23 years left, planning now...

[jaysen]

Call me foolish and label me naive, but I wanna start looking now while the prices are right.

With 7 years now behind me, and realizing how quickly those years went, I don't want wait til the last minute. The other night my partner and I were talking about building our "dream" home when we retire. I always thought this was way too expensive, or damn near impossible with a lowly Patrol man's salary

Want some input from the VETS that either did it right, or from those that wish they could do it all over again; Where is your "dream" or "ideal" place to own land and build on? Having grown up in a big City, and living there a majority of my life, I love that amenities it brings but hate all bad the come with; traffic, smog, crime, etc...

I'm more of a Mountain person; Big Bear and Idyllwild immediately come to mind... I would like to be close enough to my future grandkids, but far enough to keep the riff-raff away

I wouldn't be opposed to buying out of state, but just looking for ideas now so I can start researching and comparing prices so I can get an idea on what to expect...

[tanksoldier]

Well, just speaking of retirement in general, many folks work one place and retire to another. If you're a LEO in CA there's plenty of places in the country where your retirement will be more than the average officer makes working full time.

[Baconator]

Goal; pay off current mortgage within the next 30 years, retire to Colorado Springs or something like that. Pension and rental income.

[SVT-40]

Call me foolish and label me naive, but I wanna start looking now while the prices are right.

With 7 years now behind me, and realizing how quickly those years went, I don't want wait til the last minute. The other night my partner and I were talking about building our "dream" home when we retire. I always thought this was way too expensive, or damn near impossible with a lowly Patrol man's salary

Want some input from the VETS that either did it right, or from those that wish they could do it all over again; Where is your "dream" or "ideal" place to own land and build on? Having grown up in a big City, and living there a majority of my life, I love that amenities it brings but hate all bad the come with; traffic, smog, crime, etc...

I'm more of a Mountain person; Big Bear and Idyllwild immediately come to mind... I would like to be close enough to my future grandkids, but far enough to keep the riff-raff away

I wouldn't be opposed to buying out of state, but just looking for ideas now so I can start researching and comparing prices so I can get an idea on what to expect...

Don't feel foolish. It's the fools who don't start planning for retirement early.

Start saving ASAP. Keep your cars as long as you can after they are paid off. Don't over indulge on toys and stuff. If you have a balance on any credit cards pay them off, then don't run up any balance you cannot pay off that month. Cut back on Starbucks and similar expenses. Bank that cash to save for your future.

I retired 5 years ago and my wife is still working as a LEO we bought a vacation / retirement home in Prescott AZ last year. Paid cash for it so when my wife retires and we sell our other houses here in Ca. and move there full time we will have zero house payment.

Prescott is perfect because it's not on a major freeway so it has few of the transient issues other cities such as Flagstaff, Phoenix or Tuscon have. In addition at 5,000 feet it's a mild 4 seasons. Real estate prices have been drastically reduced and there are some great buys.

We looked for over a year to find the perfect place. just under 3/4 of an acre and a 2,700 SQ foot custom house. With property taxes of $1,700 a year. Thats 1/3 the taxes on our current home here in Ca.

Lots are also available all over and can be affordable.

It's a easy 6 hour drive from So cal so with the wife working a 3-12 we can spend the long weekends there.

[Bobby Ricigliano]

I have about 13 years to go, planning on retiring at 25 years. We are looking at Wyoming, Idaho, and Montana as retirement destinations.

I actually look forward to getting a job after I retire too, just something non-leo related close to home.

[fullrearview]

Not foolish at all! Only three years in and we are getting ready to drastically alter our budget. 1st, pay off the SUV and Credit Cards(SUV still about 20k, CC about 1.5k), then put all of that payment into the house for repairs/improvements/mortgage. We only have about 188K total debt(just bought our house). Our goal is to pay all of it off in ten years, twelve at most. If I am debt free by forty I will be stoked!

It's totally possible without eating rice and beans for ten years. Our quality of life wont be effected much at all.

It is possible on my current salary (even with my wife being a stay at home mom), but I did just put in for a neighboring county which pays about 10/hr more than I make now. Not to mention they have WAY more room for advancement and collateral duties.

One thing that will also help us both... We are both going to be starting small businesses. My wife sales Pampered Chef and I am going to expand my holster making a bit. I only make about one holster every few months now, but I am going to buy some equipment to cut the process down so I can make about four a month. The income wont be much, but the tax benefits will be huge. I could make more but the whole idea is making more while maintaining the same amount of time with the family. That and I have seen way to many companies grow too fast.

[tanksoldier]

The income wont be much, but the tax benefits will be huge.

This is true. My wife had a soap making business on the side. Lots of tax write offs.

Make sure your neighborhood is zoned for home businesses and that it's otherwise kosher.

[jaysen]

Thanks for the input guys!

I know a few of our guys have homes in AZ. I love to travel, and travel frequently, but never really thought about living outside of CA. Another thing I need to consider is the GF, soon to be fiance, is starting a PA program so who knows where that'll lead us and if she'll wanna stay in CA.

[TRICKSTER]

Just keep this in mind, what looks like a good place to retire now may not be 20 years from now. Many of the places that I looked at 20-25 years ago and thought would be a nice place to retire have changed and I would no longer want to live there. Plan financially now, but wait until you are about 5 years out before you commit to a location.

[Notorious]

It's smart to plan early. I have ten to fifteen years to go, depending on what I plan to get in retirement. While I don't plan to move, it's becoming more and more of an option... I'm actually thinking of going out of country where living is cheap. Retirement in American dollars cam go a long way in some countries.

[Bobby Ricigliano]

The idea of living abroad is intriguing, and I've traveled a lot. However, I wouldn't live anywhere that I was not able to possess firearms.

[Notorious]

Meh, I thought that way but it all depends. I'm kinda over it. When I am old enough to be retired, I don't think I would care.

[Che762x39]

You will do good with a plan. Buy whatever you can afford now. Then it will be a rental when you retire. We considered Big Bear to retire to.

When my retirement was approved at the top of the real estate bubble my wife filed for divorce. She could not wait to get a fist full of cash. With the crazy prices on homes then I could not afford to buy her out of her 1/2.

So now the plan is Idaho, since 1/2 of a non CALPERS retirement will get me nothing in CA.

Good luck and stay safe

[Che762x39]

Another planning option is do not expect 90% retirement in the future.

The governor wants to max CALPERS out at 65% for "all" retirees.

[Notorious]

If CALPERS is maxed out at 65% then I can retire earlier. Why stick around for nothing.