Would you keep grinding or retire early?

[Anonymous]

Why not just find a cushy WFH job like you said? Doesn't need to replace your entire previous income, but it will still be helpful for retirement savings.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I stopped reading the fourth time that you referred to you and your husband’s jobs as “gigs.” Do you actually talk like that in real life? Maybe that’s affecting your job search.

I though gigs meant they were 1099 self employed and not 2 regular w-2 employees.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:with 6m in the bank, retire if you want to. work if you want to. It really is that simple. If you pay for insurance via an exchange, it'll be about 30K a year for a decent plan for a fam of 4. Be sure to calculate that if the hubster retires too.

6m is net worth not all $$ in bank.plus they have the 400k debt and 2 college education
S to pat for.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Yes, I'd retire as long as 1. your spouse is ok with it 2. college funds are mostly funded at least for in state. 3. if your spouse loses their job, can they easily find another high paying job?

If you can't answer Yes to all 3, then no, don't completely retire. Maybe find short term consulting jobs to keep your foot in the door.

OP here. I want to thank everyone who provided lots of thought and advice on my situation. I'll consolidate and elaborate on some of the questions raised.

1) I've been fortunate and have had a FT WFH gig that paid around 200-250k a year depending on bonus. My husband has a high stress, management job, which is why he is overworked. Not because he has 2 jobs, but he just puts in a lot of hrs because he doesn't want to fail his team and company. He also has to travel and be away from home days at a time, at least 1-2x a month.

2) I've been telling my husband to quite for over a year to start a consulting career as I thought my job was stable enough and could just carry insurance for fam. This until the economic recent churn impacting hundreds of people at my company which leads me to my current state of unemployment.

3) My kids can make their own dinner, bike themselves to school. But as one in particular is starting high school, college apps loom, more after school activities like sports and potential volunteering coordination/driving them to/from before they have their own cars will take added time and organization than before when I could just send them to after school care. This is one of the aspects where I feel being focused on home more, at least for next 4-5 years may be of benefit.

4) NW, our paid off home is ~1.5m, rental is 1/2 paid and worth ~1m. cash/stocks ~400m and maybe 3m combined 401k type funds between me and hubs split almost evenly.

5) Cost of health care has always been a concern. We had a family friend who went into debt and bankrupt after an accident/injury. I understand that's between $20k-$30k a year if both my husband and myself retire at the same time, but it's always a hovering concern I never want to worry about. I am not counting on any SS or gov benefits other than medical benefits when I do qualify.

6) My parents lucky does have a very small pension and getting SS. So any concern is just to make sure there's a buffer in case I need to help out in any unexpected issues as they age.

7) Lastly, my husband is totally OK with me "retiring" and not stress over looking for work right now. I'm 100% confident my husband can find another job if he were to ever lose it. We've saved not all but at least half of what's needed for in state collage funds for the kids. We are very financially frugal and aligned and can minimize expenses as needed and pay all necessary expenses with likely $100k-$120k a year (including factoring in $30k for med insurance if that's the high)

So in summary, I don't mind working. I have been applying/interviewing. My recent interviews are with companies that are asking for 2-3 days in office, which is causing me additional anxiety. As when my husband travels it will toss another wrench in the family schedule on a monthly basis as mentioned above. While all the remote jobs I've applied for have been crickets. I worry about having to drive/commute into the city to work as we're about 1hr away from city center where some jobs are more available vs remote and pay more.

Then there is the eternal worry that if I don't try to secure another job while in my 40s, it will be 10x harder to get back in to the job force when I'm mid 50s, after having a gap on resume even.

Anyway, again, I appreciate all the different suggestions and ideas and I do need to spend more time checking various options. But job market is rough for everyone who is looking so best of luck to all!

55 yr old woman here self employed consultant..320k+. I can retire anytime if I could just get rid of my clients! Anyway, I get unsolicited job offers and interview requests every 2 weeks and tell them not ever interested working as a w-2 employee again 😀 as I have been self employed now 24 yrs and 100% remote the last 4 yrs. Point is..yes you can easily get jobs in your 50s.

[Anonymous]

Your current NW is 5.5m (and subtract any college costs for kids which will put you under 5m)

1.5m home
Rental worth 1m less 400k remaining loan balance
3m retirement accounts
400k stocks/cash

Bright side: the stock market is recovering.

[Anonymous]

Your post is about finances and net worth which I understand is a major consideration.

However I’d make sure to also figure out how you plan to spend your time. It’s one thing to move as a couple to a new location with a lot of recreation and outdoor activities. It’s another thing to have a working spouse and be somewhere like DC. Most other people will be working and your kids are almost grown.

I’d consider your hobbies and how many friends you have. I say this because I’m only working because I don’t have many friends to socialize with on a regular basis. Working keeps me active and around other people.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Definitely keep looking/working. You are just looking for easy way out.

There is absolutely nothing wrong with an available easy way out. Why would anyone choose a hard way out?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Definitely keep looking/working. You are just looking for easy way out.

There is absolutely nothing wrong with an available easy way out. Why would anyone choose a hard way out?

Unfair to working spouse

[Anonymous]

On a business trip this week and plenty of people 60-80 in board

80 is the new 60.

60 is the new 40.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Definitely keep looking/working. You are just looking for easy way out.

There is absolutely nothing wrong with an available easy way out. Why would anyone choose a hard way out?

Unfair to working spouse

Not necessarily. Sometimes the working spouse is fine with being the only one with an income because the other spouse takes on a larger share of the other tasks required to run a household.

[Anonymous]

I retired at 72, I still complete some projects as a temp for my company every now and then..

I could've retired earlier, but I don't like staying at home.

[Anonymous]

100% retire, do your own thing, maybe find some money from it sometimes.

You won at life. Now something with your life before you die. Don't waste it all helping making a billionaire a little richer just so you can die with a high score.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I stopped reading the fourth time that you referred to you and your husband’s jobs as “gigs.” Do you actually talk like that in real life? Maybe that’s affecting your job search.

I though gigs meant they were 1099 self employed and not 2 regular w-2 employees.

Anyone who works at a job for short length of time calls it a gig.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:You’ve got 3 kids to out through college. Are you only willing to pay for state school and only for undergrad? Are you paying all their living expenses? Fine if you are, just be sure you are completely settled with that decision so you don’t overextend your finances.

You’re only in your 40s. Look into how much elder care costs. My grandfather blew through $1M in a year after a fall, Alzheimer’s diagnosis, and the need for a full-time sitter at the nursing home. Either of you could have an accident, and illness, a parent with an accident or an illness.

I suggest you find a job that allows you to scale back, whether that means part time, lower responsibility, consulting on fixed term contracts with a break in between.

How do poor ppl deal with it? Hello, most would never accumulate even 1m NW by the time they are old. Are you saying all poor old people or sick people under 65 get euthanasia or go on skid row? You all sound like out of touch crowd

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Definitely keep looking/working. You are just looking for easy way out.

There is absolutely nothing wrong with an available easy way out. Why would anyone choose a hard way out?

Unfair to working spouse

Not necessarily. Sometimes the working spouse is fine with being the only one with an income because the other spouse takes on a larger share of the other tasks required to run a household.

This. When 1 spouse is dedicated to home and kids life is smoother, vs. 2 parents juggling constantly. We are so burnt out from this life, that I cannot envision continuing to work long for this reason alone.