Poll: Pensions - Are you worried about the future?

[MichaelAwkward]

If £5k on holidays is part of your lifestyle add them on. Also, to get £17k net you'll need a higher gross income.

Or I could just ignore you because you're not reading what's posted or even adding anything to the discussion.

we'd only need £10k in total between us plus a bit extra for say 1 or 2 nice holidays a year.

The "plus a bit extra" covers whatever we'd want to spend on holidays or new appliances every year. I'll accept I was off the essentials by around £2k a year (although the current £111 on fuel and car costs would fall in retirement) but it's still way off needing £30k pa in retirement to live comfortably.

 

[Surveyor]

Or I could just ignore you because you're not reading what's posted or even adding anything to the discussion.


The "plus a bit extra" covers whatever we'd want to spend on holidays or new appliances every year. I'll accept I was off the essentials by around £2k a year (although the current £111 on fuel and car costs would fall in retirement) but it's still way off needing £30k pa in retirement to live comfortably.

There isn't even anything in your budget for that £540 weekend away you've just returned from. £12k for a pretty basic life, significantly more if you want some of the nicer things in retirement.

 

[200sols]

Scrimping by on £12k isn't my idea of a comfortable retirement.

 

[Uther]

Also, to get £17k net you'll need a higher gross income.

He wouldn't need a higher gross if he didn't take the 25% tax free up front. He could take £1666 a month / 20k a year tax free if it was his only income. Personal allowance + 25% tax free.

 

[LeeUK]

Are personal pensions worth investing in?

 

[MichaelAwkward]

Scrimping by on £12k isn't my idea of a comfortable retirement.

Where am I scrimping by in my current lifestyle though? What extra are people spending money on when it comes to essentials?

Granted I don't have children or pets which helps but I'm hardly eating beans for every meal and sitting in the dark.

 

[Uther]

Are personal pensions worth investing in?

Of course, if you've got the time left.

 

[200sols]

Where am I scrimping by in my current lifestyle though? What extra are people spending money on when it comes to essentials?

Granted I don't have children or pets which helps but I'm hardly eating beans for every meal and sitting in the dark.

That's the thing isn't it, it's all essentials with nothing left for anything else. The figures are also low for me. Utilities are more like £300/month for me, council tax is over £3k a year alone now.

 

[MichaelAwkward]

That's the thing isn't it, it's all essentials with nothing left for anything else. The figures are also low for me. Utilities are more like £300/month for me, council tax is over £3k a year alone now.

Well not really - the petrol and food costs include what we average in travelling to family and friends, eating out, takeaways, etc. We could cut back even more if we had to.

I know we're fortunate to live in such a cheap property, but we have no current plans to move anywhere - although if we did, efficiency would be high on the priorities still.

 

[200sols]

Well not really - the petrol and food costs include what we average in travelling to family and friends, eating out, takeaways, etc. We could cut back even more if we had to.

I fail to see how you can eat out many times on a £447 food budget per month.

 

[MichaelAwkward]

I fail to see how you can eat out many times on a £447 food budget per month.

We spend £80 a week on shopping (Sainsburys), so that's £100 a month on other food purchases since we make our own lunches (sandwiches or leftovers). Normally get takeaway or eat out once a month, sometimes twice a month and not at all the next, depends how we feel. Includes the occasional treat when we're out - coffee, cake etc.

If that's scrimping then so be it?

 

[EvilRob]

Well not really - the petrol and food costs include what we average in travelling to family and friends, eating out, takeaways, etc. We could cut back even more if we had to.

I know we're fortunate to live in such a cheap property, but we have no current plans to move anywhere - although if we did, efficiency would be high on the priorities still.

Where is maintenance for flat, periodic renovations, replacing appliances/computer/phone, replacing car every 5-10 years, days out, hair cuts, clothes, gifts etc. You'll have much more time on your hands not working which also costs more as you'll want to do more. The 10k is probably easily 30k in reality.

 

[MichaelAwkward]

Where is maintenance for flat, periodic renovations, replacing appliances/computer/phone, replacing car every 5-10 years, days out, hair cuts, clothes, gifts etc. You'll have much more time on your hands not working which also costs more as you'll want to do more. The 10k is probably easily 30k in reality.

In the "plus a bit extra" from the original post - up to £5k a year probably.

I don't see how any of that could add up to £18k, unless it all happens every year in full.

Days out included in petrol/food figure as above, since we don't really go that often to places that cost a lot of money for entry. We don't buy clothes that often, haircuts every other month probably at £20. We haven't actually spent anything on renovations in the 5 years we've been here. All our furniture is at least 7 years old now and doing fine. Maintenance has been negligble, probably a few hundred in total. We got a new AEG oven last year for £250 as a mark down customer return from appliancesdirect.

