Post by: Icecreamarsenal on January 28, 2016, 01:01:36 PM
http://www.timeanddate.com/countdown/generic?iso=20250705T08&p0=179&msg=F.I.%2FR.E.&ud=1&font=sanserif
Just 492 weeks left. 2025 is a nice round number.
Post by: tj on January 31, 2016, 08:23:49 PM
Post by: golfreak12 on February 02, 2016, 12:59:29 AM
Post by: Bbbent on February 02, 2016, 08:04:31 AM
In 2025 I'll be 61. The last of my five daughers will be into college. Not sure what my wife is going to be doing at that point (she's a high school teacher, but thinking about a career change).
At that point we should be set enough to sell the house and go motorcycle riding for a few years (that's our thing...) then come back and start the little part-time motorcycle coffee shop I've been thinking about for years. Although plans are subject to change, right?
Post by: druth on February 03, 2016, 11:23:16 AM
Post by: Fastfwd on February 04, 2016, 06:50:27 AM
Post by: KMMK on February 04, 2016, 08:03:52 AM
Post by: messymoneymay on February 05, 2016, 05:31:29 PM
Post by: Need2Save on February 11, 2016, 12:35:29 PM
Mr. CB thinks more like 2026 or 2027 but we are pretty motivated at the moment and have been for a few years. I'm optimistic it will happen.
Assuming all goes well here are our highlights:
1. In 2021, we'll pay off mortgage (just a little over 5 years from now). Along the way, continue to max out pretax retirement accounts annually and also funnel extra $ to post tax savings and investments.
2. Then, with mortgage paid off, we'll redirect all those extra funds to building a liquid buffer to live off of until we turn age 60 or slightly older. There may also be some real-estate/rentals involved here. Possibly sell current house to downsize and free up additional funds but this is not necessary for our plan and will depend on job situation at the time.
3. Age 52/year 2025 FIRE!!! Man that sounds good!
4. Age 60 is when we think we'll be ready to start with 4%SWR, so while we are living off our saved up funds before age 60, the retirement accounts will hopefully mature upwards.
5. SS?? Who knows. We'll see but hopefully that will play into reducing #4 above.
We are a little older than some here, so our 'early' retirement is not all that early. In 2025 we will both be 52. We still consider ourselves 'early' since at both our companies it is absolutely unheard of to retire before age 65. Many people stick around to well into their 70's! However, we do have 2 rather costly kids - those little buggers - and we are fully committed to paying for undergraduate education for both. We support the view that not everyone is college-bound, but both of our sons are and we think they will be successfull in life and we appreciate being able to provide this start for them. Graduate school options will be self-funded by them if it gets to that. We'll see how it goes. We have one who is already very Mustachian naturally so we hope he rubs off a little on the younger one.
Glad to be part of the 2025 Cohort!
Post by: hm13hm13 on February 11, 2016, 12:40:14 PM
Post by: tj on February 11, 2016, 01:24:56 PM
I'd love to be part of this cohort. I'm curious where everyone is sitting right now financially?
I have roughly 10x current annual expenses...might be a bit less than that with recent market movement. Goal is 25x. Not sure if I'll get there by 40, but it's a nice enough goal.
Post by: Fastfwd on February 11, 2016, 01:58:05 PM
Expenses should go down by almost 25% when the kids are on their own which happens to be around 10 years from now. I also plan to eventually sell the house and live somewhere more minimalistic and not just for financial reasons.
Post by: Need2Save on February 11, 2016, 02:58:34 PM
CB
Post by: Icecreamarsenal on February 11, 2016, 03:01:50 PM
Post by: KMMK on February 11, 2016, 08:12:22 PM
Post by: chasingthegoodlife on March 03, 2016, 04:17:17 AM
I currently have 14x my bare bones number but will probably increase the goal as I get closer and have a more realistic idea of my spending.
Good luck everyone!
Post by: CupcakeGuru on March 24, 2016, 05:40:17 AM
Post by: afuera on March 28, 2016, 03:10:01 PM
My goal is to retire by 2025, just before my 35th birthday. This is a conservative estimate based on our current savings percentage but hopefully my husband and I will get more badass as we continue on our FIRE journey and retire earlier.
Post by: Professor Ecks on March 29, 2016, 08:29:17 AM
Post by: 2Birds1Stone on March 29, 2016, 08:50:04 AM
2025 would put me at 38 years old, definitely a feasible goal.
Currently have ~5x annual expenses saved.
Post by: G42 on May 08, 2016, 08:20:19 PM
After I pay off my current PunchMeInTheFace stupid debt, I'll be able to put away 50%+ of my take home, mostly post tax, so I can get some Vanguard funds going...
I was late to the MMM epiphany, but FI at 55 is better than my previous fear of NEVER being able to retire!
Post by: yourusernamehere on May 11, 2016, 06:59:41 PM
Post by: geekinprogress on May 11, 2016, 08:01:36 PM
Post by: wienerdog on May 11, 2016, 08:07:03 PM
MMM showed me the numbers to see that it is possible! I started on my journey last June 1st of 15' with ~2.5 times expenses saved and a new job. Now at the beginning of May of this year I am a little past 4 times expenses. My expenses include mortgage as I hope to also carry that for 5 years in FI in which it will be paid off in June 2030. That will drop expenses 30% which should help.
I figure worse case if market dives for a long period of time or I loose my job again I will stick it out 5 more years and move FI to 2030 but 2025 for sure is the goal! With a little tweaking here and there over the past year I am on track this year to be saving around 55% to 60% (currently at 57% 4 months in) of take home pay which doesn't include mortgage principal as I plan to keep the house in FI and don't consider it an income source.
Post by: ardrum on May 15, 2016, 07:13:00 PM
Post by: EmpireOfDirt on May 17, 2016, 10:14:03 AM
Post by: Icecreamarsenal on May 17, 2016, 10:23:41 AM
The slow accumulation of FI percentages can be felled in one swoop, bringing you back down to 0 or negative.
The tone of this post may be more grizzled and bogleheady as opposed to the generally upbeat mmm tone, but I figured I'd remind everyone in our cohort to PROTECT your STACHE.
Post by: druth on May 17, 2016, 01:10:27 PM
Please don't forget asset protection, all. Divorce, lawsuits, natural disasters are all big destroyers of wealth. I'm not an insurance salesperson, just speaking anecdotally. Myself and 2 acquaintances have recently been exposed to one of the three mentioned above, all different.
The slow accumulation of FI percentages can be felled in one swoop, bringing you back down to 0 or negative.
The tone of this post may be more grizzled and bogleheady as opposed to the generally upbeat mmm tone, but I figured I'd remind everyone in our cohort to PROTECT your STACHE.
I don't think anybody is saying "2025 come hell or high water" Obviously if circumstances change, your plan will change.
Post by: chasingthegoodlife on May 17, 2016, 02:17:03 PM
If I split from my partner it will definitely take me longer to reach fire, but I would rather take that road than stay in an unhappy relationship (luckily we are very happy right now).
Short of carrying adequate insurance, maintaining your property well, staying on the same page as your spouse about money and not doing anything dodgy likely to get you sued, what kind of protections would you suggest?
(As I was writing this I starting thinking that what might derail a lot of people in these times of adversity is the mental impact of the event - I would be covered financially if my house burnt down in a bush fire but things like counselling, extended time off work, and lack of motivation to work towards my goals while I was dealing with the potential depression and grief could have a big impact too. We would should all work on building inner resilience and strong relationships with others to get us through future tough times, I think!)
Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk
Post by: AusLady on June 01, 2016, 07:52:01 PM
My main goal presently is to enjoy life during this phase, to find a healthy balance of saving for FI versus spending on things (mindfully!), and to not obsess over being not-yet-FI.
Post by: yourusernamehere on June 02, 2016, 05:28:24 AM
I'm in too. I'm 37 and have half an Australian mortgage to go. I'm currently putting 65% of after tax earnings towards it, and once that is done, my plan is to keep saving 65% into Index funds until I'm FI. I have a long term dream of working 3 months of the year, spending 3 months of the year travelling domestically visiting friends and family, and the remaining 6 months of the year split between enjoying the beach and yoga where I live, and travelling overseas.
My main goal presently is to enjoy life during this phase, to find a healthy balance of saving for FI versus spending on things (mindfully!), and to not obsess over being not-yet-FI.
Very well stated! I need to work on thinking of the present and enjoying it, more than waiting for the work to be over.
Post by: frugalecon on June 02, 2016, 07:31:37 AM
Post by: oneday on June 04, 2016, 12:27:02 AM
Post by: Slee_stack on June 05, 2016, 08:30:40 AM
The lynch pin for us however is a pension vesting date that will effectively cover all our current expenses. 2025 is that year! At that point the Stash will just be financial certainty / funny money. Any social security 7-10 years later will add more of the same.
Its actually been a tough decision for us because we could probably RE within the next couple years if not today, but we would lose that huge pension and health insurance windfall that essentially doubles or more our current wealth.
Do we need the extra cash? Almost certainly, no.
However, intriguing possibilities open up with such a ridiculous excess of wealth. Making the world better in some small way sounds incredibly rewarding and the possibility of being 'small-time' philanthropists sounds like a very appealing way to spend some of our retirement time.
Post by: druth on June 06, 2016, 08:34:32 AM
Do we need the extra cash? Almost certainly, no.
However, intriguing possibilities open up with such a ridiculous excess of wealth. Making the world better in some small way sounds incredibly rewarding and the possibility of being 'small-time' philanthropists sounds like a very appealing way to spend some of our retirement time.
I wouldn't sacrifice 9 years for more financial stability, but if you really enjoy your job then maybe it's the right choice.
Intriguing possibilities also open up with such a rediculous excess of free time that you will get from retiring 9 years earlier!
Post by: Slee_stack on June 07, 2016, 08:15:44 PM
I wouldn't sacrifice 9 years for more financial stability, but if you really enjoy your job then maybe it's the right choice.Absolutely valid.
Intriguing possibilities also open up with such a rediculous excess of free time that you will get from retiring 9 years earlier!
We reserve the right to change our mind and retire earlier.
As with many, the careers are satisfying, but the mandatory hours are the put off.
Post by: Gondolin on June 08, 2016, 07:16:23 AM
Anywho, I'm shooting for 2025 at which time I'll be 35. Currently have x3-4 annual expense plus SO has x1-2 more. It's a good start but, lots of uncertainty in the future. 2035 might be a stretch but, gotta aim high!
Post by: 2Birds1Stone on June 08, 2016, 08:27:12 AM
I originally thought I would fire on $18-24k a year but after much thought and so many unknowns it is much more likely that my spending will be more along the lines of $24-30k/yr.
2025 would put me at 38 years old, definitely a feasible goal.
Currently have ~5x annual expenses saved.
Just cracked 7x annual expenses today!
Post by: yourusernamehere on June 08, 2016, 11:43:00 AM
Excellent! I hadn't thought of our savings that way until this thread. I guess we're at 9.5 times annual spending! And that's assuming a mortgage. Pretty exciting!I originally thought I would fire on $18-24k a year but after much thought and so many unknowns it is much more likely that my spending will be more along the lines of $24-30k/yr.
2025 would put me at 38 years old, definitely a feasible goal.
Currently have ~5x annual expenses saved.
Just cracked 7x annual expenses today!
Post by: oneday on June 08, 2016, 01:30:34 PM
I originally thought I would fire on $18-24k a year but after much thought and so many unknowns it is much more likely that my spending will be more along the lines of $24-30k/yr.
2025 would put me at 38 years old, definitely a feasible goal.
Currently have ~5x annual expenses saved.
Just cracked 7x annual expenses today!
Wow, that was fast! I have just started looking into all the nitty-gritty details of our numbers. I think I may track this way; it may make more sense to Mr. O who is not into the numbers but is willing to go to great lengths to stop working! Thanks for the idea.
Post by: Need2Save on June 11, 2016, 05:23:35 PM
The excercise confirmed for me with our actual personal income history what I've read about. During the bridge years of ER, little or no earnings will not have a terrible big effect on future SS potential. Since we both started our working lives at age 15, we both will have a minimum of 35 earning years by 2025! (me just hitting 35 actually). Another good reason why 2025 should be our last 'working' year unless we choose to! I also realized today that the small monthly pension I will get from a former employer about bridges the monthly gap between my SS income and Mr.CB's SS income, assuming we kick start both the pension and SS around the same age. This smoothes out the years I didn't work at all or worked part-time with less income. We have many years to decide the best strategy with both the pension and SS but it was nice to figure this out.
In other good news, with the market increases over the last couple months, we now are around 13.5X annual spending in retirement savings! How is everyone else doing? Have you seen a big improvement since January?
Post by: marty998 on June 11, 2016, 05:36:28 PM
Good luck everyone.
Post by: ardrum on June 16, 2016, 07:22:44 AM
2016: 1.99x
2017: 4.07x
2018: 6.27x
2019: 8.57x
2020: 10.98x
2021: 13.52x
2022: 16.18x
2023: 18.98x
2024: 21.92x
2025: 25x
Post by: bryan995 on June 16, 2016, 11:34:24 AM
Right now we live on ~36k, but we are considering planning for a 48k or even 64k retirement income...
(buffer room for some serious traveling!)
@36k spending w/ 5% income growth (though I assume we can do much better than 5% income growth!)
2016: 6.5000x
2017: 10.0000x
2018: 13.6750x
2019: 17.5338x
2020: 21.5854x
2021: 25.8397x
2022: 30.3067x
2023: 34.9970x
2024: 39.9219x
2025: 45.0930x
@ 64k spending w/ 5% income growth
2016: 3.6563x
2017: 5.6250x
2018: 7.6922x
2019: 9.8627x
2020: 12.1418x
2021: 14.5348x
2022: 17.0475x
2023: 19.6858x
2024: 22.4561x
2025: 25.3648x
Post by: oldtoyota on June 17, 2016, 07:15:29 PM
Hoping we're FIRE in 2025! I expect we'll at least be FI. I'll be 42, DH will be 54. Im so thankful for the mmm community- even after less than 2 years of reading this site and the forums, I feel like so many options have opened up to me. I'm vastly more in control of my finances than ever before, and that has given me a power and confidence at work that's had a tangible impact on my career. I'm better at my job because I have the power to say no, and it's amazing.
Yes. This is a great feeling. Congrats! I left a bad-for-me job with the confidence that I had the money to cover my expenses. And then I started a business and I never had to dip into savings. MMM, and other financial ideas and websites, changed my life for the better.
Post by: eyePod on June 18, 2016, 05:49:14 AM
I make a lot, my wife just finished grad school and will get a pay bump in the fall assuming she is hired where she is at (very lilely). I'm looking at two other possibilities for new jobs which would pay more, and we are thinking about.movig and we would rent out our current house. The nice thing is that our current house could be sold at the drop of a hat. Average time on market is less than 2 weeks in our development!
Post by: SoccerLounge on June 19, 2016, 09:40:34 AM
Post by: wienerdog on July 02, 2016, 02:18:35 PM
Post by: SoccerLounge on July 02, 2016, 04:19:43 PM
Moved to 5.25 x expenses Friday. The graph is heading in the right direction.It sure is - nice work!
Post by: druth on July 05, 2016, 03:18:37 PM
Post by: sweetest on July 23, 2016, 10:09:47 AM
2025 is our goal year. My husband has no plans to retire but will definitely be cutting back on his hours and will be able to mostly work when he wants to (airline pilot). I'm a SAHM to 4 kids (from 1-16), so I get my retirement in increasingly larger doses as they all mature :)
We have a 50K annual military pension, plus 925K in net worth at the moment. We are focused on maxing out our retirement vehicles and paying off our 400K mortgage. Saving about 80K/year currently (including the extra principle payments). Currently have about 18.5% of spending saved... would be more than 25% if we didn't have a mortgage...
Our goals are to have 1.5M net worth (which should happen well before 2025) and a paid off house before we consider ourselves FI (this is a bit of a stretch, but we are pretty sure we can do it!). I will be 53 and DH will be 55...
Post by: hucktard on July 26, 2016, 08:35:44 AM
Post by: Need2Save on July 27, 2016, 05:52:05 PM
For hucktard - if your FI arrives prior to college app time for your high schoolers - it could work out good for financial aid applications since your income could be none or very low in the year prior. We have the opposite problem. Income is highest it's ever been now that our kids are applying for college/going to college, but for most of their school years we had very average income as a one income family for part of it. No finanical need based aid for us!
Post by: Frugal D on July 31, 2016, 02:08:32 PM
NW worth is currently at 27x expenses, but investable assets are only at 8x expenses.
Post by: screwit on August 07, 2016, 01:57:29 AM
I started 12 months ago, so here's the progress:
Aug 2015: 8.55x
Aug 2016: 10.1x
we've just dived into rental properties, so while I've counted that into the net worth spending mutliple, I'm not sure that's the right way to do it. Still learning!
Projection: uhoh. I just ran the numbers, assuming 5% income and investment growth and 3% inflation and it looks worse than I had hoped. Going to have to work on this becaue 2025 is DEFINATELY my aim!
2017 12.2
2018 13.1
2019 14.1
2020 15.1
2021 16.1
2022 17.1
2023 18.1
2024 19.2
2025 20.2
2026 21.3
2027 22.4
2028 23.5
2029 24.7
2030 25.9
Post by: beach2133 on August 08, 2016, 09:47:25 AM
2025 will put me at 43 which is my stretch goal. Although, I think @ 45 (2027) my risk aversion illness will be finally be able to be quelled. DW is a teacher and wants to work forever, but I'm looking forward to having my summers free to spend with my family. Only one kiddo right now that is 11 months, but I expect there will be one more in the future.
I'm currently 19.3x my FIRE budget (no mortgage/no daycare) and 10.8x my current budget. I'm tracking both in case I decide to take on a 2nd mortgage for rental property.
I've also created a 4 phase retirement plan (45 - 55, 55-60, 60-70, 70+) and track my current assets against the amount of Today's $ it would take to support that plan. It's another fun way to compare the numbers when you get bored. I'm @ 60.91% as of August 1st, 2016.
Post by: dougules on August 16, 2016, 11:06:12 AM
I'm essentially just posting to follow.
Post by: chloe1733 on August 17, 2016, 01:14:06 PM
Only thing I'm a little concerned about is how much of our money is going to be tied up into 401k/IRAs, as we'll have 15 years to cover before we can get into the hubby's accounts without penalty. How are you guys handling that situation? Seems wasteful not to max out work 401ks now considering the company matches we each get and the tax benefits, but seems like we may need to reevaluate.
Post by: beach2133 on August 17, 2016, 03:01:43 PM
My current spreadsheet has us FIRE in 2026, however, I was fairly conservative in accounting for raises, bonuses, or windfalls. So I guess count me in for the 2025 group as well! I'll be 41, the husband 44.
Only thing I'm a little concerned about is how much of our money is going to be tied up into 401k/IRAs, as we'll have 15 years to cover before we can get into the hubby's accounts without penalty. How are you guys handling that situation? Seems wasteful not to max out work 401ks now considering the company matches we each get and the tax benefits, but seems like we may need to reevaluate.
I'm sure this has been posted elsewhere, but your question reminded me of this article of how to access your Retirement accounts before 59.5.
http://www.madfientist.com/how-to-access-retirement-funds-early/
Post by: oneday on August 17, 2016, 03:30:32 PM
Post by: kitkat on August 17, 2016, 03:39:17 PM
25 y/o, 1.25x annual expenses saved, ~60% savings rate.
Expecting a lot to change over the years.. Marriage? Kids? Cross-country move? Back to school for PhD? Big promotions? All very real possibilities. But if life froze how it is today, I would expect FI (RE is doubtful) in late 2025.
Post by: frugalecon on August 29, 2016, 06:01:23 PM
Post by: 2Birds1Stone on August 30, 2016, 06:24:52 AM
I originally thought I would fire on $18-24k a year but after much thought and so many unknowns it is much more likely that my spending will be more along the lines of $24-30k/yr.
2025 would put me at 38 years old, definitely a feasible goal.
Currently have ~5x annual expenses saved.
Just cracked 7x annual expenses today!
Thanks to strong markets and good commission I just cracked 9X annual expenses.
Post by: deeshen13 on August 30, 2016, 06:40:41 AM
Post by: 2Birds1Stone on August 30, 2016, 08:39:37 AM
I don't necessarily need a house. I plan to do a lot of slow travel, RVing, etc. Prefer to rent 1-2 bedroom apartments/house shares.
My projected number is $25,000/yr for my half of total expenses. I estimate SO and I would live very comfortably on $50k/yr adjusted for inflation.
Post by: Zamboni on August 31, 2016, 09:00:13 PM
I'm committing to being FI by 2025. My children should be graduating from college that year. There are logistical reasons I won't RE before 2025 regardless of how my stash builds. Right now have just over 10x current annual expenses stashed . . . you made me look!
Whether or not I actually RE in 2025 depends on two things:
1) What one thinks qualifies as "early" (by the mainstream definition I will be early, but not extreme.)
2) What my job is like at that time. Current job is pretty cushy and fun with flexible hours and tons and tons of PTO, so unless it goes to shite I'll likely just try to hang on to it.
Still, it's nice to think about being really and truly FI in 2025. I already have a pretty FU attitude at work about anything or anyone I don't like . . . hard to imagine what I'll be like in nearly another decade!
Post by: adamb on September 01, 2016, 08:29:23 AM
Post by: Need2Save on September 01, 2016, 06:58:22 PM
In other good news, with the market increases over the last couple months, we now are around 13.5X annual spending in retirement savings!
Great to see some more folks joined! We are almost to 14.5X now!! This does not include mortgage principal as we are likely to sell current home and buy another property (or two) post FIRE with the proceeds. not sure any $ will be leftover.
In sad news, it is 99% certain that we will lower the company match on the employer 401(k) match in 2017. I'm of course taking full advantage this year, but it bums me out that I know before all the other employees do and can't share this disapointment with them yet. There are about 25% of our employees who don't contribute to the 401(k) at all though. So those are basically giving up the free money and it won't be a loss to them. The other 75%, yes. :-(
I hope all the 2025 cohorts are funding at least enough to get a full match each year in their employer's retirement plan!
Post by: Icecreamarsenal on September 18, 2016, 09:16:16 AM
In other good news, with the market increases over the last couple months, we now are around 13.5X annual spending in retirement savings!
Great to see some more folks joined! We are almost to 14.5X now!! This does not include mortgage principal as we are likely to sell current home and buy another property (or two) post FIRE with the proceeds. not sure any $ will be leftover.
In sad news, it is 99% certain that we will lower the company match on the employer 401(k) match in 2017. I'm of course taking full advantage this year, but it bums me out that I know before all the other employees do and can't share this disapointment with them yet. There are about 25% of our employees who don't contribute to the 401(k) at all though. So those are basically giving up the free money and it won't be a loss to them. The other 75%, yes. :-(
I hope all the 2025 cohorts are funding at least enough to get a full match each year in their employer's retirement plan!
I have no match at all through the company, but I dutifully tuck it away anyway. I was thinking of following the Mad fientist's advice and frontloading next year, if I still have a job.
Post by: Need2Save on September 21, 2016, 04:54:02 PM
If the choice is not yours, and you do get another job later next year that does provides match you would prevent yourself from contributing and getting that match because you already contributed the max for the year. Potentially. Is that likely in your line of work? Just something to think about.
Good luck to you, though!
Post by: AK on September 21, 2016, 07:46:42 PM
In some ways, I already feel R.E. by becoming self-employed, working from home, and going on occasional daytime outings with my wife and DD when I feel like it. So far, I have never been happier.
Good luck everyone!
Post by: moof on September 21, 2016, 08:03:53 PM
The bonus news is that the wife is making serious noise to go back to work in two years when the kid starts school. It is because she wants to despite us not needing her to in the slightest. That might really speed things up by a year or three.
Post by: ardrum on September 27, 2016, 11:27:36 AM
Post by: Need2Save on September 27, 2016, 06:41:27 PM
Your plan is impressive. I guess it's taking us a little longer but 2025 is still our anticipated date. We have 1 mortgage to retire and 2 kids to put through college first.
:-)
Post by: rentalnewbie on September 27, 2016, 07:16:54 PM
Our current status:
- modest 401(k)/IRA with 2x expenses (and growing!)
- .5x expenses liquid, which will be a future "forever" house down payment/pay for our wedding & honeymoon next year
- 1 rental house + house we currently live in, which will become rental #2 (these are both mortgaged at slightly less than 80%currently)
Right now our FIRE spreadsheet has us targeted at age 44, however, that doesn't include any wage growth that we can reasonably expect or income from our to be acquired rental properties. The key for us, will be to pay off our primary residence and 2-3 rentals. After we get our "forever" house (~2 years), we'll focus on paying off the properties for a while before we buy more.
Post by: oneday on September 28, 2016, 12:55:38 PM
rentalnewbie, as you can see from the above, we are not any more "settled" on 2025 than sounds like you are. That's just what my 3rd or 4th revision of the spreadsheet (created earlier this year) says is likely, but with conservative assumptions. At this point, it's a wait & see game. After December, I'll update the spreadsheet again & see if 2025 is still possible/probable. I don't think it will change much more over time, but you never know what the market will do.
Post by: Dragonswan on September 29, 2016, 04:19:14 PM
The plan is to retire with pension, claim Social Security two years later with those two income sources together covering my basic living expenses (includes a mortgage). The money in investments will be for non basics that are essential for my happiness (travel, opera, spa), emergencies and irregular but predictable expenses (new roof, teeth implants, community college).
I hope to have 500K in investments by the time I retire and another 75K for a down payment on the house I downsize into for retirement. If the market cooperates and I keep maxing the work retirement account, I should get there.
Post by: Lizzaroo on September 30, 2016, 12:51:04 PM
Current goal is to kill the mortgage while still maximizing 401K and IRA contributions. Also putting in enough 529 deposits for the max state tax credit for the earning years so that 2 kids are 50% funded for in state university tuition. The remainder will be up to their own ingenuity: scholarships, grants, summer work.
My biggest concern at the moment is that we live a LCOL area and are able to save around 60%, and live off less than 20K per year (once mortgage is gone, anyway). When I look at some of the beautiful places in the US that we would love to experience post retirement (Colorado being numero uno on the list) I am wondering if the 25X calculation might be a little optimistic. Obviously, there are ways to have it all (travel for a few months in HCOL and live the rest of the year in LCOL etc). I am curious if others are in the same boat and maybe have some strategies (other than a bigger 'stash before pulling the plug, this is...).
Post by: thebeautywithout on October 01, 2016, 03:00:55 PM
I'm 29 and my husband is 33 and we have two young children. We currently have 3.4x of our expected spending in 2025 saved and another 2x in property we plan to sell in the next year.
Looking forward to checking in here periodically to see how everyone's plans evolve.
Post by: Fomerly known as something on October 03, 2016, 06:11:01 PM
ETA: Currently I'm sitting on 13.75X annual spending and a paid for house.
Post by: economist on October 05, 2016, 01:27:24 PM
25 years old, maybe 3X annual expenses in retirement accounts, saving roughly 1.5X expenses per year. So if the markets return 0% over the next 10 years I will have 18X expenses. If the markets are reasonably cooperative and return 6-7% I should have in the ballpark of 25X expenses.
It actually should work for my GF and myself jointly as well. She will finish her PHD in 2019, so she'll have less time to work before 2025, but she'll most likely be making a lot more than me at that point (we joke that our relationship is going to help reduce the gender pay gap) so she will be able to save up faster.
Post by: wienerdog on October 05, 2016, 07:16:36 PM
Post by: Frugalman19 on October 08, 2016, 11:24:21 AM
Post by: druth on October 08, 2016, 05:42:59 PM
Where do you all get the calculator for expense multipliers?
I just figure it out by hand personally. It's a pretty straightforward number, current savings/retirement expenses which I know both of off hand.
Post by: Icecreamarsenal on October 08, 2016, 09:37:29 PM
I can definetly see why you would want to do that if you are choosing to leave your current employer.
If the choice is not yours, and you do get another job later next year that does provides match you would prevent yourself from contributing and getting that match because you already contributed the max for the year. Potentially. Is that likely in your line of work? Just something to think about.
Good luck to you, though!
Great idea, I check this forum so infrequently. I will frontload next year, if I make it, serious burnout issues occurring. Just looking to hedge against burnout and work issues.
Post by: tssuila on October 16, 2016, 04:32:46 PM
My calculations with my pension (DB) is hard to calculate - but likely with it alone it would cover most of our expenses ($25-30K) .
Currently net worth is around $25K. Just getting started and a few years to go yet!
Noel
Post by: EngineerYogi on October 31, 2016, 03:36:25 PM
We are both high earners and getting serious with our savings this year for the first time. We still have a lot of work to do on lowering our expenses, but most of our spending is discretionary and if we buckled down we could do much better. This year I started using YNAB so I have a good handle on where our money is going. We are not mustachian by nature so this is a journey and a process for us.
Post by: travelawyer on November 15, 2016, 01:14:19 PM
I'm moving from a lurker to a poster and joining this "group." I want to retire in 2026 (close enough) with $2 million and a paid-off house. We are lawyers and LCOL, with combined income of approx. $350,000 (with bonuses and retirement match). Annually, taxes about $110k, spending about $80k, savings about $150k. I realize that doesn't quite add up, but I'm not super into budgeting. Ages 33 and 34, one child on the way but plan to have two (FIRE ages 43, 44, 9, and 6?).
Current savings (not including house/cars) of $280,000 (50% 401k, 50% taxable) or 3.5x expected expenses of $80k. I want to travel the world, and am not interested in the $30k a year a lifestyle, especially since our child(ren) will be young and so we need to pay for their travel expenses as well. (Although 43 seems so old and far away :) ).
My 6 years in the workforce so far have gone to pay for $210k in combined student loans, a down payment, a wedding, 2 cars (go ahead and murder me), and a poor attempt at getting rich as a day trader (stay away from options, people, it's a bad idea).
Post by: skiddieleet on November 19, 2016, 10:15:19 PM
I'm also shooting for 2025, the year I turn 40.
Same, turning 40 and I think I can be FI by then. There was a thread on reddit about how 300K is about halfway to 1M taking into account compounding and depending on your yearly contribution. So I'm banking on that and calling it to say I will be FI by 2025.
Post by: tj on November 19, 2016, 10:51:33 PM
Hi team!
I'm moving from a lurker to a poster and joining this "group." I want to retire in 2026 (close enough) with $2 million and a paid-off house (our house is worth 250k). We are high income (lawyers) and LCOL (San Antonio), with combined income of approx. $330,000 (with bonuses) (or $350,000 including 401k matches as "income," which I do). Annually, taxes about $110k, spending about $80k, savings about $150k. I realize that doesn't quite add up, but I'm not super into budgeting, and my husband's job keeps changing, so close enough. Ages 33 and 34, one child on the way but plan to have two (FIRE ages 43, 44, 9, and 6?).
Current savings (not including house/cars) of $280,000 (50% 401k, 50% taxable) or 3.5x expected expenses of $80k. I want to travel the world, and am not interested in the $30k a year a lifestyle, especially since our child(ren) will be young and so we need to pay for their travel expenses as well. (Although 43 seems so old and far away :) ).
My 6 years in the workforce so far have gone to pay for $210k in combined student loans, a down payment, a wedding, 2 cars (go ahead and murder me, it's Texas and it's worth it), and a poor attempt at getting rich as a day trader (stay away from options, people, it's a bad idea).
I read a fantastic post on a conservative way to do options, but I don't have the necessary capital or a high enough tax bracket for it to make sense :-D :
https://earlyretirementnow.com/2016/10/05/passive-income-through-option-writing-part-2/
Post by: carcus on November 22, 2016, 01:59:59 PM
Post by: EngineerYogi on November 22, 2016, 03:27:18 PM
There was a thread on reddit about how 300K is about halfway to 1M taking into account compounding and depending on your yearly contribution. So I'm banking on that and calling it to say I will be FI by 2025.
That's a nice thought... Seems like good motivation to to hit that 300k number sooner rather than later. Mr. Yogi and I hit $120k this month... we're making progress!
Post by: Need2Save on November 23, 2016, 07:03:07 AM
I'm moving from a lurker to a poster and joining this "group." I want to retire in 2026 (close enough) with $2 million and a paid-off house (our house is worth 250k).There honestly is a 2026 cohort as well, but hey, we are better! (well, I have no facts to support that but isn't shooting for one year sooner a nice goal)?
I just wanted to say welcome to all the new 2025 cohort members. We embrace the diversity in ages and income levels. Here we can all give each other a little pat on the back for accomplishments and encouragement if we start to stray off the path. Sounds like many of us are really off to a good start!
Happy Thanksgiving.
Post by: Eyestache on December 06, 2016, 01:04:14 PM
Post by: Icecreamarsenal on December 06, 2016, 01:26:57 PM
Just starting out on the journey and 2025 sounds like a good goal date. I'm an optometrist so 20/25 is the next best thing to 20/20 which seems a little out of reach. Currently have 119k in student loan debt and 70k or about 3x in investments while saving 70% of income. Looking forward to our shared success!
Let's do it; I'll 'see' you there.
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Post by: Bumperpuff on December 06, 2016, 06:21:10 PM
I have a 73% savings rate (I'm social security exempt, otherwise I'd be at 65%) and have 8 times my yearly expenses saved and I'm looking forward to breaking the $200K mark next year.
I'm really happy I found this community and I hope we help each-other stay on the path this next decade.
Post by: frugalecon on December 09, 2016, 06:54:54 AM
Post by: swashbucklinstache on December 11, 2016, 03:56:32 PM
Post by: AussieMoneymo on December 15, 2016, 08:28:47 PM
Our plans are to retire either before or around 2025. That will put DW at 44 and myself at 43, kids 14 and 11 by then.
Current position is $260K equity in home and $200K in Superannuation (equivalent to 401K) which cannot be accessed until 65 years old.
Saving rate of approx 70%, so another 1.5 years to pay off mortgage and get stuck into building our investments.
We estimate that we need around $1.5M + a paid off home, so that's the goal!
Very excited to record this goal in writing and start to work towards it.
Post by: Icecreamarsenal on December 28, 2016, 02:05:52 PM
Hello fellow 2025 FIRE's,
Our plans are to retire either before or around 2025. That will put DW at 44 and myself at 43, kids 14 and 11 by then.
Current position is $260K equity in home and $200K in Superannuation (equivalent to 401K) which cannot be accessed until 65 years old.
Saving rate of approx 70%, so another 1.5 years to pay off mortgage and get stuck into building our investments.
We estimate that we need around $1.5M + a paid off home, so that's the goal!
Very excited to record this goal in writing and start to work towards it.
Hey that's fantastic, glad to have you along for the ride. I know only the rules for the 401ks, there is a 'sneaky' way to access them earlier than 65 yo according to the Mad Fientist. Perhaps there's a way to get to your superannuation before the age of 65 as well.
Post by: rentalnewbie on January 01, 2017, 10:04:15 PM
Countdown clock informs me that I have 99 months to go. Liking being out of triple digits.
That's a fun way to think about it!
I recently checked my spending for 2016 and had a minor mint- induced heart attack then realized it's because 1) we bought a rental this year (down payment "expense" + another mortgage added, though the net is an increase in income) and 2) we're getting married next year and have paid close to 10k in deposits this month. Damn, weddings are expensive!
But taking those costs out, our "normal" spending was on track. Also i got a promotion with a 19% raise and future husband is in the final stage of selection for a job paying almost 50% more than what he currently makes (his current salary is crap so this is decent). 2025 is looking promising!
How's everyone else looking at the end of 2016?
Post by: Spitfire on January 05, 2017, 03:23:00 PM
Post by: Icecreamarsenal on January 06, 2017, 06:26:25 AM
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Post by: Mrs. Randello on January 06, 2017, 01:42:10 PM
Post by: Need2Save on January 08, 2017, 11:10:33 AM
Countdown clock informs me that I have 99 months to go. Liking being out of triple digits.How's everyone else looking at the end of 2016?
I haven't checked this thread in a while. Welcome to the newcomers! Glad to have you on the 2025 board.
We felt great about the end of 2016.
#1 - We paid off $55k from our mortgage principle and are on track to pay the balance off in slightly more than 4 years
#2 - We have about 2 of our pre-60 retirement years funded
#3 - We have about 14.5 of our post-60 retirement years funded
Looking forward to 2017 being another awesome year and inching those goals forward even further.
Post by: tj on January 08, 2017, 03:08:20 PM
Post by: Laura33 on January 09, 2017, 07:05:14 AM
We are 50, and I would say we are probably FI now -- we could lose both jobs and not lose the house. But I am settling on 2025, because that is my target for RE (with "E" being by "normal people" standards, not Mustachian ones), because DS will leave for college in the fall of 2024. The huge time gap between FI and RE is partly because we have a pretty spendy plan for retirement, partly because we both have good jobs that we largely enjoy, and partly because we are both drawing a blank on "what I want to do when I grow up." He in particular is working in advanced tech and trying to create things that don't currently exist, which he enjoys and thinks is really important. We both want to retire *to* something, not just run away from the grind, so I plan to spend the next few years figuring out what that is.
Where we are now is probably at 10x desired future expenses in spendable assets. I need to go do some math to figure our current savings rate, but I'm guessing it's @ 40% of net income. No debt other than mortgages on main house and retirement condo; the former is under 3% on a 15-yr that will be done when we retire, the latter is a 30-yr at 4% but is basically covered by a full-time tenant (we found a great deal during the crash that we couldn't pass up) and will also be paid off by the time we retire.
Post by: Need2Save on January 12, 2017, 07:09:53 AM
The huge time gap between FI and RE is partly because we have a pretty spendy plan for retirement, partly because we both have good jobs that we largely enjoy, and partly because we are both drawing a blank on "what I want to do when I grow up."
No rules on what your retirement budget needs to be. Not all of us are content with spending $25 to 40K a year in retirement. We continue to tweak our target retirement spending plans, but they have come down a little. Not a lot, but a little. I've seen as high as $75 - 100k in annual spending on this forum.
We are focusing on how much after-tax money is needed to sustain a certain amount of travel in retirement. Although we will be doing a Roth Conversion ladder in our pre-60 retirement years to get as much money into post-tax vehicles, we will still have the majority of our retirement funds in pre-tax accounts when we are in our 60's. So we're building in certain assumptions for future tax rates on those withdrawals.
Welcome to the Cohort!
Post by: Need2Save on January 12, 2017, 07:12:55 AM
I also put a not-small figure in a Donor Advised Fund as I don't think I should retire early at the expense of giving back.
We are looking hard at the Donor Advised Fund option this year. We may just do this in 2017. I really like the idea of getting the tax break when our earnings are the highest and deciding how to use this as our time and interests emerge.
Is this a one-time and one investment or are you planning to add to the DAF in future years when you are done with your gap break?
Post by: Laura33 on January 12, 2017, 04:19:50 PM
The huge time gap between FI and RE is partly because we have a pretty spendy plan for retirement, partly because we both have good jobs that we largely enjoy, and partly because we are both drawing a blank on "what I want to do when I grow up."
No rules on what your retirement budget needs to be. Not all of us are content with spending $25 to 40K a year in retirement. We continue to tweak our target retirement spending plans, but they have come down a little. Not a lot, but a little. I've seen as high as $75 - 100k in annual spending on this forum.
We are focusing on how much after-tax money is needed to sustain a certain amount of travel in retirement. Although we will be doing a Roth Conversion ladder in our pre-60 retirement years to get as much money into post-tax vehicles, we will still have the majority of our retirement funds in pre-tax accounts when we are in our 60's. So we're building in certain assumptions for future tax rates on those withdrawals.
Welcome to the Cohort!
Thanks! Our retirement priority is also the travel -- you are asking exactly the same question we are. (And that's also why we need to get the kids out of the house to fully pull the plug -- I always wanted to go abroad with the kids for a year or two, but that didn't happen for a number of reasons, and now it doesn't feel fair to them to yank them out of HS for a couple of years. So we're trying to maximize the summer travel with the kids while they are still here, and then we'll do the bigger jaunts once they're fledged.)
Post by: frugalecon on February 01, 2017, 07:06:30 PM
Post by: Fire2025 on February 01, 2017, 10:19:41 PM
I guess this is my group, hence the name, but we were price out of cheap rent this year, I live in a HCOL area, and we decided to buy a house, so I've had to make some big adjustments. Damn "fare market value" damn it all to hell.
Now the plan is to "retire" at the end of 2025, but we will either sell the house and move to a LCOL location, or I will work PT to pay the mortgage and have my stache pay for everything else until Social Security kicks in. Oh, did I mention I'm one of the old people on the site, 46, retiring at 55.
Quote
As we get closer to 2025, will the time seem to go faster or slower? Any thoughts?
"The older you get the faster time goes", not sure who to give credit for this saying, but I've found it to be true.
Post by: Laura33 on February 02, 2017, 08:00:00 AM
With about 8 years to go, I vacillate between feeling like I am close to the end of my formal work life and feeling like it is practically forever until I am free. I have a countdown clock spreadsheet, but that may undermine my morale, even if it makes me feel more in charge. As we get closer to 2025, will the time seem to go faster or slower? Any thoughts?
This resonates with me -- I grew up ambitious, and there's always been another "thing" to push for, somewhere else I needed to prove myself. And then all of that just started to fade away -- I hit a point where I realized I really didn't have anything else to prove, my stepdad died and work started to feel more meaningless, etc. But the big shift came when we decided we were about 10 years out from calling it quits -- that made me realize I was probably at or close to my peak in my job, which meant there really wasn't much else to push for. I mean, sure, I can work harder and earn more money, but money alone isn't an awesome motivator when I'm already making enough; I am feeling more like I want to carpe me some diem.
The problem is that shifting my focus from work to after-work has created an ambition void, so work feels more like an aimless slog than something that engrosses me. It sure seems to make the time go more slowly than it used to!
Post by: frugalecon on February 02, 2017, 09:55:34 AM
With about 8 years to go, I vacillate between feeling like I am close to the end of my formal work life and feeling like it is practically forever until I am free. I have a countdown clock spreadsheet, but that may undermine my morale, even if it makes me feel more in charge. As we get closer to 2025, will the time seem to go faster or slower? Any thoughts?
