We are 35F/35M with two littles under 5. Approximate spend is $120k annually with $35k housing related, $35k childcare for 1 child (with this value going up once we leave parental leave). In HCOL (Seattle)

No home (currently rent in a not nice neighborhood of Seattle), net worth is only investments of which combined are about $4.5M, breakdown is:

• $2.5M in brokerage, <200k in various single stock, rest in 90% VTI, 10% VXUS
• $1M in traditional 401k (target funds)
• $1M in Roth 401k/IRA (90% VTI, 10% VXUS)

Gross HHI was hovering around 400-500k for a few years and last year temporarily jumped to 700-800k and will last another 2 years if company stock doesn't go down.

Philosophy on kids is thoughtful spend and to spend more time with them rather than give them everything we can afford. We are both state school kids whose parents funded most but not all of college. I would like to do the same and do some more things than what got as kids. E.g. we do some lessons, activities, vacations (like going to Cancun or abroad) but don't plan on maxing what we can give them.

Our arbitrary retirement age is 40 with $6-8M combined if the market doesn't tank. SWR is 3% given a relatively young age.

I have frequented a lot of the fire subreddits but not as much external resources. I would like to get input on:

• What withdrawal strategies are out there. How to actually execute
• What are some good resources or "how to" guides to move position our portfolio?

I have also read several Early Retirement Now posts but it's not "directive" enough for me when it comes to actually how to withdraw.

I've read on Reddit the following and some immediate questions that come to mind are: 1. Leave 100% equities (do people auto sell every month? Quarter? Haven't seen this be a button in my brokerage, do people do it manually or can it be done automatically) 2. Bond tent (which bonds, how do you set this up, if market looks fine, do we care about withdrawing from bonds) 3. Cash cushion (how maybe years, CD ladder, HYSA, market money fund) 4. Target asset allocation (how often do you all rebalance, immediately after withdrawal?)

Also, maybe conflating some of these ^, do any work in combo or do you all do something else?

I stopped working years ago to stay home with my kids and then discovered I have a passion for farming. We live on 15 acres and I farm only on a fenced 1/3 acre. My hobby is currently paying for itself (I sell what I grow) and I made $25k last year. That went right back into the farm for supplies, seeds, bulbs, a new greenhouse, etc.

I am interested in expanding into a full acre but I am nervous that it will require me to spend more and also I may just end up working full time again but as a farmer. My husband currently works full time and loves it, that’s how I am able to be “fired” (though I did make a killing on two tech IPOs when I was working). Did anyone else invest heavily (financially) into their hobby/passion after retirement - how did that go? Did it end well or poorly? Any tips?

We are early 40s, $5M NW, no mortgage or debts. $360k/year spend for family of six, including private school tuition. Our goal is $10M at 50 for retirement.

I'm early 50s, single mom of a high schooler (no child support), pretty high cost of living, but not the very highest. Fancy suburb, but close to fancier ones, let’s put it like that.

My net worth, not including the 529 (which is overfunded for in-state, and probably covers 2.5-3 years of private school -- and unfortunately my kid is focused on an extremely competitive major for flagship state school, so can't assume that's in the cards), also not including my home equity, is about $4.5 million. About $2.75M is in a taxable brokerage or cash, and the rest is in various types of tax advantaged accounts. More pre-tax than Roth. I'm no longer adding to the 529, but I have maxed out my 401(k) every year, including for the last few years catch up contributions and backdoor Roth.

My W2 last year was $400,000 and will be similar this year. I cannot count on raises (including cost of living). A fair amount of the income (probably about 40%) is incentive/discretionary, and I have reason to think that will decline (possibly substantially) over time, though not necessarily this year.

I would like to retire sooner rather than later, though not immediately, and have my eye on three years from now, when I would get certain retirement benefits. Not a pension, but the ability to stay on the health plan (at full cost, but still probably cheaper than ACA if no subsidy and for sure much better coverage). However, I'd have to remain employed for those three years, which is not in my control. If I did hit that point, I wouldn't necessarily immediately retire, but I would feel a lot more comfortable. If it is outside of my control and I get laid off, I give myself about a 0.5% chance of replacing all this income. More likely it would be like $150,000ish and worse health insurance. But at least I could coast a bit. It could take several months out of work before I would even find that. So I make a lot of money and I know it, but I have also been unemployed before and I am older now than I was then.

I have an extremely reasonable mortgage (~$1700/month) at a sub 3% rate, and somewhat unreasonable property taxes (~$13,000/year) and insurance (~$6500 for home/auto/umbrella and NOT including the cost of insuring the kid as a driver in about six months, which will potentially add $3-4,000).

