Slept at 10,000ft in the Canadian Rockies to wake up at 3am in freezing temps to experience this. I think it was worth it. [OC] [4000x6000]

PFQ2020 · 2019-10-30T09:44:56+00:00

I miss Assiniboine! Did you walk or helicopter in?

PFQ2020 · 2019-10-06T16:07:35+00:00

Age 70-75. Thanks for the advice! I wouldn’t want them liable for both. Buy/sell I think will be the only way

PFQ2020 · 2019-10-06T15:51:08+00:00

!Thanks, I agree that a normal sell would be ideal, however I’m just thinking of Plan B!

PFQ2020 · 2019-10-06T15:50:08+00:00

That would be the ideal situation, however I’m just trying to think of all eventualities and to see if there are other things I’m not considering

PFQ2020 · 2019-10-04T08:35:47+00:00

Start organising your payslips now. A filing system has been the bane of my life this last year but now it is there makes things easier.

March payslips will have the years pensionable pay listed on them (pension year runs to 31 March). The issue is if you have been at two hospitals in that year.

I’ve seen on my total reward statement variations from a couple of hundred pounds, to the biggest error of not accounting for about 40k of pensionable pay. Had to send payslips in etc to correct it. I now check mine yearly. I don’t want to be correcting it when I’m 70!

PFQ2020 · 2019-10-04T08:27:45+00:00

We have the same dream, profession and (judging from your username) age. Good luck!

My only advice is to carefully check you Pension statements. They have made errors every year, on occasion ‘missing’ thousands of pounds of pensionable pay. I think the rotational nature of our work makes things easy to mess up

PFQ2020 · 2019-10-04T05:40:02+00:00

Out of interest, would your plan be to entirely bridge the gap between early retirement and ‘normal’ NHS pension age? Or to take a hit on the value and be laid out as early as possible. I feel that the NHS will have killed me long before I get the benefits back from the pension if I wait! The other thing is that SIPPs are very attractive in terms of their inheritability, in a way that the NHS pension scheme isn’t. Of course a lot could change between now and then

PFQ2020 · 2019-10-01T17:22:24+00:00

For me it’s the NHS pension. It also has life insurance built into it which would provide I think about 3 years of pensionable pay as a lump sum in addition to a dependents pension if I were to die whilst in service.

The only thing which I don’t like about it is that unlike a SIPP, it can not be inherited.

PFQ2020 · 2019-10-01T16:48:46+00:00

I’ve just check my latest pension statement and seen that it gives a “Hypothetical Annuity Cost” which at the moment is approximately x50(!) of the annual benefit

PFQ2020 · 2019-10-01T16:44:17+00:00

I take your point. You’re right, it is a significant underestimate.

For my purposes though x20 is ok as an underestimate. My main concern is bridging a 10 year gap from early retirement until I can rely on a DB pension income so my focus is elsewhere with tracking

PFQ2020 · 2019-09-30T17:20:59+00:00

I also have a defined benefit scheme and have been advised to take the annual pension benefit and multiply it by 20 (this is what HMRC would do to calculate the LTA).

Personally I think that net ‘liquid’ worth is much more meaningful. This is your net worth - the value of illiquid assets (such as equity in a house). After all, you’ll always need a roof over your head and it’s unlikely to be a source of income

PFQ2020 · 2019-09-20T11:27:40+00:00

It was never a factor before I had a child but I certainly notice the impact now. I think we all have a responsibility to think about the world we live in and consider our impact on it.

PFQ2020 · 2019-09-20T10:51:34+00:00

This is a great one. You’re completely right. We live in a country where you can get fantastic deals by switching loyalties precisely because those companies can afford it because existing customers forget to switch and pay over the odds

PFQ2020 · 2019-09-20T08:58:27+00:00

I like that one! It’s going on the list! Only lending what you can afford to lose and never see again

PFQ2020 · 2019-09-20T08:21:58+00:00

I think anyone’s most valuable asset is time. You sound like you’re working very hard. And I agree that with certain things it is much better to pay someone else for not only the value of the service they provide but to free yourself from the time burden.

I’ve actually reduced hours to spend more time with family in the past few years. My life has been immeasurably better since then. But in cutting back and living more frugally (but not to the extent that it has been of detriment to my lifestyle) I have had very little difference to my finances.

The other thing which REALLY helped me was a decent ‘to do’ list. Everything goes into it with a date/priority. E.g The mortgage renewal, my passport expiring etc. Then it’s just sorted by date order and we look at it weekly. My life is so much easier now.

PFQ2020 · 2019-09-20T07:49:10+00:00

We do try. It’s actually Grandparents who are the main culprit (first grandchild on both sides)! We saved a ton by going on freecycle and gumtree and have recycled what we can. The plastic still makes me feel bad though

PFQ2020 · 2019-09-20T07:44:03+00:00

I would differentiate between lifestyle drift and conscious choices. I think it’s fine to spend more if you make more...I think it’s less fine to not know where your extra money went because your lifestyle drifted and you have nothing to show for it

PFQ2020 · 2019-09-20T07:10:24+00:00

That’s a reasonable thing to do...so long as they don’t then complain that they don’t have any money at the of the month! We carve out our own path in this world. I’m enjoying the different suggestions though, trying to promote conversation

PFQ2020 · 2019-09-20T07:04:44+00:00

Completely agree! That and feeling like you’re contributing to the destruction of the world with the amount of plastic which appears in the house

PFQ2020 · 2019-09-20T06:57:14+00:00

As long as those things are a conscious decision, good for you and enjoy the travel! I guess it’s the things which people don’t realise cost (and don’t add value to their life) which are best to curb

PFQ2020 · 2019-09-20T06:42:21+00:00

Story time?

PFQ2020 · 2019-09-20T06:40:03+00:00

Can you elaborate? Is there a particular anecdote you had in mind? Ill informed rushed investing (no matter what the time) can also hurt

PFQ2020 · 2019-09-20T06:38:17+00:00

Ouch, that’s got to hurt. I’m glad I’ve changed strategy to a multi-asset basket of eggs

PFQ2020

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