This resonates with me -- I grew up ambitious, and there's always been another "thing" to push for, somewhere else I needed to prove myself. And then all of that just started to fade away -- I hit a point where I realized I really didn't have anything else to prove, my stepdad died and work started to feel more meaningless, etc. But the big shift came when we decided we were about 10 years out from calling it quits -- that made me realize I was probably at or close to my peak in my job, which meant there really wasn't much else to push for. I mean, sure, I can work harder and earn more money, but money alone isn't an awesome motivator when I'm already making enough; I am feeling more like I want to carpe me some diem.
The problem is that shifting my focus from work to after-work has created an ambition void, so work feels more like an aimless slog than something that engrosses me. It sure seems to make the time go more slowly than it used to!
Your post really encapsulated a lot of my feelings, but expressed more completely. Thanks for sharing it. My dad died not too long ago, and I think that loss might be affecting me as well. He was a real workaholic who never paused to "smell the roses." I am certainly not that person even now, but I think that it makes me even more eager to move on to doing what I want to do, as opposed to what I have convinced myself I have to do. [[In truth, my family unit is already FI if we were to move to a LCOL area, but I know that I would prefer to be retired in the HCOL area were we live currently. Hence I have made the Faustian bargain to keep working...]]
Post by: Laura33 on February 02, 2017, 07:29:23 PM
With about 8 years to go, I vacillate between feeling like I am close to the end of my formal work life and feeling like it is practically forever until I am free. I have a countdown clock spreadsheet, but that may undermine my morale, even if it makes me feel more in charge. As we get closer to 2025, will the time seem to go faster or slower? Any thoughts?
This resonates with me -- I grew up ambitious, and there's always been another "thing" to push for, somewhere else I needed to prove myself. And then all of that just started to fade away -- I hit a point where I realized I really didn't have anything else to prove, my stepdad died and work started to feel more meaningless, etc. But the big shift came when we decided we were about 10 years out from calling it quits -- that made me realize I was probably at or close to my peak in my job, which meant there really wasn't much else to push for. I mean, sure, I can work harder and earn more money, but money alone isn't an awesome motivator when I'm already making enough; I am feeling more like I want to carpe me some diem.
The problem is that shifting my focus from work to after-work has created an ambition void, so work feels more like an aimless slog than something that engrosses me. It sure seems to make the time go more slowly than it used to!
Your post really encapsulated a lot of my feelings, but expressed more completely. Thanks for sharing it. My dad died not too long ago, and I think that loss might be affecting me as well. He was a real workaholic who never paused to "smell the roses." I am certainly not that person even now, but I think that it makes me even more eager to move on to doing what I want to do, as opposed to what I have convinced myself I have to do. [[In truth, my family unit is already FI if we were to move to a LCOL area, but I know that I would prefer to be retired in the HCOL area were we live currently. Hence I have made the Faustian bargain to keep working...]]
Damn, man, are you my evil twin Skippy or something? My stepdad also postponed retirement - he had just semi-retired and put in his SS paperwork, and died before collecting a cent. He had his reasons, but for me, well, when you're already debating the value of continued work, that kind of event just kicks you in the gut and makes it all seem worth even less. But, like you, we have a plan in mind, and quitting now requires sacrifices we're not willing to make. So here I am, right where you are, burning time, not exactly "fulfilled," but not unhappy enough to change.
Post by: manandsea on February 04, 2017, 09:24:05 PM
8 more years to go, woo-hoo.
Post by: OthalaFehu on February 19, 2017, 09:24:45 AM
Post by: facepalm on February 19, 2017, 06:21:13 PM
That is the latest date. Earliest is probably 2022. Sadly, it won't be early retirement as I have some catching up to do. But I am saving at around 55% of gross, So it won't take that long.
Target for all non-pension funds is $850K.
Pension will be around $4700.00 per month. Can live off half of that. I also get an extra $1,000 per month from a supplemental account. SSI will be around $900, but at this point I'm not even thinking about it.
Post by: frugalecon on February 23, 2017, 07:30:41 AM
Post by: mld on February 23, 2017, 10:07:01 AM
We are aiming for 2025 (although Mister D thinks it will be more 2029 but numbers are looking good for 2025 maybe even sooner).
We currently have around 7x our expenses saved up + a fully paid mortgage :) and we save around 60% of our net income.
Our investments are part in our employer's pension plan, rental property and tax free investments (tfsas & rrsps comprised of index funds and etfs).
Some things will play in the balance of hitting our number like the possibility of one of us or both of us taking months off to spend school summer vacation with our 2 kiddoes once they hit school age.
Post by: dougules on February 23, 2017, 10:52:49 AM
96 months...
414 Mondays
Post by: babystache89 on February 24, 2017, 05:51:38 AM
Post by: frugalecon on February 24, 2017, 06:31:14 AM
96 months...
414 Mondays
And some of those Mondays are Federal holidays, and some I will be on vacation, and some I might even be sick...I calculate I have about 355 actual weeks of workdays, assuming I take no sick leave over the next eight years. That actually starts to seem manageable.
Post by: swashbucklinstache on February 24, 2017, 04:15:32 PM
I have calculated that 2025 will be the latest date I'll retire by. I'll have enough in both my 403(b) and 457(b), Roth, Schwab account, and my pension. I'm planning on living off just the pension until I have to start taking minimum distributions a few years out. I'll also qualify for Social Security, but won't take that 'till I'm age 70.
That is the latest date. Earliest is probably 2022. Sadly, it won't be early retirement as I have some catching up to do. But I am saving at around 55% of gross, So it won't take that long.
Target for all non-pension funds is $850K.
Pension will be around $4700.00 per month. Can live off half of that. I also get an extra $1,000 per month from a supplemental account. SSI will be around $900, but at this point I'm not even thinking about it.
Whoa... Your pension + supplemental + SSI = (4700+1000+900) * 12 = 79,200 a year. 4% of your non-pension 850k if you saw no growth before you started taking it would be 34,000, for a total of 113,200 annually with a lot of it annuit-ized. You say you can live off of 4700/2*12 = 28,200 a year. That's a lot of buffer! Is your pension or supplemental account uncertain? Lots of expensive fun travel or anything else planned? Sounds like you're in great shape, and will be worth many millions in the end if you choose to be.
Post by: warehouse on February 26, 2017, 10:04:01 AM
I'm targeting 2024/2025 but not sure what growth percentage I should use to calculate out 8 years.
Post by: swashbucklinstache on February 26, 2017, 06:37:46 PM
When calculating your future net worth, what annual growth percentage do you use? ie. I assume an x% return annually until 2025 and it puts me at 25x my expenses.
I'm targeting 2024/2025 but not sure what growth percentage I should use to calculate out 8 years.
Usually I use 6.7% for calculating real returns. I'm 100% stocks so that's a slightly low real rate of return historically. If you have a different mix, I'd use the historical return for that mix. Of course over an 8 year timeframe who knows!
Post by: dougules on February 27, 2017, 10:39:40 AM
When calculating your future net worth, what annual growth percentage do you use? ie. I assume an x% return annually until 2025 and it puts me at 25x my expenses.
I'm targeting 2024/2025 but not sure what growth percentage I should use to calculate out 8 years.
Usually I use 6.7% for calculating real returns. I'm 100% stocks so that's a slightly low real rate of return historically. If you have a different mix, I'd use the historical return for that mix. Of course over an 8 year timeframe who knows!
I like to use the current CAPE, personally, but if you plug it into firecalc or cfiresim, you'll see it could be just about anything over the course of 8 years.
Post by: hettie1 on February 28, 2017, 01:07:09 PM
Post by: warehouse on February 28, 2017, 07:50:18 PM
When calculating your future net worth, what annual growth percentage do you use? ie. I assume an x% return annually until 2025 and it puts me at 25x my expenses.
I'm targeting 2024/2025 but not sure what growth percentage I should use to calculate out 8 years.
Usually I use 6.7% for calculating real returns. I'm 100% stocks so that's a slightly low real rate of return historically. If you have a different mix, I'd use the historical return for that mix. Of course over an 8 year timeframe who knows!
I like to use the current CAPE, personally, but if you plug it into firecalc or cfiresim, you'll see it could be just about anything over the course of 8 years.
Thanks Swash!
Dougules- I just had to google what CAPE even meant! So somewhat off topic, I read a lot of stuff that says just invest in index funds and carry on and I also see a lot of articles that say the PE ratios indicate the market will be crashing any day. I sometimes wonder if I'm doing the right thing by squirreling so much money away (80% stock/ 20% bond). What if in 2025 I have even less than I have now? I just keep maxing out that 401k and hope for the best.
Post by: dougules on March 01, 2017, 03:24:48 PM
I gotta say, I'm grateful to the suckers that are paying the active managers. We need at least a few people paying these snakes to make the market efficient. If the market was 100% passive, we'd have a problem. Glad that some other fool will do it, though, so I don't have to.
Does the average active manager know or do that much more than a lot of the folks here? How many of them are going in depth meeting execs, touring operations, pouring through the books, and doing the same for the company's competition before they buy? How many of them treat buying stocks like buying a company (because that's what it is)? I'd prefer the ones that aren't doing that not to be involved in how the market is pricing stocks.
When calculating your future net worth, what annual growth percentage do you use? ie. I assume an x% return annually until 2025 and it puts me at 25x my expenses.
I'm targeting 2024/2025 but not sure what growth percentage I should use to calculate out 8 years.
Usually I use 6.7% for calculating real returns. I'm 100% stocks so that's a slightly low real rate of return historically. If you have a different mix, I'd use the historical return for that mix. Of course over an 8 year timeframe who knows!
I like to use the current CAPE, personally, but if you plug it into firecalc or cfiresim, you'll see it could be just about anything over the course of 8 years.
Thanks Swash!
Dougules- I just had to google what CAPE even meant! So somewhat off topic, I read a lot of stuff that says just invest in index funds and carry on and I also see a lot of articles that say the PE ratios indicate the market will be crashing any day. I sometimes wonder if I'm doing the right thing by squirreling so much money away (80% stock/ 20% bond). What if in 2025 I have even less than I have now? I just keep maxing out that 401k and hope for the best.
I wouldn't pay any attention to what those articles are saying. For every one that predicts a crash, there's another one that predicts a huge jump.
I personally think the market is really high right now, but there are a few reasons you should ignore that and keep buying to your original plan.
Just because it's high doesn't mean it's going to crash. Earnings and/or inflation may catch up instead.
Then, what other investments would you buy instead? When you look at the stock market in comparison to low interest rates and high real estate prices, it makes sense in context.
Cash isn't good either because it's being eaten away by inflation, and you're losing out every day on profits. My grandmother bought her house for $16k in 1962, so you can see what might happen if you stay in cash.
If the market does go down, you haven't lost money (unless you sell). Stocks aren't money. They're a piece of a company, and you still have the same number of shares whatever the price of the day. If you keep buying, you'll have way more shares in 2025 no matter what the dollar signs are on paper. If those shares are worth less in 2025 you may have to stay in it a tad longer, but you'll be buying stocks on sale the whole time.
Post by: swashbucklinstache on March 01, 2017, 04:57:54 PM
I gotta say, I'm grateful to the suckers that are paying the active managers. We need at least a few people paying these snakes to make the market efficient. If the market was 100% passive, we'd have a problem. Glad that some other fool will do it, though, so I don't have to.
Does the average active manager know or do that much more than a lot of the folks here? How many of them are going in depth meeting execs, touring operations, pouring through the books, and doing the same for the company's competition before they buy? How many of them treat buying stocks like buying a company (because that's what it is)? I'd prefer the ones that aren't doing that not to be involved in how the market is pricing stocks.When calculating your future net worth, what annual growth percentage do you use? ie. I assume an x% return annually until 2025 and it puts me at 25x my expenses.
I'm targeting 2024/2025 but not sure what growth percentage I should use to calculate out 8 years.
Usually I use 6.7% for calculating real returns. I'm 100% stocks so that's a slightly low real rate of return historically. If you have a different mix, I'd use the historical return for that mix. Of course over an 8 year timeframe who knows!
I like to use the current CAPE, personally, but if you plug it into firecalc or cfiresim, you'll see it could be just about anything over the course of 8 years.
Thanks Swash!
Dougules- I just had to google what CAPE even meant! So somewhat off topic, I read a lot of stuff that says just invest in index funds and carry on and I also see a lot of articles that say the PE ratios indicate the market will be crashing any day. I sometimes wonder if I'm doing the right thing by squirreling so much money away (80% stock/ 20% bond). What if in 2025 I have even less than I have now? I just keep maxing out that 401k and hope for the best.
I wouldn't pay any attention to what those articles are saying. For every one that predicts a crash, there's another one that predicts a huge jump.
I personally think the market is really high right now, but there are a few reasons you should ignore that and keep buying to your original plan.
Just because it's high doesn't mean it's going to crash. Earnings and/or inflation may catch up instead.
Then, what other investments would you buy instead? When you look at the stock market in comparison to low interest rates and high real estate prices, it makes sense in context.
Cash isn't good either because it's being eaten away by inflation, and you're losing out every day on profits. My grandmother bought her house for $16k in 1962, so you can see what might happen if you stay in cash.
If the market does go down, you haven't lost money (unless you sell). Stocks aren't money. They're a piece of a company, and you still have the same number of shares whatever the price of the day. If you keep buying, you'll have way more shares in 2025 no matter what the dollar signs are on paper. If those shares are worth less in 2025 you may have to stay in it a tad longer, but you'll be buying stocks on sale the whole time.
Also if your savings rate is high enough the market returns really just don't affect how fast you reach FI anyway. Now of course you should really care a lot about what the market will do over the next 50 years, not that you can predict it, but you shouldn't care too much about the next 8 years. That's under most circumstances. For a lot of people who have other factors affecting their choice of 2025 that may not be true.
Post by: new mustache city on March 02, 2017, 11:11:24 AM
I'm 30 years old and I just passed $100,000 net worth at the end of December. If nothing changes in the next 96 months, that will have grown to $675,000 and I'll be financially independent.
Hopefully in the meantime I can increase my earnings and savings but for now I'm shooting for early 2025 at age 38.
Post by: dougules on March 02, 2017, 11:50:07 AM
I should be joining this thread. My goal is to FIRE In 6 to 7 years from now when I am 50 and my DH 53.. This depends on how much we'll manage to save in the next years. My husband also thinks that it is a good idea to keep making some money, a fraction of what we make now, just to have an extra helping buffer.
Current situation:
No debt of any kind.
House worth 8 mil NOK.
Holiday cabin worth 1 mil NOK.
Stash in index funds approx 1,2 mil NOK.
Pensions funds saved up by our jobs, can start to pay out when we reach 67 or 62.
State allowance for pensioners, can start to pay out when we reach 67 or 62.
Then pensions and state allowance are enough to live of already. So we'll only need to cover the years between 50/63 and 67. We don't count on getting pensions from 62 yet. That is 17 years. We have calculated that we need to move to a much cheaper house in a much cheaper region. This would free up 4 to 5 mil NOK. Our goal is to have 10 mil NOK in free assets and a paid down place to live in.
Those numbers made my eyes pop before I realized NOK meant kroner.
Post by: Linea_Norway on March 03, 2017, 12:34:17 AM
Those numbers made my eyes pop before I realized NOK meant kroner.
I edited it to make it clearer.
The Norwegian crown/US dollar course is so varying over the years that I decided not to try and convert it. It wouldn't make sense either, because cost of living in the 2 countries is so different and not comparable.
Post by: tarheeldan on March 03, 2017, 05:50:19 AM
Post by: Need2Save on March 24, 2017, 11:20:40 AM
I'll still stop by to see what progress you are making. Best of luck to all of you!
Post by: 2Birds1Stone on March 24, 2017, 11:37:01 AM
I'm sorry to break up with you fine people but it's looking like we will probably be more in the 2024 (or even 2023) cohort.
I'll still stop by to see what progress you are making. Best of luck to all of you!
What changed?
Post by: Need2Save on March 24, 2017, 01:56:15 PM
I'm sorry to break up with you fine people but it's looking like we will probably be more in the 2024 (or even 2023) cohort.
I'll still stop by to see what progress you are making. Best of luck to all of you!
What changed?
Well, a few small things that add up to a big change - I guess:
- We figured out a way to pay a small amount more additional towards our mortgage to pay it off approximately 5/6 months sooner than planned. I know - many opinions on the mortgage, but this is one of our 3 primary goals and does not make the other 2 primary goals suffer at all.
- One of our sons may not be pursuing college now, so we've decided to redirect those savings to our retirement fund instead. Even after helping him get established with a vocation trade/type career path - it seems that we will not need all the money we thought we would need for two college educations.
- We have continued to earn pretty handsome annual bonuses and as long as those keep up, it will accelerate our savings pretty nicely.
- The biggest of all, is just revisiting some of our assumptions for growth, inflation, and our real spending needs in retirement. We were sort of just losely using ballpark figures, but the closer we look at it, the less we think we will need - even with uncertain healthcare expenses and excessive travel plans ahead for us.
I guess overall, we are just feeling more confident that we can do it sooner. 2024 for sure, 2023 maybe if we stay focused and things continue to go well. We continue to use around $60,000 in today's dollars for annual spending needs as a reference point (higher for many here, but lower than many others as well). We do also live in a HCOL but plan to leave this area as well in retirement.
Post by: Laura33 on March 24, 2017, 01:59:57 PM
I'm sorry to break up with you fine people but it's looking like we will probably be more in the 2024 (or even 2023) cohort.
I'll still stop by to see what progress you are making. Best of luck to all of you!
What changed?
Well, a few small things that add up to a big change - I guess:
- We figured out a way to pay a small amount more additional towards our mortgage to pay it off approximately 5/6 months sooner than planned. I know - many opinions on the mortgage, but this is one of our 3 primary goals and does not make the other 2 primary goals suffer at all.
- One of our sons may not be pursuing college now, so we've decided to redirect those savings to our retirement fund instead. Even after helping him get established with a vocation trade/type career path - it seems that we will not need all the money we thought we would need for two college educations.
- We have continued to earn pretty handsome annual bonuses and as long as those keep up, it will accelerate our savings pretty nicely.
- The biggest of all, is just revisiting some of our assumptions for growth, inflation, and our real spending needs in retirement. We were sort of just losely using ballpark figures, but the closer we look at it, the less we think we will need - even with uncertain healthcare expenses and excessive travel plans ahead for us.
I guess overall, we are just feeling more confident that we can do it sooner. 2024 for sure, 2023 maybe if we stay focused and things continue to go well. We continue to use around $60,000 in today's dollars for annual spending needs as a reference point (higher for many here, but lower than many others as well). We do also live in a HCOL but plan to leave this area as well in retirement.
This is great news -- congrats! And hey, at least you're leaving us in the right direction. :-)
Post by: Need2Save on March 24, 2017, 02:04:08 PM
Post by: clarkfan1979 on March 24, 2017, 08:53:29 PM
Post by: Icecreamarsenal on March 25, 2017, 08:12:32 AM
Well thank you, Laura33! I hope some of you may someday join me on the 2024 (or 2023) acceleration train.It's not you, it's me.
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Post by: TomTX on March 25, 2017, 09:11:44 PM
I'd really like to push that forward and join 2025. The pension is rather punitive in that regard though: If I stop working in 2025, the earliest I could draw the pension and get the medical benefits would be 2031. Also, instead of counting as "time served" for pension payout, accrued leave time is simply ignored if you quit before you can draw the pension.
Effectively, if I want to retire 2 years earlier, I need to replace the pension + medical for 6 years, and the pension will have a lower payout in perpetuity.
Post by: facepalm on April 02, 2017, 11:47:33 AM
96 months...
414 Mondays
Haha! But I prefer to view it as 414 Fridays.
Just checked some of my figures and realized I'm actually at a 71% savings rate, not counting employer match. I also think that my calculation for what i will have in my 403/457 might be a bit off, so Im going to revise it downward to about 25x yearly expenses, or 550K. That is essentially all my projected savings without any appreciation.
My biggest concerns in retirement (other than what to do with the money) are taxes and health care. Will definitely be buying a house when I retire, and looking to move out of state. I live in one of the most expensive housing markets in CA, plus CA taxes are not that great. Am also getting very serious about my health. I'm overweight, which is a negative indicator for all sorts of health issues.
I still like my job and have plenty to work on. Hopefully, I'll break 6 figures in a few years.
Post by: wienerdog on April 02, 2017, 05:21:32 PM
My biggest concerns in retirement (other than what to do with the money) are taxes and health care. Will definitely be buying a house when I retire, and looking to move out of state. I live in one of the most expensive housing markets in CA, plus CA taxes are not that great. Am also getting very serious about my health. I'm overweight, which is a negative indicator for all sorts of health issues.
Healthcare is something I think about also. I like you am overweight and was starting to notice shortness of breath on easy stair climbs while carrying luggage but carrying 50 extra pounds on me explains it. I found Vinnie Tortorich on a podcast and decide to go that direction. Couldn't be happier with his method NSNG (No Sugar No Grain). I have lost 29 lbs since Dec and my goal is to get to 190 lbs (50lb loss total). The best thing about his method is you are never hungry and it is easy once you get the hang of it. I have done all that without exercise so far. I am going to try to start doing something steady this summer to get my health even better.
On topic I am close to moving into the 2024 category but I will stay here for now. Using a 4% withdraw rate and 6% return rate I am in Feb 2025. Was much deeper in 2025 before so I hope that trend keeps up.
Post by: mld on April 03, 2017, 10:31:03 AM
I'm sorry to break up with you fine people but it's looking like we will probably be more in the 2024 (or even 2023) cohort.
I'll still stop by to see what progress you are making. Best of luck to all of you!
So happy for you! Here's hoping things continue moving in the right direction for you so that 2024 is only a rebound and you end up settling for 2023 ;).
Post by: dougules on April 03, 2017, 10:46:39 AM
96 months...
414 Mondays
Haha! But I prefer to view it as 414 Fridays.
Just checked some of my figures and realized I'm actually at a 71% savings rate, not counting employer match. I also think that my calculation for what i will have in my 403/457 might be a bit off, so Im going to revise it downward to about 25x yearly expenses, or 550K. That is essentially all my projected savings without any appreciation.
My biggest concerns in retirement (other than what to do with the money) are taxes and health care. Will definitely be buying a house when I retire, and looking to move out of state. I live in one of the most expensive housing markets in CA, plus CA taxes are not that great. Am also getting very serious about my health. I'm overweight, which is a negative indicator for all sorts of health issues.
I still like my job and have plenty to work on. Hopefully, I'll break 6 figures in a few years.
I just see it as much better to see a Monday gone than a Friday gone. We're 409 today.
Post by: Scrooge on April 10, 2017, 10:12:10 AM
I'm joining this group as well. I was hoping to reach the 2021 level. But as I get older, I get more realistic. It could be possible in theory still. But I know that with inflation, the world economy and a pinch of the so-called "life" that happens when you plan things, I'm not going to make it by that time.
2025? Sure, more plausible. But I'll be 44 by then. Four years past what I originally hoped.
- I'm 36 this year
- My stache is 165 000 EUR currently
- It's gaining yearly in savings 20 - 25 000 EUR. I'm not counting any investing appreciation here currently, as to be frank, my investment percentage is low currently. The market's too hairy for me these days, so I'm on the sidelines from heavy investing, focusing on living expenses and the savings process itself. Pretty much following along the original ERE master, Jacob. Accumulation and costs are the most important at the moment. Those are the factors I can predict and affect.
- I'm saving approximately 66% of my net income, and my yearly costs are around 12 - 13 000 EUR.
With these figures one would think retirement comes sooner than that. I doubt it however.
Post by: Linea_Norway on April 10, 2017, 11:31:56 AM
Yo.
I'm joining this group as well. I was hoping to reach the 2021 level. But as I get older, I get more realistic. It could be possible in theory still. But I know that with inflation, the world economy and a pinch of the so-called "life" that happens when you plan things, I'm not going to make it by that time.
Yes, realism sucks. I know pretty much for sure that I'll be able to FIRE in 2023, but am often calculating for ways to start some years earlier. And that is where realism kicks in again.
Post by: Gone_Hiking on April 17, 2017, 10:20:32 PM
My biggest concerns in retirement (other than what to do with the money) are taxes and health care. Will definitely be buying a house when I retire, and looking to move out of state. I live in one of the most expensive housing markets in CA, plus CA taxes are not that great. Am also getting very serious about my health. I'm overweight, which is a negative indicator for all sorts of health issues.
Healthcare is something I think about also. I like you am overweight and was starting to notice shortness of breath on easy stair climbs while carrying luggage but carrying 50 extra pounds on me explains it. I found Vinnie Tortorich on a podcast and decide to go that direction. Couldn't be happier with his method NSNG (No Sugar No Grain). I have lost 29 lbs since Dec and my goal is to get to 190 lbs (50lb loss total). The best thing about his method is you are never hungry and it is easy once you get the hang of it. I have done all that without exercise so far. I am going to try to start doing something steady this summer to get my health even better.
On topic I am close to moving into the 2024 category but I will stay here for now. Using a 4% withdraw rate and 6% return rate I am in Feb 2025. Was much deeper in 2025 before so I hope that trend keeps up.
Same here - healthcare is something that concerns us. While we eat reasonably well and exercise regularly, DH has started a low dose of statin lately beause of gradually rising cholesterol level that even vegetable-rich diet cannot lower. The NSNG diet sounds intriguing, by the way.
Post by: Fomerly known as something on April 18, 2017, 05:25:15 AM
The estimated tipping point between minimal RE and comfy RE gets me less than 5 years away from my "full" retirement at age 47 which brings up the question of do I stay for just a little while to change from comfy RE to "luxury" RE.
Post by: FL_MM on May 30, 2017, 06:41:55 PM
Post by: yourusernamehere on May 30, 2017, 06:43:06 PM
Post by: oneday on May 30, 2017, 11:28:09 PM
I love when you guys post! The notification comes up and reminds me that 2025 is getting closer.
+1!
Post by: dougules on June 02, 2017, 03:49:49 PM
I love when you guys post! The notification comes up and reminds me that 2025 is getting closer.
Post?
Post by: yourusernamehere on June 02, 2017, 04:05:47 PM
Or... comment? Is "post" wrong?I love when you guys post! The notification comes up and reminds me that 2025 is getting closer.
Post?
Post by: frugalecon on June 02, 2017, 06:18:40 PM
Or... comment? Is "post" wrong?I love when you guys post! The notification comes up and reminds me that 2025 is getting closer.
Post?
I think "post" is just fine. Btw, my countdown spreadsheet informs me I have 1715 working days until my 2025 date. Just wonder if I will fall prey to the OMY illness at that time.
Post by: TomTX on June 03, 2017, 03:44:38 PM
Or... comment? Is "post" wrong?I love when you guys post! The notification comes up and reminds me that 2025 is getting closer.
Post?
I think "post" is just fine. Btw, my countdown spreadsheet informs me I have 1715 working days until my 2025 date. Just wonder if I will fall prey to the OMY illness at that time.
I'm in this thread for inspiration to get out 2 years early from my "pension available" date in 2027, which would kick the pension start actually out to 2029.
Post by: Sapphire on June 30, 2017, 10:22:32 PM
After considerable time lurking, learning (wish I had found this stuff 20 years ago!), planning and (now) posting, we're in for 2025. We are also late party arrivers (I'll be 55 and DH 56 in 2025) but we got here...
The mortgage will be paid off, we'll both have a reasonable stache in superannuation (Australia's version of 401s, except we can't touch it until we hit 60); and enough outside of super to carry us until 60.
I really like my job but it takes up a great deal of time and mental energy. Over the next 8 years, I'm going to focus on continuing to enjoy my job (I don't want to feel like I'm serving a sentence!) and plan some great holidays to have things to look forward to. Our youngest child finishes high school this year so a lot of the hands on parenting is reduced, which frees us up more.
Post by: Fire2025 on July 01, 2017, 05:45:54 AM
I'll be 55 and DH 56 in 2025
One plus for us oldies but goodies, we can withdraw from our 401k without penalty at 55. Little silver lining there.
Quote
If you are 55 years old or older in the year you left your job and you need to take a distribution of your retirement plan funds immediately, you should leave the money in your company plan and take your withdrawals from there. The reason is because distributions from your company plan, when you leave the company in the year you turn age 55 or later, are not subject to the 10% early distribution penalty if you no longer work for that company (or what the tax code refers to as “separation from service”). Remember, though, that the distribution would still be subject to federal income taxes.
It’s the year you turn age 55 that matters. For example, in one Tax Court case, the Court ruled that a person was liable for the 10% penalty for an early distribution made from her company retirement plan. Although her distribution took place after she turned age 55, she left her job when she was just age 53, which disqualified her from being eligible for the age 55 exception to the 10% penalty. It’s the year someone separates from service that matters, not the distribution date. To qualify for the penalty exception, separation from service must occur in the year the person turns age 55 or older.
Post by: TomTX on July 01, 2017, 04:46:34 PM
Waving to all to say hello 2025.
After considerable time lurking, learning (wish I had found this stuff 20 years ago!), planning and (now) posting, we're in for 2025. We are also late party arrivers (I'll be 55 and DH 56 in 2025) but we got here...
The mortgage will be paid off, we'll both have a reasonable stache in superannuation (Australia's version of 401s, except we can't touch it until we hit 60); and enough outside of super to carry us until 60.
If I didn't have to worry about medical, I could almost certainly pull the plug in 2025. Means I would get my pension in 2029.
If I can't cover medical, I need to wait for the pension. Which will be 2027 if I work straight through.
Post by: Sapphire on July 01, 2017, 07:40:59 PM
TomTX, we are lucky re our health care costs – we have a universal health care system and a much cheaper private health insurance system than you appear to have. I have a private family health insurance policy with no excess on it which cost $379.00 per month. It includes hospital cover and extras cover (dental, optometry etc). Our doctor “bulk bills” which means it is “free” go to the GP. I feel incredibly lucky we have this system, when I read about some of the medical costs you face.
Post by: TomTX on July 01, 2017, 08:39:00 PM
Fire2025 I envy you being able to access your 401s at 55. The government here increased our ability to access our superannuation from age 55 to 60 years some time ago. I suspect they will try to further increase the superannuation age accessibility again in the future to 65 years, but hopefully we should get plenty of notice about it and can respond accordingly.
TomTX, we are lucky re our health care costs – we have a universal health care system and a much cheaper private health insurance system than you appear to have. I have a private family health insurance policy with no excess on it which cost $379.00 per month. It includes hospital cover and extras cover (dental, optometry etc). Our doctor “bulk bills” which means it is “free” go to the GP. I feel incredibly lucky we have this system, when I read about some of the medical costs you face.
Even with employer supplied insurance, I'm paying almost $600 a month just for the coverage. Then I have copays for GP doctor visits, and pay 20% for everything else.
Post by: Bird In Hand on July 01, 2017, 10:33:16 PM
We've saved 19x-23x our expected retirement expenses, with the range representing a slightly higher down to slightly lower standard of living. If we include our home equity, we've saved 23x-28x.
If we keep making the same mortgage payments that we have been making for the last ~7 years, the mortgage should be gone in ~3 years. At that point we could afford to drastically increase our after-tax savings, or downshift and coast ESR-style while our 'stache (hopefully) grows to a number that screams 'RE!' to us.
Post by: Anette on August 24, 2017, 03:01:00 PM
Living in Germany and my husband and I are hoping to FIRE in 2025. So far we have only saved 4x, but we figure we might just save enough to bridge the time until retirement (67).
With our system it will be a lot cheaper to keep a part time job(15%) and be able to keep full health insurance coverage through that. We are still supporting 4 children and we still have a mortgage.
I feel lucky I found the mmm blog 6 month ago and this community. Also feel lucky my husband got on board.
He is not super interested in reading up on things but thinks it will be wonderful to be able to spend more time together.
Oh and we got started late. We will both be 55 in 2025! And we were really stupid with money most of the 25 years that we have been married ( not that we made much for the first 10)
Anyway, it is great to learn from all of you!
Post by: skiddieleet on September 09, 2017, 04:05:29 PM
I'm also shooting for 2025, the year I turn 40.
Same, turning 40 and I think I can be FI by then. There was a thread on reddit about how 300K is about halfway to 1M taking into account compounding and depending on your yearly contribution. So I'm banking on that and calling it to say I will be FI by 2025.
I'm starting to think 2030 is more realistic for my wife and I. Although we've been talking about downsizing our house. I'd love to downsize and pay it off in a couple years, live closer to work and our parents, and have a lower tax burden forever.
Maybe if we play our cards right 2025 could still be in the cards.
Post by: tj on September 09, 2017, 07:08:22 PM
I'm also shooting for 2025, the year I turn 40.
Same, turning 40 and I think I can be FI by then. There was a thread on reddit about how 300K is about halfway to 1M taking into account compounding and depending on your yearly contribution. So I'm banking on that and calling it to say I will be FI by 2025.
I'm starting to think 2030 is more realistic for my wife and I. Although we've been talking about downsizing our house. I'd love to downsize and pay it off in a couple years, live closer to work and our parents, and have a lower tax burden forever.
Maybe if we play our cards right 2025 could still be in the cards.
I downsized to a 1 bedroom co-op apartment in Arizona. I paid less than $50k for it. :D I don't plan on ever moving as long as I'm single.
Post by: TomTX on September 09, 2017, 07:38:52 PM
I downsized to a 1 bedroom co-op apartment in Arizona. I paid less than $50k for it. :D I don't plan on ever moving as long as I'm single.
City? Monthly fees/HOA? Is the HOA fiscally responsible?
Post by: tj on September 10, 2017, 11:08:27 AM
I downsized to a 1 bedroom co-op apartment in Arizona. I paid less than $50k for it. :D I don't plan on ever moving as long as I'm single.
City? Monthly fees/HOA? Is the HOA fiscally responsible?
There are several co-ops in both the Phoenix and Tucson metros. E.G., Here's one in Tucson for $22k: https://www.redfin.com/AZ/Tucson/1776-S-Jones-Blvd-85713/unit-N206/home/117896191
Monthly fees here in Scottsdale are in the range of $200ish-$300ish depending on the size of the unit. There is everything from a studio apartment to a 3 bedroom townhouse. Monthly fees includes water, sewer, trash, property taxes, building insurance, water heater replacement, and air conditioner replacement. My water heater needed to be replaced when I moved in. Apparently the previous occupant never turned on the gas/hot water!
I'm satisfied with the financials, but you're always at the mercy of a board of directors who is hopefully competent when buying into this sort of thing.
Post by: rentalnewbie on September 12, 2017, 12:23:29 PM
I am going to join this thread as 2025 is our goal year for FIRE. Honestly it's so far out right now that I'm not sure we can hit it but my original goal when joining MMM was age 40, which me and my SO will both hit in 2025. I am impressed that it seems so settled for many of you when it's 9 years away and so much can happen!
Our current status:
- modest 401(k)/IRA with 2x expenses (and growing!)
- .5x expenses liquid, which will be a future "forever" house down payment/pay for our wedding & honeymoon next year
- 1 rental house + house we currently live in, which will become rental #2 (these are both mortgaged at slightly less than 80%currently)
Right now our FIRE spreadsheet has us targeted at age 44, however, that doesn't include any wage growth that we can reasonably expect or income from our to be acquired rental properties. The key for us, will be to pay off our primary residence and 2-3 rentals. After we get our "forever" house (~2 years), we'll focus on paying off the properties for a while before we buy more.
Just checking in since it's been close to a year! How are everyone's goals looking 8 years out?
I think we are doing well but it's very hard to say what our savings rate is because we spent so much on our wedding last year and this year and combined my spending with my now husbands spending, so I don't know where our spending baseline is anymore. Next year I should have a better idea.
Status update:
- Our net-worth surpassed 100k at the beginning of the year according to Mint, I would say we actually hit it later because it is generous in its property valuations
- My SO and I are married now and our wedding is fully paid for + a few thousand paid back to us from credit card hacking
- We've decided to stay in our townhouse for now and look for a 2nd rental, delaying an up-size in house for us probably 2 years. There is nothing decent looking on the market unfortunately so we continue to look and save.
Post by: AK on September 12, 2017, 12:29:25 PM
Post by: swashbucklinstache on September 12, 2017, 05:19:46 PM
Yah chief, sign me up. Likely as FI rather than FIRE, with a few extra years to pad on after, but so much could change from now to then. Aged 27, 8.5x current expense saved, no house, 65% or so savings rate give or take. Single, readiness-to-mingle currently TBD
Well, there was my original post in 12/2016! In the intervening 9 months I've moved from 8.5x current expenses to 10.96x and upped my savings rate a few percentage points! I'm still an immature smartass though :).
My life is so far from where it'll be in 2025 that it's hard to say how i'm doing, but things are headed in the right direction. I could be in the 650k-900k range if things go roughly how they've gone so far. The high end of that is looking damn near the end of things for full-time worker bee me if I'm still single and childless at that time, or at least time to ask for a stupid amount of money not to go a-wanderin'.
Hope everyone else is on track, too.
Post by: oneday on September 12, 2017, 06:08:02 PM
2025 is our stretch goal. Currently have 3.3x spending in pre- & post-tax savings accounts, but will also get a substantial pension when Mr. O retires. So yeah, it's a stretch, but I would love to retire with you all!!!
Well, a year can change a lot. Mr. O (soon to be Mr. X) and I are divorcing. I will probably give up claim to his pension in exchange for the real estate. That will have a really big impact on my net worth. No hard numbers yet, as the actuaries are still working on the pension calculations.
Post by: Sapphire on September 12, 2017, 06:21:00 PM
2025 is our stretch goal. Currently have 3.3x spending in pre- & post-tax savings accounts, but will also get a substantial pension when Mr. O retires. So yeah, it's a stretch, but I would love to retire with you all!!!
Well, a year can change a lot. Mr. O (soon to be Mr. X) and I are divorcing. I will probably give up claim to his pension in exchange for the real estate. That will have a really big impact on my net worth. No hard numbers yet, as the actuaries are still working on the pension calculations.
Sorry to hear this Oneday.
Post by: oneday on September 12, 2017, 11:54:33 PM
Post by: Laura33 on September 13, 2017, 06:54:57 AM
I think we're doing well. It's been a year of adjusting attitudes and expectations more than anything, and progress can be slow (see my "how do you not kill your DH" thread for an example). But I have been very clear with him about my belief that we can live on a lot less than we are planning; he is not there yet, but he has started to at least joke about things like, "well, you could pack me a lunch everyday," which would have been unthinkable in years past (he goes out to lunch with the guys every freaking day). I'm also finding my own mental attitude changing; really focusing on the value of what I spend has me wanting less and less stuff and valuing my time more and more -- the only clothes I have bought this year were some gym clothes that I actually needed for Crossfit, I haven't paid for a haircut in over a year, and I have started trying the non-department-store cosmetic options for the few things I actually use. Not that I've gone cheap -- I do have a massively stupid car. :-) But I love that infinitely more than I enjoy clothes or makeup. And it feels good to move away from throwing money at crap that I don't care about. I think we'll be dropping some memberships this fall that we haven't been using, which, again, will help the budget a fair bit.
So right now, we're still at 2025. My secret hope is that I can convince DH to cut the current spend some and lower his ridiculous RE budget so that I can move up to an earlier group, like 2020 (I really don't see how we're going to spend 50% MORE than we do now, even with all the travel we want to do!). But he thinks 12 yrs is more likely, so 2025 is still our compromise.
Post by: chasingthegoodlife on September 13, 2017, 03:02:33 PM
Slowly chipping away here. The stash is moving in a positive direction despite a very spendy year (car died, roof repairs, getting married and desperately trying to have a 'non wedding' against others' expectations).
I can't quite remember what I used as my estimated yearly spending when I joined this thread and said I was at 14x expenses. Best guess, I am now at 18x that barebones number taking into account the recent value increase to my rental property, or 16x playing it safe.
Enjoying life as it is and will just keep rolling until it feels right
Post by: Wakeuprich on September 13, 2017, 03:12:14 PM
I discovered MMM about three years ago whilst in my final year of university! What a great discovery that turned out to be!
I'm now 24, having attempted to practice the mustachian way of life since joining the real world and getting an actual proper adult job two years ago.
I just wanted to say a big thankyou to MMM and a huge portion of you here on the forum, for giving me the wisdom and knowledge to know what can be achieved by being sensible with money!
Post by: oneday on September 13, 2017, 03:18:41 PM
Laura33, is your avatar a picture of John Lithgow from Bucaroo Banzai???
Post by: Gondolin on September 13, 2017, 03:58:04 PM
It looks like I will hit my spending goal for 2017 and am up to about x6 expenses. So far, so good.
Post by: Laura33 on September 13, 2017, 05:20:23 PM
Laura33, is your avatar a picture of John Lithgow from Bucaroo Banzai???
Well spotted! Knew I liked you. ;-)
Post by: oneday on September 13, 2017, 05:50:29 PM
Post by: oneday on September 13, 2017, 06:00:17 PM
Laura33, is your avatar a picture of John Lithgow from Bucaroo Banzai???
Well spotted! Knew I liked you. ;-)
Ha ha! It was your signature that clued me in. I am not really great with faces...
Post by: oneday on September 13, 2017, 06:43:16 PM
Laura33, is your avatar a picture of John Lithgow from Bucaroo Banzai???
Well spotted! Knew I liked you. ;-)
Ha ha! It was your signature that clued me in. I am not really great with faces...
Mr. O is trying to keep the Buckaroo Banzai DVD. This could be the ugliest part of the divorce...lol
Post by: Laura33 on September 14, 2017, 05:52:07 AM
Laura33, is your avatar a picture of John Lithgow from Bucaroo Banzai???
Well spotted! Knew I liked you. ;-)
Ha ha! It was your signature that clued me in. I am not really great with faces...
Mr. O is trying to keep the Buckaroo Banzai DVD. This could be the ugliest part of the divorce...lol
Oh, honey, you gotta fight for that baby.
I finally got it on DVR. Now I can never move or change providers. :-)
Post by: tj on September 30, 2017, 06:22:19 PM
When I first tracked when I could retire this summer, it was at the end of 2025, now it's closer to the beginning! hopefully as the years advance, I get to steal back a couple of years for myself!
