This is, I think, very out of character for this forum. The fact is, people like me, who were very successful in our careers, virtually all pay IRRMA. If you have a decent retirement income it is nearly impossible to keep most of it out of your MAGI. And sure, its pocket change, but it reads like sour grapes to tell us to just pay up and be grateful. We earned our retirement incomes, they were not a gift. But as you say, its an opinion piece and everyone is entitled to their own.
I come from a small family, in which everyone reached millionaire status through frugal lifestyles and smart investing. My wife's side of the family is quite similar. I'd say the average age of the cars we drive is about ten years. And they are Toyotas, Fords and Chevy's. Not a beamer or Mercedes in the bunch.
I just simply told both of my two main low fee advisors how much to withdraw each month and let them handle how to do it. Money direct deposits into checking account. All is good. No worries. But I've got more in investments than I could ever spend, so that's the real stress reliever.
I retired from an enjoyable career ten years ago at age 60. I turned 70 this week and these ten retired years have been amazing! My 70 year old wife and I play tennis, pickleball, ride our bicycles, hike, run, walk, bushwhack extreme terrain, fish and travel. We also do a ton of volunteeer work, helping others regain their health and to pull themselves out of poverty through education. Golden years understates just how wonderful these years are.
It is so important to retire to something, not just to retire away from something no longer inspiring. In my case it was volunteeer work, chairing a college board, a hospital board and a foundation board. Also at church and by mentoring chemical engineering students at my alma mater. Plus lots of tennis, pickleball, biking, hiking, fishing and travel. The only downside of such a full and rich retirement is the way time is rushing by. I'd like another fifty years of this phase of life, and turning 70 in three weeks, that's highly unlikely!
I get the performer concept. I was also an introverted person with considerable performance talent. But that's not a fake facade, performer is who you were/are, who I was/am. Its not dishonest or disingenuous to use an innate talent to boost your success. Quiet people do not advance, and that is not unfair. Failing to sell your ideas is failure and it should hold people back in life. The idea that you freed yourself from what was actually perhaps your greatest talent is nonsensical to me. Embrace that performer inside of you, he's gifted.
In the recorded history of mankind the number of cyclists injured by cows on the other side of a fence is...zero. I seriously doubt you were about to be the first. But spiders scare me, so that's equally irrational.
Your friend, to be kind, is an idiot. Impulse buying a car demonstrates the deferred gratification capability of a two year old. Of course he is not alone, which I suppose funds a lot of free entertainment for people like you and me who aren't much influenced by advertising or salesmen.
I retired at 60, but consulted about 8 hours a week for the first 5 years. It brought in six figures of income and allowed our nest egg to grow, untouched. I didn't need the money but I did need the off ramp to not earning. Now my retired work is unpaid, chairing college, hospital and charitable foundation boards as well as mentoring engineering students at my alma mater. A successful retirement is all about purpose.
I'm sorry you had such a hard task. My dad, in contrast, had everything documented and almost 100% of his assets payable on death to me and my brother, or appropriately in a trust. He had sold all the real estate so there was little that had to go through probate. If the amount of assets requiring probate is minimal (under 100K) then a special form of expedited probate is allowed that costs almost nothing. It was very easy to close the estate.
Comments
This is, I think, very out of character for this forum. The fact is, people like me, who were very successful in our careers, virtually all pay IRRMA. If you have a decent retirement income it is nearly impossible to keep most of it out of your MAGI. And sure, its pocket change, but it reads like sour grapes to tell us to just pay up and be grateful. We earned our retirement incomes, they were not a gift. But as you say, its an opinion piece and everyone is entitled to their own.
Post: Enough with IRMAA complaining
Link to comment from December 30, 2025
I come from a small family, in which everyone reached millionaire status through frugal lifestyles and smart investing. My wife's side of the family is quite similar. I'd say the average age of the cars we drive is about ten years. And they are Toyotas, Fords and Chevy's. Not a beamer or Mercedes in the bunch.
Post: The Festive Sweater and the Dilemma
Link to comment from December 19, 2025
I just simply told both of my two main low fee advisors how much to withdraw each month and let them handle how to do it. Money direct deposits into checking account. All is good. No worries. But I've got more in investments than I could ever spend, so that's the real stress reliever.
Post: The Absurdity of my Mental Financial Gymnastics
Link to comment from December 3, 2025
I retired from an enjoyable career ten years ago at age 60. I turned 70 this week and these ten retired years have been amazing! My 70 year old wife and I play tennis, pickleball, ride our bicycles, hike, run, walk, bushwhack extreme terrain, fish and travel. We also do a ton of volunteeer work, helping others regain their health and to pull themselves out of poverty through education. Golden years understates just how wonderful these years are.
Post: They lied to us.
Link to comment from December 3, 2025
It is so important to retire to something, not just to retire away from something no longer inspiring. In my case it was volunteeer work, chairing a college board, a hospital board and a foundation board. Also at church and by mentoring chemical engineering students at my alma mater. Plus lots of tennis, pickleball, biking, hiking, fishing and travel. The only downside of such a full and rich retirement is the way time is rushing by. I'd like another fifty years of this phase of life, and turning 70 in three weeks, that's highly unlikely!
Post: The Wealth That Connects
Link to comment from November 12, 2025
I get the performer concept. I was also an introverted person with considerable performance talent. But that's not a fake facade, performer is who you were/are, who I was/am. Its not dishonest or disingenuous to use an innate talent to boost your success. Quiet people do not advance, and that is not unfair. Failing to sell your ideas is failure and it should hold people back in life. The idea that you freed yourself from what was actually perhaps your greatest talent is nonsensical to me. Embrace that performer inside of you, he's gifted.
Post: The Final Curtain Call: My Double Retirement
Link to comment from October 20, 2025
In the recorded history of mankind the number of cyclists injured by cows on the other side of a fence is...zero. I seriously doubt you were about to be the first. But spiders scare me, so that's equally irrational.
Post: Holy Cow! Holding The Line in a Market Stampede
Link to comment from July 2, 2025
Your friend, to be kind, is an idiot. Impulse buying a car demonstrates the deferred gratification capability of a two year old. Of course he is not alone, which I suppose funds a lot of free entertainment for people like you and me who aren't much influenced by advertising or salesmen.
Post: Who’s Watching You?
Link to comment from January 16, 2025
I retired at 60, but consulted about 8 hours a week for the first 5 years. It brought in six figures of income and allowed our nest egg to grow, untouched. I didn't need the money but I did need the off ramp to not earning. Now my retired work is unpaid, chairing college, hospital and charitable foundation boards as well as mentoring engineering students at my alma mater. A successful retirement is all about purpose.
Post: Buying Freedom
Link to comment from June 1, 2024
I'm sorry you had such a hard task. My dad, in contrast, had everything documented and almost 100% of his assets payable on death to me and my brother, or appropriately in a trust. He had sold all the real estate so there was little that had to go through probate. If the amount of assets requiring probate is minimal (under 100K) then a special form of expedited probate is allowed that costs almost nothing. It was very easy to close the estate.
Post: Unsettling Experience
Link to comment from May 8, 2024