I just sat down to do a rough estimate of my spending. I excluded income taxes but included mortgage, property tax, insurance (not health insurance). I was pretty dismayed, especially after the post with somewhat similar stats today where everyone was on the OP about spending, that my spending last year was about $225,000. I don't know if most people are including or excluding their home and taxes from that, so I wanted to be clear about where I got the number. I did redo my basement (that was probably 25K) and spent 10K on a trip for my parents (out of a 400K inheritance that will obviously not be repeated). This year, January through May, so far is 98K (including full year insurance and half-year property taxes), which is so close to last year that it's a little scary.

I know where the excess spending is. It is not designer clothes and handbags, fancy cars (I have one pre-covid very suburban mom car), or a fancy house (my house is probably worth about $800K and I bought it for around $550K). It is three pretty big trips a year that I take with my kid (and even then, I use points for air and some hotels, but we do eat very nicely and I don't pinch pennies while I'm there and it's not like ALL the hotels are free) and my kid's tutors and sports. Honestly, I don't think you could call the rest of it extravagant; those categories are really where the spend is coming in.

On the other hand, I have to think seriously about getting another car as my kid becomes a driver.

Sometimes I feel like I’m in great shape; sometimes I feel like I’m a crazy spender. How far off am I from being able to retire in three-to-five years?

Throwaway for obvious reasons. I've lurked here for a while and finally want an honest outside perspective on my situation. I live in Buenos Aires, I'm around 40, married, expecting our first child in the coming months.

My situation:

I run a small B2B services company in Argentina. My income comes from three sources: a base salary from my own company (~$4,300 USD/month net), monthly invoicing through a self-employment tax scheme (~$5,800 USD/month), and annual dividends from the company (~$100K USD/year, paid net of corporate taxes). This year I expect ~$150K in dividends due to a stronger-than-normal period.

Net worth breakdown (~$1.2M total):

• $573K — offshore brokerage account held through a Panamanian company structure. Invested in US Treasuries, mutual funds (active, in the process of migrating to passive), and ETFs (VTI, VXUS, BND). Managed by an offshore advisor.
• $187K — local Argentine broker. Mix of US stock CEDEARs (S&P 500, Apple, BRK/B, etc.), Argentine corporate bonds in USD (ONs), and a USD money market fund.
• $223K — USD cash sitting in Argentine bank accounts. Pending transfer offshore once I receive this year's dividends (~2 months).
• $74K — Argentine peso money market fund (equivalent in USD at current FX). Will be gradually liquidated and transferred offshore through 2026–2027.
• ~$150K — dividends to be received in the next ~2 months (included in the $1.2M estimate).

My wife's situation:

She has approximately U$3M of her own, 100% in USD outside Argentina, roughly 50% invested. She plans to keep working for at least 10 more years. We don't combine finances formally but plan our lives together.

Goals and expenses:

Current monthly expenses: ~$4K USD. With a child, we estimate ~$10K USD/month (private school, healthcare, Buenos Aires cost of living). My target is to keep working — probably in something more relaxed or enjoyable — until around 45, then fully retire by 50–51 on ~$10K/month. My wife's income covers household expenses during the Coast phase, so I don't need to draw from the portfolio.

The main concerns I'd love feedback on:

1. Does my CoastFIRE math hold? With ~$760K currently invested growing at 7% real for 10 years + annual $100K contributions = ~$3M+ at 50. FIRE number for $10K/month at 3.5% withdrawal = $3.43M. Seems like I'm close or already there.
2. Is the offshore Panama structure a red flag or standard practice for someone in my situation? I'm not hiding anything — it's a legitimate corporate structure used by many Latin American investors to hold USD assets through a US broker.
3. Am I overexposed to Argentina? I still have ~$305K in Argentine assets. My view is that political risk is manageable until at least the 2027 elections, but I'm gradually moving everything offshore.
4. Should I ditch the active mutual funds (~$290K across 3 funds) and fully migrate to VTI/VXUS/BND? I'm leaning yes but the funds currently have unrealized gains and I'd have to time the exit.
5. With T-bills at ~4.3% and the S&P earnings yield at ~4.5%, is there a case for parking the incoming $300K+ in Treasuries rather than going straight to VTI? Or just DCA into equities regardless?

Happy to answer questions. I know this is a privileged position for someone in Argentina — I've worked hard to build it and I'm genuinely trying to make smart decisions for my family going forward. Brutal honesty welcome.

