Where are you retiring to?

Any full time RV retirees. I am seriously considering selling my home and buying an RV. I love my family and hate the thought of moving away, but an RV would allow me the flexibility of “following the sun” as well as visiting family for holidays and special occasions. I don’t need much space and love to travel so I think it would be a doable option for me.

Mike

 

Do you have any experience with RV life? I do not have any personal experience myself, but you might want to look into it or maybe do some test runs before you commit.

 

Interesting blog entry on RVs:

A Cost/Benefit Analysis of the RV Lifestyle - Can I Retire Yet?

 

Retirement? Asking me that is like asking Jim Mora about playoffs. All I know is that I don’t want to have two residences, and moving to LAS is a not an option for me. Every year I delay taking SS adds to my monthly amount, so I’ll probably split the difference and quit working around 65-66. Instead of more trips to LAS, I want to go to places I’ve never seen such as the Pacific Northwest and western Canada. With all the adjustments I’ve made regarding trips to LAS, if casinos keep talking away the opportunities and incentives to return, I have run down player account and comp balances to where one good trip could zero them out and just say I had a good run and be amazed at how long it lasted.

 

A friend from work chose Costa Rica. He already owns a little bungalow down there. He shows us pictures of a lot. Myself, I'm also looking in BHC and Fort Mohave area. Hoping to plant a 4sale sign in front yard by June. I have guys coming Friday to install new countertop and flooring. The wife's last day is in 4 weeks then 6 weeks vacation. I'm going to spring it on my work at the last minute
Healthcare still has me worried. The cost and the actual care.. AZ not famous for great healthcare. The wife has had 2 hip replacements and I've had 4 stents and colon cancer. So early retirement seems logical. It will be rough the first 3 years but doable.
And Already got a taste of the tax man this year. To tune of $6600+. I parked some high-flyiers in a reggie brokerage account that took off.

 

This is a popular thought these days, with the WSJ and other publications/analyses pointing out it ain't automatically peaches and cream. It certainly is a lifestyle that works for many, and as the move-to-Vegas experiment also proves, it often fails. The gang is correct in taking a shakedown cruise or six in advance.

My parents RV'd for a good 10 years before settling down again. But they didn't vagabond from spot to spot once they got into the routine. They were campground and hatchery and wildlife area hosts, and then wintered in an RV park in Palm Desert to be near family. They loved it. They'd explore a bit between the nodes but effectively had two "residences."

 

Vacation and retirement are not zero-sum games, it's not where-I-am-now or Vegas to the exclusion of all else. Have fun exploring and hopefully joy in Vegas can still be found when you do visit.

 

Two things. First, friends who were among the perpetual complainers here recently pulled up stakes and went to Arizona because it has lower taxes. The neighbor I wrote about above is also looking to move somewhere that has lower taxes. Both have more money than we do, yet they let cost drive their decision to move to a place that is radically different from here in many other ways. Now the friends who moved to Arizona have a new set of complaints.

Second, one of my cousins and his wife retired more than ten years ago, bought an RV, and have lived a nomadic life ever since. They have a Texas address for tax purposes because taxes are low there and unlike some states which require people who move there to spend half the year plus one day in the state to maintain legal residence, Texas residency requirements are lax. It's something they like, so I say good for them.

 

Good reminders, bard. I go back to being where you want to be as #1. You gotta crack the nut but in most of these cases we're talking gradients, ultimately.

 

We live in a beautiful hiking destination spot in Washington state. My husband is an avid hiker, so our agreement is he can have his mountains while he can still climb them and then I get my ocean. We have no idea where we will end up (still on our mid 40s). I love different areas of California but it is expensive and that makes it undesirable from a retirement standpoint (unless we win the lottery). I have thought of Delaware, too, because of their lower taxes (and it’s near my home state of NJ).

Lately my husband has been interested in
Portugal. Stable government, good, affordable standard of living. I’s have to learn Portuguese, but the learning curve shouldn’t be that steep since I already speak some Spanish.

 

Ken, my sister and one of my adult nieces lived in Ft. Collins for many years.
It is the quintessential mid western college town.

 

No experience living in an RV full time. A few of the reasons I “think” the life style will work for me are 1- I don’t need much space (heck, I once spent a week in the smallest hotel room in Vegas at the Fremont). Seriously, the small living area is a plus. 2- I love traveling and exploring new cities, parks, etc. 3- I can always return to Columbus and stay with family for short periods of time if need be. 4- I am pretty much a “go with the flow” kind of guy, so I think I can adapt to whatever the road would throw at me.

Concerns include cost, almost everything you read about full timing speaks of how it always way more expensive than what you think it will cost. Maintenance is another potential issue for me, I can put gas in a vehicle, check the oil and change a flat tire...after that I’m lost.

Thanks for you input.

Mike

 

That's probably where I would have ended up if my daughter hadn't convinced me to come to Oregon. She wanted "Grandpa" to be around—even though she has yet to get pregnant, says her job is too hectic right now. I always pictured myself in Bullhead City going across the river to the Riverside or Edgewater and having breakfast followed by a day playing the races in the sports book. Of course, that was before the online stuff started and I can sit at home and play the races just as easy. I also liked the fact that it was pretty much equal distance from my sister in California and my sister in Arizona. Alas, I like Oregon. I'm amazed at the great wine in the state and the abundance of excellent restaurants. It's also a lot better weather wise.

