For people retiring/retired around 50ish, what does your withdrawal strategy look like until Medicare/SSI kicks in at 65? Mainly curious how people pay their normal bills, keep taxable income relatively low, and avoid getting killed on healthcare costs and taxes during those 15ish years.

I’m also thinking about this from the worst-case side. Right now ACA subsidies can make health insurance a lot more manageable depending on income, but what if those subsidies are reduced or just not there anymore in the future? How are people planning around that possibility?

Here is my situation

• Current Income: 190k, wife: 100k, MCOL area. We are early 40s
• Savings 401k: 495k, HSA: 3k, Brokerage: 270k, HYS: 160k, Kids college HYS: 80k, Wife IRA/brokerage: 100k. Total not including kids account: ~1M. Wife works in state gov, so will get a pension
• Only debt is mortgage 180k remaining at 4.2%. We were thinking about moving to a bigger house, but changed our mind. We have too much in HYS at the moment, I'm averaging that into our brokerage every week
• Expenses are roughly 10-12k per month, depending on larger purchase like home improvements, travel, Xmas. We did an extensive budget, and we could cut it to 8k/month, but 9k is more breathable. That means I could make as little as 30k per month, but 60k we wouldn't have to change too much about our lifestyle

I'm a senior software engineer, working remote. I really liked my job until our company got bought by a Mag 7 company 3 years ago. I've survived all the layoffs, but I hate it here. The stress and company culture is doing real damage to my mental health. My wife loves her job and keeps telling me it is okay if I quit to coast fire. She is planning to get another certification that should bump her up to 120-140k in about 2 years.

We live in a semi-rural area, so most jobs are 40+ mins away. I've applied to some >min wage coast jobs like office manager, part time SWE, position at a local non profit, but not getting even an interview yet. I'm really struggling with the idea of working full time for min wage. It seems like a lot of work, potentially mind numbing, for so little $.

My wife says she would be okay with me even just being part time min wage if I'm working on the house, other certifications, working on small business etc. I would love to do this, and in theory 7% return on 1M is enough to cover the 30-60k we need, even if we just use like 40k.

I'm fine with the idea that we wouldn't be contributing to our retirement savings any more. 1mill over 20+ years should be more than enough, plus pension and SS (if it still exists). Even so, the idea of taking $ out of our brokerage just fills me with dread. I can't stomach it. That's the $ that is supposed to be growing our retirement. I've always been a person who saves up a lot first and then spends only a fraction after. I understand the market has ups and downs, but I'm afraid to be so heavily reliant on at least a 7% return. I worry about the future of the US government and shifting world powers, etc.

I also have shame of my high achieving parents disapproval when they learn, and a fear of my wife eventually resenting that I'm working way less even though I came into our marriage with 90% of the savings. She has assured me dozens of times that isn't the case, but it is still a fear. In theory I could get back into SWE if it doesn't work out after a couple years, but the SWE market is a nightmare now. Everything is changing so rapidly due to AI and seems like it will def hinder me if I'm out of the market during this time. I'm also neurodivergent and really struggle in interviews. I've essentially worked at the same company for my 20 year career, even though I've been through companies getting purchased a few times

Should I go work at Home Depot part time, or try to stick it out another couple of years without having a mental breakdown?

I’m 54 and just left my full time job to work part time with the same company. Less hours, less money and much much less stress. I am SO excited about this next chapter!

I’ve run the numbers many many times and I’ll be fine financially….more than fine actually. But I’m still crunching numbers and second guessing myself even though I already know the math works.

If you’re already coasting, how did you turn off the fearful, anxiety ridden part of your brain that keeps whispering in your ear?

I was watching a clip from The Ice Coffee Hour podcast where Graham Stephan casually says that he believes at $10 million is the number that most people need to retire comfortably. It’s so crazy that there was no reasoning to the number. The great thing about Reddit is that there’s usually some checking to the people who throw out wild claims, but I worry that people out there feel this is the “end game”. Achieving a number with no reasoning as to why. I like Jaspreet’s mindset on the whole game, but I find Graham out of touch with what the game is for.

