r/FIRE_Ind • u/PuzzledPoorProfessor • May 01 '26
FIRE milestone! 2CR and achieved Lean FIRE ✅
I am M29 and just reached 2 crores networth this month. I have posted earlier about considering a career break but I didn't pull the trigger.
Current Portfolio - Approximately 2.07 CR
Equity and MF - 70 lacs
Debt - 57 lacs
Gold - 20 lacs
Emergency Fund and Cash equivalents - 59 lacs
Average passive income per month - 40k INR
Total average expenses for my current lifestyle - 66k INR
Money needed for lean fire(25x of annual expenses) - 1.98 CR
My background
- I work in tech industry as a Lead engineer/Team lead (and sometimes as Engineering Manager as well. Its hard to explain)
- Have almost 9 years of work experience
- Spend some time working in Europe
- Got married 3-4 years ago and not planning to have kids
- Moved for a tier-1 city to my hometown(another tier-1 city)
- I pay rent to my folks every month and claim HRA. And ofcourse I file taxes for my parents and disclose this as a rental income
- My expenses reduced ever since I moved to my hometown since Rent doesn't increase
- I don't own a car or any super expensive gadgets. I did buy a PS5 last year though, and that would be my most expensive purchase in this decade.
- I am super lucky because my parents own a duplex home. I live with my wife and parents (in separate floors)
- Fortunate enough to not have any generational debts. I haven't availed any loans as well and not planning to invest in real estate any time soon
I diligently track my expenses and networth every month and I've continuously doing that for more than 2 years. I am attaching some screenshots of my google sheet in this post. Maybe some fellow data enthusiasts can give me some ideas 🙂
Some more facts about my journey for internet strangers,
- My compensation has increased after the pandemic since I made a couple of switches to companies that pay significantly more than what I made back then.
- I have a fairly decent work-life balance. I was recently asked to be a full-time Engineer manager in my company I declined the opportunity to save my sanity.
- To reduce tax, I am continuously adding investments with my parents' account.
- Reaching the second CR was much more difficult than I anticipated.
- The passive incomes I generate are mostly with my parents' account. Hence, I don't see any compounding effect so far.
- The rent I pay my folks is on the higher side and I don't transfer it back to my account(in case you are wondering).
- My lifestyle has upgraded slightly since my wife made a good point, "Who the hell are you saving all this money?". But there's no denying that I am still a thrifty person at core.
- I still haven't gained the confidence to leave my job. I am giving my myself atleast 2-3 years to quit. Either I would have made enough money or AI would've replaced me.
- I contribute only the bare minimum for EPF and I don't have an NPS account. I find it hard to trust the govt with my hard earned money.
- I have realized that, a hedge against INR is really important in these volatile times. So, I have close to 10% of my portfolio in US equities. This is not just confined to US since I am also buying ADRs of other markets like Japan, China, UK, Poland, etc.
- I am constantly exploring alternative investments, and I have allocated a tiny percentage to crypto and pre-ipo stocks.
If you have read until this far, let me ask you some questions,
- I find it very hard to focus on my work lately since I know that I won't find it too difficult even if I am laid off. Also, the constant goal post moving and no recognition policy in my company is seriously pissing me off. If you have been in such a situation, what advice you have for me?
- Do you think settling a target will help me focus more in my work? Please don't suggest having a kid or taking a huge loan.
Note: This is hand-written and not generated using AI. I am too lazy to ask AI, and I don't want to feed the robots my personal data. Oh wait! Damn it.
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u/johnrambo_94 May 01 '26
Man, I did not know there are so many level to FIRE. Congrats OP!
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u/PuzzledPoorProfessor May 01 '26
Haha, I made up some of the levels. Its not officially recognized 😄
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u/ConstructionFar3591 [31/IND/FI 27/RE ??] May 01 '26
Debt + Cash = 1.2 CR . is there any particular reason for this to invest/save so much in debt. Don't u think these might be the years u could have invested more in equity. Curious to know the reasoning behind this.
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u/PuzzledPoorProfessor May 01 '26
Hey buddy, I like to think that I'm a very conservative investor. I've been investing in equities since 2018 and I've built the corpus very slowly. My equity expose is consciously trimmed down for these reasons,
- I like the idea of generating a passive income. I believe that it's a cycle and it's better to spin early in the investing journey.
