[AltaRed]

Well I don't think anyone truly regrets $15K/month. However, it is hard in the middle of adult hood to find balance. Demands of family, work all clash. And you could be doing everything right, but still pull the short straw and lose it all. Being prepared hurts current lifestyle, but I don't regret making tough choices early on----rather I took them as challenges. For the responsible types, its only through the review mirror that you could say "I should have spent more". But that is only hindsight.

Agreed it is very easy to look back sitting on $10-15k/month and say I wish I would have done things differently during life's journey. That is hindsight.

I try to articulate moderation throughout life's journey when I am asked for my thoughts. Be cost conscious (not a spendthrift) during one's accumulating years of 30-55 in particular but enjoy the journey. There are a lot of cost effective ways to have enjoyable vacations, both national and international, cost effective sports and recreation activities that don't need the top tier equipment, there are ways to have a modest nearly new vehicle without breaking the bank or carrying a significant auto loan, the kids don't need designer clothing when Old Navy and the like will do, etc, etc. It is a lot more fun to hike the back country at age 30 than it is at age 60 and Disney World is way more fun with preteens and teens than it is as a grandparent. There are times to wait and times to just do it.

If one can do that and still fill one's TFSA room and a good portion of RRSP room, I'd suggest that would be a well balanced life.

 

[Retiredguy]

A good follow-up poll would be ask how much money and assets have you hidden in secretive overseas accounts and shell companies.

Let me be the first to answer. None.

 

[Gator13]

A good follow-up poll would be ask how much money and assets have you hidden in secretive overseas accounts and shell companies.

None.

I have made a good income during my working years and have paid more than my fair share of taxes. T4, T5's and T3's. No deductions other than an annual RRSP contribution.

 

[Gator13]

Well I don't think anyone truly regrets $15K/month. However, it is hard in the middle of adult hood to find balance. Demands of family, work all clash. And you could be doing everything right, but still pull the short straw and lose it all. Being prepared hurts current lifestyle, but I don't regret making tough choices early on----rather I took them as challenges. For the responsible types, its only through the review mirror that you could say "I should have spent more". But that is only hindsight.

Your thinking and actions are sound. Focus on spending time with family and friends and putting your available funds towards experiences rather than material things (other than paying of your home).

During our earlier years we drove older, but reliable, vehicles and took vacations closer to home. We focused on paying off our mortgage and then moving to the next house and paying it off. With no mortgage, our cash flow improved at the same time our income was also improving. We than began to spend more on travel and started to see the world, but stayed very grounded with our spending habits and continued to focus on saving. We are now closing in on retirement and we will be able to spend more than we have ever spent in our lives. We will still stay grounded and hope to spend time sharing with family and friends making lasting memories.

I will add that it didn't come without hard work. Very hard work work. I think most that have enjoyed success will tell you that they busted their humps for several decades. It won't happen by deciding to semi retire in your 30's or take year long sabbaticals when you feel like you need a break. I have nothing against anyone who decides to do things like that, but they should not expect the same lifestyle in their later years.

 

[ian]

If my SIL put what she spent in credit card interest each ,month, each year into an RSP or TFSA she probably would not have had to work into her 70's or live with her daughter.

 

[milhouse]

What is your after tax monthly income in retirement?

Hoping I can tack on a follow-up question of "How static or dyanamic has been your income in retirement?"
I'm guessing people generally want a pretty stable income flow but using the VPW strategic, additional income streams coming online like CPP and OAS, etc can change the amount of retirement income available. Do retirees embrace the variation or try to limit it as much as possible? Personally, I think I'll be agreeable to some fluxuation but want to keep the annual income within a range.

We've been in kind of a "less stuff/clutter" battle for a while. We've won stuff from charity raffles that we just gave away or declined free items because we know it would be low use by us and we'd have to find a place for it in the house. If we do buy stuff, we're a little more agreeable nowadays to paying more for buying higher quality items as appropriate like for durability. Our focus is leaning more about splurging on experiences though.

It is a tough balance spending for the now while also saving for the future. The problem is that there's no definitive right or wrong decisions since the future is unknown. So depending on how life plays out, you can end up with a huge retirement cash flow or needing to work longer or reducing your lifestyle or having things just work out. No doubt having a healthy household income helps with half the equation but it's also ideal to try to spend purposefully and that a lot of fulfilling things in life don't require a lot of money.

 

[ian]

We have fluctuation because of investment income realized. Just about to send a large payment to CRA for 2021.

The fluctuation does not impact our cash flow or hamper our retirement spending in any way. Our portfolio withdrawals are very low. Most investment income is re-invested, net of CRA obligations on same.

We typically purchase on value. Travel is our largest spend. One does not have to spend every night in 5 or 6 star hotel/resort to enjoy a great travel experience. The opposite is true for us. We have had as much enjoyment from a $70. beach side accommodation in Thailand and local food as we have from a 5 or 6 star AI.

 

[AltaRed]

Retirees do not need to have a steady/stable retirement income if they know how to manage budgets, use cash reserves to house a year or two of expenses as ballast and/or buffer to dynamic changes.