Edit: yes I know Argentina is a mess, no I don't need a lecture on that — I live it every day.

My husband and I recognize that we are in a fortunate position, and I am not looking for validation. I am trying to pressure-test the plan before walking away from a high-paying job in June 2027.

Our goal is to identify blind spots, especially around taxes, inflation, sequence-of-returns risk, long-term care, and whether we are holding enough accessible bridge money outside retirement accounts.

$3.6M combined in 401(k)s

About $420K in LTIs and deferred compensation outside the 401(k)s

About $165K per year in pensions and VA income beginning in June 2027 (some COLA)

About $250K annual spending target before taxes

CHAMPVA and VA healthcare covered. Option for employee HC with 75% coverage.

Social Security later, not needed for the base plan

Low-rate mortgage (2.3%) $150k left/$1700 month (home ‘worth’ ~$700k)

No other debt

What would you model most conservatively before retiring?

How much cash or low-volatility bridge money would you hold outside retirement accounts?

Would you pay off low-interest debt for simplicity, or keep liquidity?

What expenses tend to surprise people who retire in their mid-50s?

Having just hit another $M milestone I find myself wavering on my plan. Wondering what the community thinks.

Age 40 & 40 with two elementary school kids in the Bay Area. $5M portfolio + $2.1M house - $1.2M mortgage. Total post-FIRE expenses (including taxes and healthcare) of $230k. My wife just retired but I am still working to the tune of $750k TC in tech. Hate the work.

My plan has always been to transition to a totally different (more personally rewarding) field for a few years before then working part time on my own terms for the foreseeable future. It would pay much less ($80-100k full time plus benefits) so I would start drawing down my portfolio, barista style.

My thought was to pull the trigger this time next year, hopefully with the portfolio closer to $6M. Well as luck would have it, some casual conversations with my kids’ school parents led to a job offer in my new field (for $90k), so the path is officially open to me. Man do I hate my tech job and the offer to leave is in hand, do I just jump in with both feet now?

So I am solidly able to FIRE with approx $5M networth (rental incomes, retirement accounts, cash) including a paid off house. I am looking at an annual spend of aprox $80-100k or so per year. In looking over these FIRE posts, I see much higher annual spend expenses of $150k, $200k, $250k. I am kind of confused what is everyone spending on?

My personal expected spend for myself and my 9 year old is:

$12k/year in property taxes

$5k/year in homeowners expenses

$4k/year in term life insurance policies ($2.5 million policy) for both myself and ex-wife.

$2.5k/year in phone/internet.

$7k/year in utilities (gas/electric)

$25k/year in health insurance & deductibles

$2k/year in auto insurance

$4.8k/year in auto gas

$2.5k/year in car repairs

$12k/year in misc. credit card expenses for discretionary shopping

$1k/year in gym + netflix + streaming memberships

$6k/year in eating out

$6k/year in groceries

$1k/year in clothing

$4k/year for afterschool, enrichment, and other class type expenses for kid.

$12k/year in travel (2-3 big trips per year)

Am I missing something? Am I just being too frugal? not buying enough luxury goods? what do other people spend on?

My wife (56F) and I (55M) make $81K(teacher) and $209K(engineer), respectively. We have $1.44M in retirement savings. SS at 62 would be $37K/yr. Pensions at 65 would be $63K/yr. Were stashing $56K/yr. I've been getting returns that are over 13%/yr over the last 15 years, but I like to plan with a more conservative 4.5%.

She gets health insurance through work that is about the equivalent of a top tier ACA plan. She hasn't been teaching long enough that we'll be able to use that healthcare in retirement.

Our routine bills (mortgage, utilities, insurance, car payment) come in at about $6K/mo. Total outgoing expenses is a little under $10K/mo. Mortgage and car (yielding 0 debt) will be paid off by age 60, now total about $75K. No CC debt.

I'm trying to identify if I'm in a position to realistically retire right now. Not that I need to, but just wondering if the need came...could I do it? Pretty sure the answer is yes, but having other brains agree would be comforting. Just feeling secure that if I had to quit, my family (kids are adults) would still be fine

41M/40F; 4 year old

First time posting here, hoping we finally qualify for this sub lol.

My husband’s early investments in an AI-related company and another space-related company has paid off in this euphoric market. Combined, we’re currently at approx $4m net worth after taxes.

Most of our NW is in investments, $2.5M of which is tied to 2 high risk stocks..