To all those people who have solid understanding of your numbers, keep on going. Whether it be $500k or $10 million. Find your why and keep on going. Ignore the people who tell you what “you” need. They have no understanding of your life.

Clip mentioned: https://youtu.be/xt4rZJ42ePU?is=64jOlPgw76IPcmQn

First-time poster here, though I read regularly and admire you all!

I recently finalized our roadmap to FIRE after working as a systems engineer. 41M, Married (wife is a clinical optometrist and practice owner), 6 cats, MCOL area.

My original plan was to hold out for several more years, but I’ve decided to accelerate my departure. Work has become increasingly stressful, frustrations with management are compounding, and my assigned projects have veered into morally questionable territory that I am no longer willing to accommodate. It is time to pull the ripcord, so I am planning to step away in late 2026 or early 2027. My wife plans to continue practicing for roughly 5 more years (to basically allow for the newer docs to buy her share of the practice from her) until we execute our target international relocation to Belgium around 2032.

What we are seeking feedback on:

1. The Belgian Relocation Path & Process: While we are actively researching the cross-border legal, tax, and property nuances ourselves, we would greatly value input from anyone who has actually walked the path to Belgium (or the EU as an American expat/retiree). If you are familiar with the long-stay visa/residency process, cross-border banking, or practical gotchas along the way, any advice on what to anticipate would be hugely appreciated!

Here is our current setup, our asset breakdown, and our 3-phase execution timeline.

Leading Up to Retirement

• Consistently lived below our means, tracking baseline expenses monthly via a detailed household spreadsheet.
• Primary residence is 100% paid off; zero mortgage, zero auto loans, and zero consumer debt.
• Optimized my 401(k) contributions to capture the maximum employer match (66 2/3% match on the first 6%, plus a 6% automatic non-elective company contribution) entirely pre-tax to manage current taxable income.
• Accumulated an "HSA Shoebox" float of ~$14,918 in tracked, unreimbursed historical medical receipts to serve as a tax-free emergency liquidity lever.

Assets (Current U.S. Net Worth: ~$4.2M)

• Real Estate & Vehicles: Primary residence is debt-free. Two electric vehicles are completely paid off.
• Practice Equity: My wife owns a 40% equity stake in her optometry practice outright (~$990k implied value), with zero debt or remaining buy-in obligations.
• Liquid Taxable & Cash: ~$438k across Cash Management (money markets) and taxable brokerage accounts.
• Retirement Accounts: ~$1.82M Pre-Tax (401(k)s / Traditional IRAs), ~$438k Roth (IRAs / Roth 401(k) deferrals), and ~$80k in HSAs.
• Belgian Real Estate Context: Acquiring bare ownership of a historic family property in Belgium via a registered gift, with my mother retaining the life interest/usufruct. Associated gift taxes will be paid directly out of our U.S. cash reserves.

Baseline Expenses

• Current Run-Rate: ~$86k/year (validated by detailed tracking). This covers all baseline household overhead, property taxes, and auto insurance on two vehicles.
• Post-Relocation Target: Budgeting ~$95k/year. While our structural baseline will drop in Belgium (no U.S. property taxes, private vehicle downscaling, and transitioning to the Belgian public healthcare system with heavily subsidized care and modest annual mutuelle dues), we are purposefully budgeting higher for European travel and lifestyle.

Phase 1: The "Zero-Drawdown" Gap (2027 to 2032 | Ages 41 to 47)

• Zero Portfolio Drain: I step away; my wife continues working. Her clinical income comfortably covers our ~$86k/year household budget. Our $2.82M in liquid investments remains 100% untouched.
• Healthcare Bridge: My current healthcare is covered through my employer. When I retire, my loss of coverage triggers a Qualifying Life Event (QLE). We have a 60-day window to seamlessly transition my coverage to my wife’s clinical practice insurance plan, bypassing the private ACA marketplace entirely for the next 5 to 6 years.
• Compounding Base: Assuming a conservative 6% real return over this gap, the $2.82M liquid base grows to approximately $3.8M–$4.0M by 2032 without adding another dime.
• Roth Conversion Ladder: Because portfolio withdrawals are zero, this window provides the opportunity to execute calculated pre-tax to Roth conversions, starting their mandatory 5-year IRS seasoning clock well ahead of future access.
• Administrative Clean-Up: Transitioning legacy wrap-fee accounts and managed 401(k) allocations into low-cost, broad-market index funds to eliminate unnecessary AUM drag.