 

Neither the wine nor the food should be startling given the weather and natural bounty of my adopted state.

As for weather, there probably aren't a lot of places not called Badwater with hotter temps than the lower Colorado valley.

 

Thanks, M. Makes me think that if we ended up in a Front Range college town that Boulder would make more sense.

 

And I love it there. A jet ski on the river when it's a 110 is paradise. Get out of the water, clean up and go gamble! Too bad I couldn't have retired there when I was still relatively young.

As for Oregon, yes, I like it, if not a bit homesick. Plenty of places still to explore.

 

One of the things that I think I forgot to mention is that my personal family has spread out geographically much more in the past 10-15 years of my life. We had a central orbit location if you will that was my grandparents' house. People might move a bit here and there but life was centralized around that house, which was built by them when they were in their early 20s (my grandfather was raised on a farm but ultimately retired @ 52 as an exec from Kodak prior to their downfall). Once they moved, it seemed as if people dispersed.

That to me makes relocation so much more palatable and poses limitless possibilities. My wife's family is 90% rooted in the same 25 square-mile area. Consequently, my POV is about as foreign to her as speaking Mandarin when it comes to moving at retirement. While our home area has tremendous reasons to live here in wNY/Finger Lakes...there is the saying that family is why people stay. Seems true.

For those closer to retirement, what helps you pull that trigger on saying "enough?" Is it innate or some other factor? I'm working toward a goal of retiring from my career by 55 and possibly working a lower-pace, less stressful job to keep me busy and engaged (something fun even if low pay).

My grandfather as noted retired at 52 with an early buyout that was obnoxious to the point he accepted w/o consulting my grandmother. He came home from work one day, retired. Done. He's lived every second of retirement his way on his terms. Nobody else in my family or orbit outside of work is in that potential position, except me. I don't have people to bounce thoughts and questions off of in this respect. Thank the heavens my career is doing very well and even staying static from today forward will allow me the chance to do this. Would love to hear insights on the trigger to call it a day, so to speak.

 

I am currently living in Spain, it's a nice country but sometimes it drives me crazy. After retirement I am thinking of moving to Thai home property as I find Thailand very peaceful, warm, cheap and tasty.

 

Florida.

 

I'm 54, and I could retire today, but not as comfortably as I want to retire. The last year being an exception due to the derecho, and less so, the virus, I've worked pretty hard. Working hard is relative, as is stress. Owning a smaller business has necessary stress, and it's hard to say it is lower-pace. For me it's how I handle it. So I do things to make this lower-pace and less stressful. That is simply a different way of thinking, although it takes work to view things this way. I'm at the point that very little causes unnecessary stress.

For me debt takes away peace. It's the difference between having a higher income and a lower net worth Essentially having the bank own you as opposed to having an above average income, a decent net worth, and when I need the bank, due to all of this, they come to see me, not the opposite way.

I guess I'm doing what you're talking about. Lower-pace, less stress, but I'll continue to take the residual income until the numbers line up. So what I mean is I've probably maxed out social security. That's essentially a defined benefit pension of $46,470 for a single person. That asset alone is probably worth $1.5MM. This discounts all of "opinion" about social security not being around, etc. That's just not reality.

So this is one step. $46,470 covers some expenses. And this in my view covers part of what you label as "enough" in your post. Because it adds to lower-pace and less stressful.

Another step I've mentioned. The way I think, and react to what other people define as stress. If money is stress, than take that out of the equation. I suspect money isn't stress for some, but overspending and debt is. What do I really need, and what do I really want? I'm of the opinion if you're not happy without money, adding money to the equation doesn't fix this.

Both of these steps individuals have some control over.

When am I done? Or as you put it, "For those closer to retirement, what helps you pull that trigger on saying "enough?"". For me when the financials cover my needs and wants, and also when what I do stops being fun. Also for me, it means when I can sell my business. And I'm going to do this in the same manner it was sold me me. To a key employee, who has been loyal. So I'll start by selling 25% to them at a discount, just as was done for me. As a reward for all the years I barely made any money, and for my loyalty. That will make that person take an even more intense interest in the business, and allow me to continue to make residual income, while being less involved, and add to both lower-pace and less stress. I also view this as the right thing to do, for both my employees and customers. And ensures that I do everything I can to guaranty the new owners success.

The final step is getting out completely. I believe in my case I'll need to remain active in business, active mentally, physically and spiritually. So a whole bunch of variables here. My health. Which charities do I donate my time and expertise to? Ad infinitium..

Enough is different for everyone. But I can state factually enough will never be when I'm burned out. I endeavor to not allow stress, money, material things, etc. to control my life. I've been pretty poor, and I was happy when I was poor. I also endeavor to not allow business or work issues to impact my happiness and health. The quality of my life, doing the next right thing, and being a decent person are much more important to me than (as an example) a limo ride to Circa. If I don't do the right thing, and don't live in a fact based reality, I have no chance for happiness.

So it's been my experience, by doing these things, I'll be able to say "enough" on my own terms, but be able to do this in a selfless manner. And "enough" as you used it above doesn't mean I've had "enough", but means this the right time to go.