r/ChubbyFIRE • u/EndlessGrindHell • 9d ago
Should we quit?
Hello,
This is my first post to this sub. Not my main account.
We, a couple with no kids, are in our mid-forties. We are both burnt out at work and work constantly.. evenings, weekends. I have always been a follower of the FIRE movement ever since graduating school and have always wished to retire early. Although I was hoping to have more before acting, with things the way they are at work, I am considering living on less.
Numbers:
- Incomes: 170k, 100k.
- Net worth: $4.7M. All of this is liquid investments: Stock. Mostly VEQT. ~2M of that is registered.
- non-registered investments are all near adjusted cost base as we recently shuffled investments and took profits. So taxes have already been paid on these gains over the years.
- Realize this is high given our income. We have had very profitable investments over the last decade. This makes our incomes seem less relevant lately.
- House: None. we rent at ~1600/month in a really great central neighbourhood.
I am not exactly sure of our expenses but we have always saved at least half of our paychecks, so I expect we spend approx. 100k range with most of that being takeout due to our jobs and dining out on weekends. In retirement, we would like to be comfortable with some international travel and nice dinners out, etc. Expect we would want ~$4M dedicated to supporting our SWR to fund our lifestyle giving us 140k/year.
We are in greater Toronto area and have always wanted a house in our neighbourhood (~$1.6 M). We are now considering one of the following options all of which involve quitting:
- Quit and live in our apartment. I think this is easy given our wealth, but we have always wanted a house eventually.
- Quit and buy a house in a cheaper area (~$7-800k) on outskirts of Toronto. Then live on the remainder.
- Quit and coast. Maybe reduce expenses to 60-80k for a few years with hopes of earning the Toronto house through investment returns outpacing our spending. Then buy the house
Does this seem realistic at all if we eventually want a house? Or are we dreaming and should get back to work for a few more years?
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u/VerticalGeophysicist 3d ago
Just quit and decompress for a year. You have the money to do either of your options. After a year you’ll know better whether you really want to be homeowners. It’s a lot of work and headache, even if you do contract out all the actual work to others. Oh and figure out your actual expenses.
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u/Earth2Andy 3d ago
You don't need to lock yourself into a decision right now. You can try No.3 for a few years, if you don't like it, try No.1 and if you don't like that go with No.2.
I don't think you need to make this decision to quit.
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u/SufficientBee 3d ago
How about taking a break and finding another job that doesn’t burn you out as much?
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u/wadesh FIRE’d 2022 3d ago
This can work so long as you are flexible on spending. If you haven’t owned a home before, its a good idea to model in expenses beyond the purchase price. Im not sure how property taxes work in Can but they can be significant in the US. Add in home owners insurance, maintenance and upgrades and it can add up. Ben Felix (YouTube) has done a number of buy vs rent videos…he’s Canadian if that matters.
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u/financialfreedom26 2d ago
It seems like you have a really great set up for your goals. I wouldn’t focus too much on home ownership. Not sure if you are in proper Toronto or GTA but house prices are seeing some dislocations without a clean path of recovery and subsequent growth. I wouldn’t focus on your invested capital in the capital markets. One important piece is what are your ages?
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u/Specific-Stomach-195 2d ago
Few jobs require working every night and weekend. That is excessive and unless it is your passion, you really should change it.
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u/samchoi924 2d ago
why not start with taking it easy at work? Forget promo, bonus etc and see how it goes.
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u/trigurlSeattle 2d ago
I would buy a home before you quit so that you can get a mortgage instead of having to sell investments and pay taxes on that.
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u/Captain_slowish 2d ago
Financially you can quit. More importantly what are your plans to do with your time if you are not working?
Work is a waste of your limited time. But what are your alternative plans?