Calling all retirees! I want your story

General Manager, Publishing at BiggerPockets · Denver, CO · Member since 2017 · 463 posts · 642 votes

Hello! I want to feature YOU in the next issue of BiggerPockets Wealth magazine (subscribe here! www.biggerpockets.com/magazine) if you have a fun/unique retirement story to share:

-Did you retire just before or during the pandemic?

-At what age did you retire?

-Why do you feel secure retiring in these uncertain times?

Answer the above by replying to me and I'll reach out to you via DM for more info if I like what you have going on!

Podcast Guest on Show #217

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Michelle Fenn

Real Estate Agent · Cleveland OH · Member since 2015 · 216 posts · 275 votes

I guess I unofficially retired in 2009 after my husband passed away, I was holding a key employee insurance policy check and the stock market was tanking. I purchased distressed properties with the money to renovate, hold and rent. I was fortunate that my brother owned a contracting business and referred me to his friends that were new home builders. They become my crews for the next 5 years because I could pay on Friday. By 2010, the guys that use to work for the large companies found me. An estimator for one of those firms convinced me that there was Opportunity for female General Contracting firms. He got me bonded and within 3 months my company was an EDGE Contractor and we were working on public projects, an anatomy lab for NEOUCOM, a Rat Reasearch Lab, Incubator Building for Micron Electronics and the Sound System for the MAC at Kent State, a Starbucks, the Auburn Science Center and Residence Hall for Kent, Track and Field house for City of Cleveland and a Soccer pavilion for the city of Barberton. That was in a period of three years. Before my husbands death I owned a computer consulting business that sold and supported Computer Aided Design Systems for Architects and engineers.

Interesting experience, everyone assumed that it was my husbands business, and I had to explain working 12 hours a day was how I grieved. We built a business but it was not my passion. My partner and estimator moved back home to Cincinnati to take care of Mom and a disabled brother. I closed down the business. I use to kid that they only let me out of the office to sign contracts. The GC is the last person to get paid on a public job and I did the prevailing wage paperwork for every subcontractor I hired. I got a real estate license and started to flip houses first for investors then as part of an LLC with a commercial loan broker. I have a hard time retiring, I do not need to work, my investments from the last crash provide me a comfortable living and 1031 exchange opportunities. I now help with the property management group in my current brokerage. Most fun I had was volunteering at Habitat for Humanity. After 25 years of fixing computer problems it was great to be able to do something that that you could point to and say that I did that, and improve others lives. Maybe it was a nod to my husband, he was an Architect and there are numerous examples to his talent throughout Summit County.

Entrepreneurs don't retire we just do new and interesting things, because we want to, not because we have to.

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Todd Powell
Rental Property Investor · Corvallis, OR · Member since 2018 · 840 posts · 1k+ votes
6y
@Katie Miller COVID19 got me laid off on Aprils Fools Day. No Joke! I had been posting on BP I was leaving my golden handcuffs in two more years, but I left my 31 year career and my former company hated the fact that I invested in RE. I ownership in 24 units, as well as a 72 unit building. I am in the midst of 2 flips as we speak, but I decided to take a W2 that involves RE as the Business Development Manager of a general contractor. In the end, I said I retired and have created a strong monthly income stream, but realize I may get bored as I have always “worked” 3 jobs; W2, managing rentals, and investor flipping various properties. Thanks COVID19 for the change, as I hated my desk job of 31 years!
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Corby GoadeBusiness Member
Investor · Boise, ID · Member since 2014 · 3k+ posts · 3k+ votes
6y
Does just quitting your day job count? I had enough passive income to pay for the basics for my family, so I jumped in to REI full time and haven't looked back. Been a great ride!
2 Reply
Terry Koepp
Investor · Marquette, MI · Member since 2015 · 19 posts · 3 votes
6y
@Katie Miller

