Anonymous
Post 02/19/2026 17:40     Subject: What do people do when a serious downturn happens 5 years or so before retirement?
When it happened in 2008- people postponed their retirement.
Anonymous
Post 02/19/2026 17:11     Subject: What do people do when a serious downturn happens 5 years or so before retirement?
RMDs dont start till 75 for a person still working. So if you retire at 65 and market crashes you still have a decade till you need to hit 401k anyhow.

For instance my Brother retired end of 2022 which was last bad year in stocks. Big deal he made huge gains in 23,24 and 25.
Anonymous
Post 02/19/2026 17:04     Subject: What do people do when a serious downturn happens 5 years or so before retirement?
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:What happens when they turnoff the SS spigot and make Medicare untenable so no doctors accept it?


Most Americans will starve to death, be homeless and die without medical care.


This is when we have to revert to the culture of 50+ years ago, with multi-generational living. Grandma or Grandpa moves back in with family- this was the way for 1000's of years before modern America moved to rugged individualism.
A starving grandma is a moral failure of their family.


You have rose colored blinders in

Plenty of Grandmas starved back then because they're kids didn't make it to see their parents old age

That's why Socisl Security was created
Anonymous
Post 02/19/2026 17:04     Subject: What do people do when a serious downturn happens 5 years or so before retirement?
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:I plan on moving to MX City where it's like 50% cheaper to live.


But, you need money to pay the ransoms after kidnappings.

Savannah Guthrie's mom doesn't live in MX, though.

Stop watching Fox news.
Anonymous
Post 02/19/2026 17:02     Subject: What do people do when a serious downturn happens 5 years or so before retirement?
Anonymous wrote:I plan on moving to MX City where it's like 50% cheaper to live.


But, you need money to pay the ransoms after kidnappings.
Anonymous
Post 02/19/2026 17:01     Subject: Re:What do people do when a serious downturn happens 5 years or so before retirement?
If you planned sensibly, you have little to worry about. An intelligent asset allocation will have limited your portfolio's volatility, and you won't have committed to a level of expenditures beyond your resources. Your budget should be elastic enough to allow for a reduced level of spending in the initial years of your retirement if necessary. In the worst case, you may need to work longer, or retire to part-time employment to have an income stream to supplement the income you planned for from your pension, Social Security, annuity, deferred compensation, portfolio income, or whatever other resources you were planning to tap into to fund your retirement all along.

This discussion may be helpful: https://www.investopedia.com/terms/s/sequence-risk.asp
Anonymous
Post 02/19/2026 16:05     Subject: What do people do when a serious downturn happens 5 years or so before retirement?
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:What happens when they turnoff the SS spigot and make Medicare untenable so no doctors accept it?


Most Americans will starve to death, be homeless and die without medical care.


This is when we have to revert to the culture of 50+ years ago, with multi-generational living. Grandma or Grandpa moves back in with family- this was the way for 1000's of years before modern America moved to rugged individualism.
A starving grandma is a moral failure of their family.
Anonymous
Post 02/19/2026 16:02     Subject: What do people do when a serious downturn happens 5 years or so before retirement?
Move some to cash/fixed income before retirement.
If downturn, work longer. Same as always
Anonymous
Post 02/19/2026 15:25     Subject: What do people do when a serious downturn happens 5 years or so before retirement?
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:Work longer. That's the answer.


Ageism

No one likes to hire older workers, they say, outside of execs and highly specialized people. Most people are not that. So then what?


Just about anyone can get a job somewhere doing something. It might not be fancy. Look at all the retiree aged people working at Home Depot.

Realistically we are not all going to be CEOs. No one likes to talk about it but it’s like changing from a child to an adult but in reverse. Instead of when you were a young adult increasing skills and responsibility and stamina, you go in reverse. It’s natural, it’s just not something a lot of people really plan for.

This is what I am prepared for. I am now very much have a “knowledge worker” but fully accepting my final act may well be something more physical and/or menial (but not too physically taxing) and likely for very low pay. I am interested in being a part time helper for elderly or those with disabilities. Not something I can do when I’m 80 but probably can from about 60 to 75 if I’m as healthy as my mom is at that age.

You can do things like meals on wheels, but you may not be able to be a home health worker for those who need a lot of help with dressing, bathing, etc.. as that takes some strength to lift the person.

