Race from $2M to $4M...and Beyond!

[jsap819]

Just peeking in to say I cracked the $2M total net worth and consider myself a multimillionaire :P. Can't really tell anyone else besides the wife so I wanted to share this with the community that has helped me achieve this milestone that I thought was unattainable. Next goal is to achieve this status with LNW. Currently sitting on $1.45M.

[jeroly]

Just peeking in to say I cracked the $2M total net worth and consider myself a multimillionaire :P. Can't really tell anyone else besides the wife so I wanted to share this with the community that has helped me achieve this milestone that I thought was unattainable. Next goal is to achieve this status with LNW. Currently sitting on $1.45M.

Congratulations!

[couponvan]

Just peeking in to say I cracked the $2M total net worth and consider myself a multimillionaire :P. Can't really tell anyone else besides the wife so I wanted to share this with the community that has helped me achieve this milestone that I thought was unattainable. Next goal is to achieve this status with LNW. Currently sitting on $1.45M.

Welcome to the party! My goal used to be $2 million and a paid off $500,000 house. Lifestyle creep and/or inflation has me moving the goal posts.

[Exflyboy]

Just peeking in to say I cracked the $2M total net worth and consider myself a multimillionaire :P. Can't really tell anyone else besides the wife so I wanted to share this with the community that has helped me achieve this milestone that I thought was unattainable. Next goal is to achieve this status with LNW. Currently sitting on $1.45M.

Welcome to the party! My goal used to be $2 million and a paid off $500,000 house. Lifestyle creep and/or inflation has me moving the goal posts.

I know the feeling. I used to count the LNW + net present value of future pensions and house to come up with our net worth. As time went on I stopped counting the pension, then the house (don't intend to sell plus we need a place to live) so now down to just the investments.

My Wife won't let me tell her how much we have as the number is overwhelming to her.. Of course I let it slip every couple of years just to watch her have a kind of mini fit..:)

[ixtap]

Just peeking in to say I cracked the $2M total net worth and consider myself a multimillionaire :P. Can't really tell anyone else besides the wife so I wanted to share this with the community that has helped me achieve this milestone that I thought was unattainable. Next goal is to achieve this status with LNW. Currently sitting on $1.45M.

Welcome to the party! My goal used to be $2 million and a paid off $500,000 house. Lifestyle creep and/or inflation has me moving the goal posts.

I know the feeling. I used to count the LNW + net present value of future pensions and house to come up with our net worth. As time went on I stopped counting the pension, then the house (don't intend to sell plus we need a place to live) so now down to just the investments.

My Wife won't let me tell her how much we have as the number is overwhelming to her.. Of course I let it slip every couple of years just to watch her have a kind of mini fit..:)

If the markets hold for a few more weeks, I expect to exceed what was originally our "surely we don't need any more than that!" number. Turns out, now that we have that magnitude, there are some things we had t considered that now seem really tempting.

[couponvan]

DH’s company valuation exceeded my expectations-however, I refuse to include them as the egg/chicken theory is strong in this human, and until the bird is in hand, we best not be counting them. He does want me working 1/2 time….probably so I will pester him less at work. On the flip side, he keeps dangling travel opportunities when it is most inconvenient for me to travel. 1st world problems. Puerto Rico this month, Cabo in May, Peru in ??-that’s bonus $ travel. Mind you we are spending $110K in tuition because we make too much $$. We get $0 in tax deductions for said tuition. It is what it is. 2 more years of double tuition, then “maybe” one more of single tuition.

I could be done, but I hate selling stocks/investments. Cash flowing college was one of my original goals-only at in-state tuition rates. It’s our fault we haven’t moved to where the kids are in college-so we are on the hook for the OOS tuition.

[jsap819]

Just peeking in to say I cracked the $2M total net worth and consider myself a multimillionaire :P. Can't really tell anyone else besides the wife so I wanted to share this with the community that has helped me achieve this milestone that I thought was unattainable. Next goal is to achieve this status with LNW. Currently sitting on $1.45M.

Welcome to the party! My goal used to be $2 million and a paid off $500,000 house. Lifestyle creep and/or inflation has me moving the goal posts.

I know the feeling. I used to count the LNW + net present value of future pensions and house to come up with our net worth. As time went on I stopped counting the pension, then the house (don't intend to sell plus we need a place to live) so now down to just the investments.

My Wife won't let me tell her how much we have as the number is overwhelming to her.. Of course I let it slip every couple of years just to watch her have a kind of mini fit..:)

Unfortunately, my wife also feels the same. I usually update her a couple of times a year whenever we reach a certain milestone but it's usually just in one ear and out the other. Our goalposts are also constantly being moved due to uncertain future expenses of our son who's still only 6 years old. So far he isn't interested in sports or other activities even though we've tried. We are also in the middle of our prime earning years and work-life balance is ideal. We are taking things one year at a time until it is no longer favorable to us. Eventually we will get to a point where sacrificing our time for more money doesn't make sense anymore. We will enjoy the ride until we figure that out.

[Lake]

Hello all.  Well this is my first post and I suppose this is a great place to start.  I found MMM in 2013 and can’t remember how soon after I joined the forum but it wasn’t long. So consequently I’ve followed a lot of your stories and weirdly know a lot about these internet rock stars posting here. Net Worth $2,176.000.00. We are renters so no home equity as we just moved back to home for me. We went from a low cost of living state to probably a medium high state (Minnesota). I’m 55 and retired and my wife is 48 and still working remotely.

So somehow we have found ourselves being multi millionaires. I know in the race to a million thread people show up and are amazed by the caviar and fancy table cloths. In this thread I imagine everyone shows up to the meetings wearing their best Costco clothes and then head home to swim in their vaults filled with gold coins like Scrooge McDuck used to:) Like many here for the most part I don’t feel rich. I’m still the same person that moved 5 states away after college graduation to start my $19,000/ yr career with $30 in my pocket. Although, if I really challenge myself I know I’m out of touch with the average person. I no longer go to the grocery store having to add up purchases to stay under what is left in my checking account. Or worry about how much utilities are going to cost this month. I think having conversations with people in different walks of life helps with the gratitude etc.

