I retired in May of 2008 after working 40 years. I was 62 years and 10 months old. I started taking SS then. I felt that I could use more money at an early age in my retirement, so that is why I did that. I don’t have a pension, I have a “money purchase pension plan.” It is funded and I rely on market appreciation to keep solvent.
We have a large home in San Jose, CA (probably my best investment) and we had purchased our cabin on Metigoshe before I retired. I bought a fishing boat, a pontoon and 2 battery powered lifts for the boats on Metigoshe. For the cabin, a Ford 250 PowerStroke and the boats, etc. and some living expenses I used a line of credit on our house, so I owe money on the line of credit that we are now paying off. If/when we sell the house in SJ we will have a serious nest egg to live out our time on.
We spend the winters (mid Oct-April) in CA and summers (May until after UND Homecoming) at Metigoshe. It is not a winterized cabin. My wife is dealing with issues with her Mom in assisted living in Minot, so we have had an apartment in Minot for a couple of years so she has a place to stay when she goes to help her Mom.
I have to say that when I worked I loved what I did. I have a degree from UND in Civil Engineering, but I have worked in construction my whole career. My last 27 years were in CA and that was where I made my retirement money. I built homes, apartments and a small 159 unit hotel. Our retirement plan was great.
I’m glad I retired when I did. I could afford it. I have always looked forward to retirement. It’s just that when you look forward to retirement you are young and you don’t realize just how old you will be/feel when you retire.
Everyone knows the saying: “Getting old ain’t for the faint of heart”!
They are right, but I wouldn’t trade it for anything.