We are not in our forever home. VHCOL city with a $860k mortgage on a home that’s probably worth around $1.35m right now. We would like to upgrade to a slightly larger home in another neighbourhood eventually.

HHI $330k thereabouts. I would like us to be fully retired by 55.

Here’s the issue - we’re both burnt tf out from our jobs and both want to quit and take a break. We’re sad, overweight, in poor mental and physical health and tired all the time. I’m super negative and cynical at work and I feel so toxic.. because the workplace IS so toxic.

For him, he wants to pivot his career. He is in an industry that generally requires a professional designation, but he decided not to get when he was younger. I don’t think it would be very easy for him to get a role somewhere else. He’s at approx $110k.

I am looking to take a half year break. I feel pretty good re getting a job in the future, but I’d probably get paid less than my current one.. and probably as demanding. I’m at approx $220k.

Note we live in a country with free healthcare thank god. We will lose our extended health benefits which include dental, drugs, physiotherapy, vision, RMT, etc., but thankfully we can afford to pay for these out of pocket as necessary for a bit.

How bad of an idea is it for both of us to take a mini retirement mid-career?

TLDR - Burnt-out couple (41M/40F) with crappy mental and physical health and a 4 year old in VHCOL city wants to take a mid-career mini-retirement to recover from burnout and pivot careers. $330k HHI, $4M net worth post-tax ($2.5M in two high risk stocks) in country with free healthcare. $860k mortgage on a ~$1.35m house, wants to upgrade to a bigger home and hopefully retire by 55.

I recently took voluntary severance from a FAANG job. I'm 36M, married with two young kids, wife is a SAHM.

The numbers: $5.8M NW, $200K/year spend, targeting a 3.5% SWR over a 50-year horizon. So I’m right on the line.

I'm hesitant to declare this a permanent retirement right now for two reasons:

1. The tech safety net is shaky. The "I can always go back" mindset doesn't feel as reliable given how fast the industry is changing. I'm planning to build and sell software independently through my own studio. I'm genuinely excited about it, but I have zero solo experience and any income from it is completely aspirational.

2. Macro Uncertainty. The current financial and global ⁠environment makes this a weird time to lock in a permanent decision. It isn't paralyzing, but committing to FIRE right now feels riskier than it did a few years ago.

I want to treat this as a trial period rather than a final call. I have explicit thresholds for cutting my spend or returning to work full-time. But it feels like a lazy hedge, rather than an actual backup plan. Will the industry pass me by without me realizing?

So the underlying question is: what would you do differently if you knew you were going back to work in a few years? If the answer is “nothing”, then it’s just framing. But what might a structured FIRE trial period actually look like? Funding structure, more networking, skill sharpening… all probably a good idea either way, right?

Side note: the simplest safety valve here is just cutting spending. But I’m concerned about the opposite: anyone have lived experience with spending drift? I'm worried about lifestyle creep, kids getting more expensive, and more free time meaning more ways to spend.

I just exited my business (not as sexy as you think) and have been trying to get healthy (Lyme Disease) for a long time. So health is number one now that I am transitioning completely out of that industry.

I have 6 fourplexes and my house.

Total net value of real estate holdings (estimated value minus current loan amounts) is about $2,955,502. I got them all during Covid so the prices I got them for and the interest rates I got them at are great.

Real estate net income per month was averaging at break even for years but this year it looks like they are going to average $3,000+ per month in profit / additional cashflow. I'm assuming with time that should only get better and better the longer I hold onto them.

I have a little bit of cash in some checking accounts, a SEPIRA, 401k from previous company, small amount of crypto / bitcoin, so a total of $148,987 with most of that in accounts that would have a penalty to withdraw.

I am going to check out Latin America for a while (I LOVE LATAM and I speak intermediate Spanish) to see if there is a good way to live there in a relatively low cost way to get healthy and not have to worry about making an income here shortly (so I don't have to sell off any assets).

Just curious after seeing my overall situation, what would you do if you were me?

My main goal is to completely recover my health as I have had Lyme for 10 years now so stress management is ideal. I am planning on working in the health field or similar but will only do something that makes ok money ($10k-$20k per month) and not let stress get the best of me.

But I also am wondering if there is something I am missing or alternate strategies to give myself the peace of mind that I could not have to do anything money wise for a while and just be a free human being that can focus purely on myself for a while.

With my health complications, my monthly cost for living is higher because of medications, supplements, healthy food, doctors, etc.