I guess ever since I can remember I felt I wanted to be a “millionaire “. I remember meeting with my college advisor when I first got to school in the fall of 1986. She asked what I wanted to do with my Hotel and Restaurant Management Degree I was going to get. I said I wanted to be a millionaire. And she laughed. Very hard. Well look at me now😀. Although to be fair I had to look up what a million dollars in 1986 would be now and got three quick google answers and I settled on the middle one of $2,700,000.  So I guess that’s the next goal. Maybe then I’ll really feel rich. Although I’m not sure I’ll ever be able to actively feel rich. Just free. And I do very much feel free and that feeling is priceless.

How we got here really was being more intentional about 10 years ago. I had gone through a very expensive divorce, got cancer, became a single parent and living in a huge house I couldn’t afford during 2008. Even though that was probably my financial bottom those 4 years with my daughter was my probably favorite time. So many happy memories. Just as I was slowly climbing out of the financial hole, I was laid off. I worked for a pharmaceutical company. It’s odd how sometimes something happens that you think is terrible. Only to end up being something amazing. During my layoff WARN period I was able to look for jobs in the company in other areas. I found one and with 1 day notice packed up and moved to Kansas with my daughter. Coincidentally this was where my daughter’s mom lived and not only did this force her to have a relationship with our daughter but it’s also where I ended up finding my current wife. In the interest of space and trying not to bore anyone. This move ignited my desire to never be vulnerable to a job again if I could help it. Found the F.I.R.E movement, started tracking monthly net worth, saved much more than we earned, invested mostly wisely but sprinkled in some painful learning experiences and here we are. It worked.

8 years later I was laid off for the final time. I wanted to make it to 55 for my pension and health care. But made it to 53 with one year of severance and a bridge to retirement. Of course since retirement my net worth hit an all time high that January 1 of 2021 then cratered. I had to buy a car during the crazy COVID you buy the only car left on their delivery truck arriving in 30 days or nothing. Which made me have to eat crow with all of the family members I scolded for buying new. Used cars at this time were just as expensive. But I wasn’t worried the math told me my reverse equity glide path packed with bonds would help me during the market swoon. Whoops. At least cost of living was low. Oh well, in hindsight during the roughest months I was less worried as I kept double checking my numbers and more taking it like Captain Dan during the storm in Forest Gump. The reality was I had enough cash with dividends to last I until last July when my lump sum pension hit my IRA and I started my 72t distributions. Inflation can be highly personal and even with a costly move to a more expensive state this years budget is only 2% higher than when I retired about 2.5 years ago. And true to my handle we now spend our summers at a lake cabin where I grew up in the summers. And our winter is in a very popular tourist city with a ton of outdoor things to do. I’m in the city my aging parents live in. My wife should join me in 3 years in retirement. She’s 7 years younger than me and we nominally keep finances separate. She doesn’t want to retire until she has about the same amount invested as I had when I retired. Well if you made it this far you deserve a medal and I’d better shut this down before I start another chapter. Sorry for such a long post and thanks for letting me in the club!

[ca-rn]

With the run up, I have hit and exceeded my FIRE goal last month! - I can't share this w/anyone in IRL. 
But still plan to work part time until I can access 401k via rule of 55.

Learned that pension can be rolled over (lump sum about 300k) to IRA. For some reason I thought it could only be lump sum'd as cash w/lots of taxes to be paid vs monthly payouts.

I don't feel different- I know mentally, I have more than enough coupled with more stress(???) about how to manage pretax money which will now be over 1 million after including the lump sum pension.

[TempusFugit]

With the run up, I have hit and exceeded my FIRE goal last month! - I can't share this w/anyone in IRL. 
But still plan to work part time until I can access 401k via rule of 55.

Learned that pension can be rolled over (lump sum about 300k) to IRA. For some reason I thought it could only be lump sum'd as cash w/lots of taxes to be paid vs monthly payouts.

I don't feel different- I know mentally, I have more than enough coupled with more stress(???) about how to manage pretax money which will now be over 1 million after including the lump sum pension.

Congrats on the goal achievement! 

I also have a pension worth about 150k that can be rolled into an IRA and that’s what I had been planning to do, but I’m experimenting with different scenarios in my retirement planning software and it seems to give me better results so far when I take it as an annuity rather than lump sum.  Of course that’s driven by my assumptions about rate of return in the markets, so if I tweak those inputs I think it would come out different. 

Are you planning to work part time in your current profession or just as a more vague idea of doing something part time? 

[Simpli-Fi]

Hello all. 

<snip>

Well if you made it this far you deserve a medal and I’d better shut this down before I start another chapter. Sorry for such a long post and thanks for letting me in the club!

Do I come collect this medal at your cabin???

I’m lusting over an island home these days…thanks for the story and glad it all worked out for you.

I had a similar feeling of never wanting to need a job again…during a layoff period around 2014 (crazy that was 10 years ago)…funny enough during the next one, I volunteered for a layoff and the company paid severance and moved me closer to that island home I’ve always wanted.

[Exflyboy]

Hello all. 

<snip>

Well if you made it this far you deserve a medal and I’d better shut this down before I start another chapter. Sorry for such a long post and thanks for letting me in the club!

Do I come collect this medal at your cabin???

I’m lusting over an island home these days…thanks for the story and glad it all worked out for you.

I had a similar feeling of never wanting to need a job again…during a layoff period around 2014 (crazy that was 10 years ago)…funny enough during the next one, I volunteered for a layoff and the company paid severance and moved me closer to that island home I’ve always wanted.

I say quite often.. The best job to have is the one you don't need.

I've had quite  a few very enjoyable hobby jobs AFTER I retired..:)

[Simpli-Fi]

Agreed.  Work is way better when you don’t need the money.