Every home health aid I've seen are < 60 and robust.

But, I do agree with that for most of us white collar workers, after 55, if we want to continue working, we'll have to downgrade.


Agree with this. The ones we had that were good had to be able to manage my mom in the shower, get her in and out of bed. And she wasn't completely immobile. We had one who just sat with my mom for 2 hours a day, so she was never alone. She was 65. And she was private, not through an agency.
Anonymous
Post 02/19/2026 15:18     Subject: What do people do when a serious downturn happens 5 years or so before retirement?
I plan on moving to MX City where it's like 50% cheaper to live.
Anonymous
Post 02/19/2026 15:16     Subject: What do people do when a serious downturn happens 5 years or so before retirement?
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:Work longer. That's the answer.


Ageism

No one likes to hire older workers, they say, outside of execs and highly specialized people. Most people are not that. So then what?


Just about anyone can get a job somewhere doing something. It might not be fancy. Look at all the retiree aged people working at Home Depot.

Realistically we are not all going to be CEOs. No one likes to talk about it but it’s like changing from a child to an adult but in reverse. Instead of when you were a young adult increasing skills and responsibility and stamina, you go in reverse. It’s natural, it’s just not something a lot of people really plan for.

This is what I am prepared for. I am now very much have a “knowledge worker” but fully accepting my final act may well be something more physical and/or menial (but not too physically taxing) and likely for very low pay. I am interested in being a part time helper for elderly or those with disabilities. Not something I can do when I’m 80 but probably can from about 60 to 75 if I’m as healthy as my mom is at that age.

You can do things like meals on wheels, but you may not be able to be a home health worker for those who need a lot of help with dressing, bathing, etc.. as that takes some strength to lift the person.

Every home health aid I've seen are < 60 and robust.

But, I do agree with that for most of us white collar workers, after 55, if we want to continue working, we'll have to downgrade.
Anonymous
Post 02/19/2026 15:09     Subject: What do people do when a serious downturn happens 5 years or so before retirement?
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:Work longer. That's the answer.


Ageism

No one likes to hire older workers, they say, outside of execs and highly specialized people. Most people are not that. So then what?


Just about anyone can get a job somewhere doing something. It might not be fancy. Look at all the retiree aged people working at Home Depot.

Realistically we are not all going to be CEOs. No one likes to talk about it but it’s like changing from a child to an adult but in reverse. Instead of when you were a young adult increasing skills and responsibility and stamina, you go in reverse. It’s natural, it’s just not something a lot of people really plan for.

This is what I am prepared for. I am now very much have a “knowledge worker” but fully accepting my final act may well be something more physical and/or menial (but not too physically taxing) and likely for very low pay. I am interested in being a part time helper for elderly or those with disabilities. Not something I can do when I’m 80 but probably can from about 60 to 75 if I’m as healthy as my mom is at that age.
Anonymous
Post 02/17/2026 21:37     Subject: What do people do when a serious downturn happens 5 years or so before retirement?
Anonymous wrote:Work longer. That's the answer.


Ageism

No one likes to hire older workers, they say, outside of execs and highly specialized people. Most people are not that. So then what?
Anonymous
Post 02/17/2026 21:33     Subject: What do people do when a serious downturn happens 5 years or so before retirement?
Work longer. That's the answer.
Anonymous
Post 02/17/2026 20:56     Subject: What do people do when a serious downturn happens 5 years or so before retirement?
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:If it’s really a market downturn five years from retirement, treat it as a buying opportunity. Even the 2008 downturn recovered by 2013. If it’s a downturn in your first year of retirement then you’re just out of luck. But hopefully you ran a FireCalc Monte Carlo analysis to stress test against historical downturns.


After the 1929 crash, S&P did not recover till 1954.

If you bought in 1930 you would have made big money within a few years.


Yes if you frequently traded and knew when it would rebound

1930: The market actually surged in early 1930, recovering nearly half of its crash losses, leading many (including famous economists) to declare the crisis over. It then collapsed again.
• 1933–1937: There was a massive "New Deal" bounce where the market doubled in value, but it was still nowhere near its 1929 highs.
• 1937–1938: A secondary "recession within the Depression" caused another 50% drop, wiping out years of gains.