When is the right time to retire

Thanks to all for the thoughtful advice.
I've started short mat bowling in the Village Hall and looking around for other activities to do.
Dogs are definitely a priority round here, we have three cockers so we're all out on the beach first thing in the morning and again before dusk.
They are a joy and loving every minute.
Our 'old boy' has had a new lease of life since we came here and romps along like a young pup whereas he'd got into waddling and dodging walkies before we moved.

I was fortunate in that I got my Government pension when I was 60. I'm now 65. There were no plans to fully retire but I'd thought about working perhaps 2 or 3 days each week.
The best laid plans !!

I worked in a solicitor's office for 30 years. The slump came. People stopped buying/selling houses. Work dried up. We were all put onto a 3 day week.
Then we were notified of redundancies and I was one of those made redundant, finishing 2 weeks before my 60th birthday. When first told I was devastated...... I never ever saw myself being fully retired. There were tears and feelings of being worthless.
By the time the final day came I'd started to look forward to it.
(I suffer from poor health and insomnia so work in the previous year or so had started to become burdensome and yet retirement hadn't entered my mind)

It was the best thing ever.
I love it.
DH retired also. He is 5 years younger than me, he took an early retirement package with a good pension and did some part time work for 5 years, retiring completely this year. It is another perhaps 7 years before he gets the government pension. All the DC have flown the nest.

Fortunately we have no mortgage. We don't live in a fancy house, and are so glad that we didn't upgrade which we considered, just before the house prices dropped.

DH plays golf and bowls.
I do a bit of eBaying, I provide a little support for people with the same health condition as myself, and my bestie friend and I keep good contact.
Look after 2 DGC at least one day each week, do full family Sunday Dinner.

I think that moving some distance is a very precarious action and would need to be fully considered from every angle. I'd have been afraid to do so.

Mr RetiredGuy I do hope that retirement improves for you. My father always had a dog saying that it meant he had to go out every day and he met other folks, got to chat.

I so agree with retiredguy.Think carefully about what retirement will be. Yes , it is wonderful not having to set an alarm but you need something to fill the hours. After decades of having too much to do and not enough time it's now endless time. After being surrounded by people and lots of talking it can be very quiet being alone all day. I'm lucky in that I have a horse and so have daily contact with others as well as the exercise and pleasure he gives me but I know some people do need the buzz of work and find retirement stressful.

Retiredguy - it is in your hands. If you want to sit in god's waiting room, then you can. If not, get out there. Volunteer to hear children read in your local primary school (that will be in the daylight!); become a school governor; get the parish mag and see what social groups are around; try U3A (our local one is based a way away but has various activities in people's houses around the area); google Natural Voices and see if there is a community choir near you; look up the Workers Educational Association (you have the right skills to be of use); take up golf, bowls, or some other sport; advertise your skills in the shop window - coaching in your chosen subject maybe; learn a new skill (computing, photography, anything!); enroll on an Open University course.........I could go on. It is all out there if you reset your mind and get out there and make things happen. The world is your oyster. NOW is the time to do the things that you want - with luck you could have another 10 or 15 years of active life to enjoy. Don't waste it!!!!!

Rotary is great - DH has and I have been part of Rotary for years, in separate clubs, and have worked / are working locally and internationally. Can't imagine life without it. Do PM me if you'd like to know anything, Retiredguy.

I love retirement - I was able to leave at 61, (I am now 69) and DH then retired early at 63. We moved down here to Devon three years ago- DD lives here and we already had many friends, and Rotary, of course. Having a community in which you are happy is essential, I think, and having family nearby is an extra joy, of course.

Hi J52 Rotary sounds good, will look into that.
Many thanks for the tip.
I'd thought about U3A but there isn't one in the nearest town which is 12 miles away.
I'm not a happy driver in the dark so daytime/afternoon gigs are best certainly during the winter months.

Hi Retiredguy, is there a Rotary club near you? You might find like minded people there. Your skills as a teacher might be appreciated by them. There are also social activities you both might enjoy.

Sorry you find retirement disappointing, Ratner than an opportunity to reinvent your life.

If you make your plans properly then retirement is a joy. Moving away from your familiar places and not having plans for what you will do is a bad idea!
I do not feel as if I am in god's waiting room - I am free to do the things that I want now.

Hi Loopylou.
We've moved about three hours drive away from where we used to live.
Mrs Retiredguy has begun to set up new networks here through craft club and WI.
Thing is, for chaps there's very little unless one is a pub goer which I'm not.

Hi retrolady. I don't know what an LSA is but I wondered if you could reduce your hours, so you work fewer days? That could help you to know if you want to take the step to retirement.
Thanks for reviving this 'dormant' thread. I hadn't seen it before and found it very interesting and I specially liked the thought, mentioned by someone earlier on, of 'retiring to' something, instead of 'from'.

I was made compulsorily redundant in 1999, just 18 months before I was due to retire from a job I loved. My students were aghast. If I had known then as much as I later learnt about employment law as a CAB volunteer, I think I could have fought my case more vigorously. The Union was useless!