[Car Jack]

Pre retirement, I had all kinds of jobs I was going to do for fun and to qualify for Roth contributions.  Now that I've been out for 7 months, if I were offered a job at $1000 an hour, I'd turn it down.  I don't need it.  Go away.  But I did not retire early.  I was 66 when I called it quits.  I definitely should have done it 5 years earlier but convincing DW was impossible.  She once said that if we had $100B, we wouldn't have enough.

[dividendman]

Pre retirement, I had all kinds of jobs I was going to do for fun and to qualify for Roth contributions.  Now that I've been out for 7 months, if I were offered a job at $1000 an hour, I'd turn it down.  I don't need it.  Go away.  But I did not retire early.  I was 66 when I called it quits.  I definitely should have done it 5 years earlier but convincing DW was impossible.  She once said that if we had $100B, we wouldn't have enough.

A hundred billion ain't what it used to be.

[markbike528CBX]

Pre retirement, I had all kinds of jobs I was going to do for fun and to qualify for Roth contributions.  Now that I've been out for 7 months, if I were offered a job at $1000 an hour, I'd turn it down.  I don't need it.  Go away.  But I did not retire early.  I was 66 when I called it quits.  I definitely should have done it 5 years earlier but convincing DW was impossible.  She once said that if we had $100B, we wouldn't have enough.

A hundred billion ain't what it used to be.

“A billion here, a billion there, and pretty soon you're talking real money." Attributed to Senator Everett McKinley

[Much Fishing to Do]

Just peeking in to say I cracked the $2M total net worth and consider myself a multimillionaire :P. Can't really tell anyone else besides the wife so I wanted to share this with the community that has helped me achieve this milestone that I thought was unattainable. Next goal is to achieve this status with LNW. Currently sitting on $1.45M.

Welcome to the party! My goal used to be $2 million and a paid off $500,000 house. Lifestyle creep and/or inflation has me moving the goal posts.

I know the feeling. I used to count the LNW + net present value of future pensions and house to come up with our net worth. As time went on I stopped counting the pension, then the house (don't intend to sell plus we need a place to live) so now down to just the investments.

My Wife won't let me tell her how much we have as the number is overwhelming to her.. Of course I let it slip every couple of years just to watch her have a kind of mini fit..:)

Unfortunately, my wife also feels the same. I usually update her a couple of times a year whenever we reach a certain milestone but it's usually just in one ear and out the other. Our goalposts are also constantly being moved due to uncertain future expenses of our son who's still only 6 years old. So far he isn't interested in sports or other activities even though we've tried. We are also in the middle of our prime earning years and work-life balance is ideal. We are taking things one year at a time until it is no longer favorable to us. Eventually we will get to a point where sacrificing our time for more money doesn't make sense anymore. We will enjoy the ride until we figure that out.

Yeah, I tell my wife we are worth almost $5M and she still gets aggravated at me for throwing out an empty butter container ("do you know how much tupperware costs?").  She definitely dislikes the idea of me being retired at 51 and that I should have a job....luckily the <20 hr/wk one from home I do have is best for me too (after working 60-70 hrs/wk for so long I realized I wouldn't know what to do all day fully retired, its not like I had much time for hobbies et al to develop... the 20 hrs/wk schedule seems to leave me with the right amount of time for everything else I want to do so will prob keep doing it for a while.

[Bateaux]

So I've been busy playing in Florida. I don't remember if I've posted about the Florida Trail hike yet. I'll get to it if I haven't. Anyway just finished up a 322 mile Central Florida gravel bikepacking race today.

