There is some irony, for the people who have made the sacrifices and saved for their retirement, they cannot apply for a pension as they may exceed the asset threshold and not be eligible for a government pension. It is my belief that if an individual saves for their retirement, pays tax all their life, provides community services and volunteering – then they should meet public service eligibility requirements.

I have worked and saved hard, I now have assets and despite all the tax I have paid, I do not meet eligibility to draw a government pension. The age where a person can draw a government age pension is currently 67, it is likely to rise to 70 in the coming years. That is going to make a lot of people unhappy, they can either take their complaints to their elected government representatives or get action and make changes. Or they can suck it up and get used to the consequences, there are really just two choices.

For me, retirement at age 60 is a must. I am running  7 km on a regular basis, whilst I have my health concerns, I am still reasonably fit and healthy. Sure my running times are not great, but generally, my 7 km running times of 43 minutes is no world beater, just three years ago, I was posting a 38 minute 7 km time and I had hoped to improve on that number. Once I get my leg fixed, that will require some surgery then my times will improve – I am betting on it.

So, as long as I do not have any major health concerns I will be fit enough to enjoy my retirement at age 60. I have purchased an investment property and set up payments to pay out that mortgage at age 60, to coincide with my proposed retirement age. As long as the war in Ukraine has not escalated to a full European war or China has not invaded Taiwan, then I should be looking at retirement and travel in five years time. So I am busy saving for this proposed retirement age in five years time, I will have to get used to living a cheap life for the next few years.