My current retirement income of RRSP's and Canada Pension is about 1/2 of what I cleared when working FT. Zero disposable income, and large repair bills force me to draw from my RRSP. I plan to sell my house in 8 or 9 years and live off the proceeds. I do not miss the rat race at all...
My son was in the 101st. He spent two tours in Iraq. Came home with burned and scarred lungs in 2008. Surgery in Nashville confirmed <50% lung capacity that is permanent. Medial retirement. Developed severe PTSD. Originally 60% disability and after lots of appeals is now 100%. (Its not all that great for an E6 level retirement.) He finished college last year and is now an English teacher! Good luck with your appeal!
I guess I don't understand this - how can you be 100% disabled and still be walking about? I suspect disability rules are a lot different in the US to here.
Ever read Stephan Ambrose's book Band Of Brothers? An interviewee shares his experience with military doctors in the precursor to our current VA. Only this interviewee's father was a member of the Senate. After being seriously wounded and sent home but denied full disability, his father instructed him to inform the attending that if he wasn't immediately determined to be fully disabled his dad was going to order him to DC, strip him to the waist on the floor of the senate and demand an investigation into why returning service personnel had to put up with this... The doctor gave up and the fellow used the disability to pay for law school and went on to become rather a wealthy lawyer. Write your senator!
I got lucky when I retired, by the time I added up pensions from various sources, plus my outgoings were much less, I was actually much better off than when I was working. Good luck to you Lonn!
I think you'll find it is something like being sufficiently disabled to be entitled to 100% salary. It's not the amount you are disabled. However I'm in the UK too so I can't be sure.
Admin Post I hope it works out, @Lonn and @Dadocaster. I'm just trying to get the mortgage paid off and have all the work on the house we want done before I have to retire in 8 1/2 years. Hopefully get both kids through higher education as well. Wish I could hang it up before that but won't be possible financially.
A thing: I suspect many are in the same boat that I am. It's not financially optimal for me to retire now but changes in my industry point to my job not existing at some point. Am bit surprised to still have it. Picking when I might retire gives me some control. A 2nd thing: It's unfortunate that here in USA there are few ways to stay employed and just work fewer hours. That would be ideal.
That is a really big jump, especially the way the VA factors disability. I hope it works for you. The VA factors "disabilities" in just about every form you might imagine (and many you would likely be surprised about). Probably the best way to think of a VA "disability" is any health (physical or mental) issue that is service-related, repetitive in nature, and/or affects daily life (this is a broad brush swipe on my part)---that was documented in the medical record. Typically, a servicemember's medical record is looked over in great detail (many of us seek assistance from various veteran's organizations to ensure everything is noted by the VA) and each "disability", as it were, is listed just prior to leaving the service...sometimes, it happens afterward (making it a little more difficult imo). In any event, a particular servicemember's list is then racked and stacked starting with the most serious issues first. The VA's method of racking and stacking is not linear, hence the frustration by some in getting to a higher disability rating (which potentially pays a little more, and/or increases VA benefits). It is hard to explain without a dissertation, but the higher the pile is made (remembering that the most serious are at the bottom), the less the items on the pile count. Also note, some ratings might be 0%...I have several of these...that is, the VA notes them as being valid, but not something that affects my everyday life. The value in having a 0% rating for something is that should whatever it is become a bigger issue, it is a little easier to bump the rating up ("easier" being a relative term). More directly to your question..."how can you be 100% disabled and still walking around?"---100% doesn't mean one cannot walk...it means there are health issues (singular or combined) noted by the VA that affect the person in some severe manner day to day. Also note, the VA disability rating system does not run parallel to civilian/community standards, so despite my fairly high VA rating, I do not qualify for a handicapped parking plaque (nor do I want one). I know this is as clear as mud.
Old enough to get Soc Sec ? If you can, wait until "full retirement age" (100%) and then TAKE IT. Doing the math shows it's not worth it waiting longer; get the money and pay down/off debts.
Hope you get full 100% Lonn. I am 5 years from retirement and greatly looking forward to leaving the rat race.
Given the typical person's lifespan, the total money is about the same no matter when you start getting SS benefits. You might as well apply for SS if you do get 100% disability benefits. It takes a month or so before the SS monthly benefit lands in your bank account.
I'm 60 with an inherited heart defect that came to a head a year ago and am in forced retirement. Having worked 43 years of my life, my disability is more than I made working full time right now, partially because I have a 17 yr old daughter. I'll loose some of it when she turns 18 but still will be close to what I made when I worked. Hope it works out for you and your family.