It took me nearly 100 hours to ride 322 miles of the 2024 Huracan 300 LiTe. I did not use my Garmin Mini for Track Leaders, because this year I was not riding for record. I was out there for the experience with the bikepacking community and personal learning. It did not disappoint. For my route I started here at home. The Chicken King in Hernando is my mile 0 and the official route mile 30. My friend David and I were watching
our friend Adam for the first 30 miles and timing our start to coinside. All was fine till the first 1000 feet when my left crank arm and pedal came off. I put it back on with an Allen wrench on my bike tool. It lasted for two miles and came off again. I tried to get it tighter this time. We finally got on route and found Adam. I told him what happened and told him I needed to stop in Inverness at a bike shop to torque it correctly. That required a several mile detour. I borrowed the tool and we headed back to the route. We stayed together till almost reaching Lake Lindsey Mall. I caught up with them there for lunch. The kitchen crew there had their work cut out for them with all the hungry riders. I told Adam and David to ride on ahead. They were faster and I'd try to catch them at Ford Camp for the night. They unfortunately passed up the spot by 10 miles. I decided to stay. Four other cyclists shared the camp for the night. The next morning before daylight rain starting hitting my tent. I packed up in the rain and started riding. We soon encountered a section of trail that had been plowed. It was mostly hike-a-bike for me and the rain got heavier. Eventually the route got better and the sun came out. There was more rain to come however. On the way to Clermont I got a flat tire. Another rider stopped to assist. He helped me patch the tube and I reassembled my rear wheel. Karlos had asked a week prior if I was set up tubeless. The look he gave me said it all. About the time I reached the Lake Apaoka Trail I started losing air again. I used a trailside repair station to refill the tire and ride on to the brewery. I saw dark clouds gathering and decided to book a hotel for the night. I changed to a spare tube in an AutoZone parking lot after more attempts at patching the first one. Rain hit me again as I reassembled my wheel. It held fine with a new tube. I checked I to my hotel room, showered, cooked some of my trail food and collapsed as it was late. The next morning I found a bike shop and bought a replacement tube. I was then on to Apoka. There is a mountain there! At Apoka I went to Publix and bought an 8 piece fried chicken. I guarded the bikes of other rides as they shopped. I ate 5 pieces of chicken and packed the rest. Near Kelly Park I got turned around and had an encounter with a grizzled Florida Cracker Lady on an ATV. I told her I was lost. She said no, you're trespassing and I am armed. I immediately thought of two things, the first rule of Fight Club and the song, "Give Me Three Steps!" I was out like a rocket ship. Soon I saw two Huracan riders turn in front of me. I caught up to the one in rear. I asked if they knew where they were going? He said he wasn't sure. I said that's OK, at least it's more targets. I followed them until reaching the bike trail along Highway 46. Then the rain hit again. They stopped at a trailhead pavilion and I kept going. Soon I was at Bear Pond and I knew there was a Florida Trail shelter nearby. I reached the shelter just as the rain ended. There was nobody there, no hikers or bikers. I dumped my stuff in the shelter and found enough dry wood for a campfire. Unfortunately there was nobody to share my fire. I packed up the next morning after a great night. It was nearly a mile off route to the shelter and I saw no other bike tracks in the soft sugar sand. The weather was crisp and bright as I ride alone through the beautiful preserve. Exiting the preserve was Highway 44 and heavy traffic. I beared through it till reaching Royal Trails Road. Much better. From there we turned into a sand road with a road grader working it. Adam and Dave had ridden it the day before and it was rain packed. I was ridding in flour until I just had to get off and push. The reward was Pizza at Paloma Pizza not far away. While there I ran into five hikers I started the Florida Trail with in Big Cypress Preserve on January 5th. I visited with them quite a while and really wanted to ditch the bike and grab my backpack to go with them. But I had miles to make. All was good until later that night my phone GPS signal went crazy. It would jump all over. I turned to my Garmin 1030 computer which I hate. I also called Adam and David for directions. I finally reached Marshal Swamp Trailhead well after dark. I had planned to rest at the pavilion a few hours and try to make Shangri-La Campground. As I was walking to the bathroom there a dog started barking. A 5th wheel camper was parked across a fence from the bathroom. I heard the owner tell the dog to, "Get him... he knows he's not supposed to be here!" For the second day in a row, First Rule of Fight-Club and Give Me Three Steps came to mind immediately. I exited the area. I looked on my phone and found a $43 motel room 4 miles away. I booked it on the spot and peddled with abandon. I checked in and grabbed a quick Steak and Shake burger minutes before closing. I haven't stayed in such a horrible motel in decades. The Silver Springs Mustang OYO. Don't go there! Just don't. I ate, showered and slept. I don't think I will have any long term ill effects from my stay but I'll keep you posted. I got back on route and it wasn't too long till I reached the beautiful Santos Trails. I finally relaxed because I knew the end wasn't too far. I reached Shangri-La Campground and nearly everyone was gone. A group was packing up and gave me a cold beer. It was perfect and I wished them well on their trip back to Richmond, VA. All that I needed to do now was ride home. On the way back I dropped back into my road scavenger mode. I found a half of a gallon of termite and bug pesticide that was in the ditch. I knew the value and the tough plastic container was intact. I moved my tent from my fork rack and strapped the jug in it's place. I know that's well over $100, probably $200 worth of material. Do not worry I am a chemical professional and only bugs will be harmed. I wanted to treat my house this week anyway. The universe has a way, we say, "The Trail Provides." Anyway, I'm showered and my grimy gear is washed. I'll soon be headed back to the Louisiana home as I miss the family. With my feet hiking the Florida Trail for 150 miles, my training rides and the Huracan 300 I've propelled myself about 700 miles in the last month. That's not bad for a 55 year old fat guy.

[ca-rn]

With the run up, I have hit and exceeded my FIRE goal last month! - I can't share this w/anyone in IRL. 
But still plan to work part time until I can access 401k via rule of 55.

Learned that pension can be rolled over (lump sum about 300k) to IRA. For some reason I thought it could only be lump sum'd as cash w/lots of taxes to be paid vs monthly payouts.

I don't feel different- I know mentally, I have more than enough coupled with more stress(???) about how to manage pretax money which will now be over 1 million after including the lump sum pension.

Congrats on the goal achievement! 

I also have a pension worth about 150k that can be rolled into an IRA and that’s what I had been planning to do, but I’m experimenting with different scenarios in my retirement planning software and it seems to give me better results so far when I take it as an annuity rather than lump sum.  Of course that’s driven by my assumptions about rate of return in the markets, so if I tweak those inputs I think it would come out different. 

Are you planning to work part time in your current profession or just as a more vague idea of doing something part time?

Thank you! 
I've been working part time in my current position (previously worked full time) for a few years now- CoastFIRE.  Plus it provides healthcare, vacation and sick days! 
Plan to roll 500-700k from 401k/pension rollover into RothIRA which will eliminate any ACA subsidies so working PT until 55 also saves me at least 12k/year (for equivalent coverage).

[Dicey]

Damn! I haven't checked into this thread in a bit, but wow, you guys are definitely not letting life pass you by. Clearly, this is where the badasses congregate. I'm looking forward to more great stories. Wowza!

And @Lake, that could be the best de-lurking post ever!

[Lake]

Hello all. 

<snip>

Well if you made it this far you deserve a medal and I’d better shut this down before I start another chapter. Sorry for such a long post and thanks for letting me in the club!

Do I come collect this medal at your cabin???


I’m lusting over an island home these days…thanks for the story and glad it all worked out for you.

I had a similar feeling of never wanting to need a job again…during a layoff period around 2014 (crazy that was 10 years ago)…funny enough during the next one, I volunteered for a layoff and the company paid severance and moved me closer to that island home I’ve always wanted.

@Simpli-Fi Sure why not. However the medal might be in the shape of a fish. Good luck in finding that island! That would be amazing too but where I’m from the shoulder months of winter would make it difficult to come and go. Although I can think of worse things than being stuck in a nice home on an island. Thanks for the welcome.

@Exflyboy thanks for the comment. I agree the best job is the one you don’t need. As a former lurker I’ve followed your journal for years and have enjoyed the good hearted slings and arrows thrown your way each time you come out of retirement. I get why you’ve done it though. Doing it on your terms and being able to solve hard problems would be fun. I share with you the love of tools and also have a lathe but mine is a wood lathe. I highly recommend you get one as that new hobby will help you take care of your future RMD problems😁.

