Hi All,
Log time lurker on the forum, but this is my first time setting up an account and requesting feedback.
I have been on other various forums and I feel this has the highest level of moderation so please don’t give me to much slack if I do this incorrectly.
Personal details
Your age: 56 – (57 in late November)
Your spouse's age: 49- (50 in December)
Number and age of children: 2 Girls (13 and 16).
Income and expenditure
Annual gross income from employment or profession: €65k (but with O/T generally €80k)
Annual gross income of spouse/partner: Very similar to above €65k (ish) plus O/T averaging out at €79k I believe.
Monthly take-home pay: About 4.1k for me, varies month to month based on over time – I don’t know spouse take home pay but I suspect very similar t mine.
Type of employment – Employee (spouse same)
Employer type: Private Company (spouse same)
In general are you:
(a) spending more than you earn, or
(b) saving?
Currently I am saving a little but find I am broke by the end of the month. I don’t go into debt to get me over the hump. I eat beans.
I pay 8% into my company pension and my employer pays 16%. I have to pay the 8% to get the 16% employer contribution. I could pay less but then the employer would pay less.
I also pay an extra 5% by way of an AVC.
Summary of Assets and Liabilities
Family home value: €550,000 approx
Mortgage on family home: No mortgage thankfully, owned outright.
Savings in cash: €22,500
Net equity: Approx - €572,000 (mostly in house equity)
Defined Contribution pension fund: €335,000k (me), spouse – Im unsure
Company shares : No
Buy to Let Property value: My wife owns a property – The rent pays the mortgage so it washes its face (just about)
Buy to let Mortgage: As I say, its in my wife’s name – more below.
Other borrowings – car loans/personal loans etc
Both myself and wife had car loans but those are clear now.
Do you pay off your full credit card balance each month? Yes – I only use my credit card as a backup plan – I have made no purchase on it in 3 years.
If not, what is the balance on your credit card? None
Pension information
Value of pension fund: My private pension fund has €335,000 in it and it is projected to hit €530,000 when I hit 65 based on by age, my current pension growth plan (Moderate Risk) and my AVCs.
I will also qualify for the Irish state pension at 66. Currently €299 a week I think which will work out at €15,500 I believe.
Other savings and investments:
None really – However we have about €40,000 saved in both girl’s names – I look after €20,000 and my wife looks after €20,000. The €20,000 I look after is growing and I suspect the €20,000 my wife is looking after is diminishing. I don’t see this money as ours. I see it as the girl’s money.
Other information which might be relevant
Life insurance: Both have death in service through work.
What specific question do you have or what issues are of concern to you?
My query is two fold.
Firstly – I am very happily married with two fantastic daughters. However, as you can see from above my wife and I (from a financial perspective) live two very separate lives. I worry about money, she does not.
Up to getting married I was very comfortable but obviously costs went up once married.
If I found €500 tomorrow I would save it, If my wife found €500 we would get new curtains (despite not needing them).
When I married, I had a mortgage free house (still do) and €100,000 in savings after I paid for the wedding and honeymoon. This quickly diminished and instead of €100,000 after a number of years we were jointly €75,000 in debt through lifestyle spending. A number of years back I put my foot down, reigned in the lifestyle spending and cleared the €75,000 debt. I took a while but I did it.
However, this led to acrimony within the marriage and led to separate accounts. It was that or divorce. So now we get on great but I believe she is racking up debt again. But at least it isn’t joint debt. We are essentially two independently separate financial entities within the marriage.
I think by clearing the debt (€75k) and slowly building my savings again I am responsible although I was led astray for a while. Of my roughly €4,100 take home pay I give my wife €1,500 for groceries/bills etc. I still pay for other bills (Gas/Electricity/WiFi/TV Licence).
We also go on really expensive holidays every year but if I put my foot down on that there would be more acrimony. The four of us are just back from two weeks in San Francisco which cost €11,000. Personally, two weeks in Buncrana would do me but I have to pick my battles. There used to be week in Spain at Easter also but I have successfully stopped that.
My two girls also go to Private schools. This costs €8,000 in fees per year plus additional costs that come with private schools. I was against private school but again, another battle I lost. However, they attend, have good friends and love it there so that won’t change and it would be cruel to cancel it now.
I have tried to get into my wifes finances. Look at her pension, but she has no interest (Shur, that’s years away) and I suspect she has borrowed money to complete work on the house.
We both had rural backgrounds and grew up very poor. I remember my childhood with horror, she looks back on hers with joy. I fear poverty, she believes Ireland is a rich country and poverty is gone. Her brother and sister in law have very good jobs, both earning €150k plus so the Jones’ must be kept up with.
So, to cut a very long story short – Am I right to continue to paddle my own canoe or could it be a case that if she goes into unsustainable debt – could I be dragged into it?
My second query.
Rightly or wrongly I have this number in my head that when I hit retirement (65) I should have €1,000,000 in my pension pot. If all is put into an ARF (no tax free lump sum) and I draw down 4% per annum (€40,000) I should have a relatively good standard of living. So I plan to increase my AVCs by 2% each year for my remaining years as an employee this will help. Also, I read recently that the retirement age for employees is 66 with a law passed to ensure companies allow staff to work until 66 if they so wish. An extra year of contributions with a year less of draw down should build the pot (I am hoping). Is this a sensible plan or do I need to be doing something more specific to get to the €1 million number I have in my head?
Any suggestions welcomed and if there are any questions I will try and answer.
I found writing this cathartic so that alone has been good.