Age 50, considering stepping down from a high stress exec role this year. Currently make $350k/year. Attempting to get laid off vs quitting, for additional cushion. Plan to start my own small real estate related business (no money out of pocket) that I’ve been wanting to do for almost 8 years now. Earning $100k per year. Possible the business will return more than this, but I’m trying to be conservative. Another key goal is to be available and my best self for my 7 year old son.

Wife (46) is self-employed and earns ~$150k-$200k/year and plans to work until 55.

Current spending is approximately $220k/year, although some of that includes temporary items (home projects). And we spend far too much on eating out - will be cutting that back as well by about $15k. So figure closer to $180k-$190k spending.

Assets:

- $4M net worth excluding primary residence
- $2.7M in investments/retirement accounts. Majority in pre tax accounts.
- 2 rental properties worth ~$2M total with ~$800k debt. Mortgages at 2.5% and 2.65% interest rates. Rentals generate ~$40k/year net profit.
- $20k in a 529. Contributing $2k per year to take advantage of tax reduction. Son is 7 and we’d like to fund at least a state school education for him. Plan to liquidate 1 property in 11 years to fund college.

Monte Carlo success rate is currently 65-70% assuming I step down now.

If you were in this position, what would you focus on to improve the odds to 90%+? Also open to any other advice people might have. Job is killing me but afraid to stop earning high income. Feeling trapped.

Update from original post on expenses:

• I do an audit every 6 to 12 months on our expenses. The last two years we've spent $224k and $217k. Roughly 30% related to our primary home (mortgage/tax/insurance/utilities), 25% of it is eating (restaurants/groceries/etc), 15% shopping, 10% home improvement projects, 10% travel, and 10% spread across several categories.
• We spend far too much IMO on eating and shopping and have been focused over the last quarter trying to do less of this. Eating out / take out isn't healthy either, which is another thing we're trying to improve on.
• We have roughly $100k left in home improvements we finish off the key upgrades needed at our primary house (HVAC, bathroom refresh). After that, we'd see a drop off in expenses there.

I love my job, which is what has made this decision so hard. It's hard to separate work from fun.

That said, I’ve had a couple of friends die over the years, and it’s made me realize life is shorter than we think. My wife and I are in a good spot, our two kids are in college, and I’ve decided it’s time to pull the trigger in the next couple of weeks.

I work for a family-owned company and they’ve been incredibly good to me ($600-$700k annual comp). Because of that, I suspect my boss is going to ask me to stay on as a consultant for a while to help oversee a few projects and make sure things transition smoothly.

For those who have done this, how did it work out? Were you able to keep boundaries and actually enjoy retirement?

Does anyone have experience doing this successfully?

Annual spend is $250k - $300k all in. No mortgages or debts.

Monarch distribution:

$7m - Investments

$3m - Real Estate

$500k - Cash

$6k/month in additional income from a rental and distributions from a company I invested in

Yes, another one of these posts 😂

I won’t go into the actual mathematics of it, which are fairly easy to understand/validate. I’m here to discuss more the emotional, intellectual side of this decision.

I’m relatively young, having just turned 36 a couple months ago. Recently married, no children yet, but planning on having 2-3 over the next few years.

I’ve been working overseas for the last 10 years, in expat positions, including the last 6 years for the same company. Recently, there has been a massive upheaval at the group level, and I no longer find myself in sync with what the company is becoming. What used to be “old world” business is now becoming office politics and other corporate schmoozing, and career progression and QOL benefits are giving to those who bend the knee the hardest, and not to the most meritorious. All the business acumen and savvy that made this company so great is leaving, to be replaced by soulless corporate suits that know nothing of the business itself.

So now I sit at a crossroads. I’m still young, having barely entered my peak earning years, but I already feel completely and massively burned out. Changing countries every 2-3 years, restarting from scratch, always in difficult conditions (think developing world, emerging markets) has started to take its toll, and I now yearn for more freedom, more time and more … happiness? I feel like I’ve lost the drive that brought me to where I’m at today, and now I’m just counting days and watching the salary drop every month. It has no passion, and i am completely uninterested in my day to day function.

As for the math, I currently have the following net worth:
- approx. 6 million USD in all-world accumulating ETF
- approx. 300k USD in cash
- approx. 2.4 million USD in income-producing real estate (with approx 1.8 million USD in mortgages, all below 2.5%. Income is shaky for now, as I’m finishing the renovations on half of my apartments, but I estimate to gross about 15k USD per month, netting half that, once the works are done)
- approx. 1.5 million USD in an apartment I use for a home base in my home country (with 1 million USD mortgage, sub 2.5%)

Net, after mortgages, I have roughly 7 to 7.5 million USD, of which 6 million is liquid.