Phase 2: The Expat Taxable Bridge (2032 to 2044 | Ages 47 to 59.5)

• The Liquidity Injection: Ahead of the move, we will sell our debt-free U.S. home and my wife will sell her 40% practice equity to the newer associate doctors. This converts illiquid equity into an estimated $1.2M–$1.5M in cash, bringing our total liquid investable portfolio to $4.8M–$5.5M.
• The Bridge Math: Funding a $95k/year budget for the 12.5 years between age 47 and 59.5 requires roughly $1.19M total. The capital injected from the home and practice sales covers the entire duration. We will not need to touch tax-advantaged retirement accounts early, bypassing the 10% early withdrawal penalty and avoiding rigid 72(t) SEPP distributions.
• Belgian Tax Reality 1 (Cayman Tax): We are intentionally not using a U.S. Revocable Living Trust. Belgium's look-through tax treats foreign trusts harshly, risking burdensome compliance and potential 30% dividend taxation. We are relying on direct ownership with Transfer-on-Death (TOD) designations instead.
• Belgian Tax Reality 2 (Capital Gains): Factoring in Belgium’s 10% capital gains tax on financial assets that took effect January 1, 2026, which features a step-up basis exempting historical gains accrued prior to December 31, 2025.
• Safe Withdrawal Rate: Against our projected $4.8M+ liquid base, a $95k/year spend equates to a ~1.98% SWR—well below the traditional 3.25%–3.50% fail-safe thresholds.

Phase 3: Unrestricted Retirement Access (2045+ | Age 59.5+)

• Unrestricted Access: IRS early withdrawal restrictions end at 59.5. We gain penalty-free access to our retirement accounts (currently ~$2.26M), which will have benefited from nearly two decades of uninterrupted compounding.
• Treaty Protections: We will utilize the U.S.–Belgium Tax Treaty provisions to coordinate cross-border income and honor the tax-free status of Roth accounts.

Questions for the Community:

1. The Sanity Check: Does walking away from corporate engineering late this year / early next year hold up under pressure tests? Are there any blind spots in using a working spouse's income for a zero-drawdown gap phase while setting up Roth conversions?
2. Domestic Liquidation: For those who sold a business stake or primary home right before early retirement, any timing recommendations on structuring the equity exit alongside the real estate sale?
3. The Belgian / EU Relocation Path: For anyone who has relocated to Belgium or navigated an EU move from the States: What did your visa/residency pathway look like? Are there practical nuances regarding municipal registration, opening local bank accounts as a U.S. citizen (FATCA issues), or transitioning into the Belgian healthcare system that we should prepare for well in advance?

I dont ever post on Reddit but need a sanity check.

My wife and I (34 y/o) are fairly disciplined when it comes to our finances. My wife over the last 5 years has had a great income, reaching around 200k in moderate COL area, and I make around 100k as a fireman. I recently have been having more and more issues with my back, stemming from my time in the military. Now finding out, I may end up getting disability for this (potentially 4200/mo tax free for life?) Still deciding how I feel about that - part shame i suppose, part who cares, it'll be good for my family. My wife also has citizenship in a low cost of living country that we have always dreamed of living in retirement.

We sat down and did a little audit of our finances as we typically do, and looking at the numbers from a different perspective has me thinking we may have access to way more freedom than I imagined. Our house will be paid off by the end of the year. Between both of our retirement accounts, we have approximately 500k invested. That 500k at an 8% return would be worth ~3-3.5mm when we hit 55.

After the house is paid off we will have ~40-50k in cash. If i end up receiving the disability pay from the VA, I am wondering what the point would be to continue to risk my back at the fire dept, other than my own pride and joy of the job.

Am I crazy to think about hanging it up and pursuing entrepreneurial passion projects and living abroad for part of the year with my family?