I've decided to break the official system, and aim for very very very part time (40hrs a month) and bring my FIRE date down to 2020.
Crazy how much time is cut off if you can reduce your expenses!
What type of work are you looking at? Supposedly being a college basketball or football referee (and obviously professional sports) would allow one to work very part time and bring in decent $$.
Post by: afuera on October 02, 2017, 09:47:17 AM
When I first tracked when I could retire this summer, it was at the end of 2025, now it's closer to the beginning! hopefully as the years advance, I get to steal back a couple of years for myself!
I've decided to break the official system, and aim for very very very part time (40hrs a month) and bring my FIRE date down to 2020.
Crazy how much time is cut off if you can reduce your expenses!
What type of work are you looking at? Supposedly being a college basketball or football referee (and obviously professional sports) would allow one to work very part time and bring in decent $$.
I easily earn $400-500 a month refereeing soccer games with the most basic certification you can get, not even college or professional. It would be closer to $500/wk if I didn't have to work my day job (games on the weeknights start before I get home from work so I can only work games on the weekends). Refereeing is an awesome part time job/side hustle.
Post by: mld on October 05, 2017, 10:48:00 AM
So this was me at the end of Feb:
We are aiming for 2025 (although Mister D thinks it will be more 2029 but numbers are looking good for 2025 maybe even sooner).
We currently have around 7x our expenses saved up + a fully paid mortgage :) and we save around 60% of our net income.
The first win is that Mr.D is now convinced of the 2025 year as attainable lol.
We are now at a little over 8x our expenses (+ paid off house), could be better but things should start rolling more in the next couple of years.
We've been a bit spendy in different areas this year and working on that as well.
I on the other hand am starting to seriously consider a move like Canadian Ben:
I've decided to break the official system, and aim for very very very part time (40hrs a month) and bring my FIRE date down to 2020.Thinking something similar and am actually starting some freelancing to start trying things out and build something outside of my day-job that I could fall back onto for a few years to cover our spending while I would let the stash grow to reach our actual FI number. Even Mr. D who's usually more cautious in our planning, is starting to consider this. It would probably move me down to around 2022-2023.
Crazy how much time is cut off if you can reduce your expenses!
On a related note this made me laugh:
It's been a year of adjusting attitudes and expectations more than anything, and progress can be slow (see my "how do you not kill your DH" thread for an example). But I have been very clear with him about my belief that we can live on a lot less than we are planning; he is not there yet, but he has started to at least joke about things like, "well, you could pack me a lunch everyday," which would have been unthinkable in years past (he goes out to lunch with the guys every freaking day).I've actually started preparing Mr. D's lunches in the last few months as he was constantly saying that as a joke whenever I mentioned how much he was spending on them. He went from over 150$ a month on eating at work to 50$ a month so that's a win :P and I just double whatever I prepare for my own lunch. It took him a little while to admit it but he feels much better after eating homemade stuff instead of whatever he was buying before and has more energy in the afternoons so total win.
Post by: Laura33 on October 05, 2017, 12:24:00 PM
The first win is that Mr.D is now convinced of the 2025 year as attainable lol.
. . . .
On a related note this made me laugh:It's been a year of adjusting attitudes and expectations more than anything, and progress can be slow (see my "how do you not kill your DH" thread for an example). But I have been very clear with him about my belief that we can live on a lot less than we are planning; he is not there yet, but he has started to at least joke about things like, "well, you could pack me a lunch everyday," which would have been unthinkable in years past (he goes out to lunch with the guys every freaking day).I've actually started preparing Mr. D's lunches in the last few months as he was constantly saying that as a joke whenever I mentioned how much he was spending on them. He went from over 150$ a month on eating at work to 50$ a month so that's a win :P and I just double whatever I prepare for my own lunch. It took him a little while to admit it but he feels much better after eating homemade stuff instead of whatever he was buying before and has more energy in the afternoons so total win.
Hey, getting your DH down to 2025 is a total win! I think mine is coming around to that as well, much to my surprise (just as I am getting more convinced I cannot possibly make it that long!).
And in the category of "sign of the apocalypse": Earlier this week, DH had all-day meetings with a large team at a customer site. Both mornings, he packed himself a lunch in a cooler. ?!?!?! Who are you and what have you done with my husband?
[In all honesty, his story is that it was a strategic move -- so he could sit in their cafeteria and listen to the chitchat instead of leaving for lunch -- but still, I'll take a win, thanks very much!]
Post by: Linea_Norway on October 06, 2017, 02:37:43 AM
The first win is that Mr.D is now convinced of the 2025 year as attainable lol.
. . . .
On a related note this made me laugh:It's been a year of adjusting attitudes and expectations more than anything, and progress can be slow (see my "how do you not kill your DH" thread for an example). But I have been very clear with him about my belief that we can live on a lot less than we are planning; he is not there yet, but he has started to at least joke about things like, "well, you could pack me a lunch everyday," which would have been unthinkable in years past (he goes out to lunch with the guys every freaking day).I've actually started preparing Mr. D's lunches in the last few months as he was constantly saying that as a joke whenever I mentioned how much he was spending on them. He went from over 150$ a month on eating at work to 50$ a month so that's a win :P and I just double whatever I prepare for my own lunch. It took him a little while to admit it but he feels much better after eating homemade stuff instead of whatever he was buying before and has more energy in the afternoons so total win.
Hey, getting your DH down to 2025 is a total win! I think mine is coming around to that as well, much to my surprise (just as I am getting more convinced I cannot possibly make it that long!).
And in the category of "sign of the apocalypse": Earlier this week, DH had all-day meetings with a large team at a customer site. Both mornings, he packed himself a lunch in a cooler. ?!?!?! Who are you and what have you done with my husband?
[In all honesty, his story is that it was a strategic move -- so he could sit in their cafeteria and listen to the chitchat instead of leaving for lunch -- but still, I'll take a win, thanks very much!]
Wow, Laura, your spouse has seen the light! Great to have him starting to think frugally.
Do you think you could make it visible for him at the end of the month, how much he saved by doing this? Just as an extra motivation.
The other alternative for your household would be to separate your finances after paying the fixed, necessary bills. In your retirement calculation, grant each of you a personal allowance and let him work longer to make his allowance larger, while you retire earlier and stick to your smaller allowance. I know this is a bit strange if you are used to having shared finances, but it is not unreasonable when one is a spendypants.
Post by: wienerdog on October 06, 2017, 08:54:59 AM
Good news is I got a 20% raise starting next pay period and they say they are getting a 401k. I hired in over a year ago and was promised 401k in the offer. Decided to leave as I didn't see any headway on the 401k and they didn't want me to. Waiting on the new paycheck to see how this will shake things up.
Post by: asauer on October 16, 2017, 12:22:21 PM
Post by: LadyDividend on November 21, 2017, 09:47:29 AM
The other app is called Nifty Financial Independence. It takes my and market data to confirm my stash amount based on the annual withdrawals I am expecting.
Post by: oneday on November 21, 2017, 04:18:33 PM
Post by: ACyclist on November 23, 2017, 07:35:12 AM
Post by: skiddieleet on December 26, 2017, 08:55:14 PM
Post by: AK on December 27, 2017, 05:24:37 AM
Post by: Dragonswan on December 27, 2017, 09:05:40 AM
Post by: SaucyAussie on December 27, 2017, 09:21:39 AM
My $6000 monthly spend looks like this:
$1000 alimony (until NOV 2018)
$1000 debt payments (JUN 2019)
$1300 house payment (2023-2025)
$1200 child support (JUN 2025)
$1500 everything else
I might be able to coast toward the end, but 2025 looks like the year that everything aligns for me.
Post by: Sapphire on December 27, 2017, 08:20:08 PM
Our Superannuation (Australia's version of 401s) has done really well this year so that's been highly motivating.
Welcome SaucyAussie, always good to see another Aussie!
Happy nearly New Year to all (we're another year closer)....
Post by: swashbucklinstache on December 28, 2017, 04:09:34 PM
Yah chief, sign me up. Likely as FI rather than FIRE, with a few extra years to pad on after, but so much could change from now to then. Aged 27, 8.5x current expense saved, no house, 65% or so savings rate give or take. Single, readiness-to-mingle currently TBD
Well, there was my original post in 12/2016! In the intervening 9 months I've moved from 8.5x current expenses to 10.96x and upped my savings rate a few percentage points! I'm still an immature smartass though :).
My life is so far from where it'll be in 2025 that it's hard to say how i'm doing, but things are headed in the right direction. I could be in the 650k-900k range if things go roughly how they've gone so far. The high end of that is looking damn near the end of things for full-time worker bee me if I'm still single and childless at that time, or at least time to ask for a stupid amount of money not to go a-wanderin'.
Hope everyone else is on track, too.
Update, maybe I'll keep an annually running tab in this thread if people don't mind :).
stache as multiple of 3 year trailing current expenses
12/2016: 8.5x
09/2017: 10.96x
12/2017: 11.6x - would be higher but have had an expensive year
Post by: ardrum on December 28, 2017, 05:55:27 PM
Post by: swashbucklinstache on December 28, 2017, 08:00:51 PM
You're all doing fantastically it seems as far as your multiples of living expenses go. I almost wonder if many of you are being too conservative in your estimates haha. I'm saving a wee bit over 2x living expenses each year, and I think 2025 is realistic for me even if I'm not yet at 5x living expenses (around 4.75x) currently as 2017 comes to an end. My signature lays out my rough targets (sitting pretty right now only because of the absurd returns in 2017). It will really come down to luck... if there is a big downturn after I'm into the 20x+ level, it probably won't happen in 2025. If the downturn happens sooner though and it's a big bull market starting after I'm over 20x, I'll probably make it. You never know, so I'll plan to be flexible and have part-time work be a continuous option (it might be something I'd be interested in anyway, but I love the idea of FI for the freedom of options it allows).
I will say if you're referring to me, my multiples are of my current expenses and I plan to "plan" for 40k per year instead of the ~22k per year I'm currently running, for safety margin, insurance costs, and because I might want to have a family etc. or otherwise meaningfully change my spending plans. Your plan sounds good to me!
Edit to add: Sorry if that is misleading to people, too! Maybe it makes more sense for me to list multiples of 40k or something, but I'm too far away to even be confident in that number anyway. Not important in any case. Happy saving!
Post by: aetheldrea on January 01, 2018, 09:40:48 PM
Post by: Laura33 on January 02, 2018, 01:39:45 PM
Just checking in. Everyone still on track? This year seems misleading to me with such great market returns.
Yep -- right there with you. Everything appears on track, or possibly even ahead of schedule, due to a variety of good things.*
But the big unknown is the market; everything always looks rosy at the end of a giant bull run. It's going to go down sometime, and when/how far is the biggest threat to my plans ("market crashes January 2026" is pretty much my worst-case scenario). So I am withholding judgment until after the next crash, which I think will provide a more realistic view of our status than today's lovely mountaintop vista.
*Knock on wood.
Post by: ardrum on January 05, 2018, 03:50:50 PM
Just checking in. Everyone still on track? This year seems misleading to me with such great market returns.
Yep -- right there with you. Everything appears on track, or possibly even ahead of schedule, due to a variety of good things.*
But the big unknown is the market; everything always looks rosy at the end of a giant bull run. It's going to go down sometime, and when/how far is the biggest threat to my plans ("market crashes January 2026" is pretty much my worst-case scenario). So I am withholding judgment until after the next crash, which I think will provide a more realistic view of our status than today's lovely mountaintop vista.
*Knock on wood.
Yeah, the sequence of returns will be a big factor. I'm actually rooting for this market to get a bucket of cold water over its raging bull head (haha). I want some "discounted" prices for once and would be thrilled for a significant, long decline to buy into for a nice couple years or so. I bought all throughout the 2008 as I watched my investments "lose" with each buy. I loved it, haha. I seem to have zero aversion to volatility for some reason. I take comfort though in that whatever the market does, I won't sell and won't stop buying. If it crashes 50% in 2025, I will just keep buying the newly cheaper stocks of the time and enjoy the eventual explosive recovery (which will probably feel excessively powerful and skyrocket past that 25x living expenses).
Post by: Zamboni on January 05, 2018, 07:14:34 PM
(exactly 11x if I look only at money earmarked for retirement expenses)
I'm going to track living expenses really carefully this year after taking a break last year; I have a pretty good idea of how much I spend from several previous years of previous tracking.
Post by: Gone_Hiking on January 07, 2018, 08:54:50 PM
Just checking in. Everyone still on track? This year seems misleading to me with such great market returns.
Happy to report that, thanks to heavy exposure to non-US assets, one of our accounts exceeded returns from S&P500. This had never happened before.
Our stache is at 20x of annual spending - more than we expected at the beginning of the year. Dividends, capital gains, and interest returned some 57% of annual spending. Much higher than expected, too. Has everyone noticed how high capital gains were this year?
Who else here thinks we are due for a stock market correction?
Post by: ardrum on January 11, 2018, 07:17:58 PM
We have negative net worth (I only started working in 2014), but we’re on track for me to retire in 2025 if I continue at my day job, I’ll be 43. DH will work at his current job until 2035.
DH is fairly senior with the Canadian federal government. He has a solid income and a great pension lined up. We live in a moderate cost of living city, in a low cost neighbourhood, and can comfortably live on his income/pension alone.
I make substantially more than he does, but all of my income goes to tackling the mega mountain of debt that we brought together 4 years ago (well over 400K). There’s about 2 years left on paying off debt and then all of my income can go towards savings.
We already have ~100K saved. My savings goal is ~500K, which should take about 5 years, after which I can just leave that alone to grow for about 10 years, which will bring it close to 1M.
What will actually happen? I have no idea. That’s just the rough outline assuming nothing changes. However, I’m starting my own business, I may or may not stick with my day job once the debt is gone. My day job is lucrative, but can never create passive income and isn’t scalable.
I definitely will continue working while DH is working, and I’ll likely work in some way well into retirement because I like to be busy with useful things.
Sounds like a good plan, Malkynn!
Post by: beach2133 on January 29, 2018, 09:59:18 AM
Posting to follow and committed to going for 2025.
2025 will put me at 43 which is my stretch goal. Although, I think @ 45 (2027) my risk aversion illness will be finally be able to be quelled. DW is a teacher and wants to work forever, but I'm looking forward to having my summers free to spend with my family. Only one kiddo right now that is 11 months, but I expect there will be one more in the future.
I'm currently 19.3x my FIRE budget (no mortgage/no daycare) and 10.8x my current budget. I'm tracking both in case I decide to take on a 2nd mortgage for rental property.
I've also created a 4 phase retirement plan (45 - 55, 55-60, 60-70, 70+) and track my current assets against the amount of Today's $ it would take to support that plan. It's another fun way to compare the numbers when you get bored. I'm @ 60.91% as of August 1st, 2016.
Amazing what a year and a half of above average market returns will do. Even though I've adjusted my Current and FI budget's for additional expenses, I'm up to 20.7x my FIRE budget and 13.5x my current budget. I've adjusted my retirement age from 45 to 44 and have that assets to support that plan 79.55% funded. I know some turbulent times are coming, but it's hard to not feel great about cashing in on the last 1.5 years.
Post by: Anagnorisis on February 04, 2018, 12:40:04 PM
I rent out two rooms in my house, work full time and have a largely ignored side gig that usually kicks in a few K each year. Total income should be about 110K. My bare bones spending is 15K, but I'm more comfortable at 20K.
I currently stand at:
18K Invested Post Tax
60K Invested 401k/IRA/HSA
120K Home Equity with 120K left to pay off at 3% over 28 years.
------
~200K NW
My goal is 750K post tax, 600K 401K/IRA/HSA or ~1.5M with the home equity.
Post by: ardrum on February 04, 2018, 01:11:03 PM
Hi everyone! I'm in - 2025!! I'll be 44 that year..
I rent out two rooms in my house, work full time and have a largely ignored side gig that usually kicks in a few K each year. Total income should be about 110K. My bare bones spending is 15K, but I'm more comfortable at 20K.
I currently stand at:
18K Invested Post Tax
60K Invested 401k/IRA/HSA
120K Home Equity with 120K left to pay off at 3% over 28 years.
------
~200K NW
My goal is 750K post tax, 600K 401K/IRA/HSA or ~1.5M with the home equity.
I have similar spending to you. Sounds like you're doing great.
Post by: Anagnorisis on February 04, 2018, 06:30:19 PM
Quote
I have similar spending to you. Sounds like you're doing great.
Thanks Ardrum. What return are you using to calculate out your timeline?
Post by: SaucyAussie on February 06, 2018, 05:15:45 AM
Post by: 2Birds1Stone on February 06, 2018, 01:17:11 PM
Everyone hanging in there? Nobody jumping ship to the 2026'ers I hope!
Cheaper shares might get you into 2024 ;)
Post by: hettie1 on February 07, 2018, 02:50:39 PM
Post by: e34bb098 on March 06, 2018, 06:39:45 PM
Here's hoping I have a rich-but-unloved relative leave me a fabulous inheritance beforehand. Otherwise ... 2025 it is.
Post by: Dragonswan on March 08, 2018, 11:48:14 AM
I'm in.Yeah, I'm hoping for an ex lover to realize on his death bed that I'm the one he let get away. He struck it rich while I wasn't looking and he'll leave me his stache.
Here's hoping I have a rich-but-unloved relative leave me a fabulous inheritance beforehand. Otherwise ... 2025 it is.
Post by: Gone_Hiking on March 22, 2018, 09:15:30 PM
Everyone hanging in there? Nobody jumping ship to the 2026'ers I hope!
Cheaper shares! yay!
Post by: Laura33 on March 23, 2018, 06:48:43 AM
Everyone hanging in there? Nobody jumping ship to the 2026'ers I hope!
Cheaper shares! yay!
I assume this means something happened in the markets again? [yawn]
Post by: Gone_Hiking on March 23, 2018, 06:18:52 PM
Everyone hanging in there? Nobody jumping ship to the 2026'ers I hope!
Cheaper shares! yay!
I assume this means something happened in the markets again? [yawn]
yep. Market going down on pure trade war prospect panic means dividend yields will be up. hee hee.
Post by: yourusernamehere on March 23, 2018, 06:25:52 PM
(Yes this actually happened as described! Followed by both of us laughing pretty hard.)
Post by: poniesandFIRE on April 05, 2018, 09:28:05 AM
I will turn 41 and DH will turn 46 that year. For the sake of numbers, I'd rather hit our number in 2024 (by 40!), but I think 2025 is a big stretch as it is.
We are currently at 7.10x a pretty generous FIRE budget.
Post by: Gone_Hiking on April 06, 2018, 08:24:04 PM
Post by: wienerdog on April 07, 2018, 08:43:51 AM
Post by: dougules on April 12, 2018, 01:57:30 PM
Or... comment? Is "post" wrong?I love when you guys post! The notification comes up and reminds me that 2025 is getting closer.
Post?
I think "post" is just fine. Btw, my countdown spreadsheet informs me I have 1715 working days until my 2025 date. Just wonder if I will fall prey to the OMY illness at that time.
Post.
Post by: frugalecon on April 13, 2018, 05:22:30 PM
Post by: BZB on April 24, 2018, 06:51:37 PM
Post by: frugalecon on April 24, 2018, 07:34:38 PM
Working toward hitting FIRE in 2025. Boy howdy, today at work was serious motivation...
Some days are like that, aren’t they? Welcome to the 2025 club!
Post by: highlandterrier on April 29, 2018, 06:51:48 AM
Our affairs are a bit complicated, we'll be 51 then, with a lot of assets in defined benefits pensions which probably won't be accessible until around 60 and 70 (our government keeps changing the rules of access so cannot be sure, doesn't help with the independence bit of FIRE!).
Currently at 8.75x current annual living expenses aiming for about 21x that figure, which will 18x expected expenses at that time allowing for average inflation. Pensions will subsidise this eventually. Saving rate about 55% and creeping up as I convince the other half on the benefits of this approach. Suggesting the possibility of going to live in Florence for a summer in a few years time peaked her interest - "how can we do that highlandterrier". Well...
My projections are very cautious so hopefully will stay on track through any obstacles - I wanna win the game !
Post by: MrSeven on May 18, 2018, 10:58:05 AM
I do like my career and enjoy work a majority of the time, so my savings goal is higher than typical. After I reach FIRE the plan is to work with Mrs. Seven as she currently owns 2 eCommerce businesses which are starting to make a steady profit.
Mortgage is paid off.
Current Savings is ~14X of my living expenses
Biggest spending area besides food is vacationing. Over the past 5 years we average 12% of our annual spending on vacations.
Post by: mld on May 23, 2018, 10:34:17 AM
How's everyone holding up?
I just saw this when lurking in the 2018 Fire Cohort :
Random Tuesday with a handful of weeks left to work. Lately, I have felt a spreading joy that is not dimmed by cubicles or florescent lights. I have Sigur Ros album "Takk" playing and it feels right on.
I think quitting in about 5 weeks may have revived my enjoyment of work. Ironic.
I'm having the exact opposite reaction now that I've given notice. I hate that place. I hate the whole idea of voluntary servitude. I'm astonished at the level of bullshit I have previously swallowed without even recognizing it, like a fish who can't see water.
I've become a terrible employee. I struggle to keep my misery at cubicle life hidden from my co-workers. I have contempt for people and behaviors I used to accept as normal.
Mostly, and this is the recurring thought I just can't seem to get rid of, being at work now makes me think "how did I ever care so much?"
Made me laugh but also feel a bit sad since I feel like that most days lately and I still have a good 7 years to go, yikes!
I must say I feel much better when I'm telecommuting once or twice per week but still, some weeks are just tougher I guess. Also, knowing that FI is not that far down the road sure gives a different perspective on office life.
Post by: Dragonswan on May 23, 2018, 12:38:35 PM
Post by: ardrum on May 30, 2018, 08:06:59 PM
Quote
I have similar spending to you. Sounds like you're doing great.
Thanks Ardrum. What return are you using to calculate out your timeline?
I tend to use 5% real return in my estimates.
Post by: Sandi_k on June 02, 2018, 07:13:19 PM
Currently have 12x additional living expenses in investments; that includes a mortgage that will be done in October 2031.
We're segmenting our savings into "bridge funds" for age 60-70, so that I can delay claiming SocSec until age 70; DH will probably claim at FRA, in 2030.
Post by: economist on June 08, 2018, 08:24:57 PM
Net Worth is around 5.7X expenses, investing plus debt pay down is still around 1.5X expenses per year. So with 0% market returns, looking at around 16-18X expenses in 2025, and if the market does better than that, should be within spitting distance. So I'm keeping 2025 as a goal, knowing that it entails a little bit of optimism bias.
Still not really including GFs numbers since so much depends on exactly when she finishes her PHD and how much she starts earning, plus our finances are still semi-separate right now. Which probably means my numbers are, if anything, more conservative than they need to be. So maybe I'm not too overly optimistic.
Post by: mld on July 16, 2018, 11:57:43 AM
In a moment of motivation, I decided to create our Cohort list by going through all our posts.
Wow we are a huge group! I've kept some name of people that have moved down to earlier cohorts at the bottom of the list for motivation, let me know if you prefer removing them to make this list shorter. I imagine this will change a lot over the next 6.5 years... we may eventually remove names where person has been MIA for a while from the forum.
Feel free to add/update when necessary or PM me if you prefer!
2025 Cohort with age at FIRE if Known and notes:
2Birds1Stone (38)
Acyclist Nest Egg by 2025, RE later to pay for insurance
adamb (34)
aetheldrea April 20th 2025
afuera (34)
AK (40s) Already feel R.E. by self-employed & WFH. 2025 conservative goal maybe 2021.
Anagnorisis (44)
Anette (55 DH 55)
ardrum
asauer (47 SO 47)
AusLady (46) LT dream of working 3mo travelly 3mo and 6mo enjoying beach and yoga where she lives
AussieMoneymo (43 DW 44)
babystache89
Bbbent (61)
beach2133 (43)
BeautifulDay (46 DH 47)
Bird In Hand (upper 40s)
bryan995 (40)
Bumperpuff (42)
BZB
carcus (59.5)
chasingthegoodlife
chloe1733 (41 DH 44)
clarkfan1979 (45 DW 41)
dougules Official countdown 1 Feb 2025, will probably get there a bit before then.
Dragonswan
druth Shooting for earlier, possibly by going semi-retired for longer.
e34bb098
economist (34)
EngineerYogi (36 DH 40)
eyePod (40)
Eyestache
facepalm Latest date, earliest probably 2022
Fastfwd (50)
Fire2025 (55)
FL_MM
Fomerly known as something (47)
Frugal D (40)
frugalecon
G42 (55)
geekinprogress
golfreak12
Gondolin (35)
Gone_Hiking (54 DH 54)
hettie (39 DH 43)
highlandterrier (51 SO 51) July 2025
hucktard FI by 2023 planning to work more years for kids in highschool
hunker_towards (39) August 2025
Icecreamarsenal
kitkat (34)
LadyDividend
Laura33 (58 DH 58)
Lethie
Linda_Norway (50 DH 53)
Lizzaroo (52 DH 29)
Malkynn (43) DH will continue working until 2035
manandsea
marty988
messymoneymay Feb 2025 hoping to move up
mld (36 SO 39) Planning to switch to WFH full-time soon + Summers off starting 2021
moof
MrSeven July 2025
new mustache city (38)
oneday 2025 is stretch goal
OthalaFehu (50)
poniesandFIRE (41 DH 46) Stretch for 2024 for RE by 40
Professor Ecks
rentalnewbie (40 DH 40)
Sandi_k (60)
Sapphire (55 DH 56)
SaucyAussie
screwit (50 DH 56)
Scrooge (44) Aiming for 2021
Silrossi46 (55)
skiddieleet (40) 2030 might be more realistic
Slee_stack
SoccerLounge May not RE because job/career is super awesome
Spitfire (45)
swashbucklinstache (36) Likely FI 2025 rather than FIRE
sweetest (53 DH 55)
tarheeldan (40) Might do Peace Corp or downshift in 2023
thebeautywithout (38 DH 42)
tj (40)
TomTX Push date is 2025 current is 2027
travelawyer (43 SO 44)
tssuila Likely May/June 2025
warehouse Targeting 2024/2025
wienerdog (55)
yourusernamehere (42 DH 54)
Zamboni
Moved down to earlier cohorts:
Canadian Ben (35) Now 2020 by aiming for very PT (40h/month)
Need2Save (52 SO 52) Now 2024 maybe 2023
Post by: hunker_towards on July 16, 2018, 12:49:15 PM
Post by: mld on July 16, 2018, 01:24:17 PM
Ooh ooh, please add me. I'm aiming for August 2025. I'll be 39.
Done :D and welcome to team 2025!
Post by: Anette on July 16, 2018, 05:24:39 PM
Post by: Silrossi46 on July 16, 2018, 06:58:00 PM
I will be 55 (golden handcuffs holding me till 55). I am 48 now.
Paid off home = 550k value
457 plan = 400k will grow for 7 more till 55 with max being added yearly
60% pay pension at 55 (31 years of service). Highest final 3 years average pay will be 178000
300k in after tax vanguard account
Premium free medical included in retirement
Is it 2025 yet???? Lol
Post by: yourusernamehere on July 16, 2018, 07:41:43 PM
We'll have to see what happens, but DH and I are now moving out of state and also having a baby (which was planned years ago but seemed that it wouldn't work out, so is actually a bit of a surprise.) Things have changed a lot for us but FI in 2025 is still our target!
Post by: oneday on July 16, 2018, 10:55:41 PM
Thank you mid, seeing my name on the list feels great and gives me this great: "Yes, I am on my way, going to do this and I am part of a supportive community " feeling that I needed!
Um, now that you say it, I realize I feel the same way!
I am in the middle of my first month of independent finances from Mr. X. Excited for June 31st, so I can make some calculations to see if I'm still on track for 2025-ish. Although with only a month of "pure" data, not sure I can really extrapolate 7 years in the future with any sort of accuracy. It will be fun to try!
Post by: ardrum on July 17, 2018, 05:14:12 AM
Post by: mld on July 17, 2018, 11:26:54 AM
I am on the 2025 train as well... HCOL area
...
Is it 2025 yet???? Lol
Added you to the list :) Welcome aboard! Your numbers are looking very good :), any plans for increasing time off until 2025?
You've brought our number of members up to an even 90! Like ardrum said: Impressive!
We'll have to see what happens, but DH and I are now moving out of state and also having a baby (which was planned years ago but seemed that it wouldn't work out, so is actually a bit of a surprise.) Things have changed a lot for us but FI in 2025 is still our target!
Wow awesome! Congrats!! Personally having kiddoes just made us even more motivated to get there ;). Also, I found that our spending didn't really increase as child expenses replaced eating out and other activities that time with our kids took over hehe. (Although we have really cheap daycare here so I realize this might not be the case for everyone).
Wow @mld, what a simple yet amazing idea for a post! So glad to have you in our cohort!Thank you mid, seeing my name on the list feels great and gives me this great: "Yes, I am on my way, going to do this and I am part of a supportive community " feeling that I needed!
Um, now that you say it, I realize I feel the same way!
Aw thanks! I also needed this supportive community feeling as we slowly treck along to this goal. Really happy to be a part of it!
Looking forward to seeing your calculations based on this month!! One month of data can still give you a good idea :).
Post by: mld on July 17, 2018, 01:24:00 PM
Feb 2017: 7x (+ Paid off our remaining mortgage woohoo!)
Oct 2017: 8x
July 2018: 10.5x
Goals:
01/2019: 10.6x *Already almost there!*
01/2020: 12.8x
01/2021: 15x
01/2022: 17.3x
01/2023: 19.6x
01/2024: 22.1x
01/2025: 24x
Post by: ardrum on July 18, 2018, 11:06:35 AM
Thought I'd also do a quick update of the stash/situation over time as a multiple of expenses:
Feb 2017: 7x (+ Paid off our remaining mortgage woohoo!)
Oct 2017: 8x
July 2018: 10.5x
Goals:
01/2019: 10.6x *Already almost there!*
01/2020: 12.8x
01/2021: 15x
01/2022: 17.3x
01/2023: 19.6x
01/2024: 22.1x
01/2025: 24x
Nice! I bet you can almost taste that 12.5x "Half FI" milestone.
That's huge since you'll likely be long past halfway there in terms of time.
I exceeded "Quarter FI" and my end of 2018 goal already. I'm pushing hard though to exceed it as a buffer against the bext recession so that the overall trajectory to 2025 hopefully holds strong. I'm doubting it will be a linear graph like that, but I'll push hard in both the good and bad times.
Post by: oneday on July 18, 2018, 05:16:17 PM
Looking forward to seeing your calculations based on this month!! One month of data can still give you a good idea :).
What about 2 weeks...I have 2 weeks! I can totally figure out my FIRE date with this data, right? :)
Post by: BZB on July 25, 2018, 05:47:20 PM
Working toward hitting FIRE in 2025. Boy howdy, today at work was serious motivation...Welp, adding to my previous comment on this thread, my team at work was just introduced to boss #6. I've only been there 5 years. I'm so ready to get out of this game but I have a way to go. I'm glad most of my work is self-guided and I'm the expert in my area, so the bosses just nod and smile when I have my update meetings with them.
Post by: CupcakeGuru on July 26, 2018, 05:08:19 AM
Post by: mld on July 27, 2018, 10:30:37 AM
Updated list to add Cupcake Guru :). Welcome aboard!
Feel free to add/update when necessary or PM me if you prefer!
2025 Cohort with age at FIRE if Known and notes:
2Birds1Stone (38)
Acyclist Nest Egg by 2025, RE later to pay for insurance
adamb (34)
aetheldrea April 20th 2025
afuera (34)
AK (40s) Already feel R.E. by self-employed & WFH. 2025 conservative goal maybe 2021.
Anagnorisis (44)
Anette (55 DH 55)
ardrum
asauer (47 SO 47)
AusLady (46) LT dream of working 3mo travelly 3mo and 6mo enjoying beach and yoga where she lives
AussieMoneymo (43 DW 44)
babystache89
Bbbent (61)
beach2133 (43)
BeautifulDay (46 DH 47)
Bird In Hand (upper 40s)
bryan995 (40)
Bumperpuff (42)
BZB
carcus (59.5)
chasingthegoodlife
chloe1733 (41 DH 44)
clarkfan1979 (45 DW 41)
Cupcake Guru (53 DH 57) Could move to 2023, but DH might go PT in 2019 so aiming for FFF in 2025.
dougules Official countdown 1 Feb 2025, will probably get there a bit before then.
Dragonswan
druth Shooting for earlier, possibly by going semi-retired for longer.
e34bb098
economist (34)
EngineerYogi (36 DH 40)
eyePod (40)
Eyestache
facepalm Latest date, earliest probably 2022
Fastfwd (50)
Fire2025 (55)
FL_MM
Fomerly known as something (47)
Frugal D (40)
frugalecon
G42 (55)
geekinprogress
golfreak12
Gondolin (35)
Gone_Hiking (54 DH 54)
hettie (39 DH 43)
highlandterrier (51 SO 51) July 2025
hucktard FI by 2023 planning to work more years for kids in highschool
hunker_towards (39) August 2025
Icecreamarsenal
kitkat (34)
LadyDividend
Laura33 (58 DH 58)
Lethie
Linda_Norway (50 DH 53)
Lizzaroo (52 DH 29)
Malkynn (43) DH will continue working until 2035
manandsea
marty988
messymoneymay Feb 2025 hoping to move up
mld (36 SO 39) Planning to switch to WFH full-time soon + Summers off starting 2021
moof
MrSeven July 2025
new mustache city (38)
oneday 2025 is stretch goal
OthalaFehu (50)
poniesandFIRE (41 DH 46) Stretch for 2024 for RE by 40
Professor Ecks
rentalnewbie (40 DH 40)
Sandi_k (60)
Sapphire (55 DH 56)
SaucyAussie
screwit (50 DH 56)
Scrooge (44) Aiming for 2021
Silrossi46 (55)
skiddieleet (40) 2030 might be more realistic
Slee_stack
SoccerLounge May not RE because job/career is super awesome
Spitfire (45)
swashbucklinstache (36) Likely FI 2025 rather than FIRE
sweetest (53 DH 55)
tarheeldan (40) Might do Peace Corp or downshift in 2023
thebeautywithout (38 DH 42)
tj (40)
TomTX Push date is 2025 current is 2027
travelawyer (43 SO 44)
tssuila Likely May/June 2025
warehouse Targeting 2024/2025
wienerdog (55)
yourusernamehere (42 DH 54)
Zamboni
Moved down to earlier cohorts:
Canadian Ben (35) Now 2019 with no PT work! (from now 2020 by aiming for very PT (40h/month) )
Need2Save (52 SO 52) Now 2024 maybe 2023
Post by: mld on July 30, 2018, 10:05:37 AM
Canadian Ben is now in 2019, with no PT work.
Yay for optimization!
Wow you are an inspiration Canadian Ben! Way to go!!!!
Post by: highlandterrier on July 30, 2018, 10:49:24 AM
Post by: Fomerly known as something on August 02, 2018, 05:58:13 PM
Post by: SaucyAussie on August 03, 2018, 11:10:42 AM
I went back to school this year to work on my masters in computer science (paid for by my job). I should graduate right around the time I retire. :)
For the record keeping, I'll be 54 for most of 2025.
Post by: marty998 on August 04, 2018, 03:51:41 AM
I will be 39 in 2025.
Next month my "investment" net assets will be over $400,000. I currently have $750k odd tied up in my apartment and retirement savings. Seems ridiculous... and I should be taking more risks but it's hard to get over seared memories of the GFC where I torched a lot of capital.
Slow and steady will get me there.
Post by: TomTX on August 18, 2018, 07:08:31 PM
I am on the 2025 train as well... HCOL area
I will be 55 (golden handcuffs holding me till 55). I am 48 now.
Paid off home = 550k value
457 plan = 400k will grow for 7 more till 55 with max being added yearly
60% pay pension at 55 (31 years of service). Highest final 3 years average pay will be 178000
300k in after tax vanguard account
Premium free medical included in retirement
Is it 2025 yet???? Lol
Yeah, that golden handcuffs is what had me in the 2027 group. I can start drawing that pension (57%), with medical. And unused leave time counts as "time served." I'm not nearly at your salary, but I did get a moderate pay bump a couple of months ago (career track title bump) - but I've put in for another position that would finally get me into (or at least close to) 6 figures. Probably won't hear much on that til November, the current occupant of that slot is hanging around another couple months.
But, I would really like to make it by 2025 - which is why I'm here. Pushes back the pension date til 2029, and reduces the percentage to 51% - and the accrued leave time just evaporates.
Oh, and since records department here likes having an age.... ;) I would be 51 in 2025.
Post by: Sandi_k on August 19, 2018, 07:16:45 PM
I am on the 2025 train as well... HCOL area
I will be 55 (golden handcuffs holding me till 55). I am 48 now.
Is it 2025 yet???? Lol
Yeah, that golden handcuffs is what had me in the 2027 group. I can start drawing that pension (57%), with medical. And unused leave time counts as "time served."
Oh, and since records department here likes having an age.... ;) I would be 51 in 2025.
Me three. My multiplier hits 2.5% of "high three years average" the day I turn 60. At that time (in 7 years), I'll have 36 years of service. 36 x 2.5% = 90% of my average paycheck.
It also includes (currently) retiree health.
With FICA (8%), mandatory pension payments (~8%) and voluntary savings (12%), parking (1%), gas for the commute (3.3%) - that's 32% of that retiree income back in my pocket. I'll make MORE money in retirement that I do working.
That "cushion" will allow DH to retire as well - he's never made as much or saved as much, but this will take care of us both. So, 7 years, 3 weeks to go!!
Post by: Fomerly known as something on August 20, 2018, 05:42:01 AM
Under the federal system I'm vested but until I'm eligible to retire they only count full months for the pension so I consider myself on a month to month plan. I will only retire on the 17th of the month so if I miss it I need to work until the end of the month. But really I'm staying at this point for the peace of mind that will be the Federal Employees Health Benefit program which I maintain in retirement.
Post by: TomTX on August 20, 2018, 05:55:32 PM
My golden albatross is for 7/17/25, 83 months. I now have less time to work than some people have on their 7 year car loans. Actually I realized I can play with leave if I need to and really have 82 months if I take my vacation time as terminal leave instead of cashing it out.
Under the federal system I'm vested but until I'm eligible to retire they only count full months for the pension so I consider myself on a month to month plan. I will only retire on the 17th of the month so if I miss it I need to work until the end of the month. But really I'm staying at this point for the peace of mind that will be the Federal Employees Health Benefit program which I maintain in retirement.
To me it makes a lot more sense to use my leave time instead of just stockpiling it for a payout at the end.
Post by: wienerdog on August 26, 2018, 12:51:56 PM
(http://imgur.com/zaCXYigl.png)
Post by: letsdoit on September 08, 2018, 07:05:27 AM
7 years to FI , but i wanna leave space for life to play her surprising love on us
Post by: 2Birds1Stone on September 08, 2018, 11:33:55 AM
Best case, 2019. Worst case, 2022.
Post by: TomTX on September 08, 2018, 05:16:30 PM
I'm also out of this cohort.
Best case, 2019. Worst case, 2022.
Congratulations! I'm straddling between here and 2027. 2025 is looking more likely lately. Of course, it could all implode ;)
This year so far has been interesting. I've been pretty settled in my job for over a decade - pay's decent but not great, the pension will include medical*, I do a job that's important and impactful. I have professional respect. I have somewhat flexible hours and work 10 minutes from home. If there is a problem with the kid at school (or whatever) I can usually just drop things and go.
What's been interesting? Upper management crapped on my one important conference of the year. I had arranged 100% outside financing from an acceptable source and had enthusiastic support through two management levels up. Got told not to go from on high. No reasons given other than "we send too many people to conferences" Ridiculous. I am on technical committees and am one of very few owner's side representatives on an oversight board for the industry. Which meets in person once a year at the conference. This is my ONE conference per year, and it's a real working conference.
I looked around and applied for one "moon shot" job. Didn't get it, but it did get me off my complacency.
MrsTX went back to work full time, at a short term position (~4 months) making slightly more in raw dollars than me (but no benefits).
I got a nice raise, putting me in the earnings lead again.
2 months in, they find the budget to extend MrsTX by an additional 5 months.
Massive management shakeup for me and the promise from upper management about significantly worse working conditions in a few years (Okay, they didn't present it that way - but we're not stupid. It's gonna suck.)
I get a title add-on commensurate with a portion of my actual duties.
I applied for another job, well within my capabilities, still in the State system, title add-on is very pertinent, should be a ~30% raise. Longer commute, but my inside information says 2 day a week WFH is standard, as is general flexibility. They also think I would be great for the job. It's also outside the domain of the upper management craziness over me currently. The State works slowly, so I don't really expect to hear anything for months. Keeping an eye out for other appealing positions that come with a nice raise.
MrsTX got an even bigger raise than I did, putting her back in the earnings lead. And she should get benefits in November. If I can take her off my insurance, that would save $350/month.
Expenditures have only gone up by the cost of child care and commute mileage - stashing rate has increased significantly.
*Pension eligible in 2027, should I work in the State system until 2027. 2029 if I leave in 2025. No later than 2033 in any event.
Post by: oneday on September 09, 2018, 12:34:08 PM
we are at assets =10x spending
7 years to FI , but i wanna leave space for life to play her surprising love on us
Wise!
I'm also out of this cohort.
Best case, 2019. Worst case, 2022.
I didn't realize you were in this cohort...not surprised to see you jump to an earlier one, though :)
MrsTX got an even bigger raise than I did, putting her back in the earnings lead.
The best kind of competition. No matter who is in the lead, you are both winning!
Post by: TomTX on September 30, 2018, 09:56:00 AM
I'm officially moving from 2027 to 2025 as my "base" year for planned ER, and 2023 as my stretch goal.
Retiring 2 years sooner will push my pension/medical eligibility back by 4 years + 4 months, and (perhaps obviously) reduce the monthly payout for my pension.
