If you are newly retired....

To those who retired recently especially in the last 12-months, do you feel defeated?

From 2019 to at least 2021, there was Covid, Income was affected. Worked for 1-2 years Post-Covid and retired. 2024 you find prices of things have sky-rocketed! Grocery, clothings, shoes, dining-out and now holidays!

Hope to tick-off my Bucket List to visit Ireland. Found out Dublin Hotels are AUD$700+/ night after chatting (pleading) directly with the hotel. It's not 5-star and reviews said rooms are not clean!

Then cost of airfare has also gone-up heaps post-Covid.

I know most people on PC have more than 2 properties. What if you don't? The only good news is the value of your PPOR might have increased significantly. But that won't help unless you sell now.

 

Have a look at this Facebook group?
As to airfare, try getting a job with an airline? Or have your offspring work for one. It's actually a great way to get cheap airfares.

 

Not retired. But one of the things I look forward to most in retirement is doing things when others aren't. Way more economical. Fewer people. Shoulder seasons etc. Last minute trips at a moments notice due to an unbeatable deal etc. Slow travel using longer stay in furnished apartments even.

 

An option for long stays is housesitting, but you have to work with the homeowner's requirements

 

We’re going on a cruise around Ireland, Scotland and England in May, I can see the prices have gone down a lot. Mind you, we still got a good deal many months ago. I have noticed cruising is a pretty cost effective way of seeing places where hotel prices are prohibitive. I’ve never used them but there is an Australian site called People Like Us home exchange. I hope to join when I’m retired and do some extended stay swaps. I tend to think who would want to stay in X? ( Perth) when they live in Y? But the incredible pressure on rentals and the knock on hotel prices make your own home a more desirable commodity.

 

A cheap holiday right now is Japan. Beautiful country, it's so clean, easy flights, everything is very structured and orderly (Japanese are so patient with lines!), easy transport. Food there is currently really cheap as the Yen is weak. No time zone and jetlag issues either. Accommodation is not so cheap in places like Tokyo, that's possibly the only negative but it's completely still reasonable compared to Australia.

 

That is a great idea! Even if it’s only for part of your time there. I’ve used many Housesitter’s. Most were from within Aus but I had a couple who were originally from France and China. Most of the travellers did it as a break from being on the road and to get some homely comforts.

 

FWIW everywhere outside of Dublin the accommodation is cheap / not expensive. If you haven't been before, Dublin itself is surprisingly small - you can basically walk it all.

It's definitely a great city, but if cost is becoming a concern then you might get by with just two or three nights.

Flights through Asia into continental europe can be cost effective, the last jump into Ireland is where the cost ramps up but google might bring up some alternative options (flying into Shannon or somewhere perhaps).

 

Improve your research skills.

A very quick bookings.com search of Dublin City centre, filtered to 8+ ratings (very good) gives the first 5 pricing ranging from A$246 up to A$519 (Arlington Hotel where we stayed in 2017 and highly recommend).

Or stay at holiday Inn Express for $335 with free breakfast.

Scrolling down there were none at $700 per night. Unless you want 5 star.

(I looked at a single night booking in early June as that is summer high season.)

 

Since COVID rents and profits have rocketed ...rapid ok inflation is great for property investors!

 

My parents retired years ago, they are happy to see TD rates increasing and their part-pension isn't bad as far as they are concerned

They aren't interested in the stock market, or even HISA

Ca$h is king



They live north of the 26th, so a free trip to the Big Smoke once a year

 

I think in general, cruise fares for the next 2 years or so are going to be relatively high (compared to pre-Covid). Pent up demand from all the people who missed their cruise holidays over Covid means higher than usual demand, resulting in no discounts, pretty much everything will sell near full price. My last cruise (in Mid Feb), was oversold and 8 guests had to be turned away from boarding, and the Cruise Director of the ship said their whole Asian season itinerary was fully subscribed. Btw, I can 100% recommend it. Westerdam, Holland American line.