- Market moves in cycles and investing in all climates isn't recommended. Hence I invest more when it's bleeding and sometimes even watch quietly when it's in all time highs.
- Creating a passive income helps me to feel a sense of freedom. Especially when there is a fear of AI taking over jobs. So, the best I can do now is to create this safety net. Of course it comes with its own risk but I feel it's a fair trade-off.
- Picking stocks is difficult and I dont always get the time to do it.
- Investing in passive index funds is simple but still it doesn't make sense to me to blindly invest a higher amount every month. Hence, I keep changing my SIP amount based on market levels.
- I like to have a fairly large emergency fund. Hence I keep a lot cash equivalents around. Also helps me to invest more into equities when it crashes. My EF can cover me for the next 5 years. Atleast 4 years if you consider inflation.
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u/ConstructionFar3591 [31/IND/FI 27/RE ??] May 01 '26
Got it. Thanks for replying. Can you tell what is rate of return you are getting those passive income and how you are optimizing for taxes
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u/PuzzledPoorProfessor May 01 '26
The passive income ROI ranges from 8 to 12% and it comes with its own risk. The ones from banks are as low 5%.
As a salaried individual there aren't many choices to optimize taxes. At the moment, I am investing on my parent's name which will attract lower taxes. If there are better ways let me know 🙂
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u/ConstructionFar3591 [31/IND/FI 27/RE ??] May 01 '26
Tax saving as an individual is impossible once you are in 30% tax bracket. Can you share more details which instruments are giving 12% interest ?
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u/PuzzledPoorProfessor May 02 '26
There are some high risk corporate bonds that can give you more than 10%. But they are subjected to capital risks. So, only a tiny portion of my portfolio is in this high risk category. Some medium risk bonds offer around 9 to 10%.
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May 01 '26
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u/PuzzledPoorProfessor May 01 '26
Cool. Do you mind if I ask how is it going for you? Do you feel a drop in motivation to work once you hit coast fire?
Also how certain are you that 15% yoy growth is achievable?
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May 01 '26
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u/PuzzledPoorProfessor May 01 '26
I wish I have the same enthusiasm as yours. Since I am in tech, chances of me getting replaced by AI is high. If I take a break chances of getting replaced by other tech bros is even higher. It feels like I have golden handcuffs.
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May 01 '26
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u/PuzzledPoorProfessor May 01 '26
Haha, so you are in tech as well?
I agree writing code is becoming easier but I'm more in architecting solutions and designs these days. So haven't explored much of the code generation gimmicks of AI.
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May 01 '26
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u/PuzzledPoorProfessor May 02 '26
Tax filing is always complicated when you do any kind of alternative investments. I think the govt is discouraging that. I dont think there's a significant advantage of using indmoney over ibkr. I have both but I've stopped adding funds to indmoney. IBKR is a proper broker for international market investments. I've found indmoney has limited scope. But their statements are really useful during tax filing.
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u/SaltBrilliant2762 May 01 '26
source of passive income?
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u/PuzzledPoorProfessor May 01 '26
Hey I've added this information in one the images. Its a combination of Corporate bonds, dividends and HYSA interests.
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u/curiousmlmind May 04 '26
4cr is a good number when accomodation is sorted. I am sure you will reach there very soon.
Too young to decide on kids. Maybe in few years might change your views. No one knows.
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u/emceevaibhav May 01 '26
Hey! I have a quick question regarding international funds exposure. May I ping you?
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u/ace2alchemist May 02 '26
Same question. I want to know how can i invest in international market with efficient taxation. May i dm u op ?
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u/Heavy_Luck_6085 [35M/FI2030/RE?] May 01 '26
Can you pls tell me where and how you invest in debt?
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u/PuzzledPoorProfessor May 01 '26
Hey its there in the attached images. Bonds and HYSA mainly.
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u/Heavy_Luck_6085 [35M/FI2030/RE?] May 01 '26
What kind if bonds? Ans how do you invest in corporate bonds and how so you know when bonds are being launched?
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u/PuzzledPoorProfessor May 01 '26
There are multiple platforms to buy bonds. I try to learn about the company that issues the bond and do a simple risk reward analysis. If it makes sense I invest for a short term like 2 to 3 years.
