Retirement Planning Month 5 of 78

 

      Did you have a good Halloween yesterday? We had a good  group about 5:5, then a big trickle just a few here and there. We live towards the end of a cul de sac and looking down the street, the first  two houses on both sides were dark, so I'm guessing a lot of kids skipped walking down our block to our end of the circle, so half what we've had in more recent years, not counting last year where I just set candy out and kept refilling, with a total of 23. I remember back when my older kids were young, we easily had 75-100, There were a lot of community events this year as well, so maybe Trick or Treating has lost the appeal.  Back to my retirement progress and to recap, my target date is November 26, 2027, give or take a month. If timing is as planned, I'll be exactly 62 at retirement following my husband who should retire four years earlier. My intent is be to post this on the last Monday of each month to November 29th, 2027.Back in June, I figured out if life goes to plan, I am 78 months from retiring. Now, 74. I missed an update in September-well technically missed October, but am fitting this in even though it is the first Monday of November, not last one of October.

     Without going into details as we are all different in terms of income now, income needed, and priorities, I'll note where  we are for at this point for the month as 

• On Track
• Increased Investment Target
• Below Target
• Maintenance
• No Effort

401K: On Track, and both DH and I have met the maximum we can contribute. This should help us maximize cash savings. 

Roth:  No Effort-But is on track with what has been put away. We tend to put into this in a lump sum inthe spring. I need to not to count twice with Savings when we make this shift. .

Pension: On Track

Social Security: Maintenance-as a reminder, we are not counting on social security as part of our plan, so anything we do get will be a bonus to a comfortable retirement. 

Medical Account:  (added category) I contribute automatically 1% of my salary to a Health Savings Account. I also put $1,200 in a medical flex account for pre-tax payment of out of pocket expenses. I'll point out, the Roth account is earmarked for medical expenses between my retirement date, and the date when I have reached my full pension eligibility. I'm researching what other  HSA options might be out there, but so far, what I've uncovered is that the max allowable in a Roth seems to apply inclusively to a personal HSA savings accounts. 

Cash:  Increased Investment close to what we were aiming for, though September and October was a combined deposit. On  a positive note, DH is on board with resetting our 2022 budget to see if we can live 100% on my income alone. He had some ideas of where to plug holes as well.

     These are all still goals for the next few years, but with trying to plan to live on just my income, I've highlighted the areas that are secure/banked. While my goal is that we have 12 months of living expenses banked in liquid funds, technically that is accounted for elsewhere. We'll still try and  do better with liquid cash savings. I tweaked this a bit since originally created in June. 

• Four semesters of college for DD2 (including a study abroad semester though she has earned those added costs herself)
• Bathroom remodel-upstairs
• Bathroom retouch-downstairs
• Bedroom redecorate
• new flooring-upstairs (carpet likely, but I'd love to do hardwood)
• Office redecorate-we did this for no money so far. I still want to paint and pull the old gross carpet. 
• Pull old deck, patio pour, furniture, backyard landscaping
• Supporting wedding costs for three kids
• Two cross country road trips and or 1 plus a cruise
• At least one European vacation
• Mini vacations on years not doing the road trips or Europe 
• Replace my car (though we pay ourselves each month and that would come out of a different account like the boat)

     The mini-vacations will be part of the annual budget, but two cross country and a Europe trip, unlikely unless we determine we will use DH's income. That would be OK though since not a necessity, it would still fit my challenge to see if we can live off just my salary. (Yeah-I know, stretching the challenge a bit as usual.) However, there is a possibility I will be getting a raise-accumulated over the next six years, would be about enough to cover those three major vacations. That's not money in the bank yet, if we want to feed the Roth both this and next April, so won't go on a spreadsheet. That's my wrap up as I move into November, and close to reaching the official 6 year mark.