Divorced, $180k saved — is retirement still possible?
Age
52
Location
Nashville, TN
Income
$155k/yr
Saved
$180k
Divorced at 48, this 52-year-old Nashville professional earns $155k and is now aggressively saving $30,500 per year via catch-up 401k contributions. But with only $180k saved and expenses of $65k, the hole is deep. Social Security at 67 becomes a critical lifeline.
The earliest retirement age at which this plan does not run out of money is 57, after 5 more years of full-time work. Market risk matters more than that headline: the earliest age that succeeds in at least 80% of 500 Monte Carlo simulations is 59.
| Retire at | Full-time years left | Semi-retired years | Best Monte Carlo success |
|---|---|---|---|
| 57 | 5 | 0 | 56% |
| 58 | 6 | 0 | 79% |
| 59 | 7 | 0 | 92% |
EARLIEST 90%+ PLAN: Retire at Age 59 Switch to semi-retirement at age 59 (after 7 high-salary years). Portfolio bridges to full retirement at 59.
Growth rate (4.0%) keeps compounding during spending — the extra buffer matters most against bad early-retirement market sequences.
Social Security: $30k/yr starting at age 67 is included. Healthcare: $14k/yr before Medicare at 65.
Across the simulated market histories (in future dollars, not adjusted for inflation), the median portfolio is $596k at 70, $536k at 80, $450k at 90. In a poor sequence of returns (10th percentile) it is $142k at 70, $115k at 80, $26k at 90.
This example uses illustrative figures and should not be treated as financial advice.