A Flight Plan for the Future

Although Peter Copeland plans to work a bit once he retires in seven years, it will be on his terms. He plans to remodel houses, renting some and selling others, which he’s done part-time for the past 30 years. He looks forward to being his own boss so he can do what he wants on his own timetable.

When he’s not busy fixing up someone else’s home, he and his wife, Jodi, often take off to satisfy their passion for travel. Having visited Mexico, Ireland, and Las Vegas in 2007, Copeland looks forward to longer trips to the Orient and Australia during his retirement years. "Jodi and I love seeing new places together," he says, "and I also get a chance to do photography — my other favorite hobby." Jodi, who is eleven years his junior will continue working part-time as a dental hygienist and plans to continue to contribute to her Individual Retirement Accounts (IRAs) until she retires.

Geared up for saving

A "retirement saving mindset" runs strong in the Copeland household. Having contributed to a 401(k) plan since 1988, Copeland has always saved enough to earn the company match. He even made after-tax contributions to make up for some investment losses he suffered in company stock. He has maximized his pretax contributions for several years now and has made a full catch-up contribution since becoming eligible five years ago. Both Pete and Jodi maximize their contributions to their Roth IRAs each year.

As a 37-year veteran of US Airways, he feels fortunate to have earned 21 years worth of service in the company pension plan before it was frozen in 1991. He believes this pension, coupled with Social Security payments, will give him "more than enough income" to cover his basic living expenses. He is planning to use his retirement savings to pay for travel, and "perhaps a large screen TV."

Copeland calls learning to control big expenses like houses and cars his secret to success. "That’s the road to my financial freedom," he says. He managed to cut his housing costs dramatically, by moving into one of his smaller rental properties years ago when he got divorced. "I never really planned to stay there," he says, "but after paying off the mortgage with profits from other properties I sold, I felt a huge sense of freedom."

Avid investing

Calling investing his other hobby, Copeland devotes much time toward tracking stock market trends and identifying what he believes may be mutual fund "buying opportunities." He relies on Internet tools and daily doses of CNBC to help him make smart decisions. Copeland currently invests about 70% of his assets in stock funds (35% of which are international) and the remaining 30% in cash. He plans to stay in the market through most of his retirement. "With good cash flow and my pension, I’m pretty comfortable sticking with all stock," he says.

Motivated by his desire not to retire poor, Copeland has put his plan for financial security into place while he can still work and make extra money. "Once you retire," he says, "you never know if your health will allow you to earn what you need." Fortunately, he thinks he’s done enough to make sure he never has to face that risk.