@Dicey thanks so much for your kind words. As a former lurker in recovery I have to say I have learned so many things from your posts and comments. I really enjoy your perspective and well reasoned posts. Especially how willing you are to help people with your wisdom. I’m highly honored. This forum has been incredibly valuable reading the insights of yours and everyone else that’s taken the time to tell their stories is like a free master class in life. It makes me wonder how many other silent people out there like myself who have benefited. So if you read this and are a frequent poster either in a journal or on various threads for the silent many I thank you.

And finally in other news my daughter was accepted into her Law School of choice. With a very very good scholarship. Looks like tuition is going to cost just under $9,000 / year. Looks like I over saved. My first public MPP!

[Taran Wanderer]

Passed into beyond territory this week for the first time.  I expect we’ll bounce up and down through the upper boundary multiple times in the coming months or years.  Long term, we’ll stay the course and keep letting the little green soldiers do their work.  While we’re both still working, these days we are primary kids activity focused.  Multiple teams for our multiple kids.  I’m coaching one and finding that I care less and less about winning with the younger kids, and more and more about what kind of people they are.  Do they work hard?  Do they bounce back from adversity?  Are they a good teammate?  We’re having a good season, winning more games than we’re losing, and kids are improving.  One hard case seems to be coming around.  Another one is going to have a rough go in life if he doesn’t have a change in attitude.  A couple more weekends and then the season will be over, which is good.  I have some projects in the house and yard and driveway that need attention, and I can’t bring myself to hire someone for them regardless of the number in the spreadsheet.

[farmecologist]

Hello all. 

<snip>

Well if you made it this far you deserve a medal and I’d better shut this down before I start another chapter. Sorry for such a long post and thanks for letting me in the club!

Do I come collect this medal at your cabin???


I’m lusting over an island home these days…thanks for the story and glad it all worked out for you.

I had a similar feeling of never wanting to need a job again…during a layoff period around 2014 (crazy that was 10 years ago)…funny enough during the next one, I volunteered for a layoff and the company paid severance and moved me closer to that island home I’ve always wanted.

@Simpli-Fi Sure why not. However the medal might be in the shape of a fish. Good luck in finding that island! That would be amazing too but where I’m from the shoulder months of winter would make it difficult to come and go. Although I can think of worse things than being stuck in a nice home on an island. Thanks for the welcome.

@Exflyboy thanks for the comment. I agree the best job is the one you don’t need. As a former lurker I’ve followed your journal for years and have enjoyed the good hearted slings and arrows thrown your way each time you come out of retirement. I get why you’ve done it though. Doing it on your terms and being able to solve hard problems would be fun. I share with you the love of tools and also have a lathe but mine is a wood lathe. I highly recommend you get one as that new hobby will help you take care of your future RMD problems😁.

@Dicey thanks so much for your kind words. As a former lurker in recovery I have to say I have learned so many things from your posts and comments. I really enjoy your perspective and well reasoned posts. Especially how willing you are to help people with your wisdom. I’m highly honored. This forum has been incredibly valuable reading the insights of yours and everyone else that’s taken the time to tell their stories is like a free master class in life. It makes me wonder how many other silent people out there like myself who have benefited. So if you read this and are a frequent poster either in a journal or on various threads for the silent many I thank you.

And finally in other news my daughter was accepted into her Law School of choice. With a very very good scholarship. Looks like tuition is going to cost just under $9,000 / year. Looks like I over saved. My first public MPP!

I agree, Lake, this thread has been invaluable to me over the years and has given me motivation to first make it into this group and then contribute.  However, I don't contribute nearly as much as some of the others here do.  There is a great core group here!

Congrats to your daughter!  Both of my kids are graduating from college this spring.  Daughter is getting a masters degree and is working towards becoming a licenced therapist.   Our son will get his undergraduate degree this spring with a double major in physics and astrophysics ( I have no idea where he got that from as my wife and I are NOT physics people...at all ).   

Our son has been applying to quite a few PhD programs in Space Physics.  It has been a long process.  However, he just found out he was accepted to the space physics program at Dartmouth college.  He is waiting on a few others.   This is a HUGE load off of him...and us, because this is a fully paid graduate school gig, with a nice stipend.   Meaning...we are off the hook to pay for further college costs!     

[Exflyboy]

Passed into beyond territory this week for the first time.  I expect we’ll bounce up and down through the upper boundary multiple times in the coming months or years.  Long term, we’ll stay the course and keep letting the little green soldiers do their work.  While we’re both still working, these days we are primary kids activity focused.  Multiple teams for our multiple kids.  I’m coaching one and finding that I care less and less about winning with the younger kids, and more and more about what kind of people they are.  Do they work hard?  Do they bounce back from adversity?  Are they a good teammate?  We’re having a good season, winning more games than we’re losing, and kids are improving.  One hard case seems to be coming around.  Another one is going to have a rough go in life if he doesn’t have a change in attitude.  A couple more weekends and then the season will be over, which is good.  I have some projects in the house and yard and driveway that need attention, and I can’t bring myself to hire someone for them regardless of the number in the spreadsheet.

Very nice but I feel like such an under-achiever...:)

[Taran Wanderer]

Very nice but I feel like such an under-achiever...:)

Depends on how you judge achievement. You have the sense to not work full time anymore. I’m still working on that one!

[Arbitrage]

Just peeking in to say I cracked the $2M total net worth and consider myself a multimillionaire :P. Can't really tell anyone else besides the wife so I wanted to share this with the community that has helped me achieve this milestone that I thought was unattainable. Next goal is to achieve this status with LNW. Currently sitting on $1.45M.

Welcome to the party! My goal used to be $2 million and a paid off $500,000 house. Lifestyle creep and/or inflation has me moving the goal posts.