You're probably right about having more time resulting in more expenditure, but like I said, unless I start some expensive hobbies, I doubt it'll add up to that much.

 

[LeeUK]

Of course, if you've got the time left.

Mid 30s so hope so.

 

[EvilRob]

In the "plus a bit extra" from the original post - up to £5k a year probably.

I don't see how any of that could add up to £18k, unless it all happens every year in full.

Days out included in petrol/food figure as above. We don't buy clothes that often, haircuts every other month probably at £20. We haven't actually spend anything on renovations in the 5 years we've been here. Maintenance has been negligble. We got a new AEG oven last year for £250 as a mark down customer return from appliancesdirect.

That "plus a bit extra" seems to be getting stretched a bit thin and used for many things

Have you thought about how are you planning to fill your days when you stop working?

 

[200sols]

We spend £80 a week on shopping (Sainsburys), so that's £100 a month on other food purchases since we make our own lunches (sandwiches or leftovers). Normally get takeaway or eat out once a month, sometimes twice a month and not at all the next, depends how we feel. Includes the occasional treat when we're out - coffee, cake etc.

If that's scrimping then so be it?

It just seem you are saying, eat out maybe once a month and stay to a strict budget for the other 30 days. Don't buy any clothes, don't go anywhere, actually don't buy anything. It may work for some people but for me it's not a comfortable retirement.

 

[MichaelAwkward]

It just seem you are saying, eat out maybe once a month and stay to a strict budget for the other 30 days. Don't buy any clothes, don't go anywhere, actually don't buy anything. It may work for some people but for me it's not a comfortable retirement.

I said that includes visiting family and friends and eating out when we like. The fact that we don't do it every day or every week is just how we are, since we're both capable cooks and make nice meals at home. It's not even a strict budget, we spent £10 on beef ribs last week since we just fancied them. This week we bought a chicken, ribs and burgers to have as well as everything else.

We both get cinema vouchers through our bank accounts, so that's 6 movies a year sorted. We buy our phones outright and keep them for multiple years, I have an iPhone SE - they've got an iPhone 13, but they only spent about £200 on it last year after selling their old one. I built my PC 3 years ago now and haven't seen any reason to upgrade it yet.

If not scrimping means eating out/takeaways every single day and constantly buying new clothes and gadgets that we don't need then it's no wonder the country is in the state it is, yes everyone probably will need £30k per annum in retirement to carry on doing that.

 

[200sols]

I said that includes visiting family and friends and eating out when we like. The fact that we don't do it every day or every week is just how we are, since we're both capable cooks and make nice meals at home. It's not even a strict budget, we spent £10 on beef ribs last week since we just fancied them. This week we bought a chicken, ribs and burgers to have as well as everything else.

We both get cinema vouchers through our bank accounts, so that's 6 movies a year sorted. We buy our phones outright and keep them for multiple years, I have an iPhone SE - they've got an iPhone 13, but they only spent about £200 on it last year after selling their old one. I built my PC 3 years ago now and haven't seen any reason to upgrade it yet.

If not scrimping means eating out/takeaways every single day and constantly buying new clothes and gadgets that we don't need then it's no wonder the country is in the state it is, yes everyone probably will need £30k per annum in retirement to carry on doing that.

Hey I'm not sure why you started ranting about gadgets, nobody mentioned those. In your scenario you actually have no money for clothes let alone gadgets. As I said everyone will see it differently but your budget and expectations are at a very low bar.

 

[MichaelAwkward]

That "plus a bit extra" seems to be getting stretched a bit thin and used for many things

Have you thought about how are you planning to fill your days when you stop working?

Well that is the nature of one off, infrequent expenditure like the things you listed. One year it can be zero, the next several thousand.

Probably reading, cycling, running, playing computer games, much the same sort of thing I do in my free time now but don't have enough free time to fully enjoy.

 

[MichaelAwkward]

Hey I'm not sure why you started ranting about gadgets, nobody mentioned those. In your scenario you actually have no money for clothes let alone gadgets. As I said everyone will see it differently but your budget and expectations are at a very low bar.

The other guy replying did.

Of course I have money for clothes and gadgets, within that elastic "plus a bit extra" that varies year by year depending on what I need, though most years it will be zero for clothes and gadgets. The overall point is that that "plus a bit extra" will never equal £18k for me and I'm not sure what everyone else is spending their money on that would require £30k, unless like I originally said, they've suffered from extreme lifestyle creep up to retirement. That, to me, is beyond living comfortably - since IMO, we're already doing that on a paltry £12k (so actually only £6k individually).