Log time lurker on the forum, but this is my first time setting up an account and requesting feedback.
I have been on other various forums and I feel this has the highest level of moderation so please don’t give me to much slack if I do this incorrectly.
Personal details
Your age: 56 – (57 in late November)
Your spouse's age: 49- (50 in December)
Number and age of children: 2 Girls (13 and 16).
Income and expenditure
Annual gross income from employment or profession: €65k (but with O/T generally €80k)
Annual gross income of spouse/partner: Very similar to above €65k (ish) plus O/T averaging out at €79k I believe.
Monthly take-home pay: About 4.1k for me, varies month to month based on over time – I don’t know spouse take home pay but I suspect very similar t mine.
Type of employment – Employee (spouse same)
Employer type: Private Company (spouse same)
In general are you:
(a) spending more than you earn, or
(b) saving?
Currently I am saving a little but find I am broke by the end of the month. I don’t go into debt to get me over the hump. I eat beans.
I pay 8% into my company pension and my employer pays 16%. I have to pay the 8% to get the 16% employer contribution. I could pay less but then the employer would pay less.
I also pay an extra 5% by way of an AVC.
Summary of Assets and Liabilities
Family home value: €550,000 approx
Mortgage on family home: No mortgage thankfully, owned outright.
Savings in cash: €22,500
Net equity: Approx - €572,000 (mostly in house equity)
Defined Contribution pension fund: €335,000k (me), spouse – Im unsure
Company shares : No
Buy to Let Property value: My wife owns a property – The rent pays the mortgage so it washes its face (just about)
Buy to let Mortgage: As I say, its in my wife’s name – more below.
Other borrowings – car loans/personal loans etc
Both myself and wife had car loans but those are clear now.
Do you pay off your full credit card balance each month? Yes – I only use my credit card as a backup plan – I have made no purchase on it in 3 years.
If not, what is the balance on your credit card? None
Pension information
Value of pension fund: My private pension fund has €335,000 in it and it is projected to hit €530,000 when I hit 65 based on by age, my current pension growth plan (Moderate Risk) and my AVCs.
I will also qualify for the Irish state pension at 66. Currently €299 a week I think which will work out at €15,500 I believe.
Other savings and investments:
None really – However we have about €40,000 saved in both girl’s names – I look after €20,000 and my wife looks after €20,000. The €20,000 I look after is growing and I suspect the €20,000 my wife is looking after is diminishing. I don’t see this money as ours. I see it as the girl’s money.
Other information which might be relevant
Life insurance: Both have death in service through work.
What specific question do you have or what issues are of concern to you?
My query is two fold.
Firstly – I am very happily married with two fantastic daughters. However, as you can see from above my wife and I (from a financial perspective) live two very separate lives. I worry about money, she does not.
Up to getting married I was very comfortable but obviously costs went up once married.
If I found €500 tomorrow I would save it, If my wife found €500 we would get new curtains (despite not needing them).
When I married, I had a mortgage free house (still do) and €100,000 in savings after I paid for the wedding and honeymoon. This quickly diminished and instead of €100,000 after a number of years we were jointly €75,000 in debt through lifestyle spending. A number of years back I put my foot down, reigned in the lifestyle spending and cleared the €75,000 debt. I took a while but I did it.
However, this led to acrimony within the marriage and led to separate accounts. It was that or divorce. So now we get on great but I believe she is racking up debt again. But at least it isn’t joint debt. We are essentially two independently separate financial entities within the marriage.
I think by clearing the debt (€75k) and slowly building my savings again I am responsible although I was led astray for a while. Of my roughly €4,100 take home pay I give my wife €1,500 for groceries/bills etc. I still pay for other bills (Gas/Electricity/WiFi/TV Licence).
We also go on really expensive holidays every year but if I put my foot down on that there would be more acrimony. The four of us are just back from two weeks in San Francisco which cost €11,000. Personally, two weeks in Buncrana would do me but I have to pick my battles. There used to be week in Spain at Easter also but I have successfully stopped that.
My two girls also go to Private schools. This costs €8,000 in fees per year plus additional costs that come with private schools. I was against private school but again, another battle I lost. However, they attend, have good friends and love it there so that won’t change and it would be cruel to cancel it now.
I have tried to get into my wifes finances. Look at her pension, but she has no interest (Shur, that’s years away) and I suspect she has borrowed money to complete work on the house.
We both had rural backgrounds and grew up very poor. I remember my childhood with horror, she looks back on hers with joy. I fear poverty, she believes Ireland is a rich country and poverty is gone. Her brother and sister in law have very good jobs, both earning €150k plus so the Jones’ must be kept up with.
So, to cut a very long story short – Am I right to continue to paddle my own canoe or could it be a case that if she goes into unsustainable debt – could I be dragged into it?
My second query.
Rightly or wrongly I have this number in my head that when I hit retirement (65) I should have €1,000,000 in my pension pot. If all is put into an ARF (no tax free lump sum) and I draw down 4% per annum (€40,000) I should have a relatively good standard of living. So I plan to increase my AVCs by 2% each year for my remaining years as an employee this will help. Also, I read recently that the retirement age for employees is 66 with a law passed to ensure companies allow staff to work until 66 if they so wish. An extra year of contributions with a year less of draw down should build the pot (I am hoping). Is this a sensible plan or do I need to be doing something more specific to get to the €1 million number I have in my head?
Any suggestions welcomed and if there are any questions I will try and answer.
I found writing this cathartic so that alone has been good.
