage is paid where is the risk?  I personally wouldn't even bother with the part time job.  What you expect as a pension about my income tho I do have capital as well but I assume you would also get a lump sum?  I am also assuming your partner will get a pension?  I live easily on my income and use the capital as a back up and to pay for one off trips

If things had gone to plan Julie and I would have retired on around £20 000 a year between us which we expected to be plenty

Yeah, increasing your pension by 60% with 4 extra years seems wrong.

Seems fine to me. My pension age is 68 and I've currently accrued about £20k p.a*. If I take it at 58 (the earliest possible year I'm able to) that drops to about £10k p.a.

(*"Fortunately" I have at least another 15 years or so to contribute...)

I live easily on my income and use the capital as a back up and to pay for one off trips

Well that's clearly a contradiction isn't it. Why not be open about how much capital you have. For a lot of us the capital will be all we have, at least for the first dozen years or so.

" I can easily live on x, because I also have y which I can dip into as and when I want to supplement x."

Not meaning to have a go at you BTW. 🙂

No wild fantasy at all. Especially if mortgage paid as will be surprised how little you need to get by on.

Would get me away from a job that is destroying my mental health,

give me more time to support my ageing parents,

MrsMC... would give us time to do stuff before the issues from her disability prevent us enjoying a later retirement.

Massive reasons for change, especially 3. Life is too short. When you are doing a job its difficult to see life beyond that. Its like a membrane you push at but really cant see beyond, because you are doing what you do now and its what you do. So cant think of anything else.  Once you stop doing what you do (break that membrane), you are no longer obsessed by what you do now, and can start to think of other things to do and all your full life experience is now relevant and they are out there.

I was lucky, offered really good redundancy at 51 in '16. Bummed around. Did a big ride. Built a campervan. Drifted into the pandemic in '20 and ran out of money. Moved somewhere cheaper. Spun up a 3-4 businesses. Am now '59. One of the businesses really took off so now I am really good with minimal hours (3 months on, three months offnow) until I take my pension in 4.5 years time. Just as well really as my Dad died at 67 so that only gives me 8 years.  Please do PM me if want more background.  I really dont miss the soul destroying, organisational hierarchy, group-think non-career job at all.

I would consider separating leaving your job, and taking your pension now. You can stop doing what you do now. Do other, less stressful things and explore the fun of doing something different and have the fallback of taking your penson if it doesnt work out.

me and my wife both finished at 55.

we retired on a meagre pension.  3 years in it is the best decision we have ever made.

more time less cash is a nice way to live.

So long as you can make the numbers work it’s a no brainer.  I think a lot of people overestimate how much they actually need to live an ok life, but I wouldn’t want to be regretting the decision at retirement…our expenditure tends to increase to suit our income - so as long as you plan/budget/control that transition you should be able to wind it back.

what does your wife think?

I took mine 3 years ago, at 53, after I'd just had enough of the reverse takeover the business i was in suffered - they completely killed off the previous ethos / ethical working and good treatment of staff. Everyone was totally pissed off with the place. I just worked out how to unlock the golden handcuffs of the final salary scheme.  To be honest the place would have made me properly ill by now if I'd stayed (it damaged several of my colleagues who were good honest trustworthy people before they got out, and I needed to be out before I went the same way).

I took a lump sum from the pension, and paid off the mortgage, saw our child through uni and out the other side into a job etc.  All good uses of the ££.

I'm still working (in a different Co) as my industry is short of experienced people.  But dropped to part time - 4 days a week now, and tapering over the next couple of years.

I decided that having more time in my latter 50sand 60s to do stuff is more vital than extra ££ that I'm too broken to make use of later.  In my case we'd have to be a bit careful but would be OK if I stopped tomorrow.  Luckily the work I'm doing at the new place is for really interesting development projects and with good customers, so that may be different to your situation.

But my bikes definitely need more riding before it's too late.

Much depends on whetherMrs MC also has an occupational  pension to draw or whether £15k would be it.

I'm still working at almost 64 despite having no mortgage and a pension.  But Mrs IRC has no pension or current income.  We run  don't particularly try to live cheaply though.  I actually enjoy part time work. Possibly reducing hours but don't plan to fully retire until 66. At earliest.

I work 22 hours per week in a no stress enjoyable job. shifts are clustered so I get regular full weeks  off mixed with days where I work 5 days. I have had stretches where I stopped work for a few months to go bike touring. I found dropping from full time work to irregular part time work a great lifestyle choice.

A pension of £15k plus 20 hours at min wage (less tax and NI) would give you somewhere  around £24k take home. So no better or worse off. More time for life rather than work. If your current job is affecting your mental health my advice would be go for it.

Plan B could be set a date a year or so from now. Say spring 2026.  In 15 months your pension would  increase presumably. Would the stress be any less at work if you knew the clock was ticking down and you be less invested  in it knowing you were on a slow wind down?

Finally, if the choice is to pack it in immediately I would suggest finding your new low stress job first before chucking the current one. Job hunting while living on £15k per year could be stressful in itself after dropping from £24k.

You're not mad.

