Real cost of full timing

R. Walter wrote:

mbrower wrote:

TechWriter wrote:

mbrower wrote:

I don't know how long it will take to complete my bucket list but I want to allow at least ten years which means I need to be on the road by age 60

Where I call home for tax and health purposes has also been on my mind and I believe NC is not as senior friendly as other states so If any one can share some insight into calling another state home I would love to hear from you.

If you retire at age 60, you'll need 5 years of buying your own health insurance.

This could be a considerable expense -- far more than the $150/month you said you were spending now. BTW, your health declines as you get older.

The fact that you didn't know Medicare starts at 65 (not 62), want to keep you house (with all its incumbent expenses), and want to take a lump sum payout of your retirement fund has me changing my mind about your estimated budget expenses. I think you could be in for a bad surprise if you retire that early.

this account is a benefit provided by the company I work for. It is not funded by me and could go the way of the dodo bird if the company decides to do away with it, which they say they have the right to do. They have quit providing that benefit to new employees two years ago. My options are to cash it out and spend or reinvest it. I can also draw a fixed stipend from it the rest of my life or until they decide to do away with it. I think I'm going to cash it out. What I do with it I'm still undecided but I like the idea of a new truck/RV.

This account is NOT my retirement account. Sorry about the confusion.

Would you mind sharing what type of account this is to which you are referring? Is it a qualified account? Do you know the IRS code section under which it is organized? Is it a rabbi trust? Curious minds... looking forward to getting better educated. Thanks.

If you are talking about my company funded retirement account, I don't know if I can answer all your questions about it but I'll try. Up until about 1990, my employer provided a pension to all their employees once they retired. The amount you would receive per month was based on years of service. After 1990, they did away with the pension and gave everyone an retirement account which the company placed money in yearly but how much they put in varied by age and years of service and you were vested after 5 years. You could not contribute to it or invest it. Once you left the company you could choose to draw monthly for the rest of your life I think at 59.5 years of age or you could cash it out. If you are young, very little is put in but as you get older the amount increases every year. The longer you are with the company and the older you are, the more you have. Makes sense but makes some employees mad who have worked there for ten years and have less than an older person who has worked 10 years also.

The company has made it clear that this is a fictional account and that no money is actually there and they can withdraw the benefit at any time. However, its a fortune 500 company and they have always paid it out.

They no longer offer it to new employees but do donate 4% of pay to their 401K whether they contribute or not and is capped at 7% to those who contribute. My is capped at 6% of my pay