retrirement options for contractors

[LondonManc]

Get carried out of work in a pine box when you see a new retrospective tax bill that HMRC comes up with in 2034, dating it back to 2024 and slapping you with retro tax to help cover all the unpaid student loans from the previous 40 years. The ensuing heart attack will save you worrying about your retirement.

[Crossroads]

Similar to the poster above me, my approach is broadly along the lines of getting to the point where I have enough in the warchest to be able to keep a roof over my head for the rest of my days. Despite having a couple of flash cars and liking a beer or 10 I've managed to live relatively sensibly whilst being very lucky contract-wise over the last 15 years or so.

I am not a huge fan of pensions as a wrapper due to the fact the money is locked in, but obviously there are some useful tax benefits with that route.

Current position:

1. I have two rental properties that bring in around £22500 net a year.
2. No mortgage on family home
3. Personal non-property investments / savings of around £200k
4. A small-ish personal pension that will kick in hopefully in my late 50's, but who knows exactly where the goalposts will be (40 currently).
5. Company warchest of around £200k, that I will most likely draw down over a period of years, depending on the tax regime in place at the time and whether I am still doing any ad hoc work.

Without considering investment growth, my sums tell me I could stop work now and have a net income around £3k/month for the rest of my life and still leave the kids the properties, which would most likely be sufficient - it's more than I am living on at the moment.

I have no plan to stop just yet but I have been giving it more and more thought. A pal of mine has pretty much made the same decision at 41. A combination of lack of enthusiasm for my current role and an increasing realisation of all the little jobs around the house I am forever putting off and how much more help I could be to the OH (who works full time) do make it look appealing. My worry would be if I realised a couple of years down the line I had made a big mistake how I would get back into the game... but that is a topic for a different thread.

[Whorty]

My personal plan is to get to 55 and have at least 1.1m in assets. Sell the main house and buy a smaller property in a less expensive location for maybe 250k. Live off the remaining 850k until I die. Wife and I are planning to spend the last penny on our last day on this planet. We have no kids or close family on either side, so no one to leave any money to.

Pensions kick in at 67 so we'll be most 'poor' between 55 and 67. Living on 25k per year from savings will take 34 years to spend the 850k. This will take us to 89 years old. If either of us live past that then we'll still have pensions

That's the plan anyway

Current assets worth 930k. Assuming property prices remain stable over the next 9 years, I have 9 years to save 120k .... easily doable

[stek]

Hi
I am contractor through limited company and wondering what retirement options are generally considered by similar tradesmen?

Thanks.

Hey, hey, my, my....
IT Contractors never die
It's better burn out, than it is to rust
Hey, hey, my, my....

NLUK is dead but he's not forgotten
Is this a tale of AtW's Sofa
Once you're gone, you can't come back
Permabanned by Cojak or NAT...

[northernladuk]

Stop working, live of your pension and other investments..

[abc111]

Hi
I am contractor through limited company and wondering what retirement options are generally considered by similar tradesmen?

Thanks.