No movement on the new position front, but the back channel I got was that they are unlikely to start looking at resumes until at least November, so no worries. I've kept looking for other interesting positions. If I do manage that ~30% bump, it makes 2023 quite plausible, as it would bump up the pension payout.
Hello, new home. I hope to leave you too! ;)
Post by: Neustache on September 30, 2018, 11:09:21 AM
Post by: TomTX on September 30, 2018, 11:19:26 AM
I think I am joining....2025 is when I hope to quit teaching full time and just take subbing gigs. I love teaching but I don't live the 5 full day schedule!I have enjoyed teaching when I had the chance - I could probably get a part time adult education gig in my industry pretty easily. The courses are held worldwide, so that would be one way to get some travel expenses taken care of.
Post by: achvfi on October 19, 2018, 10:35:55 AM
I am facing difficult situation at work, dealing with bad boss for last few months and looking forward to move on to other roles or job soon. Its been very stressful and humiliating experience. Only option I see out of it is move on with my career. This whole episode reinforced how great the FIRE movement is and has helped us prepare for unexpected. I appreciated having enough FU money so much and it put me at ease as I realized I had other options at my disposal if I wanted to leave the job or got fired.
Some positives from all this.. My SO is making increased effort to spend less and we may finally be able to keep spending within monthly budget. We are all eating at home more. I realized importance of FU money and pulled back investments a little bit until we bulk up emergency savings. I was little too aggressive on investments so far. We only have about $24000 accessible funds, My goal is to build it to $50000 soon and reach $100000 in next 4 years. I think we can live on $30000 per year comfortably. If you have any thoughts on emergency funds, please chime in.
Cheers to FIRE and you all.
Post by: frugalecon on October 19, 2018, 10:37:08 AM
Post by: letsdoit on October 22, 2018, 12:18:49 PM
could do it late 2025 , with some good fortune?
will need to figure out health insurance first, (we're american)
Post by: beach2133 on November 19, 2018, 10:18:43 AM
Posting to follow and committed to going for 2025.
2025 will put me at 43 which is my stretch goal. Although, I think @ 45 (2027) my risk aversion illness will be finally be able to be quelled. DW is a teacher and wants to work forever, but I'm looking forward to having my summers free to spend with my family. Only one kiddo right now that is 11 months, but I expect there will be one more in the future.
I'm currently 19.3x my FIRE budget (no mortgage/no daycare) and 10.8x my current budget. I'm tracking both in case I decide to take on a 2nd mortgage for rental property.
I've also created a 4 phase retirement plan (45 - 55, 55-60, 60-70, 70+) and track my current assets against the amount of Today's $ it would take to support that plan. It's another fun way to compare the numbers when you get bored. I'm @ 60.91% as of August 1st, 2016.
Amazing what a year and a half of above average market returns will do. Even though I've adjusted my Current and FI budget's for additional expenses, I'm up to 20.7x my FIRE budget and 13.5x my current budget. I've adjusted my retirement age from 45 to 44 and have that assets to support that plan 79.55% funded. I know some turbulent times are coming, but it's hard to not feel great about cashing in on the last 1.5 years.
November 2018 Update:
- Housing Situation has changed that will likely mean carrying a mortgage into FIRE (and thus dramatically changed my FIRE Budget), but still on track for 2025.
- FIRE Budget - 15.13x
- 4 Phase Spending Plan funded - 83.92% Funded
- Age 75 - 105 (I know, I know) - 100% Funded
- Age 60 - 75 - 100% Funded
- Age 55 - 60 - 100% Funded
- Age 44 - 55 - 69.35% Funded
- Years to FI - 2.02
Post by: Icecreamarsenal on December 17, 2018, 07:56:33 AM
Optimized more, saving more, spending less, happier.
Post by: Dragonswan on December 18, 2018, 09:40:02 AM
Post by: frugalecon on December 18, 2018, 07:06:12 PM
Unfortunately my FIRE date is tied to my pension which is tied to my age. If the planets perfectly align (quality step increases) and the stars twinkle in a counterclockwise direction (early out at 58) then I might be able to retire two years earlier (2023), but for now I'm still on track for August 2025 at age 60.
You sound like you might be a Fed...I am in the same boat. I am just trying to hang on until then. It is hard in these weeks when the s#&$ really is hitting the fan.
Post by: Dragonswan on December 19, 2018, 10:25:12 AM
Post by: Laura33 on December 19, 2018, 10:44:43 AM
Are we all moving up our FIRE dates?
Optimized more, saving more, spending less, happier.
Yes and no. Financially, probably yes: DD has a couple of college offers that came with significant merit aid, so we can cover everything else from what we already have saved. So that's one significant unknown (almost) down.
Emotionally, we're probably further away. DH is on a project that he loves, and now that RE feels more "real" because we've put an actual date on it that isn't that far away, he is really hedging and waffling about stepping away -- he says @10 years for the project to be either fully going or dead, but he's been saying that for 2-3 years at least. And, honestly, I'm now seeing a VERY empty house in a few years, with tons more free time with no kid activities to go to), and it's making me realize that what bugs me the most about my job is the daily stress of balancing family time with work -- and that will go away once the kids do. So I could see both of us dropping down to some version of very-part-time (primarily to have large blocks of time to travel in), but we generally like what we do and are good at it, so it may be longer before we fully quit.
Post by: markbike528CBX on December 19, 2018, 11:46:25 AM
... snip...
I am joining this cohort as well. We are at ~360K net worth, if everything goes well we should be I realized importance of FU money and pulled back investments a little bit until we bulk up emergency savings. I was little too aggressive on investments so far. We only have about $24000 accessible funds, My goal is to build it to $50000 soon and reach $100000 in next 4 years. I think we can live on $30000 per year comfortably. If you have any thoughts on emergency funds, please chime in.
Cheers to FIRE and you all.
30k x1/2( 6 months) = 15k max emergency fund (cash or equivalents) = FU money. No if ands or buts, really. Anything more is a major drag on your investments. If if your investment plan says so then add some bonds. Now is a time to load up on equities. Just like Sept 2008, when I did ( not the bottom, but close enough).
You asked.
Post by: Fish Sweet on December 21, 2018, 04:47:37 PM
Current stash ~150k, depending on market fluctuations. My current spending is about ~20k a year, but we'll see if I can't cut that down a bit come 2019!
Post by: swashbucklinstache on January 06, 2019, 06:18:57 PM
Yah chief, sign me up. Likely as FI rather than FIRE, with a few extra years to pad on after, but so much could change from now to then. Aged 27, 8.5x current expense saved, no house, 65% or so savings rate give or take. Single, readiness-to-mingle currently TBD
Well, there was my original post in 12/2016! In the intervening 9 months I've moved from 8.5x current expenses to 10.96x and upped my savings rate a few percentage points! I'm still an immature smartass though :).
My life is so far from where it'll be in 2025 that it's hard to say how i'm doing, but things are headed in the right direction. I could be in the 650k-900k range if things go roughly how they've gone so far. The high end of that is looking damn near the end of things for full-time worker bee me if I'm still single and childless at that time, or at least time to ask for a stupid amount of money not to go a-wanderin'.
Hope everyone else is on track, too.
Update, maybe I'll keep an annually running tab in this thread if people don't mind :).
stache as multiple of 3 year trailing current expenses
12/2016: 8.5x
09/2017: 10.96x
12/2017: 11.6x - would be higher but have had an expensive year
2018 EOY update:
2016: 8.5x
09/2017: 10.96x
2017: 11.6x
2018: 13.65x
I'm aiming for ~45x with these numbers for FIRE (health insurance, likely lifestyle changes etc.).
How is everyone else doing as we start 2019?
Post by: SaucyAussie on January 09, 2019, 07:35:30 AM
On the positive side, with stocks being "cheaper", I am buying like crazy.
Post by: MrThatsDifferent on February 21, 2019, 02:43:47 AM
Post by: AK on February 21, 2019, 07:54:28 AM
Post by: bryan995 on March 02, 2019, 09:16:39 PM
Wife and I are still torn on where to FIRE. Currently in SoCal and love it, but it's expensive.
With 1 in daycare, we can live a VERY comfortable life at a 80k spend (still room to cut).
If we keep the 80k spend as our target, we are now on track for 2026 at age 39/40.
Hoping that promotions will either speed us up or act as a buffer for unexpected expenses.
Or do we just plan for 40K, move to Utah and be done in 3.3 years?? :-)
Current savings rate: 62%
Fire Target: 2,040,000 (25x expected retirement spending)
In 1000 simulations, 39 is the median retirement age (7.3 years)
10th to 90th %ile: 5.7 to 9.9 years to retirement
25th to 75th %ile: 6.4 to 8.6 years to retirement
Slow starters, so we are only at 6x expenses currently.
2018 - 6.0x
2019 - 7.6x
2020 - 9.7x
2021 - 11.9x
2022 - 14.3x
2023 - 16.8x
2024 - 19.4
2025 - 22.2x
2026 - 25.2x (2.022MM)
Post by: letsdoit on March 05, 2019, 03:47:54 PM
i have done some work with the mad fientist spreadsheet to try to read the effects that diff life choices would have on FIRE.
that being said, the spreadsheet wont tell me which life choices to make. so 2025 still seems a way off
Post by: SaucyAussie on March 06, 2019, 06:39:32 AM
What sort of yearly-spend is everyone shooting for? Might be useful to add a poll. Though I'm sure it's all over the place ;)
Shooting for 36K annual spend. I am single, will have a paid off house in low cost area. So my biggest expenses will be travel and health care.
Post by: poniesandFIRE on March 06, 2019, 08:20:17 AM
Post by: swashbucklinstache on March 06, 2019, 03:29:05 PM
What sort of yearly-spend is everyone shooting for? Might be useful to add a poll. Though I'm sure it's all over the place ;)
I'm currently running in the low 20s, with housing & utilities about half of that. My multiples of expenses in this thread and my journal track that. I plan on not fireing before I can support at least $40,000 at 4% out of caution, to have room to change my lifestyle later as I expect to want, and because 700k vs. 1 million is probably only an expected 1.5-2 more years of work. A lot of life and (hopefully!) life changes between then and now for me as a currently but hopefully not permanently single 29 year old so I don't worry too much.
Post by: oneday on March 07, 2019, 02:54:58 PM
FIRE spending would be in low 40s, i think
i have done some work with the mad fientist spreadsheet to try to read the effects that diff life choices would have on FIRE.
that being said, the spreadsheet wont tell me which life choices to make. so 2025 still seems a way off
Ha, ha! @letsdoit my divorce set me back quite a ways and I'm now feeling woefully unprepared. Therefore 2025 seems like just around the corner ;)
Post by: Metalcat on March 08, 2019, 04:28:39 AM
What sort of yearly-spend is everyone shooting for? Might be useful to add a poll. Though I'm sure it's all over the place ;)
We have no real target because we have no idea when we will retire. Our end dates have nothing to do with a savings target, they'll happen when we feel like quitting.
We'll save a minimum of 1M to generate 40K, but there's no way that we'll stop working at that point, which will be ~2025, because we love our work.
Because we spend very little, we can easily generate enough to live on just through part time or casual work, and who knows how long we'll do that, so who knows how long the 1M will have to grow, and we will probably make too much money, so keep adding to the 'stache as well.
My best guess is that we'll end up a lot closer to 3M than 1M if nothing crazy changes along the way, and we do NOT want to die with giant pile of money, so we will likely have to learn to spend A LOT more than we do now in our retirement.
Post by: k290 on March 19, 2019, 10:14:33 AM
Currently sitting at roughly 10x annual expenditure.
Although I live in a very very low rent shitty apartment. Will probably upgrade at some point which could change things. Will see....
Post by: Gone_Hiking on March 19, 2019, 10:40:25 AM
Post by: frugalecon on March 21, 2019, 09:17:12 AM
Post by: TomTX on March 21, 2019, 06:26:19 PM
I started the 2027 thread, but I'm bouncing between 2023 and 2025.
Post by: frugalecon on March 21, 2019, 07:13:07 PM
Congratulations!
I started the 2027 thread, but I'm bouncing between 2023 and 2025.
Thanks, @TomTX . Seeing various folks pass “before their time” has really made me want to adopt a “One Less Year” mindset, as opposed to the more frequent “OMY.”
Post by: hettie1 on March 22, 2019, 01:43:55 PM
Post by: Laura33 on April 01, 2019, 11:05:35 AM
Personally, though, I'm still looking at 2025. Guess I'll just have to find other engaging things to spend my time on beyond whatever travel I/we can manage -- which isn't a bad thing anyway so I don't become a bump on a log between trips.
Post by: Metalcat on April 01, 2019, 11:52:13 AM
Ugh. We are on track financially. But DH was telling me a work story the other day, about how all the guys in his office were talking about what they'd do if they won the $750M powerball, and DH said he'd take a week or two off and then be right back at work. I'm really happy to see him excited and engaged; he certainly had enough years when he was neither, and those were mostly because he agreed to move to where I wanted to be. But we can't do the kind of slow travel we planned with him tied to this kind of job (not the kind you can walk away from for a month at a time or do as a contractor). And it seems the readier I am to get to our 2025 date, the further away he wants to push it.
Personally, though, I'm still looking at 2025. Guess I'll just have to find other engaging things to spend my time on beyond whatever travel I/we can manage -- which isn't a bad thing anyway so I don't become a bump on a log between trips.
Yeah, financially we can also afford to cut back significantly in 2 years and comfortably leave by 2025, but DH has no intention of doing so.
He's just *finally* made it to the level of his career where he can work the way he wants to. It's taken him a long time and he wants to enjoy it as much as possible. I still think he can and should cut back his hours a bit.
I'll never fully retire, so I'm irrelevant to the equation.
Post by: wienerdog on April 01, 2019, 05:24:15 PM
Post by: yow on April 02, 2019, 05:40:02 AM
By my calculations as of April 1st I am 42.98% of the way towards my number (11.19 X expected expenses). This includes everything in my investment accounts.
I do have other assets but they will not be included in my calculations.
Post by: mld on April 23, 2019, 10:25:46 AM
Last time I posted in this thread was July 2018 therefore just coming in to do a quick update on our numbers.
We are still on track for 2025 and I've been working from home full time since Jan. 2019 which is simply wonderful.
Quick update of the stash/situation over time as a multiple of expenses:
Feb 2017: 7x (+ Paid off our remaining mortgage woohoo!)
Oct 2017: 8x
July 2018: 10.5x
Jan 2019: 10x
April 2019: 12.3x
Goals:
01/2019: 10.6x (was a bit under it but we are back up)
01/2020: 12.8x *Already almost there!*
01/2021: 15x
01/2022: 17.3x
01/2023: 19.6x
01/2024: 22.1x
01/2025: 24x
Post by: Sapphire on April 26, 2019, 01:54:40 AM
Post by: AusLady on April 27, 2019, 01:24:13 AM
It’s great knowing there is a little corner of the world where we can cheer each other on. Go Cohort FIRE 2025!
Post by: Sapphire on April 28, 2019, 12:55:25 AM
It sounds like your savings are going really well and I will be a bit like you - not jump out as soon as we hit our numbers, rather just sit with it for a bit (probably slightly in disbelief lol!), although I will try not to succumb to OMY...
Post by: SaucyAussie on April 30, 2019, 06:15:04 AM
I just did a refi so that will lock my mortgage rate in for the next 5 years, with a plan to pay it all off sometime around my retirement date (or just sell).
Post by: highlandterrier on June 24, 2019, 06:56:09 AM
Post by: Anette on June 24, 2019, 07:34:34 AM
Post by: Linea_Norway on June 25, 2019, 05:26:25 AM
I joined this cohort originally, before I made detailed calculations and had no real clue about what was possible. Now, our plan is looking pretty solid.
Post by: dougules on June 26, 2019, 11:05:15 AM
I can removed from this cohort. We will FIRE next year (2020), while I am 46 and DH 49.
I joined this cohort originally, before I made detailed calculations and had no real clue about what was possible. Now, our plan is looking pretty solid.
Congrats! I'm so jealous, although I think I am probably in the 2023 cohort myself. Still haven't done the detailed math
Post by: wienerdog on June 28, 2019, 06:18:54 PM
I can removed from this cohort. We will FIRE next year (2020), while I am 46 and DH 49.
I joined this cohort originally, before I made detailed calculations and had no real clue about what was possible. Now, our plan is looking pretty solid.
Nice! My spreadsheet says June 2024 but I am staying put. Would like to put a metal roof on and maybe get a newer truck by the time I bail out so I'll keep it at 6 years still.
Post by: Linea_Norway on June 29, 2019, 01:30:08 AM
I can removed from this cohort. We will FIRE next year (2020), while I am 46 and DH 49.
I joined this cohort originally, before I made detailed calculations and had no real clue about what was possible. Now, our plan is looking pretty solid.
Congrats! I'm so jealous, although I think I am probably in the 2023 cohort myself. Still haven't done the detailed math
Maybe you'll get a positive surprice...
Post by: mizzourah2006 on July 02, 2019, 06:29:00 AM
Started tracking our investments in January of 2016.
Jan. 16: $181.2k
Jan. 17: $244.9k
Jan. 18: $352.8k
Jan. 19: $450.3k
July 19: $606.5k
FI Goal is $1.5 Million, so roughly 40% of the way there.
Post by: FireHiker on July 02, 2019, 09:29:04 AM
Post by: EngineerYogi on July 03, 2019, 01:56:25 PM
We on the other hand are enjoying our jobs and creature comforts and contemplating pushing out retirement by 5 maybe even 10 years. We bought a big house this year, I need to rerun our numbers to see how it reflects on our case study and projections.
Post by: nmitb on September 13, 2019, 05:08:50 AM
Goal for us to be barebones FI by 31.12.2025.
NW approx zero, so it is a stretch, but I am counting on raises and us saving more/being flexible if needed.
Only 6 years and 3,5 months away!
Post by: efree on September 14, 2019, 11:03:53 AM
PTF
Goal for us to be barebones FI by 31.12.2025.
NW approx zero, so it is a stretch, but I am counting on raises and us saving more/being flexible if needed.
Only 6 years and 3,5 months away!
Good luck! That's very ambitious. You must be planning a saving rate of more than 70% to get it done so quickly.
Post by: frugalecon on September 17, 2019, 03:21:36 AM
Post by: FireHiker on September 17, 2019, 04:39:08 PM
Post by: golfreak12 on September 23, 2019, 09:09:35 PM
Originally I thought we thought we could retire by 2025 with $1 million but $1 million will come way before that and my wife just got out of college with a job.
I'm probably underestimating but by 2025 we should have a NW of $1.5 million for $60K/yr.
CURRENT STANDING:
Age: Me 47 Wife 36
NW: $910,000
Salary ME: $100k-$130k. More toward $100k now that I'm content with our NW and I just can't work as much as I used to.
Salary WIFE: $48k. She's one smart cookie. I can see her making over $100K in the future if shes willing to jump ships.
Post by: TomTX on September 28, 2019, 11:41:35 AM
Applied for and got a different position, same organization. 20% salary boost, which will also mean a 20% boost in pension after 3 years at the higher salary.
MrsTX has accepted an offer for a permanent position with a good salary.
Post by: Sandi_k on September 29, 2019, 01:10:34 PM
Just wanted to note that I hit the 2000 calendar day threshold according to my tracking spreadsheet. Only about 1200 actual work days. Feels fairly close, actually.
That's a GREAT idea. :D
Post by: Sandi_k on September 30, 2019, 09:11:09 AM
Yep, we're aiming for 2025/early 2026 here. My pension multiplier takes a big jump up the minute I turn 60, so that's what we're planning for.
Currently have 12x additional living expenses in investments; that includes a mortgage that will be done in October 2031.
We're segmenting our savings into "bridge funds" for age 60-70, so that I can delay claiming SocSec until age 70; DH will probably claim at FRA, in 2030.
Since June 2018, I've had two merit bumps, and one equity adjustment at work - resulting in a 21% total pay raise in the past 16 months.
Of course, savings has gone up promptly, and the market has been good.
We're now at 18x expenses, but the "golden handcuffs" mean that I still plan to work until 2025. My job is decent, with good staff, a lot of autonomy, and a lot of flexible time. So I don't want to rush off prematurely, and truncate the pension income forever.
Fat Fire is now our goal, and it's looking pretty good, with 6 years to go.
Post by: markbike528CBX on October 01, 2019, 01:00:21 PM
Just wanted to note that I hit the 2000 calendar day threshold according to my tracking spreadsheet. Only about 1200 actual work days. Feels fairly close, actually.
That's a GREAT idea. :D
Just be aware that as the numbers get much smaller, some people find it stressful to look at them too often.
Related threads
https://forum.mrmoneymustache.com/ask-a-mustachian/don't-know-if-i-can-stay-until-the-end-of-my-notice/
https://forum.mrmoneymustache.com/ask-a-mustachian/how-much-notice-to-give-for-fire/
https://forum.mrmoneymustache.com/ask-a-mustachian/when-to-turn-in-notice-of-resignation/
and of course the one I was really looking for:
https://forum.mrmoneymustache.com/post-fire/when-you-retired-early-how-did-you-resign/msg1887685/#msg1887685
ie hide/don't have the calendar at work.
Post by: Vashy on October 05, 2019, 07:35:13 AM
I've been lucky in that we have two full incomes and basically no bad money habits (except for too much eating out and lattes in the morning and lots of computer games getting bought at full price, but... I've used the last three weeks to address that, so that's done now). We're putting around 44% each of our pre-tax income into tax-advantaged pension plans which we can access at age 55, which was the original retirement age (we're both 44).
Then I found MMM and did the numbers and worked out we can retire at 50 (ie 2025) if we keep our eyes on the ball. The goal is to hit a NW of at least Ł1.6m, split into tax-efficient pension (access at age 55), real estate (paid-off house), and investments we can access to tide us over from age 50 to age 55. The house provides some downside protection - we live in an expensive city, and there are larger houses that a lot cheaper and nicer, so we could free up 100-200,000 in equity at least just by moving outside of commuting distance.
The big goal for 2020/21 is now to pay off the mortgage (also convert the loft for more space, which will substantially increase the value of the house), and build the emergency fund to Ł10k each. I have a side hustle that earns Ł500-1,000 a month without too much effort. More effort would push up the numbers but the day job keeps me plenty busy.
Expenses are around Ł24,000 for both of us at the lower end, but I wouldn't mind retiring at our Fat FI level of Ł40,000/y to travel. My numbers assume no appreciation of the house, so I'm going with 2015 values (which is the last time the estate agent valued it); I'm also excluding other positive effects like windfalls, inheritances, winning the lottery, raises or bonuses (the average bonus goes straight into our pensions, though, and I'm assuming the pensions return 6% while invested - they're mostly stocks and shares as we have a "high-risk" strategy. Also worth noting that the pension contributions are pre-tax - that income would normally be taxed at 40%, so financially it doesn't make a lot of sense to pay tax on it to boost take-home pay. Same with bonuses, which would be taxed at 40% but go in at more than 100% into the pension. We walk out with circa Ł2,800 each in take-home pay, and "need" Ł1,000 each a month for costs (ex-mortgage), food, utilities, commute, etc, though the budget could be trimmed. Mortgage payment is circa Ł550, but we're overpaying, and house has doubled in value since we bought 8-9 years ago.
My roadmap at the moment looks like this:
end-2019 household NW: Ł736,000 (pensions 180k each, house: 450k, mortgage: -90k, cash/gilts: 16k)
end-2020 household NW: Ł871,360 (pensions 223,680 each, house: 450k, mortgage: -46,500, cash/gilts: 20k)
end-2021 household NW: Ł994,200 (pensions 272,100 each, house: 450k, mortgage: 0, cash/gilts: 20k)
end-2022 household NW: Ł1,146,852 (pensions 323,426 each, house: 450k, cash/gilts: 20k, investment portfolio: 50k)
end-2023 household NW: Ł1,325,662 (pensions 377,831 each, house: 450k, cash/gilts: 20k, investment portfolio: 100k)
end-2024 household NW: Ł1,491,000 (pensions 435,500 each, house: 450k, cash/gilts: 20k, investments: 150k)
end-2025 household NW: Ł1,663,300 (pensions 496,650 each, house: 450k, cash/gilts: 20k, investments: 200k)
The investments aren't as efficient as they could be, as we both work in regulated professions so we have to jump through all the hoops if we want to invest in anything, but I'll have a chat with the Powers That Be about what I can actually invest in - there are options, they're just a lot more limited. Looking at the numbers like this, I'm kinda shocked. We wouldn't need to be super lucky to even hit Ł2m - and if we were to work full-out until age 55 we'd hit Ł3m or so. Shocker.
Post by: highlandterrier on October 05, 2019, 08:58:26 AM
One thing I noticed, you're assuming you will get access to your pension at 55, I'm presuming you are UK based. This is very unlikely for your age group, it's almost certainly at least 57. The lack of certainty is because there is legislation in progress to change to 57 by 2028. Additionally there is a recommendation that in future access would be restricted to State Pension Age -10 years which would increase the age further. The government keeps messing with the rules though so who knows, but I would skew your figures towards investments a bit more as you will likely have a few more years.
BTW, there is a UK sub-forum where this kind of stuff gets chatted about, see one relevant thread here:
https://forum.mrmoneymustache.com/uk-tax-discussion/balancing-pensionssipps-(etc)-and-isas-(etc)/
Post by: Vashy on October 05, 2019, 11:27:50 AM
The pension is a private pension via employer (Scottish Widows), so I'd *hope* that won't get changed, but I see if I can build in more buffer just in case! Thanks for that!
Post by: highlandterrier on October 05, 2019, 03:37:35 PM
You are right workplace pensions less likely to be affected, not sure about yours as I'm still on the old dB scheme.
Sent from my moto e5 using Tapatalk
Post by: Vashy on October 05, 2019, 04:32:26 PM
Post by: ardrum on October 07, 2019, 09:00:03 AM
Post by: SaucyAussie on October 07, 2019, 09:41:20 AM
Goal for the end of 2019 was 9x expenses, but I'm currently sitting around 10.5x. While this makes me look ahead of schedule, I'm looking at it like a small buffer against whenever the next recession comes, so I want to keep pushing like I'm "behind" schedule. I'll be very eager to buy into the next recession to minimize the drop and get good long-term returns as prices lower!
I think that's very prudent. While we can't predict the exact timing of a recession or market crash, the chances are very high that we will see some tougher times between now and 2025. Everyone in this cohort should be factoring that in.
Post by: achvfi on October 08, 2019, 11:58:11 AM
Our net worth increased to about 545K and stash about 355K, so an increase of stash about 80K so far. Considering stagnant stock market, which is still close to its peak in January 2018, I am happy with our progress.
Post by: Scubanewbie on October 13, 2019, 09:45:16 AM
We are in MCOL with healthy salaries so though we aren't strict mustachians, we save >60pct of take home. We just recently paid off our modest house so though we have been maxing two 401ks, 2 IRAs, an HSA and the kids 529s to max tax benefits, it's probably time to investigate other investing options.
I fluctuate on what I want for withdrawal rate, think expenses are 40k (minus kid costs, mortgage, job related expenses) so maybe "need" 50k with healthcare (we have higher than avg needs) so maybe should plan for 60k for buffer/travel? If I use 60k, we are at 12x expenses. Feels reasonable to get the other half can come in the next 5 years. Networthify seems to agree. Main risks are the market obviously and healthcare availability and cost, though hopeful DH and I could pick up PT if needed to offset.
Very excited to join the group!
Post by: never give up on October 13, 2019, 10:26:08 AM
What will I bring to this Cohort? Well I'm very friendly, armed with plenty of enthusiasm, an 80%+ savings rate and I'm extremely tolerant of both mortgage over-payers and those that wish to keep it forever :-)
Our Cohort could be a good time to FIRE if there is a recession in these five years, but I will I have the nerve to pull the trigger if the market is still rising by then? Crumbs I've no idea. One step at a time. Plenty of internet hugs coming your way when things get choppy for us.
Let's do this!
Post by: Junglebot on October 28, 2019, 03:31:44 PM
Joining in - I'm hoping it will be January 2025, but we'll see.
We're currently at about 8x expenses (after tax, not include house equity).
Our savings rate has been hovering right around 50% recently, which isn't great. We recently had our first kid, so now that we have settled down after that it's time to get back on track. Hopefully this thread will help with the motivation!
Post by: skiddieleet on November 30, 2019, 02:27:12 PM
Looking at my progression, discovered the concept of FIRE at the end of 2014 and started tracking my progress in early 2015:
02/22/2015: 18.5% FI
01/31/2016: 19.0% FI
01/01/2017: 25.8% FI
01/01/2018: 32.9% FI
01/01/2019: 34.7% FI
11/30/2019: 47.2% FI
I think the change from 2015 to 2016 was so small because I got married and inherited some debt. Crazy to see the fluctuation in progress, mainly due to the market.
Fortunately my income has gone up a good bit recently, so I can move the needle decently even with no market gains. I'm definitely going to need a lot of help from the market though to hit 1.5M by 2025.
Post by: EngineerYogi on December 31, 2019, 02:34:30 PM
2/2016 (first time tracking): $77,067
12/2016: $123,847
12/2017: $165,048
12/2018: $277,840
12/2019: $411,160
Thank you bull market and compounding interest.
We're targeting a fat FIRE with annual expenses around $130k. Mr. Yogi is military and can expect a pension which keeps up with inflation starting at age 41 of $61k/year. So our target number for FI is $1.5-1.725 mil.
We'll probably both work until our children graduate high school which is roughly 18 years away... And after looking at these numbers, I feel pretty good about our progress.
Post by: swashbucklinstache on December 31, 2019, 05:13:14 PM
Yah chief, sign me up. Likely as FI rather than FIRE, with a few extra years to pad on after, but so much could change from now to then. Aged 27, 8.5x current expense saved, no house, 65% or so savings rate give or take. Single, readiness-to-mingle currently TBD
Well, there was my original post in 12/2016! In the intervening 9 months I've moved from 8.5x current expenses to 10.96x and upped my savings rate a few percentage points! I'm still an immature smartass though :).
My life is so far from where it'll be in 2025 that it's hard to say how i'm doing, but things are headed in the right direction. I could be in the 650k-900k range if things go roughly how they've gone so far. The high end of that is looking damn near the end of things for full-time worker bee me if I'm still single and childless at that time, or at least time to ask for a stupid amount of money not to go a-wanderin'.
Hope everyone else is on track, too.
Update, maybe I'll keep an annually running tab in this thread if people don't mind :).
stache as multiple of 3 year trailing current expenses
12/2016: 8.5x
09/2017: 10.96x
12/2017: 11.6x - would be higher but have had an expensive year
2018 EOY update:
2016: 8.5x
09/2017: 10.96x
2017: 11.6x
2018: 13.65x
I'm aiming for ~45x with these numbers for FIRE (health insurance, likely lifestyle changes etc.).
How is everyone else doing as we start 2019?
2019 EOY update:
2016: 8.5x
09/2017: 10.96x
2017: 11.6x
2018: 13.65x
2019: 16.99x (with a high expense year! trailing 3 years is more like 19.26x)
Getting there! Closing in on half a million with a minimum FI goal of 1 million and saving 100-115 a year right now means I might be as little as ~3 years out with just a little above average returns or some raises.
Post by: swashbucklinstache on December 31, 2019, 05:22:31 PM
Year end net worth progress
2/2016 (first time tracking): $77,067
12/2016: $123,847
12/2017: $165,048
12/2018: $277,840
12/2019: $411,160
Thank you bull market and compounding interest.
We're targeting a fat FIRE with annual expenses around $130k. Mr. Yogi is military and can expect a pension which keeps up with inflation starting at age 41 of $61k/year. So our target number for FI is $1.5-1.725 mil.
We'll probably both work until our children graduate high school which is roughly 18 years away... And after looking at these numbers, I feel pretty good about our progress.
That looks really great! I've been on a similar accumulation path as you guys in some ways. Of course, that's without what looks like a stellar pension for you and on my end it is just me, aiming for maybe 1 million. Keep it up!
2011: -35k
2013: 23k
2014: 65k
2015: 112k
2016: 174k
2017: 260k
2018: 315K
2019: 491K
Post by: EngineerYogi on December 31, 2019, 09:03:02 PM
Super similar trajectories and accumulation! Nice work to you too!Year end net worth progress
2/2016 (first time tracking): $77,067
12/2016: $123,847
12/2017: $165,048
12/2018: $277,840
12/2019: $411,160
Thank you bull market and compounding interest.
We're targeting a fat FIRE with annual expenses around $130k. Mr. Yogi is military and can expect a pension which keeps up with inflation starting at age 41 of $61k/year. So our target number for FI is $1.5-1.725 mil.
We'll probably both work until our children graduate high school which is roughly 18 years away... And after looking at these numbers, I feel pretty good about our progress.
That looks really great! I've been on a similar accumulation path as you guys in some ways. Of course, that's without what looks like a stellar pension for you and on my end it is just me, aiming for maybe 1 million. Keep it up!
2011: -35k
2013: 23k
2014: 65k
2015: 112k
2016: 174k
2017: 260k
2018: 315K
2019: 491K
Post by: SaucyAussie on January 14, 2020, 05:18:09 AM
Thanks to the markets, I am trending toward the first half of 2025, my FIRE spreadsheet tells me I will be FI on 04/22/2025 meaning I only have 1,213 work days left!
Post by: Spitfire on January 14, 2020, 07:17:03 AM
Post by: Ricochet on January 15, 2020, 09:53:45 AM
Post by: Sandi_k on January 18, 2020, 06:29:43 PM
I also used the Boglehead Variable Withdrawal Calc spreadsheet from poster livesoft last week, and it says we're good - no need to keep saving, we can coast to 2025 and be fine.
I also went to the Soc Security office and got the income projections for myself, post-retirement.
Given health care coverage and COBRA in California, 2025 works best; it means we can handle coverage for myself and DH regardless of whether I still have retiree health care coverage from my employer.
But if we have another year like 2019 between now and 2025, we're going to be morbidly-obese FIRE. ;)
Post by: Zamboni on January 19, 2020, 07:02:41 PM
Goal is to increase stash by 2x more annual expenses this year. I'm definitely at the point where I can see that compound interest snowballing at a satisfying rate. Current projections are that 25x expenses remains in my sights for 2025. That has a nice symmetry to it!
Post by: MrThatsDifferent on January 19, 2020, 07:37:52 PM
Post by: SaucyAussie on January 20, 2020, 11:14:14 AM
I thought it might be fun to see the list sorted by cohort join date. I have removed a few names who seem to be inactive. Let me know if I can make any updates to this list!
01/28/16 Icecreamarsenal (OP)
01/31/16 tj
02/02/16 golfreak12
02/03/16 druth
02/11/16 hm13hm13
03/03/16 chasingthegoodlife
03/24/16 CupcakeGuru
05/11/16 wienerdog
05/11/16 yourusernamehere
05/15/16 ardrum
06/01/16 AusLady
06/02/16 frugalecon
06/04/16 oneday
06/11/16 marty998
06/16/16 bryan995
08/08/16 beach2133
08/16/16 dougules
08/31/16 Zamboni
09/21/16 AK
09/29/16 Dragonswan
10/03/16 Fomerly known as something
10/05/16 economist
10/31/16 EngineerYogi
11/20/16 skiddieleet
12/11/16 swashbucklinstache
01/05/17 Spitfire
01/09/17 Laura33
02/23/17 mld
02/28/17 hettie1
03/25/17 TomTX
04/18/17 Gone_Hiking
07/01/17 Sapphire
08/24/17 Anette
11/21/17 LadyDividend
11/23/17 Acyclist
12/27/17 SaucyAussie
01/01/18 aetheldrea
02/04/18 Anagnorisis
03/06/18 e34bb098
04/05/18 poniesandFIRE
04/24/18 BZB
05/18/18 MrSeven
06/02/18 Sandi_k
07/16/18 hunker_towards
07/16/18 Silrossi46
09/08/18 letsdoit
09/30/18 Neustache
10/19/18 achvfi
12/21/18 Fish Sweet
02/21/19 MrThatsDifferent
03/08/19 Malkynn
03/19/19 k290
04/02/19 yow
07/02/19 FireHiker
07/02/19 mizzourah2006
09/13/19 nmitb
10/05/19 Vashy
10/13/19 never give up
10/13/19 Scubanewbie
10/28/19 Junglebot
01/15/20 Ricochet
Post by: AK on January 20, 2020, 11:28:52 AM
Post by: Vashy on January 20, 2020, 02:01:46 PM
Post by: afuera on January 20, 2020, 03:33:26 PM
Post by: SaucyAussie on January 21, 2020, 05:20:05 AM
I'm still in for 2025 too! Add me too the list :)
Great! I will make the update.
Post by: Laura33 on January 21, 2020, 06:53:00 AM
Post by: TomTX on January 21, 2020, 06:21:22 PM
Post by: Sapphire on January 22, 2020, 08:08:33 PM
Steady as we go (although with our Aussie stock market looking frothy at the moment we've had some big increases recently which is nice to look at) ;)
Post by: Laura33 on January 23, 2020, 06:24:21 AM
Of course, maybe I'll find some sort of volunteer something that I really enjoy. But then I think: I'd probably be a volunteer lawyer because that's my skillset. So I'd be doing what I do now, for free. And I really love the people I work with and enjoy the work I do, so if I'm going to do the same thing, why not get paid for it? Which brings me right back to "I don't think it's a good idea for me to retire before DH." ;-)
In the meantime, I very much enjoy knowing that I can quit if I want to. And DH enjoys that, too -- helps put work frustrations into perspective.
Post by: wienerdog on January 24, 2020, 01:46:23 PM
Now as things get closer do you start to adjust the portfolio or stay the course? I am putting more money in my 401k now but I run it in a 2050 Target Date fund which is only 5% bonds right now. Right as it sits now I would still pull the trigger in 2025 so I can draw right from 401k as it is around 1% fees. Spending was up in 2019 from 2018 by about 9% so need to bring that back down.
(https://i.ibb.co/FVVwcr3/Capture.png) (https://imgbb.com/)
Post by: Sargemo on January 28, 2020, 10:17:05 AM
I have been on the mega corporate track for 20+ years and have become somewhat numb to my true work passions and interests. Mostly, I am looking to change paths, rather than fully retire. Not sure what path to take but look forward to that journey when it starts. FI will help make that a reality.
Post by: TomTX on January 28, 2020, 07:20:07 PM
Question: What's your 'stache multiple if you eliminate the mortgage payment from your expenses?
Post by: Fomerly known as something on January 29, 2020, 05:17:00 AM
Post by: Metalcat on January 29, 2020, 07:10:10 AM
I've been medically retired from my profession, so it's all pretty irrelevant now. DH wants to wait until he gets his full pension anyway, which is more than we need, and that will be in 2033.
Until then, I'm free to do whatever I want to.
Like Laura, I don't really want to be retired before him, but I physically cannot stay in my profession, I actually do not do respond well to external pressure/deadlines and am much more driven by my own internal pressure. I become dangerously over productive if left alone for too long.
I actually need structure to keep me less productive.
I've worked very little for nearly 6 weeks and I'm starting to feel like a pressure cooker.
Post by: Fomerly known as something on January 29, 2020, 09:37:34 AM
Post by: Metalcat on January 29, 2020, 10:11:47 AM
Malkynn, is there some volunteer origination or hobby or several of them that can provide you with the structure you need? I look to my parents, Dad volunteers at 2 different places on Tuesday and Wednesday and has a weekly club meeting on Thursday so he has some structure. Mom volunteers for 3 mornings a week again with 3 different places so she only had one morning at each place.
lol, oh, you mean on top of the multiple volunteer roles I currently hold?
Yes, I could volunteer more, but that too tends to drive me into excessive productivity. By structure, I don't mean in terms of my schedule, I mean in terms of my mental structure. I naturally moderate regular paid work, but I have a really hard time imposing limits on volunteering, learning, etc.
My ideal is a job that I could do indefinitely, part time, on my own terms, working autonomously and independently, that's flexible, portable, does a public good, is incredibly challenging but doesn't feel like work, and would be very valuable in a lot of volunteer scenarios. Basically, exactly what my existing job is, except without the part where it's permanently, literally crippling me.
I think I might retrain in a different healthcare profession. I'm only in my 30s, and my medical condition doesn't limit me from working, just from working in my profession. I've got a lot of years left to keep myself out of trouble, otherwise I'll end up learning fucking Inuktitut and Finnish.
Post by: Laura33 on January 30, 2020, 06:38:50 AM
I'm pretty much out.
I've been medically retired from my profession, so it's all pretty irrelevant now. DH wants to wait until he gets his full pension anyway, which is more than we need, and that will be in 2033.
Until then, I'm free to do whatever I want to.
Like Laura, I don't really want to be retired before him, but I physically cannot stay in my profession, I actually do not do respond well to external pressure/deadlines and am much more driven by my own internal pressure. I become dangerously over productive if left alone for too long.
I actually need structure to keep me less productive.
I've worked very little for nearly 6 weeks and I'm starting to feel like a pressure cooker.
Really sorry to hear about the medical issues; that's a tough blow.
This is just further confirmation that you and I are flip sides of the same coin: I need structure, desperately, to make me get off my ass and do anything. ;-) My propensity for sloth is frightening. Alas, that is quickly followed by the guilt of "if only you'd lived up to your potential" and the depression of not mattering because I'm not doing any of the things that make people matter. I will need some sort of purpose and structure in retirement just to protect me from myself.
Post by: poniesandFIRE on January 30, 2020, 06:51:23 AM
Post by: Metalcat on January 30, 2020, 07:04:02 AM
I'm pretty much out.
I've been medically retired from my profession, so it's all pretty irrelevant now. DH wants to wait until he gets his full pension anyway, which is more than we need, and that will be in 2033.
Until then, I'm free to do whatever I want to.
Like Laura, I don't really want to be retired before him, but I physically cannot stay in my profession, I actually do not do respond well to external pressure/deadlines and am much more driven by my own internal pressure. I become dangerously over productive if left alone for too long.
I actually need structure to keep me less productive.
I've worked very little for nearly 6 weeks and I'm starting to feel like a pressure cooker.