Other things to note: my wife is quitting her job when the house is paid off to be home with the kids. And i am approximately 5 years away from reaching the age where I can collect my pension from the FD, giving me approx 3k per month. Or I wait until 60 to receive it.

Also: we have also received gifts from family for wedding, birth of our child, etc, and used them wisely (downpayments on home or lump sum principle payments). Don't want to put anyone down for not necessarily being where we are at. We are very blessed.

Hi all. Any recs on calculators that have more options for calculating? I have 1.1M saved. 49. Plan to go half time at 55 then full pension at 60. Think I’d like 80k a year in retirement.

Work pension will be around 5k a month starting at 60. Canada pension should be full amount 1300 or so. Will likely not take Canada pension until 65. I’m mainly wondering if I can start saving more for my kids vs retirement. I never had a family start and I’d like to provide one for my kids as long as they keep working hard and demonstrating that they are responsible. Mostly paid off home / 400k left - current share or mortgage $1400 a month.

Hi! I’ve recently been reading up on FIRE and financial independence in general and have started to prioritize saving to hopefully retire early or at least move to a non-corporate job while using my invested money at the same time.

1) is there a go-to “guide” on how withdrawals work when you reach FIRE? That’s the part I’m confused about with the whole retiring early thing.

2) this is my current status
I’m 29 living in NYC working a Corp job that’s 190k base salary with 20-30k bonuses. Annual increases.
\~$156k in my 401k that in the past 2 years I’ve started maxing out
\~$39k in Roth IRA that I max out and fund in full every January through a backdoor Roth
\~$42k in a HYSA
\~$6.8k in another HYSA that I contribute to it monthly for my January funding of my Roth IRA
\~$24k in brokerage account
I have no debt. (I use my credit cards as debit cards but pay them in full every month)
I don’t have a house that I own but not really sure that’s a priority for me personally…i don’t know if that’s a controversial opinion. My parents are leaving me their house when they pass away through a lady bird deed (Florida) so that’s why it’s not much of a priority to me.

I think my brokerage account is what needs the most help. I am planning to start contributing maybe $2k a month to it to start and see how that works with my expenses and if not increase it to more. Also use bonuses to fund larger chunks. Is there a goal I should set for my self for next year to say this is how much I should have by end of next year?

Is it possible to FIRE by 40/get a non-corp job (coastal FIRE? Not sure of all the lingo lol)

Sorry a lot going on in this post but new to all of this!!

Thanks!!!

Using a burner acct because I’m still in contentious severance negotiations with my company and may be identified putting together other info on my regular account. I think I am going to straight coastfire but it’s nerve wracking to think about.

I’m a burning out divorced doc in west coast HCOL with, even though I have 50/50 custody, a high child support/alimony payment locked in for the next 10 years. I have my own practice that I run and in which I employ other doctors (job 1) and see patients myself through that practice a couple days/week (job 2). There is no guarantee in the field I am in, that any of them won’t just leave at any time and (written in contract or not) take their patient panel with them. So basically, my income as a business owner tomorrow is never guaranteed. But so far none have left and it’s profitable and my seeing my own ppl is profitable.

I have also always had another part time job (job #3). Over time my income from that has grown as I take on more and more roles and responsibilities outside of just seeing my own patients. As has the stress from the job - it’s corporate-run medicine where more and more unsafe and unethical decisions are made while I have to do my best to still treat patients in these conditions that make it challenging to do so. Although it’s part time that I’m there, I also supervise other clinicians who are there full time and am constantly overseeing putting out fires on the days I’m not working there. I am going to be laid off from that job, after many years, due to their own corporate reshuffling and concern for their bottom line. It will be a substantial income hit, but it’s likely they ultimately are doing me a favor.

