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A 52-year-old with $4M net worth and no mortgage feels uncertain about retiring early despite appearing financially prepared.
The individual earned $500K annually but maintained relatively modest spending with all major expenses covered.
Gradual retirement starting at 55 would allow testing of cash flow sustainability before full retirement.
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Some folks don’t feel wealthy enough or prepared for retirement, even with several millions saved up. Indeed, it can be pretty difficult to draw a line in the sand and say, “What I have is enough.” Indeed, the last few years of inflation have many questioning whether it’s a good time to retire or to pad one’s nest egg further so that one can feel richer.
In this piece, we’ll dig further into a case that involves a 52-year-old with a net worth of around $4 million who’s still feeling just a bit insecure and uncertain about the financial consequences of retiring many years (they’re shooting to ease into retirement by “slow things down” at around 55) before they’re eligible to receive social security benefits (62 years of age).
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Undoubtedly, retiring early can come with its fair share of financial anxieties, regardless of how much one has saved up. This is only natural, especially for someone who’s been financially savvy for many decades. After all, you don’t get to a net worth of $4 million without being good with money and making shrewd decisions. Indeed, many readers may find that this individual who took to Reddit for varied viewpoints has nothing to fear but fear itself as he eases into an early retirement.
Even if you’ve got millions banked, it won’t mean much if your monthly budget is above and beyond that of the average person. For the individual who claims to have made a whopping half a million per year in income, one has to think that there’s some form of “lifestyle creep” — higher expenses in response to higher levels of income coming in — that’s crept up on them over the years.
Indeed, if you’re making a bigger salary, it only makes sense to spend more of it. In any case, the 52-year-old sounded very financially responsible, even a bit frugal relative to the income they’re pulling in. So, I don’t think the individual will run out of money in retirement, and certainly not before they’re eligible to collect social security benefits.
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The 52-year-old has no mortgage ($850,000 in home equity) and childhood expenses (think education) covered. Indeed, all bases seem to be covered. And though there may be additional expenses relating to the poster’s adult children (many may require a safety net from the bank of mom and dad), I’d argue that any modest sums handed out are highly unlikely to make a dent in the individual’s retirement plans, especially if they continue saving money in their final few years in the labor force.
Perhaps the smartest decision for the prospective early retiree is to dip a toe into the retirement waters by slowing down at age 55 until they’re eventually ready to fully retire. Indeed, easing into retirement gradually will allow one to get a better gauge of the longer-term sustainability of personal cash flows, allowing them to make any adjustments as needed.
In the case of the Reddit poster, who I assume is a cardiologist given his Reddit name “Ok_Cardiologist_4569” and substantial income, there’s also an investment portfolio that can be positioned in a way to produce enough passive income that the user doesn’t have to tap into their savings before social security benefits and pension kick in.
All considered, I think the 52-year-old is more than ready to retire as soon as they want to. It’s my humble opinion that they not only have “enough” but more than enough to enjoy their comfortable retirement after a lengthy career.
Unless the poster loves their job or has the aspiration of financing an extremely lavish retirement lifestyle (think fat FIRE, which is the fanciest of early retirement), perhaps winding down sooner rather than later makes sense while they’re still in their early 50s. If you’re in a similar situation and are still feeling some anxiety, you should seek the assurance of a wealth planner.
You may think retirement is about picking the best stocks or ETFs, but you’d be wrong. Even great investments can be a liability in retirement. It’s a simple difference between accumulating vs distributing, and it makes all the difference.
The good news? After answering three quick questions many Americans are reworking their portfolios and finding they can retire earlier than expected. If you’re thinking about retiring or know someone who is, take 5 minutes to learn more here.