My original goal was $1.25M with paid-off house, or the equivalent.  We anticipated being able to use our CA home equity to buy a house free and clear when we relocated, but house prices skyrocketed where we relocated to (before we bought) and the new house cost far more than originally anticipated.  Of course, since we secured part-time remote work, I'd say we relaxed the price constraints on the house somewhat.  Now at $2M with a half mil in debt, so theoretically above that initial goal, though we've definitely experienced enough inflation that we'd probably need close to $1.5M net at this point. 

Waiting/hoping for the market to give us a nice big push to that 'comfort point,' but once that happens we might just find more reasons that we're not quite comfortable giving up the part-time work completely.  OMY, but a pretty damn nice OMY since our lives are pretty good, living in an outdoorsy paradise and working half-time from home.

[Fomerly known as something]

Well I’m just shy of 17 months to go.  For giggles, I plugged my full retirement age date into a countdown calculator.  That god I’m not working for another 7,777 days.

[moof]

Well I’m just shy of 17 months to go.  For giggles, I plugged my full retirement age date into a countdown calculator.  That god I’m not working for another 7,777 days.

Fun, I’ll play.  7605 days for me.  Thinking of quitting tomorrow, not sure if my wife will be happy with me if I do…

[Turtle]

I've been lurking in this thread for a while because theoretical value of pensions plus home equity bumps me here.

However, when I add my emergency/house repairs fund into my investments, LNW has also been across the finish line for 2 weeks in a row now.  (I have that fund earmarked for specific expenses later this year, so I've not been including it in "race" thread tracking.)

Like many others, there's no one I can share this with IRL, but it makes for an excellent Valentine's Day present to myself.  I celebrated by buying myself a container of chocolate covered strawberries at Costco.

[Fomerly known as something]

I entered this race using fuzzy math, mostly from my pension and home equity.  I now am here without the fuzzy Math.  I never really thought I’d get to this spot honestly.  With fuzzy math I’m “beyond now”.

[2sk22]

I've been lurking in this thread for a while because theoretical value of pensions plus home equity bumps me here.

However, when I add my emergency/house repairs fund into my investments, LNW has also been across the finish line for 2 weeks in a row now.  (I have that fund earmarked for specific expenses later this year, so I've not been including it in "race" thread tracking.)

Like many others, there's no one I can share this with IRL, but it makes for an excellent Valentine's Day present to myself.  I celebrated by buying myself a container of chocolate covered strawberries at Costco.

Congratulations! The power of compounding is so incredible that you will soon be well past the nominal boundaries of this group :-)

[Turtle]

I've been lurking in this thread for a while because theoretical value of pensions plus home equity bumps me here.

However, when I add my emergency/house repairs fund into my investments, LNW has also been across the finish line for 2 weeks in a row now.  (I have that fund earmarked for specific expenses later this year, so I've not been including it in "race" thread tracking.)

Like many others, there's no one I can share this with IRL, but it makes for an excellent Valentine's Day present to myself.  I celebrated by buying myself a container of chocolate covered strawberries at Costco.

Congratulations! The power of compounding is so incredible that you will soon be well past the nominal boundaries of this group :-)

Thank you!  Planning on retiring within the next two years, so the growth is likely to slow down significantly.

[Exflyboy]

Ahh the wonders of "fuzzy math".

around $100k in SS and pensions = $2.5M at 4%... YOU CAN'T DO THAT.. you have to do a NPV calc.. Yeah but if you have no heirs to leave the stash to then its worth $2.5M to ME!

Add the value of the house and Yep, My networth has effectively doubled..:)

[Freedomin5]

Years ago when I joined the forum, I would look at this thread from my spot in the 500k to 1M thread and think, I’ll never join the heavy hitters in the upper echelons. But here I am five years later. We just passed 2M today (thank you markets). I can’t quite wrap my mind around the fact that we are officially multimillionaires.

[Exflyboy]

Years ago when I joined the forum, I would look at this thread from my spot in the 500k to 1M thread and think, I’ll never join the heavy hitters in the upper echelons. But here I am five years later. We just passed 2M today (thank you markets). I can’t quite wrap my mind around the fact that we are officially multimillionaires.

Congratulations!.. I don't think I ever really wrapped my head around it. I still behave like I'm poor, I think for the first time last week I walked into a restaurant and ordered without looking at the menu.. I've been in this thread for 5 years or so and about a year away from "Beyond" territory (market depending).

Note, I still look for the best deal or some way to lower the overall price, I think thats just good fiscal practice and a bit of an optimsation game honestly.

[mm1970]

Years ago when I joined the forum, I would look at this thread from my spot in the 500k to 1M thread and think, I’ll never join the heavy hitters in the upper echelons. But here I am five years later. We just passed 2M today (thank you markets). I can’t quite wrap my mind around the fact that we are officially multimillionaires.

Yup.  I was excited to hit this group and then they made it "and beyond" right when we qualified. I do not pay that much attention, honestly.  However, a financial check up this week and we are officially in the "and beyond".

[SwordGuy]

Years ago when I joined the forum, I would look at this thread from my spot in the 500k to 1M thread and think, I’ll never join the heavy hitters in the upper echelons. But here I am five years later. We just passed 2M today (thank you markets). I can’t quite wrap my mind around the fact that we are officially multimillionaires.

Congratulations!.. I don't think I ever really wrapped my head around it. I still behave like I'm poor, I think for the first time last week I walked into a restaurant and ordered without looking at the menu.. I've been in this thread for 5 years or so and about a year away from "Beyond" territory (market depending).

Note, I still look for the best deal or some way to lower the overall price, I think thats just good fiscal practice and a bit of an optimsation game honestly.

I went to a writer's group meeting downtown this evening.  I parked 5 blocks away because I wanted to park for free rather than pay $1/hour for an hour. 

And then I'll spend lots of money on a book or a tool or art supplies.

Face it, I'm just weird.  Inconsistent in how I'm weird, but still weird.

[Simpli-Fi]

A 5 block walk is nice!

I mostly act like I’m poor…however lately I’m actively trying to change that.  I used to listen ramit’s podcast…then Quit when he started advertising, but loved the discussions about changing the psychology of money/spending.

