I am in the application process for a state job (Oregon), which will likely pay less than my current job but does offer a pension, and trying to figure out how I should value pension vs. salary.
I'm not sure that NPV or standard calculators for valuing annuities apply here because the situation is a little bit different - I'm trying to evaluate a future stream of payments vs. a salary which will itself be invested over time.
Any suggestions for how to approach this? Here are the parameters:
-For the sake of discussion, assume a $100 monthly pension, payable starting in 23 years, and continuing...haha indefinitely, I'd like to say, but let's say continuing for 30 years.
-If I invested $8,325 today and got 6% annual return with no withdrawals, after 23 years I would have about $30k; applying the 4% rule, that would yield $1200 in annual income. The notional value of the $8,325 investment will increase because it will continue generating 6%/year (I hope), while I suppose the pension will also have a cost of living adjustment, though I don't know the details.
So...the naive approach described above says that $100 monthly pension in 23 years is worth $8,325 in annual salary today, but this kind of neglects the FIRE side of things - a pension at retirement age doesn't help you retire early.
Any other thoughts on how to approach this question?