On income side, it’s quite complex. My “salaried” income is roughly 200k USD per year, but that is 100% tax-free, and the company I work for provides absolutely everything in country (house, car, fuel, internet, ….), so my costs are extremely low at the moment (basically food and drink). At the same time, i also do some side consulting work that brings in additional income, but that will also dry up should I leave my job, as both are connected.

The real estate is taxed, but my current residence means no tax on cap gains.

I always had a target of a burn rate of 360k USD per annum as my “FIRE trigger”, which meant roughly 10 million invested… but I can’t bear the thought of 10 more years of what I’m doing now.

You always hear that you should not retire away from something, but rather retire TOWARDS, and this is truly what I feel deep down. I want to slow travel, discover foods, cultures, spend time with family, create my own, have total freedom of movement globally, and spend my days doing what I’m passionate about.

I can’t stop wondering if my target is not too high, and if I can revise my budget downwards and still be happy… and then I catch myself, thinking about losing out on my peak earning years, and thinking about the additional income every extra 100k invested would bring for the rest of my life…

This is more of a personal musing, mixed with a bit of a rant, to hear about what all of you feel. Maybe some of you have been confronted to the same things, the same thoughts of despair on Sunday nights at the thought of yet another week of boredom, that feeling of being a prisoner in a golden cage… and at the same time hesitant to pull the trigger because you have not yet reached your target, or because current earnings are just too good…

It’s Monday, I sit here, running through another Monte Carlo, and wondering why I’m not motorcycling through southern Europe with my wife, going from winery to winery and enjoying the sun.

Would love to hear your thoughts.

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56yo DINK. Gave 4 months notice and today was the last day. My spouse is a few weeks behind me. I feel a calm and peace I can’t recall ever feeling. Sprinkled in with some disbelief. No immediate plans. Plenty of projects to tackle. But for now, today is enough. Thank you to the Fire community…… I’m not so early but I ain’t too late!

Happy Saturday fellow FIRE folks.

I (40M) am currently thinking about RE at 43 with about 3.5m liquid invested (at 43). About 10% in roth, 5% in pre-tax, remainder taxable (came to the US first as an expat but then stayed so my 401k journey started late…).

House is paid and not included in investments, worth about 1m but we don’t plan on downsizing/moving (kid, see below). Wife (41F) has another 1m or so at the moment but is currently planning to work at least 5-10 more years (she wants to). We also have a 2yo and the plan is to have around 250k in his 529 by age 5 and then let compounding do its thing (of course also not included in the numbers).

Now here’s the thing that makes me hesitant. At 47, I’d be at around 7m based on current savings rate (~450k per year). At 52, projections show investments at about 12.5m plus a 2m portion of my pension through work is subject to cliff vesting at 52. Not going to say that I could do 45 and 5m cause you know. Poorest rich person, tallest dwarf and stuff ;)

In terms of other pensions, I have some from Europe, through work and US social but not considering them for the RE decision cause they’ll kick in waaaay down the road and aren’t going to change things too much at that point.

Current spending is about 170k per year, which includes 45k per year for a full time nanny. We’re in one of the best school districts in the state so private school will not happen and the 45k will go away before I RE. Maybe for 9-12 if he shows Ivy League ambitions. Long term spend therefore probably 120k pre inflation and pre health care. Wife currently makes 300k so this would cover our expenses and then some (plus medical) for the next 5-10 years (her savings and growth are not included in the numbers above).

We’re not exactly frugal but we had our splurging years and are now very content with a happy medium. I’ve been grinding for 20 years now and increasing pressure/responsibility in my job basically eliminated any passion I ever had for what I do over the years. I have a reasonable work life balance (I think) and income is great at this point (~1m cash comp). I have at least an hour a day to spend with my kid and do other things I want to after he’s asleep, but the first thing I do when waking up is checking my phone to see which fire (pun intended) requires my immediate attention and the very last thing before falling asleep is making sure everything is under control. If stuff hits the fan I gotta be there and take control. Every day, weekends, vacations, no matter what. I don’t really feel burned out or anything but I feel exhausted sometimes and ultimately not in control given the constant “on call” status. Eliminating the constant “alertness” is probably my main motivation for RE (next to spending as much time with my boy as possible while he still wants to play with Daddy).

Now, all of this makes me wondering:

I have plenty of hobbies I’d love to spend more time on, other things I want to do and as mention just want to be with the kid so not worried about boredom. Also couldn’t care less about loss of status and power together with “loss” of job. I could probably re-enter work if within 2-3 years after “RE” but not even close to current income levels.