I am a strong proponent of VPW as a strategy recognizing one does not have to withdraw the allocated amount. VPW provides a 'safe' ceiling. Too many people see percentages from strategies likeVPW, 4% SWR, etc. as a need to 'withdraw' or 'spend'. That simply is not the case. I use VPW methodology as my guide but I have rarely used the full percentage any given year, albeit in more recent times I have been pulling higher amounts for gifting purposes (family and charitable donations). At my age (73), it would make little sense to re-invest any surplus...to do what? Grow the stash?

You may want to take a look at these threads over at FWF to get a sense of VPW in practice.

Growth of the Vanguard Balanced ETF Portfolio (VBAL) and its components - Financial Wisdom Forum

A Simple Retirement Using Variable Percentage Withdrawals (VPW Forward Test) - Financial Wisdom Forum

 

[TomB16]

Do retirees embrace the variation or try to limit it as much as possible?

Embrace.

 

[MrBlackhill]

Interesting poll. Lots of rich retirees here. Not a rant, just an observation.

I mean, me and my wife make somewhere around $10k+/month after-tax and we live very, very decently, never struggled with money, we travel abroad every year, and yet we have a $3k/month mortgage, $1k/month debt repayment, we save for renovations, we save for retirement and we have a kid to provide for.

I can't even imagine what we could do with $10k+/month without mortgage, kids, savings, debts, etc. I mean, that's enough to be traveling 365/365 days per year, with hotel everyday, restaurant everyday and activities everyday.

 

[hycm53]

I didn't vote because I don't know how much the monthly income will be after income tax , but I do know how much the monthly income will be before income tax.

 

[AltaRed]

A retired couple today could have $22k each in CPP plus OAS for a total of $44k. A $2M portfolio will generate another $80k. That provides $10k/month gross (BT), perhaps $7k net. A number of current boomers aged 58-76 today will also have DB pensions albeit the younger boomers not yet retired are in that diminishing crowd of either no, or reduced, DB pensions.

 

[AltaRed]

I didn't vote because I don't know how much the monthly income will be after income tax , but I do know how much the monthly income will be before income tax.

Sure you can. The information is on your 2021 T1 return or NOA (gross income less income tax paid). I have always used my T1 returns to trend my own personal information, e.g. gross income, investment income (eligible dividends grossed up, other income, etc, etc), income taxes paid, and IAT (income after tax). You don't need any other sources of data beyond that.

 

[ian]

Sure you can. The information is on your 2021 T1 return or NOA (gross income less income tax paid). I have always used my T1 returns to trend my own personal information, e.g. gross income, investment income (eligible dividends grossed up, other income, etc, etc), income taxes paid, and IAT (income after tax). You don't need any other sources of data beyond that.

Don't know about other tax programs. Studio Tax has a feature option to print off a summary page that includes both of our line item filings for the past three years. Plus provide the effective tax rates, incremental tax rates. All on two pages.

I use it primarily to review our tax returns by line item prior to filing to look for any obvious errors or omissions. Makes it very easy to to see income, net of taxes.

 

[AltaRed]

I believe all tax software provides summary pages (which is my go-to as well on Ufile) but it is also just as easy to read it off the T1 return itself or the NOA. The point is... annual after tax income is an easy number to obtain.

 

[Mechanic]

I don't have the NOA's yet but looked at the tax returns from accountant and took taxes due off the income.

 

[Retired Peasant]

I'm not certain of the intent of the question. Some seem to be talking about income, which could be taken from your NOA. But then others seem to be speaking about what they spend. Not at all the same thing for us.

 

[londoncalling]

Interesting poll. Lots of rich retirees here. Not a rant, just an observation.

I mean, me and my wife make somewhere around $10k+/month after-tax and we live very, very decently, never struggled with money, we travel abroad every year, and yet we have a $3k/month mortgage, $1k/month debt repayment, we save for renovations, we save for retirement and we have a kid to provide for.

I can't even imagine what we could do with $10k+/month without mortgage, kids, savings, debts, etc. I mean, that's enough to be traveling 365/365 days per year, with hotel everyday, restaurant everyday and activities everyday.

Depending on how soon you are retiring 10k won't have the same buying power it does today.

We are on target to be in that camp but a lot can disrupt that progress. Some of these are beyond our control and others are by choice. I think if one's retirement income is the same as it was in working years they are in good shape provide they don't have any outstanding bad debt. Of course this is somewhat dependent on what ones expectations are for retirement lifestyle. At a certain point along the way one tends to value time over money. Above all of that health becomes the biggest priority.

 

[like_to_retire]

I can't even imagine what we could do with $10k+/month without mortgage, kids, savings, debts, etc.

Well, it simply builds up, unless you're a spendthrift. Then you give it away.

I mean, that's enough to be traveling 365/365 days per year, with hotel everyday, restaurant everyday and activities everyday.

hehe, the very definition of a nightmare in my world. I guess some people must enjoy that kind of thing.

ltr

 

[Ponderling]

We answered on what we plan to withdraw in the full retirement 2-3 years out.

We will have an investment return in excess of this and keep reinvesting the excess in growing TFSA's to max contributions to eternity if we can swing it, and non reg for quite a while as well.

Need to bleed the RRSP quite a bit in the early years of retirement or the mandated RRIF withdrawals are going to cramp our styles more than just a bit. We are at age 56/58 right now our registered funds are bumping up in 2M$, although after this week not nearly as close as a few weeks ago. We have been though downdrafts before and the key we have learned is two words, ala Hitch Hikers Guide to the Galaxy: 'Don't Panic".