To semi-retire or not

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Mothergoose

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I am 58 and working in the UK for last 6 months. Previously worked in Ireland part time in healthcare for 30 years.3k a year pension from that. Worked in UK in mid 90s and kept up my voluntary NI contributions when I returned to Ireland 20 years ago. Won't have full UK or Irish State pension, but exhausted from working full time in stressful, though well-paid job. I have 3 x properties mortgage free - two in Dublin and one in Galway, where I would like to retire to. They are all mortgage free. Total value currently 1.4 million. My children live in one of the properties in Dublin as they are going to college - one finishes next year and the other has 3 x more years in college.

For one of the rooms in that property I receive accommodation allowance for Ukrainian girl. For the other house in Dublin 2 x rooms are let out. My accountant pays the tax monthly to Revenue. I rent a one bed apartment for my job in UK for 550 per month. I am tired of working in a stressful job and tired maintaining and paying utility bills for 3 properties. I would hope to leave my two children one property between them in Dublin - value about 540k - and sell the other Dublin property and go part time until I retire.

Am I mad to sell one property to semi retire? My family has always held on to property for dear life so it does go against the grain. A possibility also is buying a small flat in UK without of the money from the property I would sell, rather than rent for next 9 years. I can't imagine working back in Ireland again. I work in a different job in healthcare now, which would be difficult to find in Ireland.

Any and all advice and comments on the above would be really appreciated.
 
Mothergoose said:
Am I mad to sell one property to semi retire?
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Nope. You are 58. Who knows what the future will bring? You may not reach 60... nobody knows. What use a property to you then?

In the present tense, you are stressed. You have a way of relieving that stress by selling one property. You still have two left.

If buying a flat from the proceeds suits your purposes... go for it, but... that doesn't sound like semi-retiring to me, unless you reduce your hours/working week.

If it were me.. I'd sell, to make life less stressful for myself.
 
Thanks, PaddyBloggit, I think that's very good advice re selling one property. I just hate maintaining them and I absolutely hate being a landlord or renting rooms out. The Ukranian girl and the other two professionals who I rent rooms to are lovely, but we had one fillthy and difficult lodger who became really abusive when asked to tidy up after herself, that it was the final straw. I wouldn't have to continue to let rooms out or contemplate having to rent the entire of one house if I sold one property. I just heard today that my cousin who is 60 had a bleed on the brain a couple of weeks ago, so yes, you never know what is around the corner. Re the flat in UK. If I bought a small flat there - it woukd cost between 130k yo 160k for a one bedroomed flat, I could continue working in UK until I retired. Buying a small flat there would mean I could cut my hours to 3 x days pet week as I would have no rent in the UK, and would then be able to come back to my holiday home in Galway for 8 days per month - Thurs to Monday two weekends s month. My partner lives in Galway. That would just be bliss if I could do that.
 
Mothergoose said:
That would just be bliss if I could do that.
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You can do that of course. Sit down. Make out your to do list that makes it happens. Put it in the order that it needs to happen and go for it.

Madness to be killing yourself with stress when you can make life so much better and enjoyable for yourself.
 
Thanks PaddyBloghit. Just the advice I needed. I ŕaised two children on my own, and worked in very stressful front line jobs. I think it's time for me now! I will contact my solicitor on Tuesday to tell him I am selling and ask him to go through the Deeds file to make sure we have all the documents including Certs of Compliance etc before I put it on the market. I recrnyly got the house I would prefer to sell, repainted, so that's one more item off the list.
 
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