Really sorry to hear about the medical issues; that's a tough blow.
This is just further confirmation that you and I are flip sides of the same coin: I need structure, desperately, to make me get off my ass and do anything. ;-) My propensity for sloth is frightening. Alas, that is quickly followed by the guilt of "if only you'd lived up to your potential" and the depression of not mattering because I'm not doing any of the things that make people matter. I will need some sort of purpose and structure in retirement just to protect me from myself.
You never know how your brain will react once you decompress though. I had no idea that I had this problem until I had too little work to do to keep me busy and tired.
That's why I know that work keeps me more lazy and mellow. It's only once the work shackles were off that I started realizing I had a problem.
I have to say, that is a plus side of having a rare genetic disease that severely limits my capabilities, the whole pressure to "fulfill my potential" is silent now. Now it's "simmer down there Little Engine That Could, you actually can't, so go read a book or something."
Post by: Metalcat on January 30, 2020, 07:04:31 AM
Still in over here. We're a little behind where I wanted to be coming out of 2019, but we've made the decision to sell our giant house and majorly downsize, which should propel us forward in 2020. Fingers crossed for an offer on our house soon!
Amazing.
We just downsized our place 6 months ago and absolutely love it.
Post by: Sargemo on January 30, 2020, 01:57:58 PM
Hi, Sargemo!
Question: What's your 'stache multiple if you eliminate the mortgage payment from your expenses?
Good question and it looks like I might have mis-written above. The 16.5x is after the mortgage is paid off. But I expect it will increase over the course of the next two years to ~20X through additional savings.
Post by: TomTX on January 30, 2020, 05:47:40 PM
Still in. My date has nothing to do with Stach and everything to do with my Pension. I got to FI this year which makes going to work both easier and harder. Easier because I can say FU at any time harder because when things are annoying I'm like why the fuck am I here. Right now I'm trying to last through a bad boss please god promote back to HQ or something.
It is a good question. If you're FI, why the fuck are you there?
If you're enjoying it - great!
If not, GTFO. If you want to work, do it somewhere more enjoyable. Or go hike the Appalachian Trail. Or spend time lobbying your politicians. Whatever floats your boat.
Post by: Sandi_k on February 02, 2020, 08:59:00 AM
The result is that we'll have even more disposable income in retirement. We are now officially aiming for FatFire. The reason I don't advance the retirement date is entirely due to my pension - the minute I turn 60, the multiplier goes to 2.5% x (years of service + unused sick leave). It's a big jump in the algorithm, and I am loath to leave at 1.9%, since I can calculate what 30 years of retirement income loses, based on those figures.
Secondly, if I hold on until Nov. 2025, it means DH will have full COBRA available to him until Medicare eligibility kicks in, and I would only have to be on the ACA market for 2 years. I plugged in our numbers for "Covered California" for a Silver plan...jaw dropping premiums with a pension. Even a Bronze HMO plan is estimated at $35k per year for the two of us. In contrast, COBRA would only be $18k per year for the both of us.
So yep: locked in for November 2025 here.
Post by: LightStache on February 02, 2020, 11:49:00 AM
My actual/projected end-of-year multiples are:
2013: -1.1x
2014: -0.9x
2015: 0.3x
2016: 1.8x
2017: 2.4x
2018: 2.9x
2019: 5.0x
2020: 7.8x
2021: 11.2x
2022: 14.8x
2023: 18.7x
2024: 22.0x
2025: 26.8x
Post by: dougules on February 03, 2020, 09:57:46 AM
Post by: Gone_Hiking on February 04, 2020, 09:29:29 PM
Post by: MrThatsDifferent on February 05, 2020, 01:47:32 AM
Hi Cohort, I had a hiccup last week - I was terminated. Losing a job I liked sucked, but not for long: DH and I have reached FI this month, with about 30x of our current spending saved. I plan to find another job and I can afford to be selective. I want to work for some extras and DS college money during the next five years.
Sorry to hear, that sucks! Awesome that you’re FI and don’t need to stress. All the best with the next role.
Post by: Fomerly known as something on February 05, 2020, 04:49:50 AM
Still in. My date has nothing to do with Stach and everything to do with my Pension. I got to FI this year which makes going to work both easier and harder. Easier because I can say FU at any time harder because when things are annoying I'm like why the fuck am I here. Right now I'm trying to last through a bad boss please god promote back to HQ or something.
It is a good question. If you're FI, why the fuck are you there?
If you're enjoying it - great!
If not, GTFO. If you want to work, do it somewhere more enjoyable. Or go hike the Appalachian Trail. Or spend time lobbying your politicians. Whatever floats your boat.
Lifetime subsidized health insurance. Staying in to 2025 keeps me in the Federal employee Health Benefit System. My HDHP insurance is +/- $1500 a year with $900 passing through to my HSA a traditional plan will be between $2000-3000 and I don't have to switch fully medicare at 65.
I do still like my job mostly, every month I decide that the Health Care Benefit is still relevant, if it comes to the time when the suck outweighs that I will quit.
Post by: Bird In Hand on February 08, 2020, 03:07:25 PM
2025 is probably in the ballpark, so I'll join. DW and I will be in our upper 40's then, which still counts as RE I think.
We've saved 19x-23x our expected retirement expenses, with the range representing a slightly higher down to slightly lower standard of living. If we include our home equity, we've saved 23x-28x.
If we keep making the same mortgage payments that we have been making for the last ~7 years, the mortgage should be gone in ~3 years. At that point we could afford to drastically increase our after-tax savings, or downshift and coast ESR-style while our 'stache (hopefully) grows to a number that screams 'RE!' to us.
It's funny to see how things line up (or not) with plans made a few years ago. We've revised our anticipated spending upward, but there's still a lot of uncertainty about that. Our oldest will be entering college in 2025, and we could be paying tuition from ~2025-2035. Our best guess is that our portfolio is currently 85% of what we think we'll need by 2025.
Our mortgage is now paid off (as of today!), and that means we can save more, spend more, work less, or some combination. I think it will be some combination. We're going to bolster our non-investment savings so that all the major systems in the house (HVAC, roof, driveway, etc.) have a replacement fund. We're probably going to do a couple renovations around the house. And soon, possibly later this year, I intend to switch to an 80% schedule at work.
My wife and I both like our jobs, and we don't intend to actually quit our jobs in 2025 (or at any particular point). At the same time, we both want a more relaxed pace and a bit more free time for personal pursuits. So the next phase will be to gradually downshift our work hours. Ideally I'd be down to ~60% by 2025. But these are just my current thoughts, and are subject to change at any time and for any reason. :)
Post by: Icecreamarsenal on February 09, 2020, 07:33:17 AM
Hi Cohort, I had a hiccup last week - I was terminated. Losing a job I liked sucked, but not for long: DH and I have reached FI this month, with about 30x of our current spending saved. I plan to find another job and I can afford to be selective. I want to work for some extras and DS college money during the next five years.
Timing is everything, and your timing is impeccable; congrats!
Post by: aetheldrea on February 10, 2020, 06:28:57 PM
Post by: yow on February 11, 2020, 06:17:25 AM
I am going to throw my hat into the ring with this cohort. I believe i'm on track for 2025 though I can't say i've tried to nail down a date with any sort of certainty at this point.
By my calculations as of April 1st I am 42.98% of the way towards my number (11.19 X expected expenses). This includes everything in my investment accounts.
I do have other assets but they will not be included in my calculations.
First post in here for a while.
I'm now over 50% of my target number as of February 1st so things are progressing.
I did buy a house at the back end of last year so that has knocked down the net worth number somewhat. I have included mortgage payments in my post retirement budget so to me it doesn't overly change the retirement target.
The mortgage is up for renewal in 2024 so we'll see what it all looks like then but with the current low interest rate I have there is no desire to start paying it down any quicker.
Post by: Gondolin on February 13, 2020, 03:07:11 PM
I'm not particularly active on the forums anymore but I'm at x10 expenses.
2025 is an aggressive goal so odds are I'll slid into 26-28 eventually.
Post by: MCL on February 16, 2020, 12:39:42 PM
Annual Spend in FIRE: $45,000
Other Income: We have a 6-unit that we should be able to safely pull $15k/yr from while still putting aside a nice chunk for future repairs and maintenance
Current Investments: ~$225k in Vanguard taxable account (proceeds from downsizing house last year) & ~$75k in retirement accounts
Debt: House is paid off/no other debt
So we'll need about $750k in investments above and beyond the rental (wife will continue to work so this doesn't need to be exact). Should hopefully hit that number in 2024 but would like a little extra cushion to be sure.
Post by: Staunch Aim on March 05, 2020, 08:28:50 PM
Lot's of living to do between now and 2025! I have to remind myself of this so I don't fall prey to just checking off the days and watching my stash grow.
Post by: k290 on March 28, 2020, 07:22:21 AM
Post by: swashbucklinstache on March 28, 2020, 10:39:51 AM
Post by: LightStache on March 28, 2020, 11:23:23 AM
I've gone from "maybe as soon as late 2022" back to "early-mid 2025" in my spreadsheets. So it goes using flat 6.7% returns for modeling. Not bummed about it, fully acknowledging that e.g. CAPE-based % projections probably makes more sense. For me it's about hitting a number so no real changes to what I do in the meantime anyway.
That's how my model works too -- flat, average returns every year, so I have the same issue. But I've only shifted a couple months at this point.
Post by: Anette on March 28, 2020, 03:25:26 PM
But now while things were on sale I was able to buy in my name and I am looking to continue to do so!
Post by: Scrooge on May 18, 2020, 02:56:41 PM
A lot has happened since the beginning. I got actually so demotivated originally of having nearly ten years to get to 2025 goal that I managed to get a second job with a performance-based salary.
During the days I work in the financial administration of multinational-corporation. Steady job and a steady salary. However, I could only save 25 000 EUR from that job per year while having around 11 000 EUR of yearly costs. Not a bad percentage but takes too long still.
The second job. I'm an A/V translator with a per minute pay. I've done this now 2 years. Long story short, I've managed to save extra 100 000 EUR during these two years.
So, my net worth is currently 325 000 EUR. In theory I'm getting close to the minimum amount needed for retirement. The problem is that it's become really clear that a realistic goal is about 500 000 to have enough cushion to still make mistakes as well.
Anyway, the past 2 years has now made it so that I'll be pretty surely retired by 2025 at the latest even if I lose one of the jobs.
Post by: Anette on May 19, 2020, 02:58:08 PM
Our youngest daughter is really struggling with school and mental health. We are considering a boarding school with special ADD program and only ten students per class so that she can successfully finish school in the next three years. Since the school is very expensive ( for German standards) we would need to almost stop the extra fire savings. If we do that we will have to retire later. It is a hard decision for us.
Post by: Gone_Hiking on May 20, 2020, 10:38:41 PM
Post by: oneday on May 20, 2020, 11:26:59 PM
Update from the job search front: I found one! There is a lot of hurt out there and I feel fortunate. I started working again three weeks ago. It's a contract position, hourly, 40 hours per week. Flexible schedule and 100% work from home until who-knows-when. The company is a giant international pharma conglomerate; perhaps I can get on their payroll and get all their benefit goodies in a few months?
Excellent!
I've been on sabbatical (since before the pandemic), this gives me hope that I'll be able to find a job this summer.
Post by: Laura33 on May 21, 2020, 06:30:51 AM
We remain on schedule. DH looked at me the other day and said "only four more years until DS is out of the house." I kind of can't believe it's down to that short a time, because I still feel like I'm in my 30s. But yay!
Post by: Anette on May 21, 2020, 11:09:55 PM
At this time there is some hope (15% chance) the school authorities will pay for most of the school fee.
Post by: Laura33 on May 22, 2020, 07:13:18 AM
@it just is hard to part with the money and to know this delays our fire plans.
Believe me, I understand! But if there's one thing Suze Orman got right, it's "people first, then money, then things."
Also keep in mind that the real secret/power/benefit of the FIRE attitude is the resilience it builds in you. Yes, you have been hit with a difficult and unexpected challenge, and that challenge may well require you to change your current plan. That's ok! Because whatever you decide here, you have the skills and abilities to adapt and adjust and develop a new plan. Life happens. Shit happens. And it's ok to be upset and to mourn the vision of the future life that you are forced to leave behind. But there is no reason to add to your stress by worrying about the future, because you already have all the skills within you to build a new plan and a new future that will make you just as happy as the one that's gone away.
Really, the secret to FIRE isn't about FIRE itself. It's about what you learn from the work you need to do to get there.
Post by: facepalm on May 22, 2020, 06:19:28 PM
I plan on getting out in 2025 (told my boss today) because I see no reason to work any longer.
even with the downturn, I'm right on track.
Goal is to retire with a yearly income of 90K. That's just for me.
Post by: Gone_Hiking on May 22, 2020, 09:52:32 PM
Still shaking my head at the stock market. I've noticed almost total recovery of some asset classes. How is everyone's portfolio doing?
Post by: swashbucklinstache on May 23, 2020, 08:16:55 AM
Still shaking my head at the stock market. I've noticed almost total recovery of some asset classes. How is everyone's portfolio doing?
I peaked at around 530k, dipped down to the 360s, and am back to 512 today. If we start from around 2/20...
Moves:
1) Finished 401k + got 2019's match by 3/20: 20k
2) Maxed Roth IRA on 3/12: 6.5k
3) Bought taxable:
3/11: 3k
3/12: 3k
4/7: 2k
4/16: 1k
4/22: 2.5k
5/7: 2k
5/11: 1k
4) saw private company stock contributions + growth: 20k
All in US or international vanguard stock funds aside from the company I work for, which I can't get out of. If you're thinking that looks suspiciously like "invested money as it came in the door" you might be right =). I'm still bracing for a precipitous drop, but only emotionally. May the odds ever be in our favor.
I've swung from hitting the number in 2022, back to 2025, and now back to 2023. Interestingly, if I wanted to live with my reduced expenses this year I'd be less than 3k away from FI at 4% =). Doesn't change the plan, but fun to think about!
Post by: moresprinkles on July 09, 2020, 06:02:09 PM
Post by: Fomerly known as something on July 10, 2020, 06:09:18 AM
I’m single so living in a studio or one bedroom is fine vs my current traditional house. I’d also rent vs. buy because I know I have no desire to remain in the city proper after I retire. I’d mostly just use a work paid for transfer to let me explore the west coast more easily on my down time for 3.5 years. On the financial side, I’d be lump summing the equity in my current house into my taxable accounts (no desire to convert my current house into a rental), I’d still max out my tax advantaged accounts (TSP, backdrop Roth, HSA) but I probably wouldn’t invest another dime in my after tax account. The move would also result in a starting pension 15% higher which will more than make up for not investing after tax for the last 3.5 years of my career.
Post by: on the road on July 20, 2020, 01:42:13 PM
Post by: FireDAD on August 04, 2020, 03:02:32 PM
We could leanfire today, but things would be tighter than we are comfortable with. I also have a great paying job that is pretty easy so there is no need to rush.
July 2025 - Feels good to have a solid date!
Post by: LWYRUP on August 07, 2020, 07:10:28 AM
But here I am. It's a nice, round number. Five years is a large enough block to think in. Six years seemed too long to be motivating and four years seemed like not enough time.
I could FIRE now by moving (to a different city) and cutting expenses so I guess I am a somewhat SWAMI now? But I am not FIRE based on current lifestyle and have some big liabilities to plan for (three college tuitions). We're just in a pandemic holding pattern right now. My medium term goal is to try out some new positions within my career and see if those motivate me to keep going more. If they do, then I'll stick with that. If they don't, at least the challenge will distract me until I am ready to really pull the trigger.
In January I think I'll do some real number crunching based on a real FIRE in place scenario just for curiosity sake. But this group feels right in the meantime.
Post by: Sandi_k on August 14, 2020, 03:56:58 PM
I get a new boss next July. If it's someone I hate, what would it take to leave? The golden handcuffs are real, and leaving before I hit 60 means that the pension income would take a big hit - from today to 2025, the payments increase by 50%!!!
So 2021 means 10% more; 2022 means 20% more; 2023 means 30% more; 2024 means 40% more. Somewhere in that progression, I may have had enough.
For now, we're still planning on 2025. But progress continues, my comrades!
Since June 2018, I've had two merit bumps, and one equity adjustment at work - resulting in a 21% total pay raise in the past 16 months.
Of course, savings has gone up promptly, and the market has been good.
We're now at 18x expenses, but the "golden handcuffs" mean that I still plan to work until 2025. My job is decent, with good staff, a lot of autonomy, and a lot of flexible time. So I don't want to rush off prematurely, and truncate the pension income forever.
We're segmenting our savings into "bridge funds" for age 60-70, so that I can delay claiming SocSec until age 70; DH will probably claim at FRA, in 2030.
Fat Fire is now our goal, and it's looking pretty good, with 6 years to go.
Post by: BoatSnack on August 14, 2020, 08:09:33 PM
Ran the numbers yesterday, the first time I've really truly dug into net worth, and determined we're at 10x spending for our current lifestyle (8x what we project with kids). With 70% savings rate and 5% returns, that puts us about 5 years away! In the meantime, we're looking to get more into real estate and other income streams so we've got a bunch of interesting things to sink ourselves into when we retire and the kiddos are at school (if we're not all still virtual in those days).
Just wanted to say hello, introduce myself, and look forward to joining and following along with you in our shared pursuit!
Post by: charis on September 01, 2020, 12:48:31 PM
So college cost are a bit hard to predict yet and my spouse will probably want to go at least a couple of years more to reach the pension vesting date. I am, however, over the 9-5 office life and want more flexibility and/or fewer hours..
Howdy all!
Post by: oneday on September 01, 2020, 10:52:45 PM
Post by: SFTF on September 19, 2020, 06:30:52 PM
Post by: TomTX on September 19, 2020, 06:48:09 PM
Kinda scary. I started the 2027 thread - but boosted income and a more granular look at investments/pension/SS has accelerated things, lopping off 4 years so far.
Post by: oneday on September 22, 2020, 10:48:21 PM
Post by: markbike528CBX on September 23, 2020, 10:16:18 AM
I'm out, folks. Presuming things stay reasonably on track (no worse than zero market growth) - I'm solidly in the Class of '23 for FI.
Kinda scary. I started the 2027 thread - but boosted income and a more granular look at investments/pension/SS has accelerated things, lopping off 4 years so far.
Four years, wow! Awesome!
I started the 2019 thread, but fired OLY in 2018.
Post by: evanc on September 24, 2020, 04:25:57 PM
T-8 years: 5.77x (7.21)
-7: 7.13 (8.92)
-6: 9.06 (11.33)
-5: 10.52 (13.14)
and project the following:
-4: 12.85 (16.07)
-3: 15.65 (19.56)
-2: 18.64 (23.3)
-1: 21.83 (27.29)
FIRE: 26x (32.5)
There is some room, but the biggest added expense is healthcare on ACA or whatever is available at that point. Cautiously optimistic that we can make it happen in 2025. As of now, right on track. I will be 46 and DW a few years older.
Post by: TomTX on September 26, 2020, 11:01:28 AM
Post by: Sandi_k on September 26, 2020, 11:19:23 AM
I decided to re-do everything, based on the idea that I will have no further raises between now and retirement. It was helpful to see that it will have little effect on my income in retirement...only about $300 per month difference overall.
I like to plan for the worst, and be pleasantly surprised if things go well. ;)
Otherwise, we're plodding along. Everything is pretty much on autopilot, so not much to add in terms of an update.
Sub-five years!!
Post by: Icecreamarsenal on September 27, 2020, 05:04:26 PM
Post by: Cyanne on September 27, 2020, 07:29:05 PM
Post by: TomTX on September 27, 2020, 07:35:09 PM
I would like in! 2025 looks to be my year.
Sure, thing! Please take my seat, it's comfy enough.
Post by: Sandi_k on September 27, 2020, 07:51:54 PM
Yep, we're aiming for 2025/early 2026 here. My pension multiplier takes a big jump up the minute I turn 60, so that's what we're planning for.
Currently have 12x additional living expenses in investments; that includes a mortgage that will be done in October 2031.
We're segmenting our savings into "bridge funds" for age 60-70, so that I can delay claiming SocSec until age 70; DH will probably claim at FRA, in 2030.
So I just recalculated - we're now at 20x living expenses. With five years to go.
Current plan has "bridge funds" for age 60-65; then the house is paid off, and opens up more discretionary funds. So from 65-70 the house is paid off, and DH has Social Security.
And after age 70, we'll have exhausted the "bridge funds", but we'll have a largely inflated SocSec on my record, a COLA-adjusted pension, DH's SocSec, and income at 4% from the investments.
Now, that assumes the payroll tax is still in place, and Trump hasn't imploded Social Security and Medicare.
We have begun talks about other countries to live in in our retirement years; I never thought we'd need to consider fleeing our country, but we both fear it is about to get bad.
Post by: oneday on November 23, 2020, 12:42:26 PM
Let me know if I can make any updates to this list.
A warm welcome to all the new folks this year; you've been bat-signaled!
01/28/16 Icecreamarsenal (OP)
02/02/16 golfreak12
02/03/16 druth
02/11/16 hm13hm13
03/03/16 chasingthegoodlife
03/24/16 CupcakeGuru
03/28/16 afuera
05/11/16 wienerdog
05/11/16 yourusernamehere
05/15/16 ardrum
06/01/16 AusLady
06/02/16 frugalecon
06/04/16 oneday
06/08/16 Gondolin
06/11/16 marty998
06/16/16 bryan995
08/08/16 beach2133
08/16/16 dougules
08/31/16 Zamboni
09/21/16 AK
09/29/16 Dragonswan
10/03/16 Fomerly known as something
10/05/16 economist
10/31/16 EngineerYogi
11/20/16 skiddieleet
12/11/16 swashbucklinstache
01/05/17 Spitfire
01/09/17 Laura33
02/23/17 mld
02/28/17 hettie1
04/10/17 Scrooge
04/18/17 Gone_Hiking
07/01/17 Sapphire
07/01/17 Bird In Hand
08/24/17 Anette
11/21/17 LadyDividend
11/23/17 Acyclist
12/27/17 SaucyAussie
01/01/18 aetheldrea
02/04/18 Anagnorisis
03/06/18 e34bb098
04/05/18 poniesandFIRE
04/24/18 BZB
05/18/18 MrSeven
06/02/18 Sandi_k
07/16/18 hunker_towards
07/16/18 Silrossi46
09/08/18 letsdoit
09/30/18 Neustache
10/19/18 achvfi
12/21/18 Fish Sweet
02/21/19 MrThatsDifferent
03/19/19 k290
04/02/19 yow
07/02/19 FireHiker
07/02/19 mizzourah2006
09/13/19 nmitb
10/05/19 Vashy
10/13/19 Scubanewbie
10/28/19 Junglebot
01/15/20 @Ricochet
01/28/20 @Sargemo
02/02/20 @FatFI2025
02/16/20 @MCL
03/05/20 @Staunch Aim
05/22/20 @facepalm
07/07/20 @moresprinkles
07/20/20 @on the road
08/04/20 @kevinb421
08/07/20 @LWYRUP
08/14/20 @BoatSnack
09/01/20 @charis
09/19/20 @SFTF
09/24/20 @evanc
09/27/20 @Cyanne
No longer aiming for FIRE in 2025:
03/08/19 Malkynn - medically retired
03/25/17 TomTX - graduated to Class of 2023
Edits:
10/13/19 never give up - taking a different approach
01/31/16 tj - no longer shooting for 2025 specifically
Post by: oneday on November 23, 2020, 01:37:30 PM
2025 is our stretch goal. Currently have 3.3x spending in pre- & post-tax savings accounts, but will also get a substantial pension when Mr. O retires. So yeah, it's a stretch, but I would love to retire with you all!!!
Well, a year can change a lot. Mr. O (soon to be Mr. X) and I are divorcing. I will probably give up claim to his pension in exchange for the real estate. That will have a really big impact on my net worth. No hard numbers yet, as the actuaries are still working on the pension calculations.
Whew! It's been a long time since I put a progress report on this thread, hasn't it? I am now fully extricated from Mr. X. He kept all his retirement funds and I kept mine. Turns out after the pension was brought to present value, it was similar to the funds I'd socked away in 401(k)'s at various jobs over the years. We sold the real estate and split the proceeds evenly.
Recovery from the divorce took longer than I expected, then I spent a year tracking spending so I'd have a really good data set to work with. But it turned out to be the Covid year, so lol to good data sets. Anyway, based on the info I have, I'm at about 8x expenses.
I'll start a new job soon and there are developments over the winter that should help keep expenses down or even reduce them. So I feel pretty confident that 8x is a reasonably good estimate. And I feel pretty good that I've reached 8x, after being at 3.3x just 4 short years ago, and considering all that has changed in my life since then.
I might even be at 9x by this time next year!
Post by: TomTX on November 24, 2020, 08:15:53 AM
No longer aiming for FIRE in 2025:
03/08/19 Malkynn - medically retired
03/25/17 TomTX - graduated to Class of 2023
It's very sweet of you to maintain the list and still include us.
Post by: oneday on November 24, 2020, 04:15:33 PM
No longer aiming for FIRE in 2025:
03/08/19 Malkynn - medically retired
03/25/17 TomTX - graduated to Class of 2023
It's very sweet of you to maintain the list and still include us.
Ha! It's the accountant in me. Everyone must be reconciled! :)
Post by: Sapphire on November 25, 2020, 02:19:23 AM
Post by: oneday on November 26, 2020, 09:04:59 PM
Post by: Sandi_k on November 27, 2020, 10:40:45 AM
Retirement date: 4 years, 11 months....if we make it through the effects of CV-19 at work.So glad we're planning for retirement as aggressively as we are; if I get laid off, it probably means I can just retire.
Every month is a victory!
Post by: Vashy on November 30, 2020, 10:33:18 AM
Post by: BoatSnack on December 01, 2020, 06:04:23 PM
Wife got a nice bonus, and stock market has been quite healthy lately. That's moved us up from July to May 2025!
Post by: never give up on December 13, 2020, 02:47:41 AM
I wish everyone here well and hope your plans stay on track for 2025 or possibly move earlier.
Post by: tj on December 13, 2020, 03:18:59 PM
I'm no longer shooting for 2025 specifically.
Since I made the second comment in this thread almost 5 years ago, so many things have happened:
1.) Quit my job with the plan to take a single year off and return to the workforce doing something new.
2.) Found a job. Quit that job with no plans of when to work again.
3.) Found a completely new job with the federal government in Hawaii.
4.) Found yet another completely new job with the federal government in Arizona
5.) Will be moving back to California for the 3rd government job within 2.5 calendar years, doing similar work as Fed Job #2.
Since I am almost two years into the pension train now, I have some options:
1.) Stick around until 2042 when I can retire with a reduced pension and retiree health insurance for life.
2.) Stick around until 2042 and delay the unreduced pension and retiree health insurance to 2045.
3.) After hitting 25x projected retirement expenses some time well before 2042, up and quit, foregoing the retiree health insurance and pension.
4.) Work until 2029, delaying the reduced pension to 2042 or unreduced pension to 2047
5.) After hitting 25x expenses, switch to a seasonal and/or part time job with the government to ride out the time until 2042.
6.) if I get bored with current government job, try some other government job.
7.) Hope to get targeted for an "early out" retirement, where I get retiree health insurance, unreduced pension, and a pension supplement until 2047. I would first be eligible in January of 2039. I'm told it's not something you strategically can plan for unfortunately.
The government gives so much time off, and I can work a 4/10 schedule, that I'd be surprised if I want to leave in 5 years, but anything is possible.
Post by: markbike528CBX on December 13, 2020, 03:52:13 PM
@oneday thanks for keeping track of the list.
I'm no longer shooting for 2025 specifically.
Since I made the second comment in this thread almost 5 years ago, so many things have happened:
1.)
2.)
3.) federal government in Hawaii.
4.) Found yet another completely new job with the federal government in Arizona
5.)3rd government job within 2.5 calendar years, doing similar work as Fed Job #2.
......
Since I am almost two years into the pension train now, I have some options:
So you are 2 years of 22? into a sunk cost fallacy?
If you need excitement (referenced from another thread) why not chose private industry vs the Feds?
Post by: tj on December 13, 2020, 05:29:03 PM
@oneday thanks for keeping track of the list.
I'm no longer shooting for 2025 specifically.
Since I made the second comment in this thread almost 5 years ago, so many things have happened:
1.)
2.)
3.) federal government in Hawaii.
4.) Found yet another completely new job with the federal government in Arizona
5.)3rd government job within 2.5 calendar years, doing similar work as Fed Job #2.
......
Since I am almost two years into the pension train now, I have some options:
So you are 2 years of 22? into a sunk cost fallacy?
If you need excitement (referenced from another thread) why not chose private industry vs the Feds?
Because I don't have the credentials to earn more in the private sector. When I worked in private sector, the first job cut the 401k match because of the economy, the 2nd job had no 401k at all. Working for the govt, I earn more salary, get a 5% match on retirement savings, have cheaper health insurance, more time off, and if I stick around long enough, I get lifetime health insurance and pension.
Why wouldn't I work for the feds (if I'm going to work?) ?
I don't yet have enough to just not work forever. Once I hit that number, I can re-assess, which i believe I mentioned as one of the options. It could happen in 2025. Or it could happen before that or after that, but until then I don't see why I wouldn't take the decent paying lower stress job with acceptable work/life balance.
And unlike the private sector, I don't really mind my job. There are aspects of it that I don't like, but I have a lot of autonomy, especially during 100% telework. It's the complete opposite of when I was driving 40 minutes each way working for a $15/hr job and calculated my "profit" after the "costs of working" was completely neglible, lol.
Post by: SaucyAussie on December 30, 2020, 09:17:12 AM
Technically my FIRE calculator now brings me well into 2024 but I am effectively handcuffed to 2025 by the Rule of 55. Also my kids graduate high school in 2025 so it just makes sense. But there are some days when I wonder if I'm gonna make it that long...
Post by: AK on December 30, 2020, 10:07:53 AM
Tossing my hat in the ring. We currently have about 3x current yearly expenses, with debt comprising half the expenses, in investable assets. The plan is to pay off the mortgage and student loans before being done. My wife and I will be in our early 40s and DD will be in elementary school.
In some ways, I already feel R.E. by becoming self-employed, working from home, and going on occasional daytime outings with my wife and DD when I feel like it. So far, I have never been happier.
Good luck everyone!
Things are going well here too. Expect to be close or at lean-FI next year which is better than expected. My current plans are to work until 2025 full-time and then re-evaluate. A sabbatical for a few months sounds enticing too for an RE trial run. The part I struggle with is what am I retiring too. I know I'd get bored not being productive at something but I also love trying new things so in the interim, I'm going to explore some new hobbies and see.
Post by: achvfi on December 30, 2020, 10:35:52 AM
We are at ~360K net worth, if everything goes well we should be around a Million by 2025. I think it will be time I will reevaluate what I want to do next in my life.Its been 2 years since my post and our net worth doubled, we reached ~$755,000. We might reach a million in 2 more years.
Wish you happy new year!
Post by: Sapphire on December 31, 2020, 05:32:18 PM
Post by: Sandi_k on January 01, 2021, 04:23:05 PM
In terms of liquidity, that means we went from $743k to $873k in our retirement accounts.
We could be Portfolio Millionaires by this time next year. ;)
We're up about 8.5% for the year, not including contributions. Since we assume 5% returns, we're ahead for the year in terms of expectations.
Retirement date: 4 years, 11 months....if we make it through the effects of CV-19 at work. So glad we're planning for retirement as aggressively as we are; if I get laid off, it probably means I can just retire.
Every month is a victory!
Post by: Scubanewbie on January 10, 2021, 07:48:10 PM
Post by: Sandi_k on January 10, 2021, 10:03:23 PM
I'm still loving the 2025 plan and on track financially. Hit $1m invested assets near EOY and keep checking fire all to convince myself its real. If I stay at my current longstanding job I will quit in April so looking forward to posting 'under five years' in a few months. Hooray!
If you're planning on exiting in April 2025, you'll be UNDER FOUR YEARS!
;)
Post by: Sapphire on January 11, 2021, 03:09:33 AM
Post by: Fomerly known as something on January 11, 2021, 05:04:20 AM
Post by: swashbucklinstache on January 11, 2021, 08:05:29 AM
Not that I’ve ever had a five year car loan, but since July 17th I’ve compared my work countdown to one. I have 55 months (payments) to go.
I like this!
OMG!! I just realised that it could be Under Four Years this year!!
And I LOVE this =)
Post by: swashbucklinstache on January 11, 2021, 08:20:57 AM
Like many, I'm fortunate to say that 2020 was good to my assets. I closed the year at 711k net worth. That's good for 28x my trailing three years of expenses. I'm pushing on to 1mm mostly to account for desired lifestyle changes (travel, big city living) + flexibility (family) in retirement. But, that could be as soon as 1.4 years from now with 6.7% returns and 110-120 annual contributions. We'll see what mr market has to say, but decent chance I check out ahead of 2025 at this point. If I do see 7 figures with such high valuations I might turn to one of several "step towards FIRE" plans rather than leap outright. 2025 projects at 1.5mm if nothing changes and averages hold, so probably wouldn't hang around that long barring big lifestyle changes.Yah chief, sign me up. Likely as FI rather than FIRE, with a few extra years to pad on after, but so much could change from now to then. Aged 27, 8.5x current expense saved, no house, 65% or so savings rate give or take. Single, readiness-to-mingle currently TBD
Well, there was my original post in 12/2016! In the intervening 9 months I've moved from 8.5x current expenses to 10.96x and upped my savings rate a few percentage points! I'm still an immature smartass though :).
My life is so far from where it'll be in 2025 that it's hard to say how i'm doing, but things are headed in the right direction. I could be in the 650k-900k range if things go roughly how they've gone so far. The high end of that is looking damn near the end of things for full-time worker bee me if I'm still single and childless at that time, or at least time to ask for a stupid amount of money not to go a-wanderin'.
Hope everyone else is on track, too.
Update, maybe I'll keep an annually running tab in this thread if people don't mind :).
stache as multiple of 3 year trailing current expenses
12/2016: 8.5x
09/2017: 10.96x
12/2017: 11.6x - would be higher but have had an expensive year
2018 EOY update:
2016: 8.5x
09/2017: 10.96x
2017: 11.6x
2018: 13.65x
I'm aiming for ~45x with these numbers for FIRE (health insurance, likely lifestyle changes etc.).
How is everyone else doing as we start 2019?
2019 EOY update:
2016: 8.5x
09/2017: 10.96x
2017: 11.6x
2018: 13.65x
2019: 16.99x (with a high expense year! trailing 3 years is more like 19.26x)
Getting there! Closing in on half a million with a minimum FI goal of 1 million and saving 100-115 a year right now means I might be as little as ~3 years out with just a little above average returns or some raises.
Post by: Porkins on January 13, 2021, 12:46:47 PM
Shooting for 30x FatFIRE expenses.
2016: 9.67x
2017: 11.83x
2018: 12.91x
2019: 16.91x
2020: 21.93x
Post by: Icecreamarsenal on January 27, 2021, 06:54:55 AM
So much has happened, what with new kids and slightly better incomes, some slip-ups in spending, but as the mad fientist says in financial freedom by grant sabatier, “It’s worth any sacrifice to get there.”
Post by: evanc on February 10, 2021, 11:26:10 AM
Greetings! Fellow 2025er. I found MMM in 2016 and got the face punch I was searching for. Fortunately, DW was on board once I shared the “shockingly simple math” post. We realized for the first time that we could actually do this (RE). Up to that point, basically everything I read said it was impossible. Once we made a plan, we set our sights on 2025 and haven’t looked back since. Like some of you, we anticipate higher expenses post retirement due to a combination of increased healthcare costs, additional travel, and inflation. Here’s how we have progressed thus far with current levels of spending in parentheses for comparison purposes.
T-8 years: 5.77x (7.21)
-7: 7.13 (8.92)
-6: 9.06 (11.33)
-5: 10.52 (13.14)
and project the following:
-4: 12.85 (16.07)
-3: 15.65 (19.56)
-2: 18.64 (23.3)
-1: 21.83 (27.29)
FIRE: 26x (32.5)
There is some room, but the biggest added expense is healthcare on ACA or whatever is available at that point. Cautiously optimistic that we can make it happen in 2025. As of now, right on track. I will be 46 and DW a few years older.
As of today, 15.15x (18.93). Still projecting 2025 FIRE, but unofficially hopeful it could be sooner.
Post by: chasingthegoodlife on February 23, 2021, 12:59:20 PM
My stash value is a bit spongy due to real estate that I haven’t updated in a few years - getting on that this week - but I’m currently past my barebones number and at 19-23x my comfortable current expenses.
Current plan is to leave the 9-5 world when I reach 1mil invested assets, which I estimate will be 2025 give or take a few months. Kind of shocked that a plan I made pretty much on a whim 5 years ago (I first posted in this thread in March 2016!) is still on track with so little effort on my part.
Post by: LightStache on May 05, 2021, 10:00:29 AM
The only way I can see getting back to 2025 is by getting a roommate or a side hustle, but I'm not sure that's worth it.
At what point do I have to pull the ejection handle on this group and admit defeat?
Post by: Laura33 on May 05, 2021, 10:22:04 AM
At what point do I have to pull the ejection handle on this group and admit defeat?
12/31/25
Personally, I'm going the other way at the moment. I've mentioned before we're already FI, so the question is how much more luxury do we want, how much am I enjoying work, and what other things do I want to do with my life? Being at home for 14 months has made me pretty much never want to work from an office again, and I am resenting the intrusions of the constant emergencies more and more. Still haven't pulled the trigger, as I still have no better ideas of what to do beyond "watch Netflix," but who knows? I'm going to give it a few months while things start to return to something approaching "normal" and then see how I feel.
Post by: oneday on May 05, 2021, 10:23:04 AM
Post by: LightStache on May 06, 2021, 06:37:01 AM
At what point do I have to pull the ejection handle on this group and admit defeat?
12/31/25
Personally, I'm going the other way at the moment. I've mentioned before we're already FI, so the question is how much more luxury do we want, how much am I enjoying work, and what other things do I want to do with my life? Being at home for 14 months has made me pretty much never want to work from an office again, and I am resenting the intrusions of the constant emergencies more and more. Still haven't pulled the trigger, as I still have no better ideas of what to do beyond "watch Netflix," but who knows? I'm going to give it a few months while things start to return to something approaching "normal" and then see how I feel.
Great problem to have! Thanks for showing us that it can actually be done.
Post by: LightStache on May 06, 2021, 06:45:41 AM
@FatFI2025 if it were up to me, I'd say: the very last second. Who knows what will happen between now and then.
@oneday yea at this point I'm debating whether I need to make some changes to keep 2025. That's the year I turn 40 and it's been a stretch goal for me since I started this journey 8 years ago, so having my projections slide into 2026 hurts.
Plus I feel like it's a slippery slope...I recently increased my budget lines for travel, shopping, and personal care (gym). Even after years of apprenticeship I'm still not the best mustachian!
Post by: Laura33 on May 06, 2021, 08:18:14 AM
yea at this point I'm debating whether I need to make some changes to keep 2025. That's the year I turn 40 and it's been a stretch goal for me since I started this journey 8 years ago, so having my projections slide into 2026 hurts.
Plus I feel like it's a slippery slope...I recently increased my budget lines for travel, shopping, and personal care (gym). Even after years of apprenticeship I'm still not the best mustachian!
Sounds like a good opportunity to reassess those early goals vs. current desires, yes? Are you spending more because of unnoticed lifestyle creep, or were you finding the cuts you need to hit that goal too binding and you should rethink that goal?
Post by: LightStache on May 07, 2021, 07:28:26 AM
yea at this point I'm debating whether I need to make some changes to keep 2025. That's the year I turn 40 and it's been a stretch goal for me since I started this journey 8 years ago, so having my projections slide into 2026 hurts.
Plus I feel like it's a slippery slope...I recently increased my budget lines for travel, shopping, and personal care (gym). Even after years of apprenticeship I'm still not the best mustachian!
Sounds like a good opportunity to reassess those early goals vs. current desires, yes? Are you spending more because of unnoticed lifestyle creep, or were you finding the cuts you need to hit that goal too binding and you should rethink that goal?
The two major changes have been taking on 50% more rent payments (+$1400/mo expense) after splitting with my ex and selling the last rental (-$80K from the balance sheet). My increases in travel, shopping, and gym are +$750/mo combined -- those could be considered lifestyle creep, but they're definitely noticed.
So yes I'm deliberating whether I should make some sacrifices to bring my FI date back to 2025. I don't fly anymore but I have my commercial pilots license so I'm considering flying banners or jumpers on the weekends as a fun side gig.
Post by: Chester Allen Arthur on June 05, 2021, 02:18:23 PM
Once I retire I think I'll take a year to do nothing, I mean really just nothing productive at all, and then either do charity work or start a business.
Post by: bryan995 on June 21, 2021, 11:18:38 PM
Income continues to grow but spending seems to always follow suit, only at a slightly slower rate.
We've been focusing on optimizing for efficiency so that we can prioritize work and so far it has been paying off. But I think now may be a good time to re-evaluate and attempt to do some pruning.
Though if we can somehow hit 4-6M NW by 2025 (age 40), then perfect! I think we could have a very good life at a 200k yearly spend :)
Post by: Lady Stash on July 18, 2021, 03:48:43 PM
I've hit my lean FIRE number but I'm still enjoying work and padding my stash.
By 2025, I'm hoping to hit a more cushioned FIRE number. 2025 seems like a nice year to aim for to assess work vs. RE options.
Post by: Sandi_k on July 18, 2021, 05:22:20 PM
Today we hit $997,936 net worth, almost to the dos-commas-club! Our SoCal housing has been appreciating at an astonishing rate. We are now at a 60/40 split between stock and real-estate. I have another $835,000 in startup 'paper' stock options, that from everything I can see, have a strong possibility of becoming real, or even 2-4x larger (eeeek!)
Income continues to grow, but spending seems to always follow suit, only at a slightly slower rate.
