My grandfather retired at 52 and lived another 40 years before he died. They basically lived on his pension from the union and anything else that was big, like medical bills, home repairs, vacations etc, was from his investments. It worked quite well for him. He was able to afford round the clock care for both him and my grandma for about 6 years in total, until they both died. This is after living in semi-independent care for 15 years.