I retired in March 2018 at the age of 57! I obtained my Engineering Degree in October 1986 and worked for Sandia Labs in Albuquerque NM for nearly 9 years, I will receive a small pension form them at the age of 65. In Jan 1996 I took a much higher paying job at Rockwell Collins in Cedar Rapids IA and worked there a little over 22 years. I receive a small pension from them as well as medical benefits. My wife Tracie and I raised 4 wonderful children and helped put 3 of them through college! My goal was to retire early and enjoy life while I was still able to to do so. My secret was to pay off all my debt while also saving 20+% of my income, which increased to 40+% once all my children where "off the payroll". This strategy allowed my wife to retire early in May 2016 (at the age of 56) to help take care of her aging parents. We sold our house in November of 2018 and put everything in storage for 8 months while we traveled all over the USA while trying to figure out where the next stage of life should begin. My goal was to send more money while being retired as you have much more free time to enjoy life! Our plan is working great, our small pensions and savings (401k, Roth IRA's, other) will more than cover our new lifestyle for more than 30+ years (according to all the retirement calculators we have used).
To further protect my retirement savings I currently am taking advantage of the historically low Federal Income tax rates and working to shift the majority of my taxable income into non taxable savings primary using the Roth IRA conversion option as well as a few other areas. This will make my savings immune from future tax increases as it's not a matter of if they will increase but when and how much based on the national debt of nearly $25T (and still rising)!!!

My advice to anyone who wants to retire early is to make a plan and stick to it to achieve your goals. I am currently looking to start investing in RE as my new retirement hobby.
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Pat L.
Rental Property Investor · Upstate, NY · Member since 2012 · 3k+ posts · 3k+ votes
6y
Just heard from a friend I worked with back in the dark ages. In 2011 he finally retired after 34 years (I worked there 10 yrs then REI-tired :)) He was also one of those who sat me down & told me I'd lose money on the crap properties I was buying, rehabbing & renting. I should have listened as he did have a Financial Degree plus an MBA & CPA designation.
He 'retired' into being an esteemed financial advisor plying his advice for the proverbial front/back end % from those he puts into mutual funds. He says he needs it to compensate his meagre retirement funds???
He was also commiserating that some of his clients were b-i-t-c-h-i-n-g about the huge pull back he didn't see coming.
I sent him this to hang in his office.....
4 Reply
Kathleen D.
Member since 2020 · 21 posts · 28 votes
6y
This is a great forum post! I love actually learning from others who have been there & done it vs just talking in theory! Thanks for sharing!
1 Reply
Amine E.
Investor · Edmond, OK · Member since 2014 · 120 posts · 56 votes
6y
I gave my two weeks notice yesterday. Dram job for some as i managed Social media teams globally for a big IT company. 7 years of real state and im out. Felt like a divorce because i loved the people i work with.
2 Reply
Pat L.
Rental Property Investor · Upstate, NY · Member since 2012 · 3k+ posts · 3k+ votes
6y
Originally posted by @Amine E.:
Felt like a divorce because i loved the people i work with.

now you're ready for that lifelong Mistress REI-ta :)

1 Reply
Dean Mitchell
Rental Property Investor · Brunswick, GA · Member since 2019 · 18 posts · 9 votes
6y
Lovely REI-ta:)
1 Reply
Ashton Levarek
Rental Property Investor · Beaverton, OR · Member since 2018 · 88 posts · 155 votes
6y
@Katie Miller

So I retired from Active Duty Air Force on 5 May 2020, so right in the middle of this thing. Super exciting, but certainly not the most stable time to retire. A lot of unknowns for sure.

I joined the military at age 18 and retired after 21 years of service, which puts me right at 40 years old. I would have been eligible to retire from active duty at age 38 but I had a small break in service where I sold everything, and traveled the world for a year and a half, totally worth it and I look forward to doing it again soon. (Still take mini retirement trips every New Years to different locations around the world)

Why do I feel secure retiring in these uncertain times?

Well first of all, I've been jumping out of planes, getting shot at, climbing mountains, driving through IED ridden landscapes and doing things way riskier than "retiring" for a large part of my life. And I loved it. Failure in my past endeavors was never an option, and it isn't an option now.

Secondly people must understand that fear and risk are only projections of the mind related to imagined outcomes. In other words, uncertainty, fear, and risk are largely based on perception and mindset - i.e. its all in your head. Sure its a real thing but your worry about it is not.

And lastly - My brother (@Chris Levarek) and I have been investing in Multifamily since 2018 and have quickly scaled our business from 0 to 42 units under management, with another 220 under contract. This Pandemic has unlocked more potential than people care to admit - you just have to be opportunistic.
The Reality is that no matter the time in history there will always be risk and uncertainty in life, embrace it. Embrace the suck as we say in the military. Embrace it and move on. Accept the current situation and make a decision. This is all part of the adventure. Be the hero of your own movie. What would they do? Make a commitment to that outcome and accept nothing less than success. Failure is not an option, commit and take action daily.

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