We've been focusing on optimizing for efficiency so that we can prioritize work, and so far it has been paying off, but I think now is a good time to re-evaluate spending and attempt to do some pruning.
Though, if we can somehow hit 4-6M NW by 2025 (age 40), then perfect! I think we could have a very good life at a 200k yearly spend :)
Your "spend" isn't based on Net Worth - it's based on investment assets that throw off income.
Post by: tj on July 18, 2021, 10:33:03 PM
Today we hit $997,936 net worth, almost to the dos-commas-club! Our SoCal housing has been appreciating at an astonishing rate. We are now at a 60/40 split between stock and real-estate. I have another $835,000 in startup 'paper' stock options, that from everything I can see, have a strong possibility of becoming real, or even 2-4x larger (eeeek!)
Income continues to grow, but spending seems to always follow suit, only at a slightly slower rate.
We've been focusing on optimizing for efficiency so that we can prioritize work, and so far it has been paying off, but I think now is a good time to re-evaluate spending and attempt to do some pruning.
Though, if we can somehow hit 4-6M NW by 2025 (age 40), then perfect! I think we could have a very good life at a 200k yearly spend :)
Your "spend" isn't based on Net Worth - it's based on investment assets that throw off income.
If your net worth is based on investment assets, then it's the same.
Post by: bryan995 on July 18, 2021, 10:57:44 PM
Your "spend" isn't based on Net Worth - it's based on investment assets that throw off income.
Not sure I follow? At any moment one could sell all assets, pay off all liabilities and have a bucket of cash that is equal to their NW.
Are folks only tracking FIRE progress via investment / income producing assets?
I suppose equity in a home throws things off a bit, but owning a home outright would also help to control/lower expenses during FIRE.
At this point I don't think I would FIRE prior to 2025, regardless of income/NW.
I don't want to FIRE at 35-40 to then have to scrimp and save for the next 40 years. Especially with all of the unknowns, I very much want to overshoot my expected expenses to ensure I still retain the the freedom that comes with FIRE.
Post by: Sandi_k on July 18, 2021, 11:35:12 PM
Today we hit $997,936 net worth, almost to the dos-commas-club! Our SoCal housing has been appreciating at an astonishing rate. We are now at a 60/40 split between stock and real-estate. I have another $835,000 in startup 'paper' stock options, that from everything I can see, have a strong possibility of becoming real, or even 2-4x larger (eeeek!)
Income continues to grow, but spending seems to always follow suit, only at a slightly slower rate.
We've been focusing on optimizing for efficiency so that we can prioritize work, and so far it has been paying off, but I think now is a good time to re-evaluate spending and attempt to do some pruning.
Though, if we can somehow hit 4-6M NW by 2025 (age 40), then perfect! I think we could have a very good life at a 200k yearly spend :)
Your "spend" isn't based on Net Worth - it's based on investment assets that throw off income.
If your net worth is based on investment assets, then it's the same.
But that's not true for most - a home doesn't typically throw off income. Your FI calc should be based on income-producing investable assets - either a portfolio, or rental real estate, or business income that happens without you at the helm.
Post by: sytar7 on July 19, 2021, 09:00:41 PM
Post by: tj on July 31, 2021, 10:44:13 AM
Today we hit $997,936 net worth, almost to the dos-commas-club! Our SoCal housing has been appreciating at an astonishing rate. We are now at a 60/40 split between stock and real-estate. I have another $835,000 in startup 'paper' stock options, that from everything I can see, have a strong possibility of becoming real, or even 2-4x larger (eeeek!)
Income continues to grow, but spending seems to always follow suit, only at a slightly slower rate.
We've been focusing on optimizing for efficiency so that we can prioritize work, and so far it has been paying off, but I think now is a good time to re-evaluate spending and attempt to do some pruning.
Though, if we can somehow hit 4-6M NW by 2025 (age 40), then perfect! I think we could have a very good life at a 200k yearly spend :)
Your "spend" isn't based on Net Worth - it's based on investment assets that throw off income.
If your net worth is based on investment assets, then it's the same.
But that's not true for most - a home doesn't typically throw off income. Your FI calc should be based on income-producing investable assets - either a portfolio, or rental real estate, or business income that happens without you at the helm.
I have no idea why someone would inlcude personal residence home equity in their net worth, but if you do plan to sell it in the near future, I could see including the after tax value.
Post by: Fomerly known as something on July 31, 2021, 12:02:53 PM
Today we hit $997,936 net worth, almost to the dos-commas-club! Our SoCal housing has been appreciating at an astonishing rate. We are now at a 60/40 split between stock and real-estate. I have another $835,000 in startup 'paper' stock options, that from everything I can see, have a strong possibility of becoming real, or even 2-4x larger (eeeek!)
Income continues to grow, but spending seems to always follow suit, only at a slightly slower rate.
We've been focusing on optimizing for efficiency so that we can prioritize work, and so far it has been paying off, but I think now is a good time to re-evaluate spending and attempt to do some pruning.
Though, if we can somehow hit 4-6M NW by 2025 (age 40), then perfect! I think we could have a very good life at a 200k yearly spend :)
Your "spend" isn't based on Net Worth - it's based on investment assets that throw off income.
If your net worth is based on investment assets, then it's the same.
But that's not true for most - a home doesn't typically throw off income. Your FI calc should be based on income-producing investable assets - either a portfolio, or rental real estate, or business income that happens without you at the helm.
I have no idea why someone would inlcude personal residence home equity in their net worth, but if you do plan to sell it in the near future, I could see including the after tax value.
I include it in my net worth, but it is not a factor in my investments for FIRE. To me they are two different numbers.
Post by: Sandi_k on July 31, 2021, 12:20:40 PM
Today we hit $997,936 net worth, almost to the dos-commas-club! Our SoCal housing has been appreciating at an astonishing rate. We are now at a 60/40 split between stock and real-estate. I have another $835,000 in startup 'paper' stock options, that from everything I can see, have a strong possibility of becoming real, or even 2-4x larger (eeeek!)
Income continues to grow, but spending seems to always follow suit, only at a slightly slower rate.
We've been focusing on optimizing for efficiency so that we can prioritize work, and so far it has been paying off, but I think now is a good time to re-evaluate spending and attempt to do some pruning.
Though, if we can somehow hit 4-6M NW by 2025 (age 40), then perfect! I think we could have a very good life at a 200k yearly spend :)
Your "spend" isn't based on Net Worth - it's based on investment assets that throw off income.
If your net worth is based on investment assets, then it's the same.
But that's not true for most - a home doesn't typically throw off income. Your FI calc should be based on income-producing investable assets - either a portfolio, or rental real estate, or business income that happens without you at the helm.
I have no idea why someone would inlcude personal residence home equity in their net worth, but if you do plan to sell it in the near future, I could see including the after tax value.
I include it in my net worth, but it is not a factor in my investments for FIRE. To me they are two different numbers.
Exactly. In finance, Net Worth is defined as Assets - Liabilities. So yes, we include our house value, minus the outstanding mortgage.
It is useful for us to know the value so that 1) we can consider moving in retirement if work becomes overwhelmingly awful, since that is essentially our FU money pre-retirement, and 2) so that we do not over-improve the house for the neighborhood.
But really, invested assets are what's actionable for FI, in most instances.
Post by: TomTX on July 31, 2021, 07:08:09 PM
I have no idea why someone would inlcude personal residence home equity in their net worth, but if you do plan to sell it in the near future, I could see including the after tax value.
Oh, that one is easy. It's because of the definition of "net worth". You add up the value* of all your assets, then subtract the value of all your liabilities/debts.
You may be thinking of something more like "invested assets" or "invested assets minus liabilities" or "stash"
*What you could sell it for, not what you paid
Post by: SotI on October 08, 2021, 04:19:38 PM
All things being roughly equal to this day and age, of course.
I hope we can all stay on a good course. My FIRE level will be probably less cushy than some of the numbers I have seen here but they are hopefully good enough for our limited needs.
Post by: Sapphire on October 09, 2021, 05:46:09 PM
OMG!! I just realised that it could be Under Four Years this year!!
We were thinking of a July 2025 end date, but December 2025 is better for tax reasons and annual bonus. Nearly at that 4 year mark!
PS, hope it is okay to quote oneself!
Post by: markbike528CBX on October 10, 2021, 08:28:45 PM
Epiphanies are OK.OMG!! I just realised that it could be Under Four Years this year!!We were thinking of a July 2025 end date, but December 2025 is better for tax reasons and annual bonus. Nearly at that 4 year mark!
PS, hope it is okay to quote oneself!
Post by: Sapphire on October 11, 2021, 01:49:13 AM
Post by: oneday on October 15, 2021, 11:47:14 PM
Hiya, I would like to enlist with this group here as I moved my expected FIRE date to Dec 2025.
All things being roughly equal to this day and age, of course.
I hope we can all stay on a good course. My FIRE level will be probably less cushy than some of the numbers I have seen here but they are hopefully good enough for our limited needs.
@SotI welcome!
Post by: Sandi_k on November 06, 2021, 05:52:14 AM
I am so looking forward to it! On vacation right now, and the idea that I will be able to disconnect from work permanently is just sounding SO APPEALING!
Post by: SaucyAussie on January 03, 2022, 11:59:44 AM
Anyone changing things up, now that we are getting close? I'm front loading my taxable account this year to allow flexibility in the case of an early exit.
Post by: Fomerly known as something on January 03, 2022, 12:56:17 PM
Wow only 3 years to go! It's definitely starting to feel real. My trusty FIRE calculator actually says 1.36 years, thanks to this crazy market. I feel like one really bad day at work, and I may just pull the plug!
Anyone changing things up, now that we are getting close? I'm front loading my taxable account this year to allow flexibility in the case of an early exit.
Since my date is due to a cliff vesting pension, I’m actually working on spending more money.
Post by: Sandi_k on January 03, 2022, 01:52:15 PM
Wow only 3 years to go! It's definitely starting to feel real. My trusty FIRE calculator actually says 1.36 years, thanks to this crazy market. I feel like one really bad day at work, and I may just pull the plug!
Anyone changing things up, now that we are getting close? I'm front loading my taxable account this year to allow flexibility in the case of an early exit.
Yes. I've made sure that I have at least the first 5 years in cash/TIPS/GNMAE funds. That will take us to age 65/67 - at which point, the house is paid off (+$28k in cash flow) and DH reaches FRA (+$24k in cash flow).
This means I don't care what the market does. I just keep trudging along, as my retirement age multiplier for the pension is now more important than anything we save from here on out.
Age 56.5, Multiplier of ~1.99 x 34 years of service = 68% retirement pay
Age 57, Multiplier of 2.08 x 34.5 years = 72%
Age 58, Multiplier of 2.22 x 35.5 years = 79%
Age 59, Multiplier of 2.36 x 36.5 years = 86%
Age 60, multiplier of 2.5 x 38 years (includes unused SL) = 95% retirement check.
Minus survivor benefits for DH, but it's a stunning progression the last 3.5 years of service!
Post by: swashbucklinstache on January 03, 2022, 02:00:19 PM
2021 closed at 957k. My original WAG FIRE number in 2016 was 900k, which is 1040k in 2021 dollars. I'm 32 and figuring out my long term desired spend & seeing how a new potentially long term romantic partnership plays out. So, still targeting 2025. Assuming average returns and regular contributions I would land at 1.7 million in today's dollars, 55k at 3.25% WR. I'm 100% stocks so absent a big market crash it's all about long term spend at this point, as I'm at 38x trailing 3 year average expenses.Like many, I'm fortunate to say that 2020 was good to my assets. I closed the year at 711k net worth. That's good for 28x my trailing three years of expenses. I'm pushing on to 1mm mostly to account for desired lifestyle changes (travel, big city living) + flexibility (family) in retirement. But, that could be as soon as 1.4 years from now with 6.7% returns and 110-120 annual contributions. We'll see what mr market has to say, but decent chance I check out ahead of 2025 at this point. If I do see 7 figures with such high valuations I might turn to one of several "step towards FIRE" plans rather than leap outright. 2025 projects at 1.5mm if nothing changes and averages hold, so probably wouldn't hang around that long barring big lifestyle changes.Yah chief, sign me up. Likely as FI rather than FIRE, with a few extra years to pad on after, but so much could change from now to then. Aged 27, 8.5x current expense saved, no house, 65% or so savings rate give or take. Single, readiness-to-mingle currently TBD
Well, there was my original post in 12/2016! In the intervening 9 months I've moved from 8.5x current expenses to 10.96x and upped my savings rate a few percentage points! I'm still an immature smartass though :).
My life is so far from where it'll be in 2025 that it's hard to say how i'm doing, but things are headed in the right direction. I could be in the 650k-900k range if things go roughly how they've gone so far. The high end of that is looking damn near the end of things for full-time worker bee me if I'm still single and childless at that time, or at least time to ask for a stupid amount of money not to go a-wanderin'.
Hope everyone else is on track, too.
Update, maybe I'll keep an annually running tab in this thread if people don't mind :).
stache as multiple of 3 year trailing current expenses
12/2016: 8.5x
09/2017: 10.96x
12/2017: 11.6x - would be higher but have had an expensive year
2018 EOY update:
2016: 8.5x
09/2017: 10.96x
2017: 11.6x
2018: 13.65x
I'm aiming for ~45x with these numbers for FIRE (health insurance, likely lifestyle changes etc.).
How is everyone else doing as we start 2019?
2019 EOY update:
2016: 8.5x
09/2017: 10.96x
2017: 11.6x
2018: 13.65x
2019: 16.99x (with a high expense year! trailing 3 years is more like 19.26x)
Getting there! Closing in on half a million with a minimum FI goal of 1 million and saving 100-115 a year right now means I might be as little as ~3 years out with just a little above average returns or some raises.
How is everyone else?
Post by: swashbucklinstache on January 03, 2022, 02:05:28 PM
Wow only 3 years to go! It's definitely starting to feel real. My trusty FIRE calculator actually says 1.36 years, thanks to this crazy market. I feel like one really bad day at work, and I may just pull the plug!Has always been the plan, but I'm trying out more expensive lifestyles. Primarily that's around where to live and potential 3-6 month leases. When I cross to a million I'll start building up 5 years in bonds and treasuries then back to stocks. No math behind that, just like the idea of a non-stock backdrop and 125k there won't make much of a practically meaningful difference in long term wealth anyway.
Anyone changing things up, now that we are getting close? I'm front loading my taxable account this year to allow flexibility in the case of an early exit.
Post by: AK on January 03, 2022, 02:44:56 PM
Wow only 3 years to go! It's definitely starting to feel real. My trusty FIRE calculator actually says 1.36 years, thanks to this crazy market. I feel like one really bad day at work, and I may just pull the plug!
Anyone changing things up, now that we are getting close? I'm front loading my taxable account this year to allow flexibility in the case of an early exit.
I'm starting a mini-retirement in a few weeks until probably September with some part-time consulting during that time. This will be a FIRE trial for me. FI has always been the goal but not so sure about the RE part any more. This requires quitting my FT position that I like most days but isn't fulfilling. When I'm done, I'll ramp up my contracting and I'm thinking about starting a YouTube channel to teach people my technical skills for income.
Post by: TomTX on January 03, 2022, 02:46:35 PM
Wow only 3 years to go! It's definitely starting to feel real. My trusty FIRE calculator actually says 1.36 years, thanks to this crazy market. I feel like one really bad day at work, and I may just pull the plug!
Anyone changing things up, now that we are getting close? I'm front loading my taxable account this year to allow flexibility in the case of an early exit.
Yes. I've made sure that I have at least the first 5 years in cash/TIPS/GNMAE funds. That will take us to age 65/67 - at which point, the house is paid off (+$28k in cash flow) and DH reaches FRA (+$24k in cash flow).
This means I don't care what the market does. I just keep trudging along, as my retirement age multiplier for the pension is now more important than anything we save from here on out.
Age 56.5, Multiplier of ~1.99 x 34 years of service = 68% retirement pay
Age 57, Multiplier of 2.08 x 34.5 years = 72%
Age 58, Multiplier of 2.22 x 35.5 years = 79%
Age 59, Multiplier of 2.36 x 36.5 years = 86%
Age 60, multiplier of 2.5 x 38 years (includes unused SL) = 95% retirement check.
Minus survivor benefits for DH, but it's a stunning progression the last 3.5 years of service!
Do you actually need a 95% retirement check, or is it just a firehose of extra cash?
Post by: LightStache on January 03, 2022, 03:17:54 PM
2021 closed at 957k. My original WAG FIRE number in 2016 was 900k, which is 1040k in 2021 dollars. I'm 32 and figuring out my long term desired spend & seeing how a new potentially long term romantic partnership plays out. So, still targeting 2025. Assuming average returns and regular contributions I would land at 1.7 million in today's dollars, 55k at 3.25% WR. I'm 100% stocks so absent a big market crash it's all about long term spend at this point, as I'm at 38x trailing 3 year average expenses.
How is everyone else?
Sadly 2021 wasn't great for me. I sold my last rental and took the tax hit and kept my investment accounts largely in cash out of fear. NW up only $70K when it would be at least +$150K if I had stayed the course. Those decisions, as well as now footing the bill for 100% of my housing costs in a HCOL area, probably means I need to be held back to 2027. Sharing my disappointing results in case others out there have some stumbles. It's not always easy sailing.
Post by: aetheldrea on January 03, 2022, 08:44:58 PM
Post by: Sandi_k on January 03, 2022, 10:33:03 PM
Wow only 3 years to go! It's definitely starting to feel real. My trusty FIRE calculator actually says 1.36 years, thanks to this crazy market. I feel like one really bad day at work, and I may just pull the plug!
Anyone changing things up, now that we are getting close? I'm front loading my taxable account this year to allow flexibility in the case of an early exit.
Yes. I've made sure that I have at least the first 5 years in cash/TIPS/GNMAE funds. That will take us to age 65/67 - at which point, the house is paid off (+$28k in cash flow) and DH reaches FRA (+$24k in cash flow).
This means I don't care what the market does. I just keep trudging along, as my retirement age multiplier for the pension is now more important than anything we save from here on out.
Age 56.5, Multiplier of ~1.99 x 34 years of service = 68% retirement pay
Age 57, Multiplier of 2.08 x 34.5 years = 72%
Age 58, Multiplier of 2.22 x 35.5 years = 79%
Age 59, Multiplier of 2.36 x 36.5 years = 86%
Age 60, multiplier of 2.5 x 38 years (includes unused SL) = 95% retirement check.
Minus survivor benefits for DH, but it's a stunning progression the last 3.5 years of service!
Do you actually need a 95% retirement check, or is it just a firehose of extra cash?
That 95% minus survivor benefits covers both me and DH in retirement. So he can retire long before SS and FRA as well. He had spinal surgery 15 years ago, and his body just isn't dealing well with anything requiring standing or lifting.
So yeah - firehose of extra cash, meant to cover DH's under-employment in recent years, plus medical disability.
Post by: Turtle on January 04, 2022, 07:57:08 AM
I may be joining this cohort depending on how my company treats payment of annual items for retirees. Their annual bonus and profit sharing 401k bonus are usually paid at the end of the first quarter of the year, based upon the prior year. People who leave earlier than that risk forfeiting that money. However, I'm not sure if there's any difference based upon whether it is retirement or simply quitting, so I need to look into that.
Otherwise I'm thinking April of 2026, most likely.
Post by: charis on January 04, 2022, 08:23:10 AM
Spouse will work at least a couple more years past FI (to vest pension) but I'd like to be retired from FT work by then. Our oldest will be looking at colleges within a couple of years of FI status.
Post by: aetheldrea on January 04, 2022, 11:59:44 AM
Hello All!My company pays a bonus to retirees for their previous year’s work, but to no one else who isn’t on the payroll for any reason on the date the bonus is paid.
I may be joining this cohort depending on how my company treats payment of annual items for retirees. Their annual bonus and profit sharing 401k bonus are usually paid at the end of the first quarter of the year, based upon the prior year. People who leave earlier than that risk forfeiting that money. However, I'm not sure if there's any difference based upon whether it is retirement or simply quitting, so I need to look into that.
Otherwise I'm thinking April of 2026, most likely.
Post by: oneday on January 04, 2022, 09:00:31 PM
How is everyone else?
Those decisions, as well as now footing the bill for 100% of my housing costs in a HCOL area, probably means I need to be held back to 2027. Sharing my disappointing results in case others out there have some stumbles. It's not always easy sailing.
I estimated 2025 back in 2015 when I was married, but a divorce in 2018 drastically changed the picture (no spouse's pension). So most likely I'll be class of 2028. But I'm not leaving this class until 1/1/26 proves I didn't retire in 2025! I hold on to a very, very slim hope :)
Post by: afuera on January 05, 2022, 07:02:29 AM
Post by: swashbucklinstache on January 05, 2022, 07:08:30 AM
Rooting for you both! If nothing else we can also be a 2025 FU Money cohort and you'll definitely be there at least =)How is everyone else?
Those decisions, as well as now footing the bill for 100% of my housing costs in a HCOL area, probably means I need to be held back to 2027. Sharing my disappointing results in case others out there have some stumbles. It's not always easy sailing.
I estimated 2025 back in 2015 when I was married, but a divorce in 2018 drastically changed the picture (no spouse's pension). So most likely I'll be class of 2028. But I'm not leaving this class until 1/1/26 proves I didn't retire in 2025! I hold on to a very, very slim hope :)
Post by: ca-rn on January 09, 2022, 01:29:03 PM
I'm PT/downshifted and will continue until around 2025 to access 401K via rule of 55. It will be 800K+ (with just my pre tax contributions all going to total bond market) by then and will need some serious Roth converting before Medicare and RMDs.
Filing Single and living in California, I keep reading its going to cost a lot to convert...plus rental income and pension (may lump sum) adds more $ but also more complexity and taxes. I think it'll be best to finish Roth converting before starting/lump sum pension. Luckily SS isn't taxed in California.
Property will be paid off, rental income should cover housing taxes/maintenance/insurance and part/all(?) of health insurance. Health insurance/cost will be my biggest unknown. Those are my largest monthly expenses. Personal expenses are pretty low, easily less than 2k/month. Have plenty in taxable (1+ million) to cover lumpy/travel costs, help family members and maybe a CCRC for me in the future.
3 more years!!!!!!
Post by: ca-rn on January 09, 2022, 01:38:46 PM
2021 closed at 957k. My original WAG FIRE number in 2016 was 900k, which is 1040k in 2021 dollars. I'm 32 and figuring out my long term desired spend & seeing how a new potentially long term romantic partnership plays out. So, still targeting 2025. Assuming average returns and regular contributions I would land at 1.7 million in today's dollars, 55k at 3.25% WR. I'm 100% stocks so absent a big market crash it's all about long term spend at this point, as I'm at 38x trailing 3 year average expenses.
How is everyone else?
Sadly 2021 wasn't great for me. I sold my last rental and took the tax hit and kept my investment accounts largely in cash out of fear. NW up only $70K when it would be at least +$150K if I had stayed the course. Those decisions, as well as now footing the bill for 100% of my housing costs in a HCOL area, probably means I need to be held back to 2027. Sharing my disappointing results in case others out there have some stumbles. It's not always easy sailing.
LightStache, what made you decide to sell your last rental? Curious, as I am getting ready to sell one too and definitely not looking forward to the tax hit.
Also, if you cashed out of your investments accounts out of fear, it points to a TOO aggressive AA. Don't beat yourself up though, its a lesson learned and you need to figure out what is an AA that lets you sleep at night without fear of making rash decisions.
Post by: LightStache on January 09, 2022, 02:01:59 PM
LightStache, what made you decide to sell your last rental? Curious, as I am getting ready to sell one too and definitely not looking forward to the tax hit.
It hadn't been the greatest rental and I had some (possibly rational) concerns about the foundation. But mostly it was just my sense that the market is in a bubble, so a good time to exit. Essentially market timing. Let the tar-and-feathering commence. ;)
Post by: evanc on January 17, 2022, 02:50:47 PM
Post by: evanc on January 17, 2022, 02:58:52 PM
Greetings! Fellow 2025er. I found MMM in 2016 and got the face punch I was searching for. Fortunately, DW was on board once I shared the “shockingly simple math” post. We realized for the first time that we could actually do this (RE). Up to that point, basically everything I read said it was impossible. Once we made a plan, we set our sights on 2025 and haven’t looked back since. Like some of you, we anticipate higher expenses post retirement due to a combination of increased healthcare costs, additional travel, and inflation. Here’s how we have progressed thus far with current levels of spending in parentheses for comparison purposes.
T-8 years: 5.77x (7.21)
-7: 7.13 (8.92)
-6: 9.06 (11.33)
-5: 10.52 (13.14)
and project the following:
-4: 12.85 (16.07)
-3: 15.65 (19.56)
-2: 18.64 (23.3)
-1: 21.83 (27.29)
FIRE: 26x (32.5)
There is some room, but the biggest added expense is healthcare on ACA or whatever is available at that point. Cautiously optimistic that we can make it happen in 2025. As of now, right on track. I will be 46 and DW a few years older.
As of today, 15.15x (18.93). Still projecting 2025 FIRE, but unofficially hopeful it could be sooner.
Update as of 1/1/22: 20.2x (25.3)
Mathematically, DW and I are FI with current expenses (seems weird even saying that, as this is the first time I've seen it on paper). However, still both working to achieve fat fire by 2025.
Post by: Sandi_k on March 08, 2022, 01:22:02 PM
Some disruption at work seems to have calmed down, so I am hoping that this means the new boss and I are "gelling" enough for me to stay firmly employed at my fabulous salary through 2025. ;)
The recent market hit has me feeling...content. I am glad that we have 5 years in TIPS and cash; no worries about having to work OMY or anything like that.
We're starting to think about home improvement projects. But we don't want to undertake them when contractors are so darned hard to obtain.
DH is a little underemployed. He turns 59.5 next Spring, and we're considering tapping into his accounts a little earlier than that.
Does anyone have any experience with accessing the accounts using SEPP? Or should we just bite the bullet and pay the 10% penalty on the amount, should he choose to withdraw funds?
Post by: markbike528CBX on March 08, 2022, 07:21:36 PM
So this month means I am now at 3.5 years from my "age 60" pension multiplier and goal. Woot!As is often the case, there is a thread for that:
Some disruption at work seems to have calmed down, so I am hoping that this means the new boss and I are "gelling" enough for me to stay firmly employed at my fabulous salary through 2025. ;)
The recent market hit has me feeling...content. I am glad that we have 5 years in TIPS and cash; no worries about having to work OMY or anything like that.
We're starting to think about home improvement projects. But we don't want to undertake them when contractors are so darned hard to obtain.
DH is a little underemployed. He turns 59.5 next Spring, and we're considering tapping into his accounts a little earlier than that.
Does anyone have any experience with accessing the accounts using SEPP? Or should we just bite the bullet and pay the 10% penalty on the amount, should he choose to withdraw funds?
https://forum.mrmoneymustache.com/ask-a-mustachian/anybody-with-experience-using-sepp-72-method/msg2266852/#msg2266852
I've been doing SEPP / 72(t) for 3 years now. No issues. I used the amortization method, so I don't have to calculate it every year.
I intentionally used a 0.05% mid market rate instead of the IRS rule maximum, so I kept the withdrawal (which is taxable) less than the Married Filing Jointly (US) standard deduction.
Two years $0 federal tax, this year $35 to the feds (a MPP thread worthy thing).
Post by: SaucyAussie on March 09, 2022, 08:48:11 AM
So this month means I am now at 3.5 years from my "age 60" pension multiplier and goal. Woot!As is often the case, there is a thread for that:
Some disruption at work seems to have calmed down, so I am hoping that this means the new boss and I are "gelling" enough for me to stay firmly employed at my fabulous salary through 2025. ;)
The recent market hit has me feeling...content. I am glad that we have 5 years in TIPS and cash; no worries about having to work OMY or anything like that.
We're starting to think about home improvement projects. But we don't want to undertake them when contractors are so darned hard to obtain.
DH is a little underemployed. He turns 59.5 next Spring, and we're considering tapping into his accounts a little earlier than that.
Does anyone have any experience with accessing the accounts using SEPP? Or should we just bite the bullet and pay the 10% penalty on the amount, should he choose to withdraw funds?
https://forum.mrmoneymustache.com/ask-a-mustachian/anybody-with-experience-using-sepp-72-method/msg2266852/#msg2266852
I've been doing SEPP / 72(t) for 3 years now. No issues. I used the amortization method, so I don't have to calculate it every year.
I intentionally used a 0.05% mid market rate instead of the IRS rule maximum, so I kept the withdrawal (which is taxable) less than the Married Filing Jointly (US) standard deduction.
Two years $0 federal tax, this year $35 to the feds (a MPP thread worthy thing).
That thread is all of one post long. lol
I too am thinking of going the SEPP route. Not to get us too off-topic here but I have a couple of questions regarding SEPP that I bet you fine folk can help with.
1. If I quit by job and start doing SEPP, can I go ahead and get another job somewhere else? Can I contribute to the new jobs 401k?
2. If I find the SEPP is giving me more cash than I need, can I re-invest in a tax-advantaged account?
Post by: tj on March 09, 2022, 12:12:06 PM
#2 doesn't make any sense. You can't reduce the distribution after you start, you have to keep it going until 59.5 or 5 years,whichever is longer.So this month means I am now at 3.5 years from my "age 60" pension multiplier and goal. Woot!As is often the case, there is a thread for that:
Some disruption at work seems to have calmed down, so I am hoping that this means the new boss and I are "gelling" enough for me to stay firmly employed at my fabulous salary through 2025. ;)
The recent market hit has me feeling...content. I am glad that we have 5 years in TIPS and cash; no worries about having to work OMY or anything like that.
We're starting to think about home improvement projects. But we don't want to undertake them when contractors are so darned hard to obtain.
DH is a little underemployed. He turns 59.5 next Spring, and we're considering tapping into his accounts a little earlier than that.
Does anyone have any experience with accessing the accounts using SEPP? Or should we just bite the bullet and pay the 10% penalty on the amount, should he choose to withdraw funds?
https://forum.mrmoneymustache.com/ask-a-mustachian/anybody-with-experience-using-sepp-72-method/msg2266852/#msg2266852
I've been doing SEPP / 72(t) for 3 years now. No issues. I used the amortization method, so I don't have to calculate it every year.
I intentionally used a 0.05% mid market rate instead of the IRS rule maximum, so I kept the withdrawal (which is taxable) less than the Married Filing Jointly (US) standard deduction.
Two years $0 federal tax, this year $35 to the feds (a MPP thread worthy thing).
That thread is all of one post long. lol
I too am thinking of going the SEPP route. Not to get us too off-topic here but I have a couple of questions regarding SEPP that I bet you fine folk can help with.
1. If I quit by job and start doing SEPP, can I go ahead and get another job somewhere else? Can I contribute to the new jobs 401k?
2. If I find the SEPP is giving me more cash than I need, can I re-invest in a tax-advantaged account?
SEPP has zero impact on you contributing earned income to retirement accounts.
https://www.kitces.com/blog/rule-72t-sepp-calculate-payments-rmd-avoid-penalty-tax-early-ira-withdrawals-notice-2022-6/
Post by: SaucyAussie on March 09, 2022, 12:58:31 PM
#2 doesn't make any sense. You can't reduce the distribution after you start, you have to keep it going until 59.5 or 5 years,whichever is longer.So this month means I am now at 3.5 years from my "age 60" pension multiplier and goal. Woot!As is often the case, there is a thread for that:
Some disruption at work seems to have calmed down, so I am hoping that this means the new boss and I are "gelling" enough for me to stay firmly employed at my fabulous salary through 2025. ;)
The recent market hit has me feeling...content. I am glad that we have 5 years in TIPS and cash; no worries about having to work OMY or anything like that.
We're starting to think about home improvement projects. But we don't want to undertake them when contractors are so darned hard to obtain.
DH is a little underemployed. He turns 59.5 next Spring, and we're considering tapping into his accounts a little earlier than that.
Does anyone have any experience with accessing the accounts using SEPP? Or should we just bite the bullet and pay the 10% penalty on the amount, should he choose to withdraw funds?
https://forum.mrmoneymustache.com/ask-a-mustachian/anybody-with-experience-using-sepp-72-method/msg2266852/#msg2266852
I've been doing SEPP / 72(t) for 3 years now. No issues. I used the amortization method, so I don't have to calculate it every year.
I intentionally used a 0.05% mid market rate instead of the IRS rule maximum, so I kept the withdrawal (which is taxable) less than the Married Filing Jointly (US) standard deduction.
Two years $0 federal tax, this year $35 to the feds (a MPP thread worthy thing).
That thread is all of one post long. lol
I too am thinking of going the SEPP route. Not to get us too off-topic here but I have a couple of questions regarding SEPP that I bet you fine folk can help with.
1. If I quit by job and start doing SEPP, can I go ahead and get another job somewhere else? Can I contribute to the new jobs 401k?
2. If I find the SEPP is giving me more cash than I need, can I re-invest in a tax-advantaged account?
SEPP has zero impact on you contributing earned income to retirement accounts.
https://www.kitces.com/blog/rule-72t-sepp-calculate-payments-rmd-avoid-penalty-tax-early-ira-withdrawals-notice-2022-6/
I'm not talking about reducing distributions, I'm talking about depositing funds into another account separate from the SEPP calculations.
Post by: tj on March 09, 2022, 01:17:13 PM
#2 doesn't make any sense. You can't reduce the distribution after you start, you have to keep it going until 59.5 or 5 years,whichever is longer.So this month means I am now at 3.5 years from my "age 60" pension multiplier and goal. Woot!As is often the case, there is a thread for that:
Some disruption at work seems to have calmed down, so I am hoping that this means the new boss and I are "gelling" enough for me to stay firmly employed at my fabulous salary through 2025. ;)
The recent market hit has me feeling...content. I am glad that we have 5 years in TIPS and cash; no worries about having to work OMY or anything like that.
We're starting to think about home improvement projects. But we don't want to undertake them when contractors are so darned hard to obtain.
DH is a little underemployed. He turns 59.5 next Spring, and we're considering tapping into his accounts a little earlier than that.
Does anyone have any experience with accessing the accounts using SEPP? Or should we just bite the bullet and pay the 10% penalty on the amount, should he choose to withdraw funds?
https://forum.mrmoneymustache.com/ask-a-mustachian/anybody-with-experience-using-sepp-72-method/msg2266852/#msg2266852
I've been doing SEPP / 72(t) for 3 years now. No issues. I used the amortization method, so I don't have to calculate it every year.
I intentionally used a 0.05% mid market rate instead of the IRS rule maximum, so I kept the withdrawal (which is taxable) less than the Married Filing Jointly (US) standard deduction.
Two years $0 federal tax, this year $35 to the feds (a MPP thread worthy thing).
That thread is all of one post long. lol
I too am thinking of going the SEPP route. Not to get us too off-topic here but I have a couple of questions regarding SEPP that I bet you fine folk can help with.
1. If I quit by job and start doing SEPP, can I go ahead and get another job somewhere else? Can I contribute to the new jobs 401k?
2. If I find the SEPP is giving me more cash than I need, can I re-invest in a tax-advantaged account?
SEPP has zero impact on you contributing earned income to retirement accounts.
https://www.kitces.com/blog/rule-72t-sepp-calculate-payments-rmd-avoid-penalty-tax-early-ira-withdrawals-notice-2022-6/
I'm not talking about reducing distributions, I'm talking about depositing funds into another account separate from the SEPP calculations.
The only way you can "re-invest", is if you have earned income to qualify for the annual contributions limits in that year. The distributions are irrelevant. The IRS doesn't care where the $$ come from to deposit into an IRA, only that you have the earned income.
Post by: Sapphire on March 10, 2022, 02:32:19 AM
That said, I have no plans to move out of this lovely cohort...even if we retire in December 2024, we are likely to get paid into 2025...
I have always fancied keeping a journal....just wondering if now might be the time...144 weeks to go (and yes I have a countdown app :)).
Post by: bryan995 on March 11, 2022, 09:19:43 AM
So the plan was for us to retire in December 2025...however circumstances have changed and December 2024 is looking more likely...
That said, I have no plans to move out of this lovely cohort...even if we retire in December 2024, we are likely to get paid into 2025...
I have always fancied keeping a journal....just wondering if now might be the time...144 weeks to go (and yes I have a countdown app :)).
Similar change in circumstances, we would likely be ready in 2024. Though with all of the current uncertainty in the market / world / inflation. We may power through until 2025 no matter what. We both fancy of jobs plenty.
Maybe 2025 can turn into a 'treat-yourself-2025' celebration. One final drunken spend-it-all-living-paycheck-to-paycheck hurrah before we downshift into FIRE :)
Post by: charis on March 11, 2022, 09:37:00 AM
Maybe 2025 can turn into a 'treat-yourself-2025' celebration. One final drunken spend-it-all-living-paycheck-to-paycheck hurrah before we downshift into FIRE :)
This caught my eye because sometimes I fantasize about a year of no saving just to see what it would be like to be so debaucherous, lol. Only saving up to the 401k (I know I could never haha), letting the investments ride, taking home everything else and seeing what happens. Since we save almost 65% of income, I can't really wrap my mind around it! We would spend a lot more in taxes though.
Post by: bryan995 on March 11, 2022, 10:03:07 AM
Maybe 2025 can turn into a 'treat-yourself-2025' celebration. One final drunken spend-it-all-living-paycheck-to-paycheck hurrah before we downshift into FIRE :)
This caught my eye because sometimes I fantasize about a year of no saving just to see what it would be like to be so debaucherous, lol. Only saving up to the 401k (I know I could never haha), letting the investments ride, taking home everything else and seeing what happens. Since we save almost 65% of income, I can't really wrap my mind around it! We would spend a lot more in taxes though.
I am going to do it, need to live the American dream once ! :)
Will still max 401k and avoid as many taxes as possible, but the rest shall be spent! Maybe a lot of pre-buying / repairs / remodel etc to kick FIRE off with a highest chance of success.
*disclaimer - need to seek wife approval first
Post by: Sapphire on March 12, 2022, 01:04:34 AM
Maybe 2025 can turn into a 'treat-yourself-2025' celebration. One final drunken spend-it-all-living-paycheck-to-paycheck hurrah before we downshift into FIRE :)
This caught my eye because sometimes I fantasize about a year of no saving just to see what it would be like to be so debaucherous, lol. Only saving up to the 401k (I know I could never haha), letting the investments ride, taking home everything else and seeing what happens. Since we save almost 65% of income, I can't really wrap my mind around it! We would spend a lot more in taxes though.
I am going to do it, need to live the American dream once ! :)
Will still max 401k and avoid as many taxes as possible, but the rest shall be spent! Maybe a lot of pre-buying / repairs / remodel etc to kick FIRE off with a highest chance of success.
*disclaimer - need to seek wife approval first
Oooh, suddenly I like that idea...lol @bryan995 I'm the wife with approval veto :)
Post by: Sapphire on March 20, 2022, 04:47:06 AM
https://www.timeanddate.com/date/workdays.html?d1=11&m1=10&y1=2019&d2=1&m2=4&y2=2022&ti=on
Suddenly my 1004 days dropped to 691 days (once you take out the weekends and public holidays)...
Post by: markbike528CBX on March 28, 2022, 09:29:11 AM
So this month means I am now at 3.5 years from my "age 60" pension multiplier and goal. Woot!As is often the case, there is a thread for that:
Some disruption at work seems to have calmed down, so I am hoping that this means the new boss and I are "gelling" enough for me to stay firmly employed at my fabulous salary through 2025. ;)
The recent market hit has me feeling...content. I am glad that we have 5 years in TIPS and cash; no worries about having to work OMY or anything like that.
We're starting to think about home improvement projects. But we don't want to undertake them when contractors are so darned hard to obtain.
DH is a little underemployed. He turns 59.5 next Spring, and we're considering tapping into his accounts a little earlier than that.
Does anyone have any experience with accessing the accounts using SEPP? Or should we just bite the bullet and pay the 10% penalty on the amount, should he choose to withdraw funds?
https://forum.mrmoneymustache.com/ask-a-mustachian/anybody-with-experience-using-sepp-72-method/msg2266852/#msg2266852
I've been doing SEPP / 72(t) for 3 years now. No issues. I used the amortization method, so I don't have to calculate it every year.
I intentionally used a 0.05% mid market rate instead of the IRS rule maximum, so I kept the withdrawal (which is taxable) less than the Married Filing Jointly (US) standard deduction.
Two years $0 federal tax, this year $35 to the feds (a MPP thread worthy thing).
That thread is all of one post long. lol
I too am thinking of going the SEPP route. Not to get us too off-topic here but I have a couple of questions regarding SEPP that I bet you fine folk can help with.
1. If I quit by job and start doing SEPP, can I go ahead and get another job somewhere else? Can I contribute to the new jobs 401k?
2. If I find the SEPP is giving me more cash than I need, can I re-invest in a tax-advantaged account?
@SaucyAussie and others:
Sorry about the one post thread I linked, I meant this one:
https://forum.mrmoneymustache.com/post-fire/anybody-actually-taking-section-72(t)-'sepp'-withdrawals-from-tira/
If it makes you feel any better, this issue disturbed my sleep last night, so I thought I take care of it today. :-)
I had previously forgotten where I had made the mistake, so I couldn't find where to fix it.
Post by: SaucyAussie on March 29, 2022, 12:52:30 PM
So this month means I am now at 3.5 years from my "age 60" pension multiplier and goal. Woot!As is often the case, there is a thread for that:
Some disruption at work seems to have calmed down, so I am hoping that this means the new boss and I are "gelling" enough for me to stay firmly employed at my fabulous salary through 2025. ;)
The recent market hit has me feeling...content. I am glad that we have 5 years in TIPS and cash; no worries about having to work OMY or anything like that.
We're starting to think about home improvement projects. But we don't want to undertake them when contractors are so darned hard to obtain.
DH is a little underemployed. He turns 59.5 next Spring, and we're considering tapping into his accounts a little earlier than that.