 

I reckon you either find passive income of $100K between both partner and yourself or you go on the pension....that is if there are any pension schemes left when I retire.

My mother joins and ethnic recreational club for the elderly - I think you need to be 65+ to join. She reckons most their either invested in 1 house apart from their PPOR and are now stuck in what they deem as "self funded retirement" or is on the aged pension. The former group are asset rich and cashflow poor given their return on that one house is less than 20k after tax and everything else, I'm assuming. The pensioners I'm assuming is 42k no tax per couple? LOL you do the math, by the time I'm nearly 6 foot under, I'd rather the cash to spend and live.

The group with that single IP are now either dissolving it and waiting for that 5 year period to be up to be eligible for the aged pension or just simply scrimping and saving...terrible thing to do in your 60s/70s and beyond.

Uncle of mine retired at 60 but he built his passive income including a decent super to about 120K a year - invested in commercial, residential, ETFs and savings. Yes he seems semi loaded in my books. He's travelling 4 times this year, both sons are married so grandkids would be on the horizon soon but yeah, he's bored.

 

@Pumpkin, I'm feeling your pain. Pre-covid, a couple could jump into their self-contained camper and travel around Australia in camping comfort for $1000 per week. Last year, this typical cost (as reported on utube videos by various couples doing this) had risen to $2000 per week. This is after purchasing the vehicles to do it. What was a $150k to $200k rig is now about $300k if purchased new, fortunately our home-made bus is just under $100k.

Mr Angel retired about three years ago (ill-health) and we sold our IPs and paid off the mortgages. Remember everyone that we started investing much older than the typical PCer, had some bad things happen and eventually sold for a modest capital gain, nothing like the gains we had anticipated back when we started out. Selling a couple of years ago meant we also missed about $400k in recent gains.

We are now six weeks into our long-anticipated Big Trip. Overseas travel is not on my radar any more - having been OS in 2009 and 2014, current prices are beyond ridiculous. Oz prices are also insane, thanks covid lockdowns, I mean lockouts, sending tourism businesses broke. We are finally using our seniors concessions (where available), but that doesn't mean much when prices are generally double what they were last time we went on a road trip.

 

No five year period to wait for the aged pension "after selling an asset". Five years is about waiting to be pension-eligible after gifting away some of your assets if you would otherwise only be eligible with fewer assets.

 

Ireland is significantly more expensive than most of Europe, but it's not really much more expensive than Australia (I was there last July). I am not sure where you've been looking for accommodation, but you can get five star accommodation for less than $700 per night in Dublin!

Airfares to Germany (that's the only European country I keep an eye on) can be had for less than $1300, I'm sure that if you factor in CPI, that would be close to an all time low.

Things have gone up in price, but (no offence) I think you might have had a freak out moment and it's not quite as bad as you're making out.

 

You must be looking at the wrong place lol. Use Hotels.com, Agoda.com etc...plenty of much cheaper options. And the sites are 100% legit.

 

I was made redundant 1 year and 1 week ago. After 10 months i accepted a job and lasted 1 hour before declining a 900$ per day job. The feeling was off so im looking for something new to do. Do i feel lost? not any different than before i know work/ savings etc is a distraction, hence learning who i am without distractions may occur quicker leading to a happier older life (43).

Prices are up across the board but i can gamble less, spend less and learn to adjust my spending to suit. I keep busy by traveling by splitting my time between thailand and Australia and will essentially follow the path of most excitement with the least resistance.

Thailand is still affordable thankfully however in september we went to Italy which was about $500 per day for 3 bed airbnbs but we did solely cook at home which saved some $$. I ended up cancelling the USA Cruise and weeks in vegas due to outrageous prices.

I have my $$ tied up earning 5.1% with ubank and hesitant to pull the trigger on any new investment be in investment property in thailand / ETFS or crypto. Cruising along fine here with no plan to work again.

My biggest gripe with no job is credit card churning for flights is gone