FLOURISHING AFTER 50: I’m not afraid of dying – I’m afraid of living too long and running out of money

Dear Vanessa,

I’m 57 and still working full time. I’m divorced and close to owning my apartment outright. I’m in decent health and I’ve always tried to be sensible with money.

But there’s something I don’t really talk about. I’m not afraid of dying – I’m afraid of living too long.

I’d like to stop working around 65, but I’m not sure I can afford to. I’ve saved about $480,000, but when I think about that needing to last for 25 or even 30 years, it feels overwhelming.

What worries me isn’t the next few years. It’s what happens later on. I don’t have any kids to rely on to help me if things go wrong, and that makes the idea of running out of money feel even scarier. I don’t want anything fancy. I just want to be able to live on my own terms and not be constantly stressed.

People tell me I should be grateful for what I have. I am. But that doesn’t stop me lying awake some nights wondering if I’ve done enough.

Is this a normal way to feel at my age?

Anonymous

Dear Anonymous,

Yes. This is far more common than people admit.

At 57, wanting to stop full-time work around 65 is sensible. It gives you eight more years to earn, save and adjust – and that time matters more than most people realise.

You’ve said you have around $480,000 saved. Even without doing anything dramatic, that number is unlikely to stay where it is.

People often ask how $480,000 could possibly turn into something closer to $800,000. It’s not magic and it’s not about taking big risks. It’s about time, ongoing saving, and staying invested.

Over the next eight years, three things usually happen.

First, you keep adding to it. Even putting away around $10,000 – $15,000 a year adds $80,000 – $120,000 over that period.

Second, the $480,000 you already have continues to grow. At a modest 4 per cent to 5 per cent a year, that amount alone can grow to roughly $650,000  – $700,000 over eight years, even if you didn’t add another dollar.

Third, the new money you add each year doesn’t just sit there. It’s invested too, even if more conservatively.

When you combine steady contributions with modest growth, it’s realistic for $480,000 at 57 to end up somewhere between $700,000 and $900,000 by 65. That’s how people arrive at a figure like $800,000 – not through luck, but through consistency and time doing their job.

Now let’s talk about what that actually means in real life.

If you stop working at 65 with around $800,000, the next question is how much you want to draw each year.

If you live on around $40,000 a year, that amount could support you for around 20 years even if your money didn’t grow at all, taking you to about 85. And it’s important to say this clearly: your money not growing at all is unlikely. 

Even in retirement, savings are usually still invested – just more conservatively – so the remaining balance continues to work in the background. Because of that, with modest ongoing growth and some flexibility in spending, many people stretch their savings into their late 80s or early 90s.

If you draw closer to $50,000 a year, the same amount typically lasts around 16 – 18 years without growth, and closer to 20 years when you factor in conservative returns and natural changes in spending, taking you into your mid-80s.

Higher spending shortens the timeframe. Lower or more flexible spending extends it.

This is why retirement today isn’t a single fixed event. It’s a phase that shifts. Many people work part-time for a few years, spend more early on, less later, and adjust as life changes.

So the fear of living too long usually isn’t about age. It’s about not knowing whether the numbers are even remotely workable.

And this is where seeing a financial adviser can be a genuine game-changer. A good adviser doesn’t just talk about money – they help you model different scenarios: how much to put away over the next eight years, what stopping work at different ages would look like, and what kind of lifestyle is actually realistic for you. They can also show you how to incorporate things like a pension or other income streams, so you’re not relying on savings alone.

If you want help finding someone suitable, you can use my free Find an Adviser service here.

You don’t need certainty. You need clarity. And clarity turns a long life from something frightening into something you can plan around.

All the best,

Vanessa