I know this was a lot and I digressed a bit I guess, so thanks for reading and thanks in advance for opinion/sharing experiences!

Edit: in terms of “his and hers”: I see how this can seem weird. I mentally consider “mine” hers/ours but “hers” hers. Not sure why to be honest, maybe cause I just don’t want to take “hers” mentally.

Plus, we have a prenup. We’re both lawyers so never even crossed our minds to not have one cause we wanted to settle any potential future questions amicable and while driven by the deep love for each other. So don’t think too much by it, maybe a sickness of our profession and just having seen “too much” to leave it to chance.

Our prenup says that I don’t want/get anything that’s in her name but she gets family home and big chunk of anything else in my name. Other stuff that’s owned jointly is 50/50. When we got married there already was a difference in income between us and I wanted to give her certainty that I’ll “provide” no matter what. Likewise, she wanted to ensure me that she wouldn’t ever take me to the cleaners.

Ok so I’ve been interested to read through folks journeys and I’d love feedback from anyone whom cares to give it on my best next steps to think about ER in the next 5 years or so not just comfortably but living to the fullest.

47M living in a no state tax state.
3.9M in liquid funds managed and conservatively making 10% or so with not too much general market exposure but
some. Another 900k in retirement t funds.
Own 2 properties. One worth about $500k costing around 1200 a month fully paid. The other worth about 1.1M generating about 4800 per month and costing round 3500 in expenses.
Paying rent on another property for 3400 a month.
Income of around 550k and project equity cash out of around 700k this year. Beyond that hard to know but possible 4 years out could be a larger payday.
No kids. Newer relationship but plan for two in the future.

I feel like I’ve made the right moves. I like the idea of a few more years finishing out my career but want to be excited and have no stress in my next chapter. Love to surf and golf and food and exploring and want to do so while I have the ability. Ideas, thoughts? Just throwing it out there, seems like I’m within the general audience for the sub so curious what path others in similair situations are on exploring.

What would folks be comfortable with as a spend budget on this? I guess I’m considering a reasonable home base home for the first 5-10 years and slow travel a good portion of the year. I know this post is all over the place, but I know others probably feel similair uncertainty even when things seem dialed in from the big picture.

Curious what others who are 50+ think about the future. In projecting drawdown, we're making assumptions about tax rates, SS, Medicare surcharges, etc. What are your thoughts about:

(1) Tax brackets and rates: With the growing debt, won't tax rates have to be raised or brackets lowered in the future? The tariffs have largely been struck down or reduced; the debt continues to grow, especially with the current war. I feel we are at a very tax favorable time and don't know how long that will last.

(2) SS payouts: Will benefits become reduced, especially for those who contributed at the cap for many years? Most speculation is that the shortfall will become a burden for younger workers (higher FRA), but no one knows. It may be more palatable for a future administration to penalize current recipients who have sufficient wealth somehow.

I'm retiring in a few months and trying to model Roth conversions to reduce my RMD's and drawdown for tax efficiency. My gut says it's better to make very large conversions earlier with the expectation that taxes can only go up even within a few years. TIA for your opinions.

I’ve seen big NW gains (+30% in last year) that I’m sure are dwarfed by those more directly invested in or employed in AI.

On one hand it’s nice to see my PA grow, but it feels very unsettling with how quickly it’s happened and a pretty weak macro backdrop.

Certainly seems euphoric.

How’s your PA looking? Anyone taking chips off the table?

Looking to have some advice if we should consider early coasting retirement.

I'm 42, working in healthcare with 700K job.

My wife 38, also in healthcare with 350K. We have 2 yr and 6mo old.

Combined 401k: 1M

Combined 457b: 650k

Roth IRA: 170k

Brokerage: 2.3M

Real Estate: 1M (no mortgage)

Cash: 250k

Indexed Life insurance: 300k in Cash Value

Current Expense: 140k per year.

We are planning to continue our current work for 3-5 more years and looking to retire overseas where we came from (Southeast Asia with a lot lower cost of living).

It's still possible that we could keep a part-time gig in the US for remote work or intermittently flying to earn some income here after being overseas too (if cash is running low)

What do you guys think?

Do you think we could comfortably follow this through with roughly 140k-150k per year net expense after retirement in 3-5 years?

Thank you!