That's so sad to hear Retiredguy, did you move far?
Moving isn't on the cards when/if I can retire but often thought living nearer the coast would be nice.

Aged 62 I 'early' retired from teaching last September.
Left school at 15 and been in work ever since so I thought that 47 years was enough.
We have downsized and moved to a cottage by the seaside.
Supposedly 'living the dream' but quite frankly it is retirement Hell.
Like being in God's waiting room.
There is no part of the change, currently; that I do not regret.
Would caution anybody contemplating an early retirement plus a move to take time out and consider the options carefully.

I retired from a very stressful job, leading the night staff in a medium sized Nursing Home. I had worked well over a year past retirement age and had talked it all over with DH. We still have a mortgage to pay off, so I took a 15hr a week cleaning job to supplement my pension. DH retires next year and we are planning to sell our house and move into a retirement apartment near our DD. He wants to retire as soon as he is 65.

If you are finding it stressful then retire! I lined managed many LSAs, over the years. It is a very demanding job, requiring many transferable skills. On top of which, it is often a thankless task. I hope you were appreciated.

If you find retirement not suiting you, then maybe you can look to another job, part time.

Enjoy the experience at least for a while. Good luck. x

So sorry for those wanting to retire but finding the pension age is slipping away from them with every new policy - ad for hose tied to long mortgages.

We did a bit of downsizing when we were in our 40s and this wiped out our mortgage. It is the best thing we ever did, although we had to part with a lovely house to do it. But it truly was worth it - it gave us the freedom to do all sorts of things that we could not have contemplated with a mortgage to pay.

Don't give up - you will get there. That cup of tea in bed is waiting for you!

I dream of retiring but no State pension for another 4 years so have to dream on.....still have mortgage that endowment policy didn't meet by miles! Ho hum......

It was only afer I retired that I realised just how tired and stressed I has been and it took me @ a year to unwind. However, I do feel quite isolated now, and do miss some of the people that I worked with, especially the younger ones. Once I'd got it in my head that I might retire there was no going back, although I could have done with another years wages in the bank. One of the main reasons for retiring was the fact that I never seemed to be allowed to have any holiday that I wanted to take and couldn't book last minute trips that were on offer.

Do it! - there are plenty of opportunities for voluntary activities that could use your talents and keep you going - and you could of course enjoy things that you do not have the time to do now!

I have never regretted retiring at 60. I have time for my dear GC and for lots of things that I enjoy - being able to sit in bed and enjoy a cup of tea in the morning and not feel under pressure to get up and dash out through the traffic - bliss!

Hi everyone
I realise this is a dormant thread, but I hope there is still someone out there ....!
My question is whether to retire from my job. I am nearly 60, can't get a state pension until 67 (!!), but I would have a very small occupational pension, enough to run my car and I could manage on savings. Sadly, both my parents died in the last year, but that means I have a fair amount of savings - enough to keep me going. Additionally, my husband is still working and, although I don't want to live off him, we have enough joint income. He doesn't want to retire for a while (he's 63) because he loves his job. However, I am getting increasingly stressed in mine (as an LSA) and feel worn out.
Having said all that, I love being with people and don't want to spend my days alone in front of the telly, turning into an old lady. I love being with young people, colleagues and students and would miss that.
Sorry for all the waffle - I guess I just want people's thoughts and ideas of how to fill the days, if (probably when) I retire soon.
Thanks.

I'm 67 this month and am still working full time in the same company for 25 years. Still enjoying and no plans to retire yet.

I must admit that getting up at 6.00 every morning to catch a train into London is a drag, but I love my job when I get there. So swings and roundabouts.

As much as I love my job, I would consider retiring if I had enough money to do so without missing my salary.

Actually about 9.30-10pm

Finances are a major concern for some of us. I was made redundant in December and I am now in the position of an elderly woman trying to get a job in a young man's world. If I apply for a job relevant to my experience I'll be rejected as too old (oh I know they are not allowed to say so) and if I apply for the sort of lower stress / lower pay job I want now I'll be rejected as over experienced.

I've enjoyed the "retired" life of being unemployed so far, and have become more involved in church activities, but I do need enough income to pay the bills.

crimson anyone would be tired working those hours! I had no idea. Stop being a mug and let them cover for themselves. The stress of that job would be enough to exhaust you without doing all those extra hours.

Dorset I have a friend who thinks we will all get into that way of living, meals at a certain time, must buy my bread from the same shop etc. I do hope not! I am hoping it is a generation thing and that the baby boomers will have a different attitude and when we go into our care homes will have regular raves. We often get up and decide to do something different to what we had planned to do that day, always happy to take up a better offer which is fun. There are lots of things we plan to join when we have time but never have any of that. It is good to know that things like U3A are there if we ever need them.

Oh the garden am soooo looking forward to doing flowers and veg this year, just have not had time the last few years. Can it be spring soon please although do see huge buds on our magnolia tree so am very hopeful that its only just around the corner.