[2sk22]

A 5 block walk is nice!

I mostly act like I’m poor…however lately I’m actively trying to change that.  I used to listen ramit’s podcast…then Quit when he started advertising, but loved the discussions about changing the psychology of money/spending.

Some useful thoughts on spending money by Morgan Housel (also covered on his podcast): https://collabfund.com/blog/a-few-thoughts-on-spending-money/

At the same time, some wealthy people struggle to spend money on things that would make them happy because “I’m a saver” becomes such an ingrained part of their identity. What you intended to be a strategy to achieve a better life turns into an ideology you are beholden to.

[Much Fishing to Do]

Years ago when I joined the forum, I would look at this thread from my spot in the 500k to 1M thread and think, I’ll never join the heavy hitters in the upper echelons. But here I am five years later. We just passed 2M today (thank you markets). I can’t quite wrap my mind around the fact that we are officially multimillionaires.

Congratulations!.. I don't think I ever really wrapped my head around it. I still behave like I'm poor, I think for the first time last week I walked into a restaurant and ordered without looking at the menu.. I've been in this thread for 5 years or so and about a year away from "Beyond" territory (market depending).

Note, I still look for the best deal or some way to lower the overall price, I think thats just good fiscal practice and a bit of an optimsation game honestly.

I went to a writer's group meeting downtown this evening.  I parked 5 blocks away because I wanted to park for free rather than pay $1/hour for an hour. 

And then I'll spend lots of money on a book or a tool or art supplies.

Face it, I'm just weird.  Inconsistent in how I'm weird, but still weird.

This jives with what I've often found....that saving money often equates to other benefits like 1) being less lazy, 2) producing less waste, 3) learning new skills, 4) making sure the job is done right vs hiring it out to someone who doesn't care as much, etc etc etc....i.e. I probably will never use the $1 saved but I'd definitely benefit from an additional 5 block walk ....

[BeanCounter]

Ugh. I've got a rich person problem. Taking my kids on spring break (as well as a summer trip) is a priority for us. By March-April we are itching to go someplace warm with some actual sun. But man, it's expensive!! No matter where we go (that's warm) it's $8k for 4 people. That's insane to me. But YOLO right?

[SwordGuy]

Ugh. I've got a rich person problem. Taking my kids on spring break (as well as a summer trip) is a priority for us. By March-April we are itching to go someplace warm with some actual sun. But man, it's expensive!! No matter where we go (that's warm) it's $8k for 4 people. That's insane to me. But YOLO right?

Check out RootOfGood.com.   He really knows how to stretch a vacation dollar.

[ixtap]

Ugh. I've got a rich person problem. Taking my kids on spring break (as well as a summer trip) is a priority for us. By March-April we are itching to go someplace warm with some actual sun. But man, it's expensive!! No matter where we go (that's warm) it's $8k for 4 people. That's insane to me. But YOLO right?

Personally, I would prefer a staycation with an indoor pool over spring break travel. Crowds, often delays due to late winter storms bleh. Even in college I generally just picked up extra hours rather than deal with all that.

[EscapeVelocity2020]

Ugh. I've got a rich person problem. Taking my kids on spring break (as well as a summer trip) is a priority for us. By March-April we are itching to go someplace warm with some actual sun. But man, it's expensive!! No matter where we go (that's warm) it's $8k for 4 people. That's insane to me. But YOLO right?

Personally, I would prefer a staycation with an indoor pool over spring break travel. Crowds, often delays due to late winter storms bleh. Even in college I generally just picked up extra hours rather than deal with all that.

It's a perplexing problem, but here's my 2 cents...  Pinch your nose and take those vacations when the kids are younger, it only gets harder to get them to go later on, as well as possibly getting more expensive.  We were able to pull off one hotel room with pre-teens, nowadays that would be no fun at all...

Once you get in the habit of 'its too busy, it's too expensive, it's too much hassle, etc.' then you'll always find excuses and suddenly realize your window of opportunity has closed.  Take lots of pictures and ignore the price tags, as long as your FI isn't permanently dented then these discretionary expenses can be the first ones to cut if we ultimately do have a recession...  I've never once regretted all the expensive stuff we did 10 years ago, although I'd have another million or two if we'd invested instead.  The memories truly are priceless!

[couponvan]

Ugh. I've got a rich person problem. Taking my kids on spring break (as well as a summer trip) is a priority for us. By March-April we are itching to go someplace warm with some actual sun. But man, it's expensive!! No matter where we go (that's warm) it's $8k for 4 people. That's insane to me. But YOLO right?

That’s why we did epic trips to China, Italy, and Spain. It was cheaper than Florida. Book yourself a warm week at the end of this month for cheap and get yourself warm. Use Skyscanner and check “everywhere” around the dates you can travel - you might be surprised. I will be in Puerto Rico for a February/March early bday treat.

[mm1970]

Ugh. I've got a rich person problem. Taking my kids on spring break (as well as a summer trip) is a priority for us. By March-April we are itching to go someplace warm with some actual sun. But man, it's expensive!! No matter where we go (that's warm) it's $8k for 4 people. That's insane to me. But YOLO right?

It does seem insane - but that's about what our trip to Denmark cost 5 years ago. 

I have been getting around this lately by staycationing multiple times per year - so I'm tired.  And I'm tired of planning the trips.  KWIM?

