This is a question always in my mind. when my stepfather died after being on life support for 2 months we found out they had no cash. My stepbrothers were there for their dad but I couldn't be but I did pony up 100k to keep my mom OK and sell the UES NYC apartment and get my mom into assisted living at like 9K a month. She came into 2M from life insurance because I carried the premiums and paid expenses.

She's in her mid 80s now and apparently started to gamble it all away because the casinos send town cars to pick up the AL residents and take them to the places.

She should have been worth 4m but she was also taking out 10K at a time from the casino banks/ATM.

Now I think she's running out and they are all panicking as to who's going to pay for her.

Hint: it's not me

Anonymous wrote:I am taking my company’s buyout offer at age 56. I think it will be quite difficult to secure a high level position and want more clarity about whether I can retire now. Looking for a financial planner that can help me assess this. High earning professional (not too high), three kids in college, investment properties, mortgages, wife works part time, healthy 401k balance and so on. Probably not much different from most of you. If this were an easy task I’d do it myself but there are some nuances. Any DMV referrals appreciated.

Without knowing your “numbers” it’s impossible to answer this question. Or this could just be a troll who wants to humble brag after the board asks for their numbers.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I am taking my company’s buyout offer at age 56. I think it will be quite difficult to secure a high level position and want more clarity about whether I can retire now. Looking for a financial planner that can help me assess this. High earning professional (not too high), three kids in college, investment properties, mortgages, wife works part time, healthy 401k balance and so on. Probably not much different from most of you. If this were an easy task I’d do it myself but there are some nuances. Any DMV referrals appreciated.

No. You be a fool to retire. Why? You have the shelf life of two day old milk at 56. Right now you are young enought to land a job, might be a bit of a step down or a start up. But you easily could ride that a bit then retire.

FY I got laid off a a high paid job at 54, after a lot of work looking got a bigger job that lasted till I was 57. Then I got a ok good job at 57 that lasted till amost 59 when I left by choice and now I am in a good job again

Retirement age is 67 you arse 11 years away. I think you can retire early but early to me is at least 60.

What field are you working in that you could do that? Some fields are more ageist than others but old lawyers and doctors are acceptable.

Anonymous wrote:I am taking my company’s buyout offer at age 56. I think it will be quite difficult to secure a high level position and want more clarity about whether I can retire now. Looking for a financial planner that can help me assess this. High earning professional (not too high), three kids in college, investment properties, mortgages, wife works part time, healthy 401k balance and so on. Probably not much different from most of you. If this were an easy task I’d do it myself but there are some nuances. Any DMV referrals appreciated.

The Internet is filled with so many useful information about Debra Evans Flyte.

Napfa.org to find a fee only financial planner

I would use a retirement planner like Boldin to run projection. No one can answer your question without hard numbers: your estimated budget and your assets.

Anonymous wrote:Ask ChatGBT

Yes. Have you done this?

Anonymous wrote:I am taking my company’s buyout offer at age 56. I think it will be quite difficult to secure a high level position and want more clarity about whether I can retire now. Looking for a financial planner that can help me assess this. High earning professional (not too high), three kids in college, investment properties, mortgages, wife works part time, healthy 401k balance and so on. Probably not much different from most of you. If this were an easy task I’d do it myself but there are some nuances. Any DMV referrals appreciated.

Hi OP,

Congrats on the buyout! Good for you for wanting to quit the rat-race and enjoy life while you are still healthy. A financial planner will help you figure out from which accounts to withdraw first, but you don't really need a professional to figure out whether you have enough. Plus, every financial advisor will ask you these questions as well:
- What will your annual expenses be in retirement (health insurance, will you be traveling more, etc.)
- What are your liquid investments (does your 401(k) allow for rule 55 withdrawals?)
- Do you have any other sources of income, e.g., pension?
- In the first instance, does 4% of your liquid investments cover your expenses?
If the answer is "yes"," congrats, you can retire. Treat your wife's salary and your rental property income as a cushion and live happily ever after.
If the answer is "no," a bit more digging is needed.
- how much money is tied up in your investment properties and how much do they generate (not in the best-case scenario, but on average, accounting for repairs, vacancies, etc.)?
- how much are your investment properties worth? Are they pure investments, or do you plan on maybe living in one of them down the road?
- how much does your wife make and how much longer does she want to be working?

You get the picture.

Ask friends and family or a referral. Good luck and congrats, again.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I am taking my company’s buyout offer at age 56. I think it will be quite difficult to secure a high level position and want more clarity about whether I can retire now. Looking for a financial planner that can help me assess this. High earning professional (not too high), three kids in college, investment properties, mortgages, wife works part time, healthy 401k balance and so on. Probably not much different from most of you. If this were an easy task I’d do it myself but there are some nuances. Any DMV referrals appreciated.

No. You be a fool to retire. Why? You have the shelf life of two day old milk at 56. Right now you are young enought to land a job, might be a bit of a step down or a start up. But you easily could ride that a bit then retire.

FY I got laid off a a high paid job at 54, after a lot of work looking got a bigger job that lasted till I was 57. Then I got a ok good job at 57 that lasted till amost 59 when I left by choice and now I am in a good job again

Retirement age is 67 you arse 11 years away. I think you can retire early but early to me is at least 60.

dp.. I don't enjoy working anymore, and my spouse is six years older than me. I want to retire while I'm still pretty healthy and active so I can travel a lot, so I plan on retiring at 56 when my youngest goes off to college.

The researchers found that the gap between lifespan and health span is growing. While the global lifespan increased by more than six years between 2000 and 2019, the health span only increased by five years, meaning one of those extra years was lived in poor health. Globally, the gap between lifespan and health span is over nine years.

The statistics in the U.S. are starker. In fact, the U.S. has the most significant lifespan-health span gap of more than 12 years. This means that if the average American lives to age 77, health issues begin affecting their life by age 65.

https://www.sharp.com/health-news/study-finds-americans-are-living-longer-but-not-healthier

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:3 kids in college is scary in your scenario unless you have 3 fully funded 529s or a ton set aside in a brokerage.

This---if their college is fully funded (and all expenses thru getting them to graduate as well) then you might consider it. Also, seriously price your healthcare until 65. It could run you and your spouse $2-3K/month plus expenses (the deductible on many is $7-10K for that price). So include that in your estimates.

Also figure out what health coverage is needed for your kids

Anonymous wrote:I am taking my company’s buyout offer at age 56. I think it will be quite difficult to secure a high level position and want more clarity about whether I can retire now. Looking for a financial planner that can help me assess this. High earning professional (not too high), three kids in college, investment properties, mortgages, wife works part time, healthy 401k balance and so on. Probably not much different from most of you. If this were an easy task I’d do it myself but there are some nuances. Any DMV referrals appreciated.

No. You be a fool to retire. Why? You have the shelf life of two day old milk at 56. Right now you are young enought to land a job, might be a bit of a step down or a start up. But you easily could ride that a bit then retire.

FY I got laid off a a high paid job at 54, after a lot of work looking got a bigger job that lasted till I was 57. Then I got a ok good job at 57 that lasted till amost 59 when I left by choice and now I am in a good job again

Retirement age is 67 you arse 11 years away. I think you can retire early but early to me is at least 60.

Look at starting a SEPP to get to 59 1/2. Once I started thinking I could retire, it became all I could think about. I couldn't concentrate on work because I hated it so much.

All financial advisors use the same information so any will do, if you feel you need one.