Does anyone have any experience with accessing the accounts using SEPP? Or should we just bite the bullet and pay the 10% penalty on the amount, should he choose to withdraw funds?
https://forum.mrmoneymustache.com/ask-a-mustachian/anybody-with-experience-using-sepp-72-method/msg2266852/#msg2266852
I've been doing SEPP / 72(t) for 3 years now. No issues. I used the amortization method, so I don't have to calculate it every year.
I intentionally used a 0.05% mid market rate instead of the IRS rule maximum, so I kept the withdrawal (which is taxable) less than the Married Filing Jointly (US) standard deduction.
Two years $0 federal tax, this year $35 to the feds (a MPP thread worthy thing).
That thread is all of one post long. lol
I too am thinking of going the SEPP route. Not to get us too off-topic here but I have a couple of questions regarding SEPP that I bet you fine folk can help with.
1. If I quit by job and start doing SEPP, can I go ahead and get another job somewhere else? Can I contribute to the new jobs 401k?
2. If I find the SEPP is giving me more cash than I need, can I re-invest in a tax-advantaged account?
@SaucyAussie and others:
Sorry about the one post thread I linked, I meant this one:
https://forum.mrmoneymustache.com/post-fire/anybody-actually-taking-section-72(t)-'sepp'-withdrawals-from-tira/
If it makes you feel any better, this issue disturbed my sleep last night, so I thought I take care of it today. :-)
I had previously forgotten where I had made the mistake, so I couldn't find where to fix it.
Ha! Thanks for that, lots of good information in that thread.
In the meantime, I did come across 72tnet.com/community/ which specializes in this topic. (seems to be down today). I was able to chat with a very knowledgeable CPA and get all my questions answered.
Basically talked me out of going this route as I am only 33 months away from Rule of 55 provisions kicking in which would provide me far more flexibility.
But some days 33 months just seems way too long...
Post by: markbike528CBX on March 29, 2022, 11:12:16 PM
Your 401(k) must allow partial withdrawals,
as a lump sum would have to go to an IRA, which may not be qualified for the rule of 55.
If not, then you don't have to wait for a date that doesn't apply to you.
Post by: moneytaichi on April 16, 2022, 11:22:34 PM
Ok, this was fun...found in the 2022 Retirement cohort, courtesy of @dsw - not that I am planning a jump, was just reading to keep the motivation going...
https://www.timeanddate.com/date/workdays.html?d1=11&m1=10&y1=2019&d2=1&m2=4&y2=2022&ti=on
Suddenly my 1004 days dropped to 691 days (once you take out the weekends and public holidays)...
Thanks @Sapphire for the great link! I just calculated my actual work days in 2022 are 216 days, excluding vacations and wellness days. They are essentially 59% of days out of 365. It seems more bearable :)
I am joining 2025 Fire cohort, if stock/real estate markets don't push us faster, or job conditions don't become too bad. I initially FIREed in 2018, and then we moved to a HCOL area and bought a house. More money is better than cutting expenses. Plus, I enjoy some aspects of work: connecting with others, solving problems, and health benefits etc. At the same time, it's good to set a retirement deadline. Don't want to wait too long till we can't move around easily ;)
Post by: Silrossi46 on April 19, 2022, 09:11:53 AM
As it stands now i am looking like this:
House = Paid off 700,000 Value. HCOL taxes 14,200/ year
Taxable = 450,000 100% Stock Vanguard Index Funds
457B = 650,000 = Mix of large cap/ SCV/ SP500
Cash = 90,000
Pension at 55 (NOT COLA ADJUSTED) = 8400-8700/ Month depending on final average three years. If i went in 2023 it would be reduced to 7000/M
Healthcare= Fully covered by Employer at no cost to me.
Projected monthly burn = Right now its 40k it could be more depending on what i get me hands into after having tons of free time.
Everything on my house is newer or less than 5 years so i dont think i will need to replace anything to soon other than regular maintenance.
Once i left this toxic .gov i would probably flip a house and or leverage more of my side hustle. (flip cars )
Is anyone else in this boat? The boat i am referring to is hanging on but wanting to go but just hanging on for the comfort level that it provides my twisted brain?
I date a much younger person so there could be unexpected expenses down the line but even with that i think i am prepared for pretty much any of what that could be financially. CFIRESIM has me at 100% success rate with a 100,000 per year inflation adjusted spend for 35 years including taking SS at 62 of 1900/M and having current stache at 100% stocks.
This serves as both my update for the 2025 cohort and my rant for the day lol.
Post by: TomTX on April 19, 2022, 11:47:49 AM
Pension at 55 (NOT COLA ADJUSTED) = 8400-8700/ Month depending on final average three years. If i went in 2023 it would be reduced to 7000/M
Do you have the option to stop working and wait to take the pension? It's what I'm likely to do.
Post by: Silrossi46 on April 19, 2022, 12:30:39 PM
Post by: LightStache on April 19, 2022, 03:18:03 PM
Projected monthly burn = Right now its 40k it could be more depending on what i get me hands into after having tons of free time.
Dang I wanna live your life! ;)
Post by: Silrossi46 on April 19, 2022, 04:53:31 PM
Post by: aeycue13 on April 25, 2022, 01:31:12 PM
Does anyone have thoughts on front loading retirement accounts/HSA in the first 3 months of the year and then quitting with essentially zero earned income for the year? I'm considering that vs. padding the taxable account for flexibility.
Post by: LightStache on April 25, 2022, 04:00:51 PM
Hi, I think I need to officially join this thread. I've been mostly a lurker here for many years; I really like to be sure before I declare I will do something. :) I found Early Retirement Extreme first, MMM second, and everything else waterfalled after that. We made some changes in 2013, and and started really optimizing shortly after that. Today our stash is at 19-20 times our yearly expenses (2.5 years of expenses are in taxable brokerage - we are shooting for 5yrs total in order to start a roth ladder a la madfientist). Since the spreadsheets haven't lied to us yet, I have to believe we will be done in 2025. I'm already starting to think about real-world details like ACA health insurance and when to actually quit. I'm thinking March 2025 because I get a large 401k lump sum in late Feb every year; my wife may quit at the end of 2024 if markets allow.
Does anyone have thoughts on front loading retirement accounts/HSA in the first 3 months of the year and then quitting with essentially zero earned income for the year? I'm considering that vs. padding the taxable account for flexibility.
If you plan to do your Roth conversions at 0% then it makes sense to keep your 2025 taxable income at 0%. However if you plan to pay tax in future years, it's probably optimal to spread some of that into 2025. For example if you plan to convert enough to fill the 15% federal bracket in 2026, you should at least fill the 12% bracket in 2025.
Post by: aeycue13 on April 26, 2022, 09:47:27 AM
If you plan to do your Roth conversions at 0% then it makes sense to keep your 2025 taxable income at 0%. However if you plan to pay tax in future years, it's probably optimal to spread some of that into 2025. For example if you plan to convert enough to fill the 15% federal bracket in 2026, you should at least fill the 12% bracket in 2025.
That makes sense. Thanks for the reponse!
Post by: Turtle on April 26, 2022, 12:31:09 PM
Post by: aeycue13 on April 29, 2022, 12:50:18 PM
Also if you are trying to keep your MAGI low for using ACA during the remainder of the year, it makes sense to do the 401K stuffing in traditional vs Roth in order to have lower annual income.
Right. It will be a balancing act for sure - how much roth conversion vs. how much ACA subsidy. I have to start plugging in some numbers and find/guess the sweet spot.
Post by: asauer on May 07, 2022, 09:17:55 AM
Post by: Goatee Joe on May 07, 2022, 11:08:00 AM
Post by: Silrossi46 on May 07, 2022, 12:05:52 PM
Post by: Fomerly known as something on May 07, 2022, 09:18:26 PM
Welcome to the waiting on the pension club!
2025 is a good year to start a pension.
Post by: frugalecon on May 21, 2022, 03:21:00 PM
Overall I am feeling good, b/c 2025 really isn’t that far away. 146 weeks to my preferred date. Tick tock tick tock…. 73 pay periods, and I am always amazed by how fast a pay period goes by.
Post by: swashbucklinstache on May 21, 2022, 08:04:36 PM
I haven’t checked in with this thread in a while. I have lurked in several…2022 (hey, a guy can dream)…2027 (if the whole world went to hell)…but 2025 is the most likely. Portfolio has taken it in the shorts, at least a bit, but not enough to really matter. And overall the plan is pretty bulletproof for 2025, unless social order breaks down, and then I doubt I would be getting a paycheck anyway.What's your estimated stache size for each RE year, expenses, and other income? Just curious. For me it's 900k, 1.4mm, 2mm, with current expenses around 31k and no other income guaranteed.
Overall I am feeling good, b/c 2025 really isn’t that far away. 146 weeks to my preferred date. Tick tock tick tock…. 73 pay periods, and I am always amazed by how fast a pay period goes by.
Post by: bryan995 on May 22, 2022, 06:29:51 AM
I haven’t checked in with this thread in a while. I have lurked in several…2022 (hey, a guy can dream)…2027 (if the whole world went to hell)…but 2025 is the most likely. Portfolio has taken it in the shorts, at least a bit, but not enough to really matter. And overall the plan is pretty bulletproof for 2025, unless social order breaks down, and then I doubt I would be getting a paycheck anyway.What's your estimated stache size for each RE year, expenses, and other income? Just curious. For me it's 900k, 1.4mm, 2mm, with current expenses around 31k and no other income guaranteed.
Overall I am feeling good, b/c 2025 really isn’t that far away. 146 weeks to my preferred date. Tick tock tick tock…. 73 pay periods, and I am always amazed by how fast a pay period goes by.
Not who you asked the question but I’ve been toying with similar years as well.
For me it’s:
2022: 1.4mm
2025: 3.0mm (stock vesting)
2027: 3.6mm
Current expenses are quite high at the moment.
3 in daycare at $4100/mo and a mortgage of $4500/mo. So spending well over $100k/yr.
Live in HCOL. Working to add more rentals before we FIRE. Would like at least a few :)
Also very much looking forward to the day we can replace daycare with (free) public school.
Post by: Vashy on May 22, 2022, 06:31:29 AM
I haven’t checked in with this thread in a while. I have lurked in several…2022 (hey, a guy can dream)…2027 (if the whole world went to hell)…but 2025 is the most likely.
I'm watching the 2022 thread too for some secondhand joy and motivation. Though to be honest, my FI/RE will happen at any point between now and 31 December 2025. Depends a bit on how things go at work and how long I can stand it.
Post by: Silrossi46 on May 22, 2022, 11:59:35 AM
2022 = 970k = (down from 1,170,000) 100% stocks
2025 = ?
2025 spending = 50-60k with a ton of fluff. Pension likely 8400-9000/m non cola adjusted. Stickin around for the penalty free payout at 55
Post by: frugalecon on June 10, 2022, 04:21:36 PM
Post by: jlcnuke on June 20, 2022, 08:20:31 AM
Post by: frugalecon on July 09, 2022, 07:36:21 AM
Post by: 2Birds1Stone on July 10, 2022, 12:28:17 AM
With 972 days to go (but who’s counting?) did the end-of-Q2 balance sheet on investments. Portfolio went from 5% overfunded for retirement to 10% underfunded, relative to a goal that had some wiggle room. Never great to go in reverse, but there is some time to recover.
That doesn't make much sense. Terminology error?
Post by: Vashy on July 10, 2022, 04:19:25 AM
Post by: frugalecon on July 10, 2022, 04:54:40 AM
With 972 days to go (but who’s counting?) did the end-of-Q2 balance sheet on investments. Portfolio went from 5% overfunded for retirement to 10% underfunded, relative to a goal that had some wiggle room. Never great to go in reverse, but there is some time to recover.
That doesn't make much sense. Terminology error?
Sorry, I probably wasn’t clear. As part of my portfolio tracking spreadsheet, I have an overall goal for the balance I would like to have at retirement. I increase the goal every year to reflect inflation. At the end of last year the portfolio exceeded the goal by 5%, but following the market decline and the increase in inflation (which resulted in increasing the nominal goal), the portfolio value is now 10% below the goal.
Post by: SotI on July 24, 2022, 05:29:52 AM
Post by: ardrum on August 02, 2022, 06:52:49 PM
Post by: TomTX on August 02, 2022, 07:32:34 PM
Joining this group from 2024 group. The combination of the market performance and reduction in my preferred WR for retirement to 3% has me aiming for the end of 2025 to FIRE.
Are you seeing a significant difference between 3.5% and 3.0?
If so, what are your allocations and expected investment expense percentage?
https://engaging-data.com/will-money-last-retire-early/
Post by: 2Birds1Stone on August 02, 2022, 11:27:16 PM
Joining this group from 2024 group. The combination of the market performance and reduction in my preferred WR for retirement to 3% has me aiming for the end of 2025 to FIRE.
This is the second delay of the year. Next is 2026 cohort?
Post by: Thoughtful Mule on August 16, 2022, 11:30:31 AM
We actually reached FI briefly in 2021 (on the spreadsheet at least), but we knew there would be some life changes. It turns out the life changes were more expensive than anticipated and market forces less favorable. Home purchase in 2022 and second child in daycare being the biggest changes. Some of our budget inflation is intentional, some market driven. After making adjustments to the projection, 2025 it is. WR goal is 4% and I even have a little bit of part time income baked in, because... work is good.
There was a brief period of mourning, but being honest with myself, we are doing great. It feels like a sure thing and I expect the time to fly by.
Post by: frugalecon on August 16, 2022, 04:26:30 PM
Alright, this is my first post in this group. The Date is Feb 27, 2025. 42nd birthday.
We actually reached FI briefly in 2021 (on the spreadsheet at least), but we knew there would be some life changes. It turns out the life changes were more expensive than anticipated and market forces less favorable. Home purchase in 2022 and second child in daycare being the biggest changes. Some of our budget inflation is intentional, some market driven. After making adjustments to the projection, 2025 it is. WR goal is 4% and I even have a little bit of part time income baked in, because... work is good.
There was a brief period of mourning, but being honest with myself, we are doing great. It feels like a sure thing and I expect the time to fly by.
Hey TM,
My target date is about a week later! It really was great to go below 1000 days, and they do seem to fly by. Congrats on getting to within sight of the finish line at such a young age!
Post by: Laura33 on August 17, 2022, 01:11:47 PM
I got this approved as a short-term thing to give me the bandwidth to deal with other crap going on in my life (primarily rebuilding after house fire + having DS return to school in-person after missing a good chunk of the winter/spring with anxiety/depression), and the current plan is for 2-3 months. But I really see it as a trial run for how I'd like the future to be -- it's not that I want never to work again, it's that I don't want to feel pressured to work when I just flat-out don't feel like it. And I don't feel like it right now.
I'm actually kinda proud of myself for taking the step, because DH isn't particularly thrilled, and I'm going to have to figure out things like changing insurance (50% is the minimum to be covered at work), and I tend to let those sorts of things dissuade me from doing things that are scary. So we'll see how this goes!
Post by: Vashy on August 17, 2022, 01:14:33 PM
Tentatively joined the 2022 cohort, but keeping one foot in here. Company policies and a general state of fedupness make an early exit a lot likely, but the reptile brain might still win out, or - outside chance - I might be able to negotiate a part-time or contract deal with the employer.
I've been downsized so now doing a coast/barista FI/RE as part of the 2022 cohort. If I get offered a really awesome job that allows me to boost the 'stache in a very meaningful way, I might re-join. Good luck everybody - you got this!
Post by: Fomerly known as something on August 17, 2022, 08:47:45 PM
Post by: oneday on August 19, 2022, 10:21:30 PM
@Vashy good luck I hope you hit your goals, too!
Post by: markbike528CBX on August 20, 2022, 01:14:20 PM
….snip….
I've been downsized so now doing a coast/barista FI/RE as part of the 2022 cohort. If I get offered a really awesome job that allows me to boost the 'stache in a very meaningful way, I might re-join. Good luck everybody - you got this!
Vashy, I would suggest that you have not been downsized, but right-sized.
Downsized is what happens to non-mustachians.
You are now freed from OMY, golden handcuffs. The amount of agonizing about those two thing on this forum is astonishing, you got off easy.
Examples include username literally OMY, and the 2M to 4M and beyond thread.
Post by: TomTX on August 20, 2022, 05:15:18 PM
Post by: Fomerly known as something on August 20, 2022, 05:20:16 PM
Yea, the 2M to 4M and beyond thread just boggle me. Or bogleheads me ;)
It wasn’t my goal, but I’m sticking around for my really good pension at the age of 47. I somehow found myself there.
Post by: Vashy on August 21, 2022, 06:19:40 AM
Vashy, I would suggest that you have not been downsized, but right-sized.
Downsized is what happens to non-mustachians.
You are now freed from OMY, golden handcuffs. The amount of agonizing about those two thing on this forum is astonishing, you got off easy.
Examples include username literally OMY, and the 2M to 4M and beyond thread.
Oh, I like that! Yes, OMY could easily have been my trap too, and I'm still a fair bit (200k) off my FI/RE number at this point, but I hope market growth over the next 10 years will take care of that, plus the side gig will allow me to both have a life and put away more money, though at a slightly reduced rate. We (My Vashy and I) are just about household millionaires, and 50% of that is real estate, so it's a solid base. Mostly, though, I want to do other things with my life than work and commute.
Post by: weebs on August 31, 2022, 10:00:10 AM
Vashy, I would suggest that you have not been downsized, but right-sized.
Downsized is what happens to non-mustachians.
That's an excellent way of looking at it. Vashy - congrats for embarking on the next leg of your journey.
After a spectacularly crappy day at work yesterday, I'm officially throwing my hat in the 2025 ring. I've reached the "can't say that I'm missing it, Bob" stage with my current position, so we'll see if I last that long. I have no intention of coasting, but the gloves are off and there will be no suger coating of opinions. Maybe I'll get lucky and be "right-sized" before 2025.
Post by: Sandi_k on September 17, 2022, 02:42:22 PM
So this month means I am now at 3.5 years from my "age 60" pension multiplier and goal. Woot!
Some disruption at work seems to have calmed down, so I am hoping that this means the new boss and I are "gelling" enough for me to stay firmly employed at my fabulous salary through 2025. ;)
The recent market hit has me feeling...content. I am glad that we have 5 years in TIPS and cash; no worries about having to work OMY or anything like that.
We're starting to think about home improvement projects. But we don't want to undertake them when contractors are so darned hard to obtain.
DH is a little underemployed. He turns 59.5 next Spring, and we're considering tapping into his accounts a little earlier than that.
Does anyone have any experience with accessing the accounts using SEPP? Or should we just bite the bullet and pay the 10% penalty on the amount, should he choose to withdraw funds?
So, I am now 3 years from the planned retirement date! (Actual plan is October 31, 2025 - but I am eligible in Sept. 2025, as that's when I turn 60). So we're now down to 36 months!
Things continue to roll along. DH pulled the trigger on the next set of SEP-IRA conversion dollars - another $20k to the Roth account this year. As of 9-1-22, he has about 50% of his stache in Roth, and 50% still in the SEP-IRA. In 2023, we'll convert another 50%, and 2024, whatever remains, so he'll have no more IRA.
My mom is starting to experience cognitive decline - so that makes 2/3 of our parents. Totally sucky. My sister and I are triaging credit cards being misplaced (about every 3 months or so) and the latest one is mom's phone. Ugh.
We still have ~ 6 years of cash & TIPS in the accounts, so we can still plan on the 2025 cohort. We're down to only $8k in cash, since we did buy some stock on the dip in May. I might re-deploy that cash, given the current sale prices.
Now that I have a full "high three" in my salary (from a pay bump in 2019), I re-ran retirement scenarios. The high three numbers mean I can actually retire at age 59 if I wanted, and still have the same silly income. But waiting until age 60 gives me an additional $1300 per MONTH in the pension, and that's more than I was planning for BIG TRIP expenses annually in retirement.
So yeah - it confirmed that age 60 is optimal. If I can last that long, more power to me. But I don't need to lose any sleep if I need to step back at age 59, due to parental needs or perhaps my own health issues.
Planning on our 25th wedding anniversary trip; trip paid for, hotels and rental car paid for as well. It should be lovely.
Work is decent. The new-ish boss still seems happy enough, so I'm going to stop fretting, and start taking some of my accrued VL, as I am back up at the max again. So I plan to have 3 days off this month, and need at least one off next month.
Pets are fine, house is fine, car is fine. We've got SO MUCH to be thankful for, it really is crazy.
Post by: SotI on September 17, 2022, 03:27:38 PM
Pets are fine, house is fine, car is fine. We've got SO MUCH to be thankful for, it really is crazy.
I totally hear you. I feel the same. Around us, the world as we knew it seems to crumble but we are - so far - only marginally affected. Totally grateful.
Retirement date (ceteris paribus): 1.12.2025
Post by: ardrum on September 21, 2022, 06:25:23 PM
Joining this group from 2024 group. The combination of the market performance and reduction in my preferred WR for retirement to 3% has me aiming for the end of 2025 to FIRE.
This is the second delay of the year. Next is 2026 cohort?
Let's hope not!
Post by: bananas on October 30, 2022, 06:41:51 PM
Looks like excellent company here. Looking forward to linking arms and taking the plunge with you fine folks.
Cheers.
Post by: oneday on October 30, 2022, 07:06:04 PM
Post by: frugalecon on October 30, 2022, 07:16:14 PM
Post by: ca-rn on October 30, 2022, 07:23:32 PM
I've waffled around a few different Fire Cohort groups but I think this is the ONE!
First was 2022(Ha!) Technically am FI but not ready to RE, plus my investments went south (like everyone else) and even though I "know" its temporary and RE is still doable, I need to be extra to sleep well at night.
So adding myself to the 2025 group and that's final! No changes!
In 2025, I'll be 55, able to access 401K via Rule of 55 and pay off mortgage, purge and then take off for some slow international traveling.
That's the plan, hope my knees and health give me enough years to enjoy. 55 is still youngish, right???
Post by: frugalecon on October 31, 2022, 03:07:11 AM
Joining!
I've waffled around a few different Fire Cohort groups but I think this is the ONE!
First was 2022(Ha!) Technically am FI but not ready to RE, plus my investments went south (like everyone else) and even though I "know" its temporary and RE is still doable, I need to be extra to sleep well at night.
So adding myself to the 2025 group and that's final! No changes!
In 2025, I'll be 55, able to access 401K via Rule of 55 and pay off mortgage, purge and then take off for some slow international traveling.
That's the plan, hope my knees and health give me enough years to enjoy. 55 is still youngish, right???
Congrats! 55 is very youngish. I know people in their 80s who are still quite active and loving life!
Post by: bananas on October 31, 2022, 04:34:56 AM
Welcome @bananas ! 2025 is only 2 years, 2 months & 2 days from now (Jan 1) or 3 years & 2 months (Dec 31). However, there's lots of time for the market to do any number of things in that time. 🤞 that it's all to our benefit 😊
Thanks @oneday! And that's really not much time at all.
Maybe I'll start a page-a-day calendar to mark my progress.
(Those calendars are sort of triggering for me, though. I used to work for a super ambitious Obama administration official who had a whiteboard with the number of days left in the term written on it, updated daily, as a reminder that she needed to hustle to get things done. She was cruel and widely hated by staff, though, so we all saw it as more of a "how soon can we be we rid of you" countdown.)
Post by: Sandi_k on October 31, 2022, 05:54:22 PM
We're still planning for 2025; I really don't want to work past age 60 and 2 months. I read recently that the *5* year in a decade was historically good for stock market returns. My fingers are crossed. ;)
Post by: bananas on October 31, 2022, 06:30:54 PM
Welcome, @bananas - happy to have you as part of the cohort!
We're still planning for 2025; I really don't want to work past age 60 and 2 months. I read recently that the *5* year in a decade was historically good for stock market returns. My fingers are crossed. ;)
Thanks, and I'll be crossing my fingers right there with you!
Post by: Fomerly known as something on November 01, 2022, 10:21:42 AM
Welcome @bananas ! 2025 is only 2 years, 2 months & 2 days from now (Jan 1) or 3 years & 2 months (Dec 31). However, there's lots of time for the market to do any number of things in that time. 🤞 that it's all to our benefit 😊
Thanks @oneday! And that's really not much time at all.
Maybe I'll start a page-a-day calendar to mark my progress.
(Those calendars are sort of triggering for me, though. I used to work for a super ambitious Obama administration official who had a whiteboard with the number of days left in the term written on it, updated daily, as a reminder that she needed to hustle to get things done. She was cruel and widely hated by staff, though, so we all saw it as more of a "how soon can we be we rid of you" countdown.)
I’m in a Fed job that is majorly affected by the term. I might have a countdown to the election and the beginning of the next term, but it is only because they will be my last before retirement. Basically my earliest MRA date is 6 months after the next inauguration but from about July 2024-to inauguration my work life is shit. Only 1 more campaign.
Post by: afuera on November 01, 2022, 12:14:11 PM
Post by: bananas on November 01, 2022, 02:13:10 PM
I’m in a Fed job that is majorly affected by the term. I might have a countdown to the election and the beginning of the next term, but it is only because they will be my last before retirement. Basically my earliest MRA date is 6 months after the next inauguration but from about July 2024-to inauguration my work life is shit. Only 1 more campaign.
Good luck grinding out that last campaign!! I can relate; end-of-term work gets insane for me, too.
Post by: oneday on November 03, 2022, 12:14:22 AM
I started a new job in late September with much better work life balance and a much shorter commute. It has only been a little over a month but I find that I haven't been counting the days until FIRE as often. I still plan on sticking around in this Cohort just because 2025 is such a nice round number but I don't feel the burning desire to quit my job anymore. My husband FIRE'd to be a house spouse in 2021 so we are already in coast mode but I'm actually looking forward to the next couple years of work for the first time since I entered the workforce :).
Thanks for sharing! It's nice to hear that not everyone is chomping at the bit to quit pronto. Hope your next 2-3 years (or more) continues to be smooth sailing, at work and otherwise.
Post by: Metalcat on November 03, 2022, 06:02:01 AM
How strange.
Post by: oneday on November 03, 2022, 10:53:01 PM
Ironically, I just realized that 2025 is the year I will be going *back* to professional work after medically retiring.
How strange.
It's bananas! 😉 But I know you like to keep occupied, and school has to end sometime, right? Keep us posted when the time comes...
Post by: Metalcat on November 04, 2022, 05:53:55 AM
Ironically, I just realized that 2025 is the year I will be going *back* to professional work after medically retiring.
How strange.
It's bananas! 😉 But I know you like to keep occupied, and school has to end sometime, right? Keep us posted when the time comes...
Blasphemy
Post by: mistymoney on November 04, 2022, 09:59:13 AM
I started a new job in late September with much better work life balance and a much shorter commute. It has only been a little over a month but I find that I haven't been counting the days until FIRE as often. I still plan on sticking around in this Cohort just because 2025 is such a nice round number but I don't feel the burning desire to quit my job anymore. My husband FIRE'd to be a house spouse in 2021 so we are already in coast mode but I'm actually looking forward to the next couple years of work for the first time since I entered the workforce :).
Thanks for sharing! It's nice to hear that not everyone is chomping at the bit to quit pronto. Hope your next 2-3 years (or more) continues to be smooth sailing, at work and otherwise.
I think there are myriad psychological aspects to this.
Personally, I've wondered if some of my discontent at work currently just stems from waiting and watching my stache nearing the 'finish line'. There were years....decades....when I didn't think about RE at all, just worked, did what I could into 401ks, and just went on with my day to day.
Seems I have had worse job situations and been less discontented. But of course, there are so many other variables to considere.....I am older, WFH vs office, current job has more required evening/weekend meetings than previous roles, manager vs IC, less travel after covid (so much switched to zoom rather than meeting at a nice vacationy type spot) so very difficult to pinpoint what piece current expectation figure into all that.
Kind of like the difference in being super focused on Christmas day for fun and excitement rather than just enjoying the entire month lead in to it!
Post by: grantmeaname on November 18, 2022, 08:55:26 AM
Post by: tj on November 18, 2022, 03:33:00 PM
Wassup y'all? I just bought a house today, and paying off the mortgage is a great decision but has pushed me back into the 2035 cohort (probably). Looking at a February 2025 retirement date (or possibly one year earlier or later). Can't wait to follow along with youse guys.
Your 2035 scared me a little! Looks like it was just a typo. :)
Post by: grantmeaname on November 19, 2022, 05:25:44 AM
Post by: OurTown on November 23, 2022, 09:33:14 AM
In any event, put me down for Jan. 31, 2025. Investment goal $1.2 m. Current invested assets are about $880k. Here's hoping for a healthy market recovery.
Post by: weebs on November 24, 2022, 07:08:08 AM
Predictions are hard to make, especially about the future.
True, but I'm 100% accurate in predicting past events. ;-) All kidding aside, welcome to the cohort!
Post by: Sandi_k on December 01, 2022, 08:42:19 PM
Our stash is currently high 6 figures, plus a Defined Benefit Pension, plus ~ $1M in equity in our Bay Area home. The pension and stash is primarily from my savings and investments, as we knew DH was likely to inherit more from his parents than I will from mine.
Now I wanna FIRE right away, instead of waiting until 2025. ;)
I just have to keep telling myself we cannot count on anything other than our work and savings, and we're just 33 months away from our plan. Slow and steady....
Post by: weebs on December 05, 2022, 10:56:52 AM
we're just 33 months away from our plan. Slow and steady....
Congrats! You have less than a 1000 days to go. :)
Post by: frugalecon on December 09, 2022, 04:20:41 PM
we're just 33 months away from our plan. Slow and steady....
Congrats! You have less than a 1000 days to go. :)
Since I dropped below 1000 days, it has really felt like the finish line has been getting close fast. I’m looking forward to the 100 week mark, which I’ll reach in April 2023.
Post by: Sandi_k on December 09, 2022, 04:24:43 PM
we're just 33 months away from our plan. Slow and steady....
Congrats! You have less than a 1000 days to go. :)
According to a countdown clock, it's 1007 days from today. So just a little more than 1000 days. ;)
Post by: weebs on December 10, 2022, 08:32:59 AM
According to a countdown clock, it's 1007 days from today. So just a little more than 1000 days. ;)
Ok, I jumped the gun a little bit. Check back here in a week. ;-)
Quote from: frugalecon
Since I dropped below 1000 days, it has really felt like the finish line has been getting close fast. I’m looking forward to the 100 week mark, which I’ll reach in April 2023.
Congrats! 100 weeks is a good milestone, being hot on the heels of two years. I *just* dropped below 1000 days (992 as of today) so I'm a little behind you.
Post by: SotI on December 31, 2022, 09:52:36 AM
Post by: Zamboni on December 31, 2022, 10:17:11 AM
I was targeting this cohort, but my job has been so kush lately that I might just keep working until they involuntire me, lol. Mostly this is because I hired an awesome colleague during the pandemic.
Here's a toast to awesome colleagues!
Post by: Silrossi46 on December 31, 2022, 11:23:22 AM
912 actual days
551 working days (300 accumulated sick days not included in the 551)
Post by: Fomerly known as something on December 31, 2022, 09:22:59 PM
Congress gave me a huge tax break in the Federal Budget. A 2 sentence line in 4,000 pages changes 26 USC 72(t) to allow federal public safety officers to withdraw without penalty from TSP if we are eligible to retire at any age (which realistically is 46).
Post by: WorkingToUnwind on January 01, 2023, 04:41:53 AM
929 days to go.
Congress gave me a huge tax break in the Federal Budget. A 2 sentence line in 4,000 pages changes 26 USC 72(t) to allow federal public safety officers to withdraw without penalty from TSP if we are eligible to retire at any age (which realistically is 46).
Sweet tax break!!
I'm throwing my hat in the ring for March 2025. We have about a 1.2 million stash and would like to have about 1.5 before my husband retires at 44. We saved about 100k this year and should be able to keep that up for the next couple of years. I'd be able to to RE too in 2025, but I think I'll keep working in some capacity because I enjoy working. We've talked about having my husband RE sooner, but he wants to wait until the kids are both in preschool/school. I don't blame him 😂, they are a handful! He also gets a big bonus in March, so he'll stay at the job until that comes through.
Looking forward to counting down with you all!
Post by: lefty on January 01, 2023, 08:55:57 AM
Joining!
I've waffled around a few different Fire Cohort groups but I think this is the ONE!
First was 2022(Ha!) Technically am FI but not ready to RE, plus my investments went south (like everyone else) and even though I "know" its temporary and RE is still doable, I need to be extra to sleep well at night.
So adding myself to the 2025 group and that's final! No changes!
Ha! I have the exact same plan.
In 2025, I'll be 55, able to access 401K via Rule of 55 and pay off mortgage, purge and then take off for some slow international traveling.
That's the plan, hope my knees and health give me enough years to enjoy. 55 is still youngish, right???
Post by: swashbucklinstache on January 02, 2023, 10:06:36 AM
2022 wraps at 928k. Wait, we're going the wrong way!2021 closed at 957k. My original WAG FIRE number in 2016 was 900k, which is 1040k in 2021 dollars. I'm 32 and figuring out my long term desired spend & seeing how a new potentially long term romantic partnership plays out. So, still targeting 2025. Assuming average returns and regular contributions I would land at 1.7 million in today's dollars, 55k at 3.25% WR. I'm 100% stocks so absent a big market crash it's all about long term spend at this point, as I'm at 38x trailing 3 year average expenses.Like many, I'm fortunate to say that 2020 was good to my assets. I closed the year at 711k net worth. That's good for 28x my trailing three years of expenses. I'm pushing on to 1mm mostly to account for desired lifestyle changes (travel, big city living) + flexibility (family) in retirement. But, that could be as soon as 1.4 years from now with 6.7% returns and 110-120 annual contributions. We'll see what mr market has to say, but decent chance I check out ahead of 2025 at this point. If I do see 7 figures with such high valuations I might turn to one of several "step towards FIRE" plans rather than leap outright. 2025 projects at 1.5mm if nothing changes and averages hold, so probably wouldn't hang around that long barring big lifestyle changes.Yah chief, sign me up. Likely as FI rather than FIRE, with a few extra years to pad on after, but so much could change from now to then. Aged 27, 8.5x current expense saved, no house, 65% or so savings rate give or take. Single, readiness-to-mingle currently TBD
Well, there was my original post in 12/2016! In the intervening 9 months I've moved from 8.5x current expenses to 10.96x and upped my savings rate a few percentage points! I'm still an immature smartass though :).
My life is so far from where it'll be in 2025 that it's hard to say how i'm doing, but things are headed in the right direction. I could be in the 650k-900k range if things go roughly how they've gone so far. The high end of that is looking damn near the end of things for full-time worker bee me if I'm still single and childless at that time, or at least time to ask for a stupid amount of money not to go a-wanderin'.
Hope everyone else is on track, too.
Update, maybe I'll keep an annually running tab in this thread if people don't mind :).
stache as multiple of 3 year trailing current expenses
12/2016: 8.5x
09/2017: 10.96x
12/2017: 11.6x - would be higher but have had an expensive year
2018 EOY update:
2016: 8.5x
09/2017: 10.96x
2017: 11.6x
2018: 13.65x
I'm aiming for ~45x with these numbers for FIRE (health insurance, likely lifestyle changes etc.).
How is everyone else doing as we start 2019?
2019 EOY update:
2016: 8.5x
09/2017: 10.96x
2017: 11.6x
2018: 13.65x
2019: 16.99x (with a high expense year! trailing 3 years is more like 19.26x)
Getting there! Closing in on half a million with a minimum FI goal of 1 million and saving 100-115 a year right now means I might be as little as ~3 years out with just a little above average returns or some raises.
How is everyone else?
2022 EOY update of stache divided by expenses:
2016: 8.5x
2017: 11.6x
2018: 13.65x
2019: 16.99x
2020: 29.63x
2021: 42.25x
2022: 29.23x
Covid expenses mess with those numbers and I'm aiming for about 66x current numbers to reflect inflated RE expenses so we're still not close. At 930k and hoping for 2 million while saving 125k a year. So 2025 is looking like quite an optimistic goal right now! With average returns I might see 1.7 real by the end of that year. OMY beckons...
How is it looking for others?
Post by: grantmeaname on January 02, 2023, 10:44:02 AM
Post by: swashbucklinstache on January 02, 2023, 04:13:39 PM
I've never seen someone do the math this way - are you talking about average or total 3y trailing expenses?Those numbers are just a quick stache / expenses for that year. In actual planning I use year-end stache divided by trailing 3 year average annual expenses as a more useful barometer. As RE approaches I'll likely map out the first 5-10 years of expenses & allocation and etc. rather than rely on such high level guidelines. If that makes the 66x sound like OMY by design or wildly conservative, throughout the years I've grown to target a RE lifestyle way more expensive than my working one. I haven't decided on how expensive, so just track ##x against actual expenses for now.
It does give an example of caution in planning though. We all know this, but expenses happen in dollars on the cost side of the ledger but percentages on the stache side in terms of will the stache last. 2021's stache was 957k against 22.6k expenses, a hilarious withdrawal rate of 2.37%. 2022's stache dropped 30k but the real impact is my expenses jumped up by 40%. That sounds huge, and would be in regards of withdrawal rate success of a leaner portfolio, but is also only 9k, and mostly one-time expenses plus some increased rent in a HCOL. 9k of lifestyle inflation doesn't take much. It also reminds leanFI people that expenses vary year over year in ways you can't control, so you should take a slightly more conservative tact than averaging your expenses and seeing what the failure rate is - SORR is a thing and so is sequence of expense risk. Darn arithmetic.
Realistically, my 10 year sample of expenses that has a standard deviation of 2.5k is both not really suggesting I'll stay in that range every year and with the note that expenses will only ever meaningfully deviate higher. It also suggests that next year I'll be near my average again and back in the 40xs in my climb towards RE =).
Post by: Turtle on January 02, 2023, 08:40:13 PM
October of 2025 I earn a sabbatical of an extra 4 weeks of vacation to be taken by the end of 2026. 2026 is also the year where I will have been with the company long enough/old enough to retire while still rating a partial bonus paid the following March even if I don't stay a whole year. (So either March 2027 or March 2028 if I OMY into 2027.)
Post by: wageslave23 on January 03, 2023, 06:53:28 AM
I've never seen someone do the math this way - are you talking about average or total 3y trailing expenses?Those numbers are just a quick stache / expenses for that year. In actual planning I use year-end stache divided by trailing 3 year average annual expenses as a more useful barometer. As RE approaches I'll likely map out the first 5-10 years of expenses & allocation and etc. rather than rely on such high level guidelines. If that makes the 66x sound like OMY by design or wildly conservative, throughout the years I've grown to target a RE lifestyle way more expensive than my working one. I haven't decided on how expensive, so just track ##x against actual expenses for now.
It does give an example of caution in planning though. We all know this, but expenses happen in dollars on the cost side of the ledger but percentages on the stache side in terms of will the stache last. 2021's stache was 957k against 22.6k expenses, a hilarious withdrawal rate of 2.37%. 2022's stache dropped 30k but the real impact is my expenses jumped up by 40%. That sounds huge, and would be in regards of withdrawal rate success of a leaner portfolio, but is also only 9k, and mostly one-time expenses plus some increased rent in a HCOL. 9k of lifestyle inflation doesn't take much. It also reminds leanFI people that expenses vary year over year in ways you can't control, so you should take a slightly more conservative tact than averaging your expenses and seeing what the failure rate is - SORR is a thing and so is sequence of expense risk. Darn arithmetic.
Realistically, my 10 year sample of expenses that has a standard deviation of 2.5k is both not really suggesting I'll stay in that range every year and with the note that expenses will only ever meaningfully deviate higher. It also suggests that next year I'll be near my average again and back in the 40xs in my climb towards RE =).
Seems like it would be a lot easier to project what your expenses will be in the future and then divide your stache by your expencted future expenses. Comparing your stache to past expenses is a meaningless number if your expenses will change in retirement.
Post by: Turtle on January 03, 2023, 07:56:49 AM
I've never seen someone do the math this way - are you talking about average or total 3y trailing expenses?Those numbers are just a quick stache / expenses for that year. In actual planning I use year-end stache divided by trailing 3 year average annual expenses as a more useful barometer. As RE approaches I'll likely map out the first 5-10 years of expenses & allocation and etc. rather than rely on such high level guidelines. If that makes the 66x sound like OMY by design or wildly conservative, throughout the years I've grown to target a RE lifestyle way more expensive than my working one. I haven't decided on how expensive, so just track ##x against actual expenses for now.
It does give an example of caution in planning though. We all know this, but expenses happen in dollars on the cost side of the ledger but percentages on the stache side in terms of will the stache last. 2021's stache was 957k against 22.6k expenses, a hilarious withdrawal rate of 2.37%. 2022's stache dropped 30k but the real impact is my expenses jumped up by 40%. That sounds huge, and would be in regards of withdrawal rate success of a leaner portfolio, but is also only 9k, and mostly one-time expenses plus some increased rent in a HCOL. 9k of lifestyle inflation doesn't take much. It also reminds leanFI people that expenses vary year over year in ways you can't control, so you should take a slightly more conservative tact than averaging your expenses and seeing what the failure rate is - SORR is a thing and so is sequence of expense risk. Darn arithmetic.
Realistically, my 10 year sample of expenses that has a standard deviation of 2.5k is both not really suggesting I'll stay in that range every year and with the note that expenses will only ever meaningfully deviate higher. It also suggests that next year I'll be near my average again and back in the 40xs in my climb towards RE =).
Seems like it would be a lot easier to project what your expenses will be in the future and then divide your stache by your expencted future expenses. Comparing your stache to past expenses is a meaningless number if your expenses will change in retirement.
Maybe not completely meaningless, but an oversimplification to some degree certainly. For folks who plan to stay put, trailing expenses can be a good "rough estimate" predictor of future expenses provided they DO account for any expected changes.
For example, trailing data on utility expenses is useful for me because I plan on staying in the same house in retirement, at least for a while. However, for someone who is planning on moving or on putting their stuff in storage and traveling the world when they retire - not a meaningful line item for them whatsoever.