I'd prioritise LPAs and possibly a will change to protect your children's inheritance, sorry to be morbid, but anything can happen to either of you

In the meantime consider whether a spell off, either with stress, a career break or PT in your current role, might change your outlook. Chat to someone at work about that and consider counselling

As someone fortunate enough to be retired on a FS scheme those last few years make a huge difference. You don't mention tax-free lump sums; is that £15k pa everything? That and another £1k per month is you for another 35+years

Retirement is great, I recommend it, but only when you're set up

more time less cash is a nice way to live.

Need to change my username.

MrsMC has her own pension when she retires, but is incredibly cautious about money matters, and is not entirely comfortable with the idea.

Got a retirement webinar next week to get a better handle on the income/lump sum and tax implications. We'll see what that brings up.

Do it.

Money ain't everything. People think they need lots of money to be happy, but mostly that money is buying them things they think they need.... Netflix. Fancy phone. Flash motor.

My mum died at 68. My friend last year at 54. My old man retired at 64, is still knocking about at 80 with more money than he knows what to do with, but even in his 60s he didn't have the health which meant he hasn't enjoyed retirement. He's just waiting for God, as it were.

Better to look back in the things you've done rather than regretting those what if moments.

I'm semi retired at 42,been living in a van and bumming around Europe the last two and a bit years.

The retirement webinar may be the decider for you. Loads of good advice in the preceding comments but only you know how bad you feel going to and at work presently...and only you knows what you could manage on, financially, month by month, If retiring early solves your mental ill health but gives your wife stress and worry...will it have been worth it? You need to go into this 'united' so to speak. Best of luck

I am also in the camp that think you are not mad. Stepping off the career ladder is a big moment for anyone and needs consideration, but it sounds like you are thinking on the right track.

One thing that helped me (forced out of my career 3.5 years ago at 55ish and decided to partially retire) was getting a better grip of the finances. I actually paid an IFA to do it for me, but it was expensive and now I have more time on my hands I have spent a lot of time listening to the Meaningful Money free podcasts and feel I understand my finances and options much better now than before. For example, have you checked your state pension forecast on the .gov.uk website? which can be topped up at a bargain price if necessary - See Martin Lewis Website for details

There is also a MeaningfulMoney paid for course. I haven't done it (yet), but it gets you on to a private forum where people are discussing this time in their life and are able to use a financial modelling too called Voyant Go (that's a link to the Meaningful Money video episode on Voyant) which may also help you clarify things. I have a spreadsheet that I made, but my IFA 3 years ago gave me a copy of a Voyant Go report on my finances at the time and its much easier to read/understand and if you have access to the software itself it can make :"what if?" questions much easier to answer.

Finally, like others have said, you can probably get a NMW job fairly easily. I now drive for a supermarket once a week. It helps structure the week, gives me some exercise, gives me an in-store discount of 20% on food and 25% on homeware/clothes etc and has a great pension (yes, you can 'sort of retire' and still pay in to a pension depending on how you structure your finances). Some colleagues drop in and out of it IE work a lot in the lead up to Christmas and then have some of the summer off, so working verses not working is not a simple one-or-the-other decision.

Happy to answer questions if it helps, but I am a random on the internet so beware 😉

Lots of useful thoughts and opinions, as I knew there would be.

I've got a mate who does a couple of supermarket delivery shifts a week, and I feel it makes sense to do more "seasonal" work in the winter to make the most of the summer.

Appreciate the job isn't great but I would be looking at other ways of getting-by to hold off drawing your pension if it is FS and truly such terrible 'value' by taking it early. And are those projections of FS pension if you continue working that job, or if you ceased employment and froze it but don't drawdown until 60 is it still as good? You need spreadsheets really, it's a very personal (couples) decision. How much do you need to simply live on and run the house and car, bit of contingency for unforeseen stuff (boiler, roof), do you need to add NI contributions to get the full state pension etc. And then a tab for retiring at each year over the next 5-10 years, what would be your income. I would seriously consider living frugally on a part time job and not draw the pension if it makes such a big difference, but only you can decide if you can manage that and what savings you have to drawdown on.

I was in a roughly similar position 3 years ago and 'did it'.

Money vs time: If you run out of money, you can always earn more. No way to get any more time, no matter how rich you are.

I don't regret it (I would have gone mad had I stayed).

If you try it and don't like it, you can always get another full time job, but:

...I now drive for a supermarket once a week. It helps structure the week, gives me some exercise, gives me an in-store discount of 20% on food and 25% on homeware/clothes etc ...

Very much this. It's nice to have something low stress that brings you into contact with other people and also put some spending money in your pocket.

Forget about the retirement cliff edge being a line in the sand . With phased draw for it's really different to buying a rip off annuity.

Get a part time job first , say 3 days a week then bin off your full time role.

Learn to live on £300 a week. So you only draw down a few thousand each year from your pension.
If you can transfer it to a super low cost tracker fund you might find that the growth is the same as the drew down. , or very close to it.

Ie your fund goes up by 3% and you take out 4% your pot will last very long time like that. t