Will retiring early hurt my credit score? (1 Viewer)

[JumpinJack]

I'm about to semi-retire. I'm in my 50's. I plan on trying to get contract work, while fixing up my house to sell it and move. (It's a long story why I'm doing this and doesn't matter much, now, at this point.)

BUT, I wonder how it will affect my credit score not to have an income? I will be paying myself, so to speak, from my retirement account. But that's not counted as income.

Does anyone know? I've been so proud of my high credit score for years that I hate to see it go down.

 

[specklebang]

I'm about to semi-retire. I'm in my 50's. I plan on trying to get contract work, while fixing up my house to sell it and move. (It's a long story why I'm doing this and doesn't matter much, now, at this point.)

BUT, I wonder how it will affect my credit score not to have an income? I will be paying myself, so to speak, from my retirement account. But that's not counted as income.

Does anyone know? I've been so proud of my high credit score for years that I hate to see it go down.

I'm somewhat sure that your credit score has nothing to do with your income. It is based on your history and the percentage of your credit that you use. So, if you have credit cards with a maximum of $20K but you only use $5K a month, you are positive. There is no way for them to access your income information.

Being a retired guy does not make me an authority. But that's my opinion and I'm sure more thoughts will be emerging soon from others. My income is negligible but my credit is still in the 800s.

 

[Superfly]

It won't hurt your credit score, but unless you have a really solid retirement income, you may have more trouble getting a line of credit, just because you don't have the guaranteed income coming in. But if you have a good, solid retirement and have a good credit score, you should have nothing to worry about.

 

[humbolt]

I am semi-retired, as well. I haven't looked at my credit score in years. I made the decision to get completely out of debt and I don't ever buy anything I don't have the cash for now. That's not for everybody, but it has worked extremely well for me. I guess it's a matter of the scale of the life you want to live after leaving the full time work force.

 

[JumpinJack]

I am semi-retired, as well. I haven't looked at my credit score in years. I made the decision to get completely out of debt and I don't ever buy anything I don't have the cash for now. That's not for everybody, but it has worked extremely well for me. I guess it's a matter of the scale of the life you want to live after leaving the full time work force.

That's how I do it, too. I have no debt, except I charge necessities every month for convenience, then pay the bill timely. I live a frugal lifestyle, and that suits me fine. Of course, this means that I don't have all the gizmos and luxury items that some of my friends have, but that's okay. I have what I need, and plenty of fun stuff. Thanks!

 

[JumpinJack]

Thank you so much. What a relief. My score has been over 800 for some time, so I was worried that it would sink to the bottom. I am not sure of all the factors that go into the score, so I was afraid it was a debt to income ratio (I have no debt, but I thought they might consider the available credit on my cards or something). Anyway, I am much relieved. Thanks!

 

[MaggieD]

I'm about to semi-retire. I'm in my 50's. I plan on trying to get contract work, while fixing up my house to sell it and move. (It's a long story why I'm doing this and doesn't matter much, now, at this point.)

BUT, I wonder how it will affect my credit score not to have an income? I will be paying myself, so to speak, from my retirement account. But that's not counted as income.

Does anyone know? I've been so proud of my high credit score for years that I hate to see it go down.

I retired at 40. Never impacted mine. My score's in the high 800's.

Speckle's right.

 

[JumpinJack]

Thank you and the others for your responses. Yes, I have a good score & a decent safety net of a retirement account...and most importantly...no debt. Phew. I was afraid I'd messed up. I may not need a great score in the future, but I'd hate not to have it, just in case.

 

[humbolt]

That's how I do it, too. I have no debt, except I charge necessities every month for convenience, then pay the bill timely. I live a frugal lifestyle, and that suits me fine. Of course, this means that I don't have all the gizmos and luxury items that some of my friends have, but that's okay. I have what I need, and plenty of fun stuff. Thanks!

Good way to use credit, if you choose to. I like the freedom from concern over all the goods and services some feel they must have or seriously want. Having lived for a while, I see most of that acquisition as a temporary pleasure now. I hasten to add that my views have changed from what they once were. I discovered that all those accoutrements I seemed to require demanded more than they delivered. Good luck to you.

 

[JumpinJack]

I retired at 40. Never impacted mine. My score's in the high 800's.

Speckle's right.

You retired at 40? Wow. That's amazing. Glad to hear it won't affect my score. Thanks.

 

[Superfly]

Thank you so much. What a relief. My score has been over 800 for some time, so I was worried that it would sink to the bottom. I am not sure of all the factors that go into the score, so I was afraid it was a debt to income ratio (I have no debt, but I thought they might consider the available credit on my cards or something). Anyway, I am much relieved. Thanks!

well, they do look at debt to income, but you have no debt, for the most part, right? So it should not be much of an issue. If all your credit cards were maxed out, it wouldn't be the best time to retire anyway. :lol:

 

[JumpinJack]

well, they do look at debt to income, but you have no debt, for the most part, right? So it should not be much of an issue. If all your credit cards were maxed out, it wouldn't be the best time to retire anyway. :lol:

You're right...I have no debt, except the monthly necessities I charge and pay off each month. Which is a fairly small amount. But I get cash back bonus dollars, so I make a little money on that. Thanks.

 

[Thrilla]

I'm about to semi-retire. I'm in my 50's. I plan on trying to get contract work, while fixing up my house to sell it and move. (It's a long story why I'm doing this and doesn't matter much, now, at this point.)

BUT, I wonder how it will affect my credit score not to have an income? I will be paying myself, so to speak, from my retirement account. But that's not counted as income.

Does anyone know? I've been so proud of my high credit score for years that I hate to see it go down.

congrats on beginning your semi-retirement... and your credit score will be just fine, provided you continue to use your credit and service your debt properly.


the good thing about being a bit older with a very good credit score is that it take more to really screw it up.
you have a solid , and long, history of good credit.. a few hiccups won't hurt your score as much as it would a young person with little in the way of established history.

I check my credit rating about 3 or 4 times a year(i'm 60 and retired, but somehow busier than i've ever been in my life)... but's that's only to watch for mistakes or identity theft.. other than that, I really don't care much about my score...I don't do much in the way of personal credit anymore, beyond a few small purchases on cards when i don't have the cash.. I operate primarily though businesses and trusts.

 

[Thrilla]

You're right...I have no debt, except the monthly necessities I charge and pay off each month. Which is a fairly small amount. But I get cash back bonus dollars, so I make a little money on that. Thanks.

not having debt and not servicing that debt will cause a drop in credit score.
remember, credit rating is like a muscle.. ya use it, or ya lose it.
it's nice to be in a position where losing it doesn't effect you , though.