So, I plan fewer trips:
October 2023: Moab. ALL BY MYSELF... Probably about $1000 when you add up gas, camping, 2 hotels on the drive out and back, food.
Thanksgiving 2023:  Staycation
Christmas 2023: Staycation - 3 weeks.  Husband worked most of the time, and he's overworked and stressed out.  Can't fix that for you ma dude.
January 2024: 2 day weekend to run an 8 mile race. A little under $1000 (the hotel was $350/night, but it was SWEET.)  Hubs, me, 1 kid.  Relaxing.
March 2024: Nothing.  I don't want to plan anything.  Maybe we'll paint the living room.  Maybe we'll visit whatever colleges DS17 gets into, if he knows by then.
Summer 2024:  In planning process.  The typical 2 weeks to visit family on the East coast, and throwing in a few days in DC at the end.  So, this is the big trip.   I literally don't care how expensive the plane tickets are (last year they were $1000 each.  For PA and NY.  Srsly.)  Right now they are looking like $600 if I cheap out and $800 if I select the best itinerary (which is what I will do), plus rental car, plus hotel for 2 nights in DC.
October 2024: MOAB

So, TLDR - I pick one big expensive trip a year. Honestly, I totally want to go to Hawaii.  But I do not want to plan this trip.  So I will not.  The big trip is to the East Coast bc of aging and ill parents. So, I would recommend taking the big trips with the kids before you end up in that merry go round.

[Exflyboy]

@mm1970 Going to HI in April an will SCUBA dive with the Manta Rays.. Nah, nah, ne, nah, nah..:)

I bet for me Moab 23 was about $400 in gas alone driving that ridiculous hedonostic SUV. So if you did the whole thing for $1000 with hotel stays I'd say you did pretty good.

[couponvan]

Ugh. I've got a rich person problem. Taking my kids on spring break (as well as a summer trip) is a priority for us. By March-April we are itching to go someplace warm with some actual sun. But man, it's expensive!! No matter where we go (that's warm) it's $8k for 4 people. That's insane to me. But YOLO right?

That’s why we did epic trips to China, Italy, and Spain. It was cheaper than Florida. Book yourself a warm week at the end of this month for cheap and get yourself warm. Use Skyscanner and check “everywhere” around the dates you can travel - you might be surprised. I will be in Puerto Rico for a February/March early bday treat.

We are renting a car- hotels are covered by work, as are the flights. I have a client meeting on Friday, so the whole trip will be around $250. China flights were around $600 with visa (each), but the hotels were only $50 for 5*. Food was first cheap and we hired a driver one day for dirt cheap. Subways were under $1. So don’t let the airfare deter you whe. The hotel/food will be much cheaper. Taiwan in November had higher airfares, but free hotel (points) and super cheap food/entertainment. Egypt in February would have been super inexpensive from a food/airfare/hotel combo, but DH paid for the luxury exclusivity of private access.

[tooqk4u22]

Ugh. I've got a rich person problem. Taking my kids on spring break (as well as a summer trip) is a priority for us. By March-April we are itching to go someplace warm with some actual sun. But man, it's expensive!! No matter where we go (that's warm) it's $8k for 4 people. That's insane to me. But YOLO right?

Personally, I would prefer a staycation with an indoor pool over spring break travel. Crowds, often delays due to late winter storms bleh. Even in college I generally just picked up extra hours rather than deal with all that.

It's a perplexing problem, but here's my 2 cents...  Pinch your nose and take those vacations when the kids are younger, it only gets harder to get them to go later on, as well as possibly getting more expensive.  We were able to pull off one hotel room with pre-teens, nowadays that would be no fun at all...

Once you get in the habit of 'its too busy, it's too expensive, it's too much hassle, etc.' then you'll always find excuses and suddenly realize your window of opportunity has closed.  Take lots of pictures and ignore the price tags, as long as your FI isn't permanently dented then these discretionary expenses can be the first ones to cut if we ultimately do have a recession...  I've never once regretted all the expensive stuff we did 10 years ago, although I'd have another million or two if we'd invested instead.  The memories truly are priceless!

You have to do it while the kids are around and scheduled sync up.    Went to Hawaii last summer and it was great -got lambasted here bc of the notion that it might cost $15-20k for our family of five for 10 days...it ended up on the lower end.  I think Flights alone were $6k.  Add in AirBNBs, larger rental, etc it gets up there before you even do anything.   Mind-boggling indeed! But we had a great time and did a lot.   

For spring break/winter blues we have done Florida several times.  A couple times we did full weeks and found it too long.   One time we did a long rad trip and stopped in Savanah for a couple days and then to St Augistine for a week - that was a good trip but the long drive was a lot, especially on the way back.   We find that a long weekend to Florida is great and not to crazy as you can fly Frontier or such cheap with backpacks only and our family can handle being in a one room (extended saty hotel) for a few nights as we are only in there to sleep.   

We did vegas spring break once and that was reasonable and hot, vegas was mostly for sleeping /hotel pool - we did a lot there.....grand canyon, lake mead (not sure if there is any water left), hoover dam, some other hikes....the only vegas things we did were dinner, a show and Fremont st.   

It's costly for sure, but in addition to the experiencing new things aspect of travel an added benefit for us as parents is that when we get away they are 100% stuck with us and can't disappear with their friends.  Haha.

I know we can do camping trips, road trips, and stay in motel 6s to save money, and we have done all of those too, but sometimes you have to spend $ to go places.   

[mm1970]

@mm1970 Going to HI in April an will SCUBA dive with the Manta Rays.. Nah, nah, ne, nah, nah..:)

I bet for me Moab 23 was about $400 in gas alone driving that ridiculous hedonostic SUV. So if you did the whole thing for $1000 with hotel stays I'd say you did pretty good.

Maybe we'll get to Hawaii once the DS17 is in college so there's only 3 of us, ha!  Yeah, the hotels weren't bad.  I don't stay in super expensive places, but I'm also not going to cheap out either.

@BeanCounter  Expensive trips are...well...expensive.  I have a complicated relationship with them.  Being upper-middle class, I have a ton of friends who travel all over the place - you see the pics on FB and IG.  Europe, Australia, NZ, South Pacific, South America, Skiing in Aspen, etc etc etc.  But MAN flying is so bad for the environment.  A lot of these friends consider themselves environmentalists too, but certainly not all of them.  The thing is, many of these are the same people taking multiple expensive vacations a year. 

Anyway, that's why we do Staycations in addition to a big trip each year.  At one point years ago, it wasn't uncommon for us to fly 3 times a year.  For me now- once is enough, especially considering I'm expected to travel to Asia once/ year, and that's a LOOONG trip.