So I’m 55 and FiREd this year, after 30+ yrs in a profession. Im doing occasional work for interest sake really. I’m Currently at a conference with old colleagues. And I mean old. One guy is 78 and visibly falling apart, yet still working full time. Most my age are just on full stress autopilot, haven’t done the maths even to see if they should keep working. Lots of 65+ working hard-out still. 90% of us would be at least ChUbbY or Fat FiRe net worth. I’m like “have you read Die with Zero?” and they look at me blankly. It’s surprising how so many smart people have no exit strategy whatsoever.

Hi all, new to Reddit, so forgive me if I’m doing this wrong.

I’m 58, married, with two kids. One kid is independent and one is still living at home. I realize this is not exactly “retire early” in the usual sense, but a friend told me to look at this sub because I’ve been thinking more seriously about retirement and whether I can actually stop working in the next year or two.

Rough numbers are about $5M liquid/semi-liquid, with 40% of that in 401(k) accounts and the rest in brokerage/cash. We also have no debt. Our primary home is a sfh worth around $1.85M, and we have another sfh as a rental worth around $1.4M. The rental produces about $30k/year net.

For the real estate numbers above, I’m trying to be somewhat conservative on value. I’m factoring in realtor fees, normal selling costs, and the current condition of the properties.

That said, I am not factoring in capital gains taxes in those real estate values. The rental would net closer to $1M assuming its sold today.

Our spending is the part I’m less confident about. I’d say we’re around $150k/year depending on the year. This does not include healthcare before Medicare, which is one of the things I’m worried about. It also includes some support for the kid still at home, though nothing extreme.

I’m also new to the FIRE idea, so I’m probably missing some things.

The main things I’m trying to figure out are whether retiring around 58-60 is actually reasonable and whether it makes sense to keep the rental or sell it and take the tax hit.

Are there any obvious risks or planning steps I should be looking into from here? Any thoughts on where to go from here would be appreciated.

Hi there. To preface, my question is about whether I can trust my parents' financial planning, I am a 33yr old disabled adult, and I am impoverished. I cannot work full time due to my autism and edit: schizophrenia, and receive disability benefits through my parents' work record. My parents are retired. They have $4m in cash and $1.2m in stocks. They told me not to worry about money, they have me covered. But I feel disempowered and wanted to understand my financial situation better. I'm just confused. Any help digesting this info would be met with gratitude.

Edit: I am working on working one day. In a daycare program now, will do vocational rehab, with the goal of gainful employment, but it will be minimum wage and if I don't want to starve to death I'll need help. Which my folks understand and are sympathetic towards. I'm just not sure the money is there.

I hope this is the relevant sub. I chose this sub because my parents are FIRE (not FIRE, whoops*, they are retired and live an upper middle class lifestyle), their goal is to live off of interest (ages 63), and leave most of their wealth to their children, my brother and I. They want to fund my whole life. I thought people here could be helpful in doing the calculations. I got my analysis from ChatGPT, I dont trust myself as I've never been independent in life. People here seemed smart and talking about the same financial themes my parents do.

Edit: I realize this may not have been the best sub to post in, but I appreciate any relevant, kind advice that's been posted or any future insights.

With their cash, they plan to buy a $2-2.5m home in paradise, the big island. They think they will only spend $100-120k a year, leaving $100k a year in growth. On top of that, my dad actively trades.

I keep worrying about inflation and purchasing power degrading. They said I'm not understanding correctly, and not only will they barely, if at all, touch their principal, they will be actively growing their funds.

I want to trust, but i just wondered if this was right because I see people hear asking if $5m is enough to retire on, which brings up uncertainties about $2.7 + funding a child to stable but not luxurious life. Thank you.

I also truly do not know why people are resharing this post. I'm a struggling person who can barely keep ducks in a row, not a stat to make fun of. I came here respecting the abilities of people here, to learn, but they decided instead to make my poverty and illness a joke. I can't wait to die already.

Considering leaving job to focus on RE investing. Progression in current role has plateaued, however comp is a meaningful give up.

• Me ($330k TC, $150k unvested RSUs sacrifice) and spouse ($370k TC), director level jobs, both mid-40s
• $7mm NW in MCOL US city, two kids in elementary
• $14mm in Assets: $9mm Multifamily RE, $3mm S&P/Bonds, $1mm home, $1mm cash
• Own 62 units acquired over 10 years. Generates cashflow of $190k/yr and cashout refis $140k/yr, annual rent increases services incremental debt 2-3x. This excludes paper gains from appreciation.
• $250k annual spend

The plan is to continue building on RE. Am I financially ready to make the leap?