What are your retirement plans?

[_V_]

Assuming 30k expenses per year and 30 years of retirement years and taking into account inflation , you need 1.5 million and a fully paid house to retire in the UK. The alternative is , move to a cheaper and sunnier country in retirement.

If you are near retirement age (55+), and don't have a fully paid off house and £1.5 million from investments, WTF have you been doing over the last 30 years with your earnings from contracting!

[ladymuck]

If you are near retirement age (55+), and don't have a fully paid off house and £1.5 million from investments, WTF have you been doing over the last 30 years with your earnings from contracting!

I can only speak for myself but I've had a very nice time enjoying my earnings while I was alive enough. I might get hit by a bus tomorrow.

[_V_]

I can only speak for myself but I've had a very nice time enjoying my earnings while I was alive enough. I might get hit by a bus tomorrow.

All well and good, but now you've only got a few options

1. Die soon, you had a good time, game over
2. Win the lottery
3. Work until you are 70 in IT, where the average age is around 30, and then retire in relative poverty straight to a care home

[_V_]

£1000 a month, invested over 30 years, with an average return of 7% gets you about £1.2m

Since most IT contractors were earning £7K to £12K per month on average, they couldn't afford to put in £1000 of that into property, stock markets etc?

[ladymuck]

All well and good, but now you've only got a few options

1. Die soon, you had a good time, game over
2. Win the lottery
3. Work until you are 70 in IT, where the average age is around 30, and then retire in relative poverty straight to a care home

Well 1 and 3 look like my best options

I might quit IT though. There are other ways to earn a crust.

[ladymuck]

Don't forget, not everyone has had 30 years of contracting. I've only been at it for 16 years.

[jamesbrown]

Don't spend your life waiting to retire.

[AtW]

All well and good, but now you've only got a few options

1. Die soon, you had a good time, game over
2. Win the lottery
3. Work until you are 70 in IT, where the average age is around 30, and then retire in relative poverty straight to a care home

4. Collect hun's life insurance.

[_V_]

Don't spend your life waiting to retire.

A lot of it depends on future health. It's amazing how the mind and body plummets in terms of ability over the age of 50.

You might be lucky, but pulling the hours, learning all the new stuff, and taking on the challenges of IT loses its appeal very rapidly, and you gotta have an exit plan, trust me.

It ain't no fun in IT and it certainly ain't no fun old and knackered in IT.

[cojak]

Where's Tarby to come along and tell you to enjoy yourself now as you spend a long time dead?

These days it’s also you’re a long time old.

You need to consider these things as I have my doubts about the NHS remaining free at the point of care if the Tories stay in government.