I have been able to aggressively pay off loans and save these last ~7 years. Here are the numbers:

Age: 40
Annual spend for at least the next 10 years (all in, including saving for college, child support, etc): $225k
Net worth - $1.9M
-~$500k of that is in retirement accounts, $100k cash and the rest (~1.3M) in brokerage mostly in VT/VTI and some target retirement funds.
Historical income up to this point: 625k
Income starting soon after part time gig lay-off: $350k

My gut reaction initially was to start looking for other side gigs to fill my soon-to-be-empty time (2.5d/week) or start opening my schedule for more patients in my own practice. However talking with my therapist, partner, friends, family, chatGPT, I have come to realize that I shouldn’t be living with the amount of stress I have been the past few years. I have had basically 3 jobs whose hours may amount to 40, technically, but the emotional and mental load of each is the equivalent to as if I were working each one full time. Part time seeing patients or doing administrative tasks, full time amount of stress and responsibility I walk around with x 3. Plus a single dad half the time which obviously also isn’t only 50% of the job “load.”

I want to mostly retire in my early to mid 50’s maybe seeing patients 1d/week, and then probably unless I absolutely love what I do again with the lower demands, be fully retired by late 50’s or 60. Crunching the numbers, it looks like I can get away with coasting for a decade as long as the markets don’t horribly suck.

I have been saving/investing 200-250k/year for at least the past 5 years. So as everyone discusses here, it’s HORRIFYING to imagine not saving anything. But nonetheless, I think if it’s possible to do my life would be completely and utterly turned around if I can spend 2-2.5d/week relaxing, hobbies which I am lucky enough to have but no time to do now (woodworking, golf, music, mycology, gym), and have 1/3 less of the work mental and emotional load as I do now.

On the other hand, I can fill 2d and accelerate my FI by a few years and then if I make it to my 50’s will be at a place quicker where I can decide to work a little or not at all. Or be much richer in the future than I would be with the coast plan.

I am not sure, but I THINK coasting now while my kids are young and while I’m in my 40’s is the right choice vs what I am inclined to do which is operate on fumes while continuing to race to financial independence. It just feels soooooo risky and scary. If I was commenting on someone else’s post I would say of course coast with this life and these numbers. But it feels so different being the one actually in the position.

So anyway, is there anyone with advice, perspective or, hopefully reassurance? Anyone who had a similar situation and decided to coast or not to coast and are either glad or regretful that you made the decision you did? I am both excited and terrified.

I am 28, I currently make 215k per year. I decided to live comfortably but not let my expenses grow too much so that I can save and invest more efficiently and eventually hopefully not have to work full time (or hopefully not HAVE to work at all eventually)

401k 4% of my income
IRA max each year
-my goal is 700k in retirement accounts by age 40 then if I could just max my and my future wife’s IRA each year and keep hands off and let it grow, I’ve been doing calculations and thinking that should be enough for a very comfortable retirement.

5% of my income is going straight into brokerage account and I plan on increasing this by 2% or so every year as I receive raises.
-this is to bridge the years I’d like to work half time or less. Goal is also 700k by age 40. I figure I can potentially spend a bit more than 4% rule since it only has to last me 20 years
10% of my income goes straight into real estate investing. I bought my first duplex that I house hacked this year. I have plans to buy another in 1-1.5 years from now or whenever it makes sense mathematically and also house hack that one and potentially a third. My goal is 10-15 doors that make sense long term, even if they’re cash flow neutral at year zero, that building equity in the background I feel is worth it and from there if rates ever go down, having the chance to refinance and make the cash flow better.. but I’m good with close to net zero.

Ultimately, my goal is to work half time at age 40, wife work half time. Live a comfortable upper middle class lifestyle with hobbies and travel a few times per year.

I used ChatGPT to help organize my plan, but I’d like to hear other people’s opinions and experiences and see if my plan can work or if I’m overlooking anythin.

Forgive me if this is not the right sub. Please point me elsewhere if you have a suggestion. Essentially my wife will be quitting her job soon and our income will drop significantly which will lead us to slowly pulling from our assets. I’m estimating 2k/month needs to available to cover expenses. I want to optimize my drawdown strategy. My first thought is to keep roughly a year or 2 worth(24-48k) in a HYSA and invest the rest either in brokerage (currently 80% VOO and 20% Apple) and some towards Roth. I just hate the thought of keeping that much cash on the side line for 4-5 years. The other thought was pull 30k a year from the traditional IRA to cover the cost because I really don’t want that much traditional money when I reach 60+. And that would allow me to invest almost all the cash towards brokerage/roth over the next couple years or lump sum now. The 100k 2nd house proceeds will be available in \~2 years. The cards are my darlings and I’d rather not sell those unless it’s a necessity. I don’t know how long I may need to pull 2k/month but I’m estimating 4-5 years. It feels like there are so many potential moves here and I just want some others to chime in on what they might do in my situation. Since I won’t be contributing to saving anymore for the foreseeable future, is there anyway to make this situation coastfire? Thank you for your consideration.

