I agree, people must be retiring all the time without the golden nest egg that this form and other media suggest. It must be that way, if the median is $200,000, the average is meaningless. What I don't see discussed is that half the people who save 1.6M saved too much. Actually more than that. It all depends on how old you live. The majority of people on this form are very risk adverse. Also many people on this form enjoyed their jobs. Great for them, but they are only about half of American workers. For those of us who have to work, we are trying to figure out when we can retire. In this case, there is risk, the risk that you worked longer than you had to. It's not as simple as income vs expenses, as a person can slowly withdraw their retirement savings. Again, for those who don't mind working, what I'm saying doesn't apply. For about half of Americans, it's risk of running out of money vs the risk of running out of life. By the time one runs out of money, they likely are too old to return to work. Though many people will not experience this as they will die first..For those who live longer then the average, it would be interesting to know what people do. I think most of them downsize their life until they are living in a trailer park.
Just wanted to add that if I felt I could spend it, I would buy a new car. New cars are safer, have better stereos, they are quieter - like a Lexus, they have technology that will help me from getting in a crash, they don't squeak, and I don't have to spend time hunting down an issue. I could list several other reasons I'd like a new car. I wouldn't buy one to impress anyone or because it is shiny. I know many people do buy cars due to an image, but that isn't the only reason.
Comments
I agree, people must be retiring all the time without the golden nest egg that this form and other media suggest. It must be that way, if the median is $200,000, the average is meaningless. What I don't see discussed is that half the people who save 1.6M saved too much. Actually more than that. It all depends on how old you live. The majority of people on this form are very risk adverse. Also many people on this form enjoyed their jobs. Great for them, but they are only about half of American workers. For those of us who have to work, we are trying to figure out when we can retire. In this case, there is risk, the risk that you worked longer than you had to. It's not as simple as income vs expenses, as a person can slowly withdraw their retirement savings. Again, for those who don't mind working, what I'm saying doesn't apply. For about half of Americans, it's risk of running out of money vs the risk of running out of life. By the time one runs out of money, they likely are too old to return to work. Though many people will not experience this as they will die first..For those who live longer then the average, it would be interesting to know what people do. I think most of them downsize their life until they are living in a trailer park.
Post: How Much to Save to Retire?
Link to comment from September 11, 2025
Just wanted to add that if I felt I could spend it, I would buy a new car. New cars are safer, have better stereos, they are quieter - like a Lexus, they have technology that will help me from getting in a crash, they don't squeak, and I don't have to spend time hunting down an issue. I could list several other reasons I'd like a new car. I wouldn't buy one to impress anyone or because it is shiny. I know many people do buy cars due to an image, but that isn't the only reason.
Post: The Illusion of Wealth
Link to comment from July 7, 2025