What's your "number"?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I am 50 yr old female fed with combined retirement accounts of $3.9-$4M. This excludes our primary residence (more than $1M equity but excluding since we need to live somewhere so doesn’t generate any income) which will be paid off by the time DC1 reaches 2nd year of college. I will have a fed pension of at least $90k when I retire at 60. Since I’ll have 30 years of service there will be no deduction in amount for taking it before 62. As wives generally live longer than husbands he will sign the release to survivor benefits so I can collect the full amount right away. Also plan to collect social security earlier. Even without a mortgage the cost of taxes and home owner ins will be at least $20k by then. Also any amount is treated as taxable income so need about 380k if you want to live off 250 post tax. Thankfully we’ll have health insurance as a retired fed.

I plan to travel quite a lot and help the kids beyond college so my ideal number is $8M but either way plant to pull the rip cord at 60.

if your spouse declines the survivor benefit then he and your dependents will lose health insurance if you happen to die first, due to accident or what have you. suggest y'all elect the reduced benefit if fed health insurance is his plan

[Anonymous]

$2M

[Anonymous]

$6 million.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I am 50 yr old female fed with combined retirement accounts of $3.9-$4M. This excludes our primary residence (more than $1M equity but excluding since we need to live somewhere so doesn’t generate any income) which will be paid off by the time DC1 reaches 2nd year of college. I will have a fed pension of at least $90k when I retire at 60. Since I’ll have 30 years of service there will be no deduction in amount for taking it before 62. As wives generally live longer than husbands he will sign the release to survivor benefits so I can collect the full amount right away. Also plan to collect social security earlier. Even without a mortgage the cost of taxes and home owner ins will be at least $20k by then. Also any amount is treated as taxable income so need about 380k if you want to live off 250 post tax. Thankfully we’ll have health insurance as a retired fed.

I plan to travel quite a lot and help the kids beyond college so my ideal number is $8M but either way plant to pull the rip cord at 60.

if your spouse declines the survivor benefit then he and your dependents will lose health insurance if you happen to die first, due to accident or what have you. suggest y'all elect the reduced benefit if fed health insurance is his plan

Good to know but he can just use Medicare at 65 and if I die w/n 5 years of retiring that would really suck but he will probably agree still better to take full pension rather than 80% pretax.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I am 50 yr old female fed with combined retirement accounts of $3.9-$4M. This excludes our primary residence (more than $1M equity but excluding since we need to live somewhere so doesn’t generate any income) which will be paid off by the time DC1 reaches 2nd year of college. I will have a fed pension of at least $90k when I retire at 60. Since I’ll have 30 years of service there will be no deduction in amount for taking it before 62. As wives generally live longer than husbands he will sign the release to survivor benefits so I can collect the full amount right away. Also plan to collect social security earlier. Even without a mortgage the cost of taxes and home owner ins will be at least $20k by then. Also any amount is treated as taxable income so need about 380k if you want to live off 250 post tax. Thankfully we’ll have health insurance as a retired fed.

I plan to travel quite a lot and help the kids beyond college so my ideal number is $8M but either way plant to pull the rip cord at 60.

if your spouse declines the survivor benefit then he and your dependents will lose health insurance if you happen to die first, due to accident or what have you. suggest y'all elect the reduced benefit if fed health insurance is his plan

Good to know but he can just use Medicare at 65 and if I die w/n 5 years of retiring that would really suck but he will probably agree still better to take full pension rather than 80% pretax.

You're a fed. Where are you getting 20%?? "Full" survivors benefit costs 10% of the pre-tax benefit. "Reduced" survivors benefit costs 5%. With $8M in the bank, $4.5k a year to hedge against you dying early seems and keeping the gold-plated gov health insurance for your family seems pretty darn reasonable. But you do you.

[Anonymous]

I used to say $10M was the "I quit without further thought" number. THen I did the math and realized that TSP + savings + home equity + conservative value of pension is about $8M. And I'm a fed so I get the "gold-plated gov health insurance." Not sure what the $ value for the insurance is, but it's not 0.
It's a pleasant surprise.

I'm late 50s and at most will work about 3 more years.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I am 50 yr old female fed with combined retirement accounts of $3.9-$4M. This excludes our primary residence (more than $1M equity but excluding since we need to live somewhere so doesn’t generate any income) which will be paid off by the time DC1 reaches 2nd year of college. I will have a fed pension of at least $90k when I retire at 60. Since I’ll have 30 years of service there will be no deduction in amount for taking it before 62.

As wives generally live longer than husbands he will sign the release to survivor benefits so I can collect the full amount right away.

Also plan to collect social security earlier. Even without a mortgage the cost of taxes and home owner ins will be at least $20k by then. Also any amount is treated as taxable income so need about 380k if you want to live off 250 post tax. Thankfully we’ll have health insurance as a retired fed.

I plan to travel quite a lot and help the kids beyond college so my ideal number is $8M but either way plant to pull the rip cord at 60.

This seems crazy to me. Reduced benefits only cost you 5% of your pension. Seems like a very cheap insurance for the unlikely event that you will die accidentally. This way, your husband will still have access to your health insurance.

[Anonymous]

$10M in my brokerage account.

Once I hit that, not counting my 401ks/IRA, I am out.

I want to retire at 50.

[Anonymous]

I have no number. I’ll work until I’m done and then live on whatever I have. No pension here. No retiree healthcare benefits. Husband went PT in his late 40s. Now we are 50 with $7M so I’m not worried.

[Anonymous]

How did you all save several millions of dollars being feds? I am also a fed and I’m not sure how this is possible.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:This thread is completely depressing. It makes me wonder again if we should ask jeff to make a separate money thread for the crazy rich so that normal people can discuss normal issues without getting sidetracked with this kind of bullshit.

Don't worry, I have a feeling that many who want 10's of millions to retire will be very disappointed.

The only number that really matters in regards to my retirement is 62. Because when I hit 62, I'm out, and I won't have 10's of millions to my name. But then again, neither did my parents who happily retired, and neither will 99% of Americans.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:How did you all save several millions of dollars being feds? I am also a fed and I’m not sure how this is possible.

1) I made a few million in the dotcom years beforehand. Spent a lot of it on divorce and elder care, but it made life easier when I had it.
2) Just focusing on my fed career, I should have ~2-3million in my TSP when I retire, but I work for a financial regulator as a 14-equivalent. So I'll have put the annual max away in my TSP for 25 years AND get an additional 3-5% in employer matching. I currently have around 650k in the TSP after 9 years.
3) You should probably also put some money in the market in a taxable account if you can. A lot harder if you have to fund 529s.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:How did you all save several millions of dollars being feds? I am also a fed and I’m not sure how this is possible.

Because it's a myth that feds don't make much money. Compared to many, many people, feds make a lot of money.

[Anonymous]

10M not including home. We currently have $6.7M and save around $320K a year. But we are going to dip into that to do some home improvement and have 3 kids heading to college so our savings rate will go way down. I hope to retire in ten years. I’m 46.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:How did you all save several millions of dollars being feds? I am also a fed and I’m not sure how this is possible.

You start saving early. Putting 6K away yearly starting at age 22 and stop at 30. You would have close to $2M at retirement/65. Keep that up and you will have 5M+ at 65. Compounding is an amazing thing