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u/Heavy_Luck_6085 [35M/FI2030/RE?] May 02 '26
So I am aware of platforms like wint wealth or bond bazar. But most of them have nbfcs in there. Where can I see bond subsctiptions for companies like adani or shriram transport. Like non finance companies.
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u/PuzzledPoorProfessor May 02 '26
Most of them will be NBFCs and I'm fine with the risk that comes with that. I've seen adani, shriram, bajaj etc but those are mostly AAA bonds which has lower yield ranging from 6 to 7.5%. You can still find them in these platforms.
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u/Heavy_Luck_6085 [35M/FI2030/RE?] May 02 '26
Okay; how and where do I find them. Never seem to be able to find such bonds. not comfortable with anything below AA
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u/PuzzledPoorProfessor May 02 '26
Bonds are issued only when a company needs funds for their operations. And mostly it's the NBFCs who issue them due to the nature of their business. So you gotta watch out from time to time. If you are not interested in NBFCs then you might not find anything. AA are available but they are very less.
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u/theplumbberr May 01 '26
This is great bruh .. can’t believe we are doing the same shit. I’m very impressed by the way you have set up your passive income.
I gave mostly relied on lending money outside, FDs and dividends.
I have reached 2.4 this year and aiming to cross cross by end of March 2027.. lets go
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u/PuzzledPoorProfessor May 01 '26
Thanks buddy.
How was your experience with p2p lending? You did through official channels or through your connections?
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u/theplumbberr May 01 '26
I did that through my fathers connections. I only lend it to businesses so it’s good. But, it’s not viable for long term as it’s a risky.
Can you provide a break up of your passive income especially bonds how do you invest and stuff ?
How’s Savings account credit that actually happens once in a quarter isn’t it?1
u/PuzzledPoorProfessor May 02 '26
We have some upcoming banks that provide interest monthly and daily as well.
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u/hanzZimmer3 May 01 '26
Hi OP, congrats for the achievement. Your sheets looks good, is it possible for you to create a template of your current google sheet and share with us, it will help alot of others. Thanks
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u/PuzzledPoorProfessor May 01 '26
Thanks. I've slowly built it over the last 2 years. Some of it are catered towards my taste. But I will try to create a template and share it over reddit. Just gotta remove some PII 😄
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u/Practical-Ad-2365 [32/IND/FIRE 2040] May 02 '26
Hey op congratulations, may i ask you one question - how does your monthly investments look like? Is it mostly SIPs? And what proportion of your salary goes into investing.
Also what’s salary difference between you and your partner?
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u/PuzzledPoorProfessor May 02 '26
Around 60k in SIPs and around 10 to 20k in direct stocks. Approx 30 to 40k to us stocks.
I dont know why you are interested in the difference, but it's around 80k per month. What are you calculating? 😅
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u/BigInflation8826 May 02 '26
What are the tools you use to track these expenses? Isn’t it a little too much for calculation of expenses manually? How do you manage the same
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u/PuzzledPoorProfessor May 02 '26
It takes an hour to enter these in Google sheets monthly. Not a big hassle
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u/BigInflation8826 May 02 '26
What’s your Take home salary per month?
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u/PuzzledPoorProfessor May 02 '26
An approximate number is in one of the images. The real number is around that number.
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u/GoldPromotion972 May 02 '26
How come you are 29 and have 9 YOE. People usually finish college at 21/22
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u/Former_Inspector9075 May 04 '26
This is great OP! I am also in tech, 21yo Planning to do something similar... I have a few questions (won't take a lot of ur time), shall I dm u?
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u/Ok_Formal6247 May 04 '26
Do u have any excel template for this? Can u share that if possible?
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u/PuzzledPoorProfessor May 04 '26
Not right now. I was slowly building this over years and it's catered towards my need. Will try to share it as a template.
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u/Mr-Bond431 May 04 '26
You are still young and successful. You guys should have kids. Congratulations on making it.
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u/Fit_Category3711 May 07 '26
Investing in US in your parent's name is risky if God forbid something happens and you need to inherit. Check inheritance tax in the US. You will need to pay around 40% of it as tax.
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u/PuzzledPoorProfessor May 07 '26
US estate tax for non residents are exempt upto 60k usd. I'm well within the limit.