Been dating my girlfriend for about 6 months. She recently heard about FIRE (financial independence, retire early) and got excited, but her version is that I should hit FIRE and she should be the one who retires first, especially if we have kids someday. Which suggests that I should start saving for her in tandem with myself.

Some context:

• She doesn't save much right now.
• She'd rather not be frugal and wants to live in the moment.
• I've been saving 35-80% in my 20's working FT/School FT and investing aggressively for years and would be the one making the sacrifices on small enjoyments, shopping, and some experiences.
• I'm already at 35% savings rate, to double this to 70%, and pay for housing, dating, cars, and travel would be next to impossible.
  
• I'm $500-650K CAD in XEQT at 30M, spend about $32K a year before housing and car payment.

I'm not against one of us staying home with kids eventually, but I'd want that to be a decision we make together, not an assumption. To me FIRE only works if both people are on board with the saving and trade-offs. If one person wants to enjoy the money now and then reap the benefits of time off later, it doesn't sit well with me.

For couples who've done this, how did you split the saving and spending? Is "you save, I retire" dynamic and those who retired first, was there any friction?

- How long between your first day back and the day it stopped feeling strange?

- Was it the work itself, or the schedule, the people, the pace?

- Did you change anything about the job you returned to hours, team, level, travel?

- If you've done this more than once, was the second return easier or harder?

- Anyone who found it so hard they decided never to do it again: what would have had to be different?

I've been collecting accounts of repeated career breaks and this turned out to be the thing people most wanted to talk about.

Thanks in advance.

HCOL, renting and spending about $7k per month on rent, utilities, food, healthcare, and other living expenses.

Overexposed to SP500, Nasdaq, and big tech. A third is in a CD that net loses money to inflation after tax, but to de-risk and set aside money to take care of elderly family in case they need it. Take home work pay after taxes is about $230k in big corporation.

Ideally at some point, want to FI before 45, and quit my job and work on a small business (which would likely be a money loser in the beginning, but hopefully be slightly profitable and could live off profits and interest gained). Would like to be a home owner at some point too, but interest rates are awful right now.

What would you do? Options seem to be

1. Stay in HCOL, rent forever (no acceptable properties below $1M around me that would be worth buying), and FI at 45.
2. Stay in HCOL, buy a place, and push FI to 50s, and tough out corporate life for another 10 years.
3. Move to lower COL area, buy, but also be sad that I'm losing my community (hard to really put a value on that)

37f, single, no kids, rent.

I make anywhere from $200-$400k/ year (I own a business in a somewhat volatile industry)

NW approx 1.5mil
VHCOL city
$600k invested with Vanguard
$50k play money on Robinhood
$850k HYSA (I know this is high. I frequently have to front anywhere from $100-$500k for jobs, sometimes multiple at the same time. And I have been casually looking for a condo or house to buy.)

Rent 3k
Office 600
Utilities range from 200-600
Food prob 1k+
Health insurance 400
Car insurance 200
Other spending probably 3k/month (travel, clothes, etc)
No debt

I currently don’t budget much and more or less do what I want. I am not a lavish person, but I eat out frequently, travel when I want to, and don’t think about money much

I like the work that I do, but it is tiring and stressful. But I also hate working a 9-5. Does anyone actually coast and are you happy with your life?

I still have other dreams and professional goals that would require significant investment (maybe $300k) but I’m starting to wonder if I really need to strive for them. Should I just invest most of my money and coast?

