Amanda Jacomb is relying on the proceeds of sale from her three-bedroom house in London to fund her retirement.
The 53-year-old regrets not saving into a pension sooner as she is now dealing with the uncertainty of the future.
She only started saving into a pension in her early forties and now fears she will never be able to stop working as her pension pot is “nowhere near enough to survive on”.
It was only after seeing press coverage over the unsustainability of the state pension triple lock that she realised she may be in trouble.
Jacomb told GB News: “I was never taught to pay into a private pension. I thought everyone gets money from the Government when they stop working and I would do get the same.
“I thought I could live on it but it was only after I started seeing the reports and newspaper articles about how small the state pension really is that I knew I couldn’t rely on it."
Jacom only started saving into a pension in her early forties
Pension Bee
Jacomb said state pension age changes have meant she isn't quite sure when she will be able to get her state pension.
Jacomb plans to use her three-bedroom house in south east London to fund her retirement as she has not saved enough in her pension.
She and her husband plan to sell their house and downsize to a two-bedroom house outside of London. She will then put any remaining proceeds left over into her pension to grow before she retires.
She explained she feels lucky that she has her house to fall back on, especially since she doesn’t plan on factoring the state pension in as part of her retirement planning.
Jacomb said: “All these people living longer worries me because what if you run out of money?
“By the time I get to retire whether it’s 66, 67, 68 etc, will they even have any money to give me?
“That’s why I can’t solely rely on state pension. Will the triple lock still be going in 10 - 15 years or will all the National Insurance I’ve paid throughout my life be a waste?"
Jacomb has urged younger Britons to start saving into private pension as early as possible.
She regrets only beginning to take saving and investing seriously later on in her life when she has more responsibility.
The 53-year-old tried to deposit lump sums into her private pension, but surviving as a single mother during the cost of living crisis has been hard. She said she didn’t have any spare cash to save away.
Even with her retirement over 12 years away, Amanda and her husband are constantly thinking about their older years, and how they can afford to live.
She said: “I’d love to give up work soon but I know I can’t. I wanted to enjoy my older years but I know now I will have to work not only because of the rising state pension age, but also because of the cost of living.
“We are going to sell the house in the next two years and whatever money is left will go into a private pension.
“I am not relying on the state pension because it definitely won’t be enough. My lifestyle isn’t even lavish but I’m thinking about survival when I do finish work.”
Using Pension Bee’s state pension forecast, Jacomb could grasp an idea of how much she and her husband would need on top of the state pension to stop working and retire.
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Jacomb and her husband would need around £55,000 a year from their pension to sustain them, the state pension forecast predicted
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She explained they would need around £55,000 a year from their pension to sustain them, even with the state pension increase.
Since April 6, 2024, the full weekly state pension entitlement increased by 8.5 per cent in line with earnings growth under the ‘triple lock’ commitment.
Taking into effect payments starting on Monday April 8, the new full state pension will rise by £905.30 a year to £11,542, with payments of £221.20 a week.
A basic state pension recipient who gets the full rates will receive an annual amount of £8,844, or £169.50 a week.
Becky O’Connor, Director of Public Affairs at PensionBee, commented: “The 8.5 per cent state pension rise this week will come as a huge relief to the millions of retiree’s dependent on it to support them in retirement.
“While lower than last year’s increase, which saw the state pension increase by 10.1 per cent in line with inflation, many pensioners receiving a full state pension will now only require a small amount of extra income - from a personal or workplace pension, or from part-time earnings being dragged into the tax net.”