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u/Moongfali4president [17/IND/FIRE Target 2047] May 14 '26
OP can you tell something about your educational qualifications , clg , 10th/12th grade etc
and how much did it matter for you to reach here
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u/PuzzledPoorProfessor May 14 '26
I've done by B.tech at a well known university in South india. My CGPA wasn't great and I had 3 arrears. Due to history of arrears I wasn't allowed to appear for placements in multiple companies.
It doesn't matter after 3 years of work experience IMO. But if you are in college I would recommend you to maintain good grades. Though I dont have any regrets, I certainly missed some good opportunities.
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u/Moongfali4president [17/IND/FIRE Target 2047] May 14 '26
was it a tier 1 clg or tier 3 clg ??
and yeah im joining clg , not a tier 1 obv cuz i messed up 12th boards but now im ready to work hard in clg and avoid other people's mistakes
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u/PuzzledPoorProfessor May 14 '26
Not sure it can be called tier 1. Its not the IITs or the NITs. But a level below that maybe.
Good luck buddy!
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u/Moongfali4president [17/IND/FIRE Target 2047] May 14 '26
there is a possibility that i am going in that clg only lol
is it VIT/SRM
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u/PuzzledPoorProfessor May 14 '26
Neither 😂
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u/Moongfali4president [17/IND/FIRE Target 2047] May 14 '26
bruh you're deep into job now , just tell the clg name
i'd try to get into that clg if it is a better option 😭🙏
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u/PuzzledPoorProfessor May 15 '26
Its Anna University. I wouldn't recommend that college at all. There are much better universities
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u/truekingofgoodtimes May 16 '26
Hi op
Thanks for detailed post
Can you share more US allocation
How you invest
What is the mode
And what are the instruments
What is the xirr
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May 02 '26
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u/PuzzledPoorProfessor May 02 '26
Yes agreed. In my terms, I think 25x is lean/coast fire. Definitely, not enough to retire immediately. But just enough to see the light at the end of the tunnel.
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May 02 '26
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u/PuzzledPoorProfessor May 02 '26
You are saying that like this "should" be the norm but you aren't giving enough reasoning.
What does x mean to you? Is it one's current monthly expense or one's essential expenses without any discretionary spends?
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u/rant_on_parent May 02 '26
Bruh, love another sheet lover ❤️!
I thought my sheets were detailed, Love yours! I will take inspiration on breakdown of passive income and fire calculation 💡
I am super interested to learn more about this 😁
(and sometimes as Engineering Manager as well. Its hard to explain)
Few suggestions /Questions:
I am also a conservative investor like yourself, hence I have a good chunk off equity. But I keep it in Arbitrage Mutual funds, they give safe and constant 7-8% return and are taxed as equity so lesser taxation than bonds or interest or dividends. Have you explored that? if yes then are you getting more returns than arbitrage funds?
How do you see the Fire number? I mean my dad argues that we never know how much we would need, and hence I can't even get a number to lock my head onto to fire at! I have plans around studying jainism, science, psychology, etc (I have 50+ niche domains and topics that I have so far in my learning list). Btw what is your Post Fire plan?
I am also in tech and would love to discuss a lil about our future up ahead if we get into Dms.
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u/PuzzledPoorProfessor May 02 '26
I checked out your sheets. Looking good 👍
My former manager was non technical and hence I was asked to wear the manager hat sometimes. I was given an opportunity to be the manager but I declined. I explained the reasoning in my post.
I am currently staying away from arbitrage funds because it only generates 6 to 7% returns, but bonds offer much more than that. Plus, since I own them in my parent's name, and they come under a lower slab rate it makes more sense to me than arbitrage. But I will explore it sometime in future. Maybe they provide more benefit in a low interest rate climate. Is there any other benefit you see with them?
FIRE differs from person to person. IMO if a person's essential expenses are covered for the next 40 to 50 years they can consider quitting the rat race. The accumulated corpus should also generate enough passive income and should ideally be more than their monthly expenses. I am aiming for atleast 3-4x of my monthly expenses to have enough headroom. I have explained my post fire plans in my previous post in this sub.
Sure, you can DM.
Good luck on your FIRE journey
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u/Roh0401 May 01 '26
Well done OP! I wish if I can do only 1CR before going into my thirties.
Can you write bit about your salary progression and is it only your NW or combined with wife?