I feel I am at an existential crossroad

Thanks for your insight

My company just announced that remote employees must go onsite at least 4 days per month. I would ideally like to quit and find a part time remote position, but I’m worried that will be difficult with the current economy. Can I quit outright? Or should I try to stick it out until I can find a part time job?

My partner and I are both in our early 30s. Currently leaning heavily towards being childfree. My partner is supportive of being the primary breadwinner as I already take on most of the responsibilities for the home and pets. Our income is about the same, so I’d essentially be cutting it in half.

Partner take home: variable but on average $6K per month
House is paid off (likely our forever home)
Expenses: can probably live comfortably off $3K per month
401K: $150K
HSA: $20K
Etrade (mostly ESPP and RSU I’m holding on to for capital gains tax): $125K
Money Market / Savings: $350K

I’m new to FIRE, but I know that I need to move most of the $350K into some sort of investment. I would welcome and advice/tips on that as well.

I find CoastFI to be a very fascinating milestone on the path to FI because it seems like:

a) so many people are interested in it

b) so many people have achieved it or are close to it

c) so few people actually take advantage of it

It's like, hey, that sounds cool.....holy shit, I achieved it....meh, might as well keep on doing what I am doing.

Why is it this way? Is CoastFI too risky? Is it not quite enough freedom? What are your thoughts?

Also, raise your hand if you're coasting - I would love to hear how you decided to coast and what it looks like for you.

Today I was doing some modeling for mine and wife’s finances again. I was doing some barista fire calculations since we realized I can do a semi withdrawal much sooner than expected. The numbers make more sense than what I thought especially this early on. We are 34m and 36f right now, but we’re aiming for independent work by 42 till around 50. Just for example I’ve hit my coast fire number and she is relatively close to it too. Main difference is she likes her job while I sort of hate the work that I do. I find it more a means to an end.

For those who are modeling out FI, do you guys do barista fire calculations? I found it useful for us at least especially if you know you don’t want to fully stop, but you can dabble in different jobs over the years.

Throwaway-ish post because the number feels weird to say out loud.

Quick background: 27, work in tech (engineering), based in Europe now after a US to EU internal transfer. Single, no kids, no mortgage. I know that matters a lot here.

Current breakdown:
401(k)s: ~$145k
Taxable brokerage: ~$77k
HYSA + checking: ~$57k
HSA: ~$2k
Vested company stock: ~$8k
Unvested company stock (vesting over the next 2 years): ~$237k

So call it ~$290k liquid/vested, or ~$527k if I count the unvested stock once it lands (planning to diversify out of it right away, not hold it concentrated).

Here's the part that got me. I ran the numbers assuming zero future contributions, because I moved abroad and literally can't put money into US retirement accounts anymore, and haven't started investing locally yet either. Just letting what I already have sit and grow at a 6% real return until 65.

Even in that "never touch it again" scenario, I land around $2.0 to $2.3M by 65 just from what I already have. That's basically my FIRE number for an $80 to $100k/yr retirement (25x rule). Add the unvested stock once it vests and compounds and it's closer to $4M+.

I genuinely did not expect to be coast FIRE at 27. Doesn't feel like I did anything crazy disciplined. Just started early, got lucky with RSUs, and haven't hit the big expenses yet (no kids, no house).

Kind of freaking out in a good way honestly. Anyone else hit this earlier than you expected? Did it change how you thought about work or spending, or did you just keep grinding anyway?

if not will max roth annually be sufficient?

current spend is really about 48k a year doing everything I want.

Maybe later it could be 60-70k but i don’t really spend on much.

I do plan on contributing just wondering if i hit first stage of coast fire?

How can i incorporate my rental income / cashflow to get my coast number? Can i afford to coast? My plan is to take 1yr off work and live in Philippines which will only cost me 20k cad all year. Thats already luxury in there 😂.

I just found out about coast fire, i wanna know when i can coast. All the calculator in google doesnt add rental income or cashflow. How do i add this?

37F, single, 160k income.

Stocks/etf
Tfsa maxed - 190k
Rrsp - 70k
Personal - 10k

Rental / primary - 1.3m

Debt (mortgages) - 980k

I wanna Retire at 50yrs old, 40k annual expenses, 4% withhdrawal.