Post by: swashbucklinstache on January 03, 2023, 09:13:57 AM
Agree with you both. Mostly I started it that way in this thread, before I expected higher RE expenses, and just keep doing it =). I do think of it as SHTF FU money tracker too and it helps me keep in mind that anything I do now I do explicitly for lifestyle inflation. My RE lifestyle and thus expense estimate is still wildly unsettled and ever-changing, so sadly tracking against that estimate really is meaningless for me right now! I hope that I'll incrementally step in the direction of my RE lifestyle and the calculation here will become incrementally more applicable over time. It maybe serves as a gut check on any lifestyle inflation choices from an FU or RE perspective along the way, but nothing earth shattering there.I've never seen someone do the math this way - are you talking about average or total 3y trailing expenses?Those numbers are just a quick stache / expenses for that year. In actual planning I use year-end stache divided by trailing 3 year average annual expenses as a more useful barometer. As RE approaches I'll likely map out the first 5-10 years of expenses & allocation and etc. rather than rely on such high level guidelines. If that makes the 66x sound like OMY by design or wildly conservative, throughout the years I've grown to target a RE lifestyle way more expensive than my working one. I haven't decided on how expensive, so just track ##x against actual expenses for now.
It does give an example of caution in planning though. We all know this, but expenses happen in dollars on the cost side of the ledger but percentages on the stache side in terms of will the stache last. 2021's stache was 957k against 22.6k expenses, a hilarious withdrawal rate of 2.37%. 2022's stache dropped 30k but the real impact is my expenses jumped up by 40%. That sounds huge, and would be in regards of withdrawal rate success of a leaner portfolio, but is also only 9k, and mostly one-time expenses plus some increased rent in a HCOL. 9k of lifestyle inflation doesn't take much. It also reminds leanFI people that expenses vary year over year in ways you can't control, so you should take a slightly more conservative tact than averaging your expenses and seeing what the failure rate is - SORR is a thing and so is sequence of expense risk. Darn arithmetic.
Realistically, my 10 year sample of expenses that has a standard deviation of 2.5k is both not really suggesting I'll stay in that range every year and with the note that expenses will only ever meaningfully deviate higher. It also suggests that next year I'll be near my average again and back in the 40xs in my climb towards RE =).
Seems like it would be a lot easier to project what your expenses will be in the future and then divide your stache by your expencted future expenses. Comparing your stache to past expenses is a meaningless number if your expenses will change in retirement.
Maybe not completely meaningless, but an oversimplification to some degree certainly. For folks who plan to stay put, trailing expenses can be a good "rough estimate" predictor of future expenses provided they DO account for any expected changes.
For example, trailing data on utility expenses is useful for me because I plan on staying in the same house in retirement, at least for a while. However, for someone who is planning on moving or on putting their stuff in storage and traveling the world when they retire - not a meaningful line item for them whatsoever.
Post by: SaucyAussie on January 03, 2023, 10:25:38 AM
I'll jump in here - my FIRE spreadsheet tells me I have 7.47 years to go.
My $6000 monthly spend looks like this:
$1000 alimony (until NOV 2018)
$1000 debt payments (JUN 2019)
$1300 house payment (2023-2025)
$1200 child support (JUN 2025)
$1500 everything else
I might be able to coast toward the end, but 2025 looks like the year that everything aligns for me.
Always fun to look back in time! Alimony is a distant memory and been debt free for a few years. My house payment is down to $900 thanks to a refi when rates were low a couple of years back.
My FIRE spreadsheet is at 1.75 years but it did not budge at all in 2022.
2025 is starting to feel real!
Post by: weebs on January 04, 2023, 08:21:03 AM
Always fun to look back in time! Alimony is a distant memory and been debt free for a few years. My house payment is down to $900 thanks to a refi when rates were low a couple of years back.
Nice. Taking advantage of the low rates and alimony wrapping up reduced your monthly liabilities by a fair amount.
968 days and counting for yours truly. I updated our "State of the Union" spreadsheet this week and our LNW is down ~10% from when I posted my case study back in April 2022. Deep breaths...it could be worse. Hopefully, we'll get back to where we were last year (and then some) over the next coupla years.
Post by: evanc on January 04, 2023, 03:17:43 PM
Greetings! Fellow 2025er. I found MMM in 2016 and got the face punch I was searching for. Fortunately, DW was on board once I shared the “shockingly simple math” post. We realized for the first time that we could actually do this (RE). Up to that point, basically everything I read said it was impossible. Once we made a plan, we set our sights on 2025 and haven’t looked back since. Like some of you, we anticipate higher expenses post retirement due to a combination of increased healthcare costs, additional travel, and inflation. Here’s how we have progressed thus far with current levels of spending in parentheses for comparison purposes.
T-8 years: 5.77x (7.21)
-7: 7.13 (8.92)
-6: 9.06 (11.33)
-5: 10.52 (13.14)
and project the following:
-4: 12.85 (16.07)
-3: 15.65 (19.56)
-2: 18.64 (23.3)
-1: 21.83 (27.29)
FIRE: 26x (32.5)
There is some room, but the biggest added expense is healthcare on ACA or whatever is available at that point. Cautiously optimistic that we can make it happen in 2025. As of now, right on track. I will be 46 and DW a few years older.
As of today, 15.15x (18.93). Still projecting 2025 FIRE, but unofficially hopeful it could be sooner.
Update as of 1/1/22: 20.2x (25.3)
Mathematically, DW and I are FI with current expenses (seems weird even saying that, as this is the first time I've seen it on paper). However, still both working to achieve fat fire by 2025.
As of 1/1/23: Bear market has us at 18.78x (23.48). However, high savings rate has us on track for mid-late 2025 retirement nonetheless. Time to buy more stocks on discount!
Post by: swashbucklinstache on January 04, 2023, 06:49:17 PM
This looks like a great way to track things. Any care to share your current & future actual expenses? Interested to hear the estimated difference between today and future.Greetings! Fellow 2025er. I found MMM in 2016 and got the face punch I was searching for. Fortunately, DW was on board once I shared the “shockingly simple math” post. We realized for the first time that we could actually do this (RE). Up to that point, basically everything I read said it was impossible. Once we made a plan, we set our sights on 2025 and haven’t looked back since. Like some of you, we anticipate higher expenses post retirement due to a combination of increased healthcare costs, additional travel, and inflation. Here’s how we have progressed thus far with current levels of spending in parentheses for comparison purposes.
T-8 years: 5.77x (7.21)
-7: 7.13 (8.92)
-6: 9.06 (11.33)
-5: 10.52 (13.14)
and project the following:
-4: 12.85 (16.07)
-3: 15.65 (19.56)
-2: 18.64 (23.3)
-1: 21.83 (27.29)
FIRE: 26x (32.5)
There is some room, but the biggest added expense is healthcare on ACA or whatever is available at that point. Cautiously optimistic that we can make it happen in 2025. As of now, right on track. I will be 46 and DW a few years older.
As of today, 15.15x (18.93). Still projecting 2025 FIRE, but unofficially hopeful it could be sooner.
Update as of 1/1/22: 20.2x (25.3)
Mathematically, DW and I are FI with current expenses (seems weird even saying that, as this is the first time I've seen it on paper). However, still both working to achieve fat fire by 2025.
As of 1/1/23: Bear market has us at 18.78x (23.48). However, high savings rate has us on track for mid-late 2025 retirement nonetheless. Time to buy more stocks on discount!
Post by: drivetosave on January 13, 2023, 11:40:16 AM
Cheers everyone!
Post by: OurTown on January 18, 2023, 09:32:51 AM
Post by: TomTX on January 22, 2023, 06:34:14 PM
Post by: SaucyAussie on January 24, 2023, 07:13:43 AM
I just noticed my 401k is at 90/10, wondering if I should start putting more into bonds...
Post by: Sandi_k on January 24, 2023, 09:44:37 AM
Now that we only have 2 years to go, is anybody doing anything different to prepare? Moving money around, etc?
I just noticed my 401k is at 90/10, wondering if I should start putting more into bonds...
I have done a few moves:
- Simplified our investments. I was doing a little slicing and dicing with it, having some money in Biotech and Health index funds. I sold them, and just moved the money to FSKAX.
- Did an estimate of taxes for our first year of retirement. Looks like we'll be paying MORE in taxes, since we will have no deductions for pre-tax investments.
- We're working on converting DH's SEP-IRA. Since 2019, we've been converting ~ $20k per year to his Roth. He turns 59.5 this year, and is partially retired, so we may just have him take out $2500 per month for 7 months, and convert the rest (up to $25k).
- We paid for a consult with PlanVision - www.planvisionmn.com
Mark has been very reassuring about our funds and plans. I can retire now, it appears - but I'd give up on a lifetime max with the pension, which I get if I last until September 2025. Since that $30k per year has 100% survivor benefits, I am hanging on. For now.
- We're now at 72% stocks/28% bonds. This is pretty close to our perma-allocation. With a 3.5% withdrawal rate, we can last 8 years before having to sell any stock.
Getting close!!!
Post by: charis on January 24, 2023, 09:45:58 AM
Post by: OurTown on January 26, 2023, 08:20:37 AM
Everything else is just normal. My tax deferred contributions are 26% of gross income, plus I am maxing his and hers Roths.
Post by: SaucyAussie on January 26, 2023, 12:57:29 PM
I am building up a bigger cash cushion between now and FIRE. When I am done, the cash account will be 6 months of current take home, which will translate to app'x 9-12 months of FIRE expenses. Also, since I will be carrying a low-interest mortgage for about the first 5 years of FIRE, I am funding the after-tax brokerage account to get the balance higher than the remaining mortgage balance.
Everything else is just normal. My tax deferred contributions are 26% of gross income, plus I am maxing his and hers Roths.
Yeah I'm doing the same with the cash cushion. I feel like it will give me a lot of flexibility in the early years.
I see you are about my age, do you plan on taking advantage of the Rule of 55? Also, how do you factor Social Security into your FIRE calculations? (seeing it's not all that far away for us oldies....)
Post by: TomTX on January 26, 2023, 01:31:25 PM
Post by: Fomerly known as something on January 26, 2023, 10:02:23 PM
Post by: OurTown on January 27, 2023, 10:14:03 AM
I am building up a bigger cash cushion between now and FIRE. When I am done, the cash account will be 6 months of current take home, which will translate to app'x 9-12 months of FIRE expenses. Also, since I will be carrying a low-interest mortgage for about the first 5 years of FIRE, I am funding the after-tax brokerage account to get the balance higher than the remaining mortgage balance.
Everything else is just normal. My tax deferred contributions are 26% of gross income, plus I am maxing his and hers Roths.
Yeah I'm doing the same with the cash cushion. I feel like it will give me a lot of flexibility in the early years.
I see you are about my age, do you plan on taking advantage of the Rule of 55? Also, how do you factor Social Security into your FIRE calculations? (seeing it's not all that far away for us oldies....)
I do indeed, I will be eligible to receive distributions from my 401(k) as early as 2024 without penalty. I anticipate the bridge years from 2025-28 will go something like this: Year 1, wife's 457. Years 2-4, 1/3 each year from my 401(k). I also have a side gig that I am planning on keeping throughout FIRE just because I enjoy it.
I noted in an earlier post that delaying SS until 70 and spending more (i.e. a higher SWR) in the earlier years is way better than taking at 62 or even 67.
Post by: Turtle on January 27, 2023, 11:42:33 AM
Adding to the cash cushion, so is also in Ibonds.
Same. Also getting a few necessary replacement things done around the house while still working and eligible for 0% financing.
(Officially class of '27 but hoping to shave some time off that depending on markets and a couple other things.)
Post by: MMMarbleheader on January 27, 2023, 12:23:46 PM
My project at work will be ending mid 2025 so its pretty good timing.
Goal is $1.2M after paying off $160k mortgage. Could probably spend less per month but $4k/mo has a nice ring to it and fits our lifestyle well.
Post by: weebs on January 28, 2023, 06:41:01 AM
Crazy to be able to join a Cohort.
My project at work will be ending mid 2025 so its pretty good timing.
Goal is $1.2M after paying off $160k mortgage. Could probably spend less per month but $4k/mo has a nice ring to it and fits our lifestyle well.
Congrats and welcome. $4k/month provides a good standard of living. I recently increased our budget to that level to account for higher insurance premiums, property taxes and grocery bills.
Post by: MMMarbleheader on January 29, 2023, 08:29:35 PM
Crazy to be able to join a Cohort.
My project at work will be ending mid 2025 so its pretty good timing.
Goal is $1.2M after paying off $160k mortgage. Could probably spend less per month but $4k/mo has a nice ring to it and fits our lifestyle well.
Congrats and welcome. $4k/month provides a good standard of living. I recently increased our budget to that level to account for higher insurance premiums, property taxes and grocery bills.
Thanks
We were closer to $3k during COVID but realize the extra fat will be good during FIRE to enjoy vacations and not be stressing about the number. Plus I am not against some part time work between 4% and 3% SWD
Post by: frugalecon on February 02, 2023, 04:01:39 PM
Hopefully I can maintain sanity until the time comes! Any suggestions about managing the mental aspect welcome!
Post by: Metalcat on February 02, 2023, 04:28:56 PM
Some days it sure does feel like the next two years are going to go slowly. Then I start down the rabbit hole of…”ok, 109 weeks left, and I have 6 weeks of vacation banked, so it is 103 weeks, and then I will earn 11 weeks of vacation, so it is 92 weeks, and there will be 4 weeks of holidays, so that is 88 weeks…and maybe I will take off two weeks of “slick leave” as mental health days, so that is 86 weeks…”
Hopefully I can maintain sanity until the time comes! Any suggestions about managing the mental aspect welcome!
Hey. You asked for suggestions, so here's a brutal Face Punch for you that might help.
Never, ever, ever wish away years of your life.
You will never be this young again, you will never have these days back, you will never again have some of the opportunities that you will have over the next few years.
You will regret if you sleepwalk through years of your life just because they don't look exactly the way you want them to.
You aren't in prison, you are living the very life that you have chosen and built for yourself. If your job is so miserable that you can't live your life to its fullest right now, then quit your job and do something else.
If your job isn't life-ruiningly miserable, then sure, it's absence will be really nice, but it is NOT a prerequisite for you to start living your best life and fostering the key components of truly enjoying your life NOW as it is.
DO NOT live for tomorrow. That's just failing to live. And it will set you up for not knowing how to live once you are retired.
I personally retired and then very soon after lost my ability to walk properly. Two years later I'm crippled in bed with a broken femur and making plans to break the other one. Life doesn't always just cooperate nicely with being exactly how you want it to be.
But guess what? I've still lived an awesome life in this time and spent all summer having a massive and life-changing adventure. You don't need life to be ideal in order for it to be optimal.
So consider this a kick in the ass to start living your best life now and stop thinking crazy thoughts like "I just want the next two years of my relative youth and vitality to disappear."
Like seriously, what the actual fuck?
Post by: grantmeaname on February 02, 2023, 04:45:38 PM
Post by: frugalecon on February 02, 2023, 05:03:05 PM
Some days it sure does feel like the next two years are going to go slowly. Then I start down the rabbit hole of…”ok, 109 weeks left, and I have 6 weeks of vacation banked, so it is 103 weeks, and then I will earn 11 weeks of vacation, so it is 92 weeks, and there will be 4 weeks of holidays, so that is 88 weeks…and maybe I will take off two weeks of “slick leave” as mental health days, so that is 86 weeks…”
Hopefully I can maintain sanity until the time comes! Any suggestions about managing the mental aspect welcome!
Hey. You asked for suggestions, so here's a brutal Face Punch for you that might help.
Never, ever, ever wish away years of your life.
You will never be this young again, you will never have these days back, you will never again have some of the opportunities that you will have over the next few years.
You will regret if you sleepwalk through years of your life just because they don't look exactly the way you want them to.
You aren't in prison, you are living the very life that you have chosen and built for yourself. If your job is so miserable that you can't live your life to its fullest right now, then quit your job and do something else.
If your job isn't life-ruiningly miserable, then sure, it's absence will be really nice, but it is NOT a prerequisite for you to start living your best life and fostering the key components of truly enjoying your life NOW as it is.
DO NOT live for tomorrow. That's just failing to live. And it will set you up for not knowing how to live once you are retired.
I personally retired and then very soon after lost my ability to walk properly. Two years later I'm crippled in bed with a broken femur and making plans to break the other one. Life doesn't always just cooperate nicely with being exactly how you want it to be.
But guess what? I've still lived an awesome life in this time and spent all summer having a massive and life-changing adventure. You don't need life to be ideal in order for it to be optimal.
So consider this a kick in the ass to start living your best life now and stop thinking crazy thoughts like "I just want the next two years of my relative youth and vitality to disappear."
Like seriously, what the actual fuck?
Thanks, I needed that! A ton of wisdom, there.
Post by: Metalcat on February 02, 2023, 05:42:39 PM
Thanks, I needed that! A ton of wisdom, there.
One of the benefits of being totally mangled and stuck in bed for a few months is that it's pushed my dearest loved ones to visit me more often.
I'm literally getting by day by day right now just waiting to heal enough to get out of bed for more than just going to the bathroom. I of all people should be in a super rush for time to pass, but I'm not.
My dad has been driving in from the country to visit me every week. Prior to this he essentially refused to drive into the city and we had phone calls every few weeks. My dad is old and in poor health and we're sitting and talking for a solid 2+ hours *every week*. He saves up geopolitical topics to discuss. He's a former poli-sci prof, so his analysis is brilliant and it's been so much fun.
My mom just came in today for a few hours. She has early onset dementia, and these days are absolutely precious. Then there's my sister who comes in every Friday evening to eat junk food and watch trash tv so my DH can get a break from caregiving. It's like the slumber parties we had when we were young. We giggle all night. Add to that the friends who come by to hang out with me in bed and tell me stories of their day-to-day lives because my existence is so dull that even hearing about Costco runs is fun.
So even at a time where no one would blame me for desperately wishing that time would pass, I'm actually having an incredibly bonding time with loved ones, some of whom I won't get this kind of chance with again (I mean. Other than when I do this surgery on the other leg later this year, but you get the idea).
I will cherish for the rest of my life this time with father especially.
So why would I wish this time away just because it's not ideal. I REALLY look forward to being out of pain, being able to walk, and doing all of the fun things I dream of doing once I have working legs. But that doesn't mean that this time isn't also incredibly precious and not to be wasted.
My dad could be dead by the time I can walk again. That's an extreme example, but look at your life and try to recognize that there are things that only exist *right now* that are precious and should be thoroughly enjoyed.
There are things that are precious and will be gone forever by the time you retire. Recognize them. Enjoy them.
Post by: jade on February 26, 2023, 04:15:11 AM
Thanks, I needed that! A ton of wisdom, there.
One of the benefits of being totally mangled and stuck in bed for a few months is that it's pushed my dearest loved ones to visit me more often.
I'm literally getting by day by day right now just waiting to heal enough to get out of bed for more than just going to the bathroom. I of all people should be in a super rush for time to pass, but I'm not.
My dad has been driving in from the country to visit me every week. Prior to this he essentially refused to drive into the city and we had phone calls every few weeks. My dad is old and in poor health and we're sitting and talking for a solid 2+ hours *every week*. He saves up geopolitical topics to discuss. He's a former poli-sci prof, so his analysis is brilliant and it's been so much fun.
My mom just came in today for a few hours. She has early onset dementia, and these days are absolutely precious. Then there's my sister who comes in every Friday evening to eat junk food and watch trash tv so my DH can get a break from caregiving. It's like the slumber parties we had when we were young. We giggle all night. Add to that the friends who come by to hang out with me in bed and tell me stories of their day-to-day lives because my existence is so dull that even hearing about Costco runs is fun.
So even at a time where no one would blame me for desperately wishing that time would pass, I'm actually having an incredibly bonding time with loved ones, some of whom I won't get this kind of chance with again (I mean. Other than when I do this surgery on the other leg later this year, but you get the idea).
I will cherish for the rest of my life this time with father especially.
So why would I wish this time away just because it's not ideal. I REALLY look forward to being out of pain, being able to walk, and doing all of the fun things I dream of doing once I have working legs. But that doesn't mean that this time isn't also incredibly precious and not to be wasted.
My dad could be dead by the time I can walk again. That's an extreme example, but look at your life and try to recognize that there are things that only exist *right now* that are precious and should be thoroughly enjoyed.
There are things that are precious and will be gone forever by the time you retire. Recognize them. Enjoy them.
Hi Metalcat,
We've chatted on the TV series thread and I just read what you wrote above. Wishing you all the best on your recovery but also thank you for that wisdom - it sounds like you're going through a helluva lot. I got fibromyalgia a few years ago and weirdly though I'm in pain a lot of the time, it has too focused my mind on enjoying each day and time with loved ones. Take care and look forward to more TV chat soon! :)
Post by: moneytaichi on February 27, 2023, 09:37:04 PM
Post by: Metalcat on February 28, 2023, 05:37:55 AM
Post by: jade on February 28, 2023, 06:24:12 AM
Interesting timing for my posts to pop back up. The wisdom in them became a lot more hard-earned this week. My 64 year old mother just lost the entire front left of her brain to a massive spontaneous brain bleed. She had retired just a few months ago, and she and her husband had just had a long talk a few days before about how they are finally able to just really enjoy their lives.
I am sorry to hear about your Mom, Metalcat.
Yes, always a reminder of the fragility of life.
Post by: Metalcat on February 28, 2023, 06:49:46 AM
I am sorry to hear about your Mom, Metalcat.
Yes, always a reminder of the fragility of life.
It's why I get riled up every time I see a thread of people talking about hating their job and being burned out but still working despite having plenty of money.
If people are neglecting their health and not spending enough time with loved ones, they aren't adding any "security" to their lives by working more. They're actually adding massive risk in terms of the things that really matter.
So for all the 2025 cohort folks who start agonizing over OMY when the time comes to pull the plug. Instead of obsessing about what the markets might do, ask yourselves if you are spending enough time with your parents/kids/friends/etc and taking good enough care of your own bodies.
Then compare the risks of regret from neglecting those things compared to the risk of regret about not saving more, and decide which risk is more important.
Post by: wageslave23 on February 28, 2023, 08:55:10 AM
Interesting timing for my posts to pop back up. The wisdom in them became a lot more hard-earned this week. My 64 year old mother just lost the entire front left of her brain to a massive spontaneous brain bleed. She had retired just a few months ago, and she and her husband had just had a long talk a few days before about how they are finally able to just really enjoy their lives.
That's so sad to hear! My dad worked 40 yrs at a job he hated and always talked about retirement like some people talk about Heaven. He had a brain aneurysm that almost killed him at age 50, luckily he survived. But he is one of the main motivators of my FIRE journey. I do NOT want to end up like him. There are no assurances in life and its a great reminder to not put off the life you want to lead. Sorry for your mom's loss.
Post by: Fomerly known as something on February 28, 2023, 08:21:14 PM
I plan a year sabbatical. After that I’ll look for something that is maybe one or two days a week.
Post by: SaucyAussie on March 01, 2023, 05:55:35 AM
But the Rule of 55 tax advantages are only 22 months away so that has me handcuffed.
Thinking about driving a school bus for a bit if I can roll my 401k over...
Post by: oneday on March 01, 2023, 09:12:34 AM
You almost certainly can roll your 401(k) over; most plans/administrators prefer to have more assets to harvest fees from. Still, best to check before accepting the job.
The other question would be, would you be eligible for the new employer's 401(k) before you retire? XD I seem to recall something about a maximum 2-year eligibility period. I think how that works is that in some plans, you have to be employed for a year before being eligible to join the plan, but then the plan only has 1 enrollment date per year (typically Jan 1 or first day of the fiscal year), so if you get hired on, say, Jan 15, then it would be Jan 15 of the following year that you are eligible to join, but would have just missed the enrollment date, so would need to wait for Jan 1 of the following year to actually join. This was uncommon in my experience, but not unheard of. Anyway...check before hiring! The trend has been to enroll people more quickly since thoses days, so this word of caution might be unnecessary.
Post by: OurTown on March 01, 2023, 02:14:18 PM
As was noted above, this is definitely a time and money balancing act. Each OMY that we work is a year we will never get back. So, if I were to work until 2026 I might have a shit-ton of money, I would have one less year to enjoy life free of full time employment responsibilities.
Post by: tj on March 01, 2023, 02:49:10 PM
I’m counting down my 2.5 years. I don’t hate my job, but I do hate doing in 5+ days a week. And unfortunately it’s not a job you can really do part time or on a compressed schedule.
I plan a year sabbatical. After that I’ll look for something that is maybe one or two days a week.
What are you thinking that you could do for one or two days per week?
Post by: Fomerly known as something on March 02, 2023, 09:43:26 AM
I’m counting down my 2.5 years. I don’t hate my job, but I do hate doing in 5+ days a week. And unfortunately it’s not a job you can really do part time or on a compressed schedule.
I plan a year sabbatical. After that I’ll look for something that is maybe one or two days a week.
What are you thinking that you could do for one or two days per week?
Most likely a steady volunteer gig talking to tourists about where to go hiking at my local National or State parks. Otherwise coming up with some sort of side gig possibly as simple as heading up yo wine country and just being an Uber driver. I’ve also toyed with the idea of writing fiction, doubt I’d be any good at it but I don’t have to be.
Post by: aetheldrea on March 13, 2023, 11:20:28 PM
I do hate my job and I *probably* have enough to retire (800K invested + home equity) as a single person.Have you looked into 72(t) Substantially Equal Periodic Payments? Also penalty free, and I understand they became more flexible in past couple years, allowing you to choose any reasonable percentage rate.
But the Rule of 55 tax advantages are only 22 months away so that has me handcuffed.
Thinking about driving a school bus for a bit if I can roll my 401k over...
Post by: weebs on March 24, 2023, 02:46:04 PM
Our net worth is down ~10% from the peak and our monthly expenses have increased, but I've made peace with leaving my gig. My initial case study is almost a year old and I plan on posting a 2023 update next month with the good, the bad and the ugly.
Post by: OurTown on March 30, 2023, 08:10:31 AM
Post by: markbike528CBX on March 30, 2023, 11:27:37 AM
I've done 72(t) from a traditional IRA, works for my purposes 4 years now. I just took out enough to fill the married filing jointly deduction of 25K.I do hate my job and I *probably* have enough to retire (800K invested + home equity) as a single person.Have you looked into 72(t) Substantially Equal Periodic Payments? Also penalty free, and I understand they became more flexible in past couple years, allowing you to choose any reasonable percentage rate.
But the Rule of 55 tax advantages are only 22 months away so that has me handcuffed.
Thinking about driving a school bus for a bit if I can roll my 401k over...
I assumed a very low amortization rate to make it exactly 25K. It pays for health costs, replaces DW salary.
@SaucyAussie I'd look closely your 401K for rule of 55. While the IRS won't penalize withdrawals, some company plans don't allow for partial withdrawals before a certain age (which may or may not be 55).
Post by: SaucyAussie on March 31, 2023, 04:20:45 AM
I've done 72(t) from a traditional IRA, works for my purposes 4 years now. I just took out enough to fill the married filing jointly deduction of 25K.I do hate my job and I *probably* have enough to retire (800K invested + home equity) as a single person.Have you looked into 72(t) Substantially Equal Periodic Payments? Also penalty free, and I understand they became more flexible in past couple years, allowing you to choose any reasonable percentage rate.
But the Rule of 55 tax advantages are only 22 months away so that has me handcuffed.
Thinking about driving a school bus for a bit if I can roll my 401k over...
I assumed a very low amortization rate to make it exactly 25K. It pays for health costs, replaces DW salary.
@SaucyAussie I'd look closely your 401K for rule of 55. While the IRS won't penalize withdrawals, some company plans don't allow for partial withdrawals before a certain age (which may or may not be 55).
Great point, and you have me reaching for the plan documents now. Based on my interpretation of the below section, it does appear partial withdrawals are allowed -
If you leave the Company for any reason, you will be entitled to a distribution of your Plan accounts as described below. You may elect to receive a distribution in:
- a single lump-sum payment in cash, or
- an “ad hoc” distribution. (Such a distribution request is essentially a partial payment of your total vested account balances, paid out in cash, as compared to a single lump-sum payment of your entire vested account balance.)
Post by: SotI on April 01, 2023, 08:00:17 AM
I am working too much atm, so time is flying. I am asked to take over a major project that will pretty much run till my "sign-off date" in 2025. I am considering it (as I will have to be involved anyway as delivery party in my current role) - but that would mean high visibility and not too much opportunity to ease out of work ...
Post by: markbike528CBX on April 01, 2023, 10:06:29 AM
Looks better than my plan.I've done 72(t) from a traditional IRA, works for my purposes 4 years now. I just took out enough to fill the married filing jointly deduction of 25K.I do hate my job and I *probably* have enough to retire (800K invested + home equity) as a single person.Have you looked into 72(t) Substantially Equal Periodic Payments? Also penalty free, and I understand they became more flexible in past couple years, allowing you to choose any reasonable percentage rate.
But the Rule of 55 tax advantages are only 22 months away so that has me handcuffed.
Thinking about driving a school bus for a bit if I can roll my 401k over...
I assumed a very low amortization rate to make it exactly 25K. It pays for health costs, replaces DW salary.
@SaucyAussie I'd look closely your 401K for rule of 55. While the IRS won't penalize withdrawals, some company plans don't allow for partial withdrawals before a certain age (which may or may not be 55).
Great point, and you have me reaching for the plan documents now. Based on my interpretation of the below section, it does appear partial withdrawals are allowed -
If you leave the Company for any reason, you will be entitled to a distribution of your Plan accounts as described below. You may elect to receive a distribution in:
- a single lump-sum payment in cash, or
- an “ad hoc” distribution. (Such a distribution request is essentially a partial payment of your total vested account balances, paid out in cash, as compared to a single lump-sum payment of your entire vested account balance.)
Post by: TomTX on April 01, 2023, 10:17:43 AM
I'd look closely your 401K for rule of 55. While the IRS won't penalize withdrawals, some company plans don't allow for partial withdrawals before a certain age (which may or may not be 55).Remember, for the IRS "55" qualification starts January of the year you will turn 55. You don't have to wait til your actual birthday.
Post by: SaucyAussie on April 01, 2023, 12:10:46 PM
I'd look closely your 401K for rule of 55. While the IRS won't penalize withdrawals, some company plans don't allow for partial withdrawals before a certain age (which may or may not be 55).Remember, for the IRS "55" qualification starts January of the year you will turn 55. You don't have to wait til your actual birthday.
Yes, I am really appreciating my November birthday right now! ;)
Post by: Fomerly known as something on April 01, 2023, 02:01:39 PM
Still aiming for 2025. Everyone needs to be flexible as this exercise is based on a stache number rather than just a calendar date.
Speak for yourself. Mine totally is colander date driven.
Also I have a special rule and get penalty free access to TSP at 47. Our lobby association did good work the last few years with the federal government.
Post by: tj on April 01, 2023, 03:35:32 PM
Post by: ca-rn on April 01, 2023, 09:40:29 PM
I'd look closely your 401K for rule of 55. While the IRS won't penalize withdrawals, some company plans don't allow for partial withdrawals before a certain age (which may or may not be 55).Remember, for the IRS "55" qualification starts January of the year you will turn 55. You don't have to wait til your actual birthday.
How about employer? Do they have a say? I need to contact my HR regarding Rule of 55 and pension if I retire the year I turn 55...its coming fast!
Post by: TomTX on April 02, 2023, 01:43:02 PM
Your employer can make rules more restrictive than the base IRS rules. I don't believe it's common to do this with the Rule of 55.I'd look closely your 401K for rule of 55. While the IRS won't penalize withdrawals, some company plans don't allow for partial withdrawals before a certain age (which may or may not be 55).Remember, for the IRS "55" qualification starts January of the year you will turn 55. You don't have to wait til your actual birthday.
How about employer? Do they have a say? I need to contact my HR regarding Rule of 55 and pension if I retire the year I turn 55...its coming fast!
Post by: OurTown on April 03, 2023, 08:56:19 AM
Post by: farmecologist on April 12, 2023, 12:35:56 PM
Is anyone else here in a similar situation when it comes to healthcare?
Post by: grantmeaname on April 12, 2023, 03:42:14 PM
Post by: SoleusFIRE on April 24, 2023, 11:00:05 AM
Post by: frugalecon on April 24, 2023, 08:16:29 PM
Joining this cohort, you guys are inspiring. I need to start somewhere and make it real. Market condition may worsen and I would have to adjust accordingly. Q2 2025. Shooting for the moon, even if I miss, I'll land among the stars.
Welcome! 2025 has a nice sound to it, I think. I have dabbled in several other cohorts, but this is the one that feels most right, and the math is looking better than it did last year.
Post by: Vashy on April 25, 2023, 01:59:28 AM
Post by: SoleusFIRE on April 26, 2023, 01:33:47 PM
Joining this cohort, you guys are inspiring. I need to start somewhere and make it real. Market condition may worsen and I would have to adjust accordingly. Q2 2025. Shooting for the moon, even if I miss, I'll land among the stars.
Welcome! 2025 has a nice sound to it, I think. I have dabbled in several other cohorts, but this is the one that feels most right, and the math is looking better than it did last year.
Post by: OurTown on May 12, 2023, 07:47:16 AM
Post by: Turtle on May 24, 2023, 03:58:00 PM
We are looking into the possibility of letting wife FIRE a year early, 2024, and extending my work into 2026. My OMY would allow her OLY, which may become necessary to give some more attention to MIL with some minor cognitive issues. This would also let me fully cash flow daughter's college through graduation in 2026. We'll see, I will know more after we see what the market gives me the remainder of this calendar year.
It's good that you have the flexibility to do what's best for your family.
Post by: beach2133 on May 25, 2023, 12:36:33 PM
Post by: oneday on May 25, 2023, 02:01:46 PM
Post by: charis on May 25, 2023, 02:05:15 PM
Hi All- I'm leaving this group for......2023 group. Last day June 2. Byebye and good luck.
Don't leave us hanging! What's the story here?
Post by: beach2133 on May 25, 2023, 02:11:47 PM
Hi All- I'm leaving this group for......2023 group. Last day June 2. Byebye and good luck.
Don't leave us hanging! What's the story here?
Haha...Fair enough! I had been holding off on making this declaration because i just couldn't believe it is real, but I got lucky with additional daycare expenses finishing a year earlier than expected and the timing is just right with other factors going on with my family.
I had hit 25x spending in early 2022, but quickly dipped back below. I finally made it back this month and am pulling the trigger.
Post by: charis on May 25, 2023, 02:31:48 PM
Hi All- I'm leaving this group for......2023 group. Last day June 2. Byebye and good luck.
Don't leave us hanging! What's the story here?
Haha...Fair enough! I had been holding off on making this declaration because i just couldn't believe it is real, but I got lucky with additional daycare expenses finishing a year earlier than expected and the timing is just right with other factors going on with my family.
I had hit 25x spending in early 2022, but quickly dipped back below. I finally made it back this month and am pulling the trigger.
Do you mind sharing your annual spend and whether your spouse/partner, if any, is still working? I need some FIRE inspo, lol
Post by: achvfi on June 13, 2023, 10:57:41 AM
It has been close to 5 years since I joined this cohort and we crossed million dollars in net worth few times in last couple of years. Jumping around million dollar mark due to market volatility.We are at ~360K net worth, if everything goes well we should be around a Million by 2025. I think it will be time I will reevaluate what I want to do next in my life.Its been 2 years since my post and our net worth doubled, we reached ~$755,000. We might reach a million in 2 more years.
We reached the target I had for 2025 last year. We have been through a lot in last 5 years. We had couple kids and changed roles at my job couple times.
Our expenses have ballooned in last 5 years. Medical costs, kids preschool, new to us minivan expenses keeps going up. Now I don't think my original FIRE target is enough. I will likely need about $2 million invested to achieve 3-5 % flexible withdrawal rate.
My target for 2025 is to take a long sabbatical or go part time. It may take another 5 years to FIRE comfortably.
Post by: frugalecon on June 16, 2023, 03:35:28 PM
we're just 33 months away from our plan. Slow and steady....
Congrats! You have less than a 1000 days to go. :)
Since I dropped below 1000 days, it has really felt like the finish line has been getting close fast. I’m looking forward to the 100 week mark, which I’ll reach in April 2023.
I have toyed with the idea of joining the 2023 cohort, but I probably will stick with this one. 630 days on the countdown spreadsheet now for my target, and lots of fun stuff planned for many of them. Between holidays, banked leave, and leave I will earn, I have 19 weeks of days off I can play with over the next 90 weeks, so that gives me a lot of opportunity. I have put TPTB (“The Powers That Be”) on notice that I will be taking significant leave over the next few months and will NOT be available to deal with emails or join random meetings remotely. Part of me wants to see how far I can push things until I get a “demotion by promotion” for working to rule. (N.b.: in my organization, when they want to dislodge someone from a senior position, they create a fake promotion to a position of no responsibility or authority and park the person there.)
Post by: farmecologist on June 16, 2023, 07:57:13 PM
we're just 33 months away from our plan. Slow and steady....
Congrats! You have less than a 1000 days to go. :)
Since I dropped below 1000 days, it has really felt like the finish line has been getting close fast. I’m looking forward to the 100 week mark, which I’ll reach in April 2023.
I have toyed with the idea of joining the 2023 cohort, but I probably will stick with this one. 630 days on the countdown spreadsheet now for my target, and lots of fun stuff planned for many of them. Between holidays, banked leave, and leave I will earn, I have 19 weeks of days off I can play with over the next 90 weeks, so that gives me a lot of opportunity. I have put TPTB (“The Powers That Be”) on notice that I will be taking significant leave over the next few months and will NOT be available to deal with emails or join random meetings remotely. Part of me wants to see how far I can push things until I get a “demotion by promotion” for working to rule. (N.b.: in my organization, when they want to dislodge someone from a senior position, they create a fake promotion to a position of no responsibility or authority and park the person there.)
I am sticking with this one as well. 2025 will be when I turn 55 and I'm eligible for a "healthcare cash account" that my company provides that helps pay for healthcare premiums, etc...
Now....can I hold on until 2025? The jury is still out on that. I'm having a REALLY hard time with motivation at work, etc... We'll see....I'm already in "FU, money" mode at this point!
Post by: weebs on June 19, 2023, 07:06:23 AM
I have toyed with the idea of joining the 2023 cohort, but I probably will stick with this one. 630 days on the countdown spreadsheet now for my target, and lots of fun stuff planned for many of them. Between holidays, banked leave, and leave I will earn, I have 19 weeks of days off I can play with over the next 90 weeks, so that gives me a lot of opportunity. I have put TPTB (“The Powers That Be”) on notice that I will be taking significant leave over the next few months and will NOT be available to deal with emails or join random meetings remotely. Part of me wants to see how far I can push things until I get a “demotion by promotion” for working to rule. (N.b.: in my organization, when they want to dislodge someone from a senior position, they create a fake promotion to a position of no responsibility or authority and park the person there.)
Our situations are very, very similar. I have 97 weeks remaining with 20 weeks time off. DW and I are taking 2.5 weeks in late July and early August for a European vacation and at least a week in September for camping and mountain biking with friends. My boss knows that I have FU money and is surprisingly cool with the whole situation. I'm not a jerk about it, but I suffer no bullshit. As such, he knows where to go for a honest opinion.
Quote from: farmecologist
Now....can I hold on until 2025? The jury is still out on that. I'm having a REALLY hard time with motivation at work, etc... We'll see....I'm already in "FU, money" mode at this point!
I can relate. I still care more than I need to, but that's just the way it is. That being said, I no longer care about my path forward in the org (promotions, projects, etc) and have been focused on helping things suck less for members of the team who actually need to keep working. The next 22 months will be a RE dress rehearsal. If they want to start the show early, so be it. :-)
Post by: frugalecon on June 19, 2023, 03:23:46 PM
I have toyed with the idea of joining the 2023 cohort, but I probably will stick with this one. 630 days on the countdown spreadsheet now for my target, and lots of fun stuff planned for many of them. Between holidays, banked leave, and leave I will earn, I have 19 weeks of days off I can play with over the next 90 weeks, so that gives me a lot of opportunity. I have put TPTB (“The Powers That Be”) on notice that I will be taking significant leave over the next few months and will NOT be available to deal with emails or join random meetings remotely. Part of me wants to see how far I can push things until I get a “demotion by promotion” for working to rule. (N.b.: in my organization, when they want to dislodge someone from a senior position, they create a fake promotion to a position of no responsibility or authority and park the person there.)
Our situations are very, very similar. I have 97 weeks remaining with 20 weeks time off. DW and I are taking 2.5 weeks in late July and early August for a European vacation and at least a week in September for camping and mountain biking with friends. My boss knows that I have FU money and is surprisingly cool with the whole situation. I'm not a jerk about it, but I suffer no bullshit. As such, he knows where to go for a honest opinion.Quote from: farmecologistNow....can I hold on until 2025? The jury is still out on that. I'm having a REALLY hard time with motivation at work, etc... We'll see....I'm already in "FU, money" mode at this point!
I can relate. I still care more than I need to, but that's just the way it is. That being said, I no longer care about my path forward in the org (promotions, projects, etc) and have been focused on helping things suck less for members of the team who actually need to keep working. The next 22 months will be a RE dress rehearsal. If they want to start the show early, so be it. :-)
That is really nice of you, @weebs , to try to make things better for the people in your command. I do wonder how many of the people where I work are going to need to work deep into their 60s, or longer. It is tough for the young ones in a HCOL area.
Incidentally, it looks like you are in Evergreen! I know some folks there. Really pretty up there in the mountains!
Post by: weebs on June 20, 2023, 10:32:01 AM
Incidentally, it looks like you are in Evergreen! I know some folks there. Really pretty up there in the mountains!
Thanks. We've been up here over 17 years and still love it despite the HCOL. I'd love to move a bit farther out (Bailey, Salida, Beuna Vista, etc) or over to the western slope, but a good portion of our family lives in the area and we plan on staying put for a while.
Post by: Sandi_k on July 06, 2023, 09:34:26 AM
Our annual raise is applied this month, with the check coming on August 1; I have already upped the contribution to the Mega-Backdoor Roth account. Kind of weird to realize I will only have two more raises in my work history before I am done.
DH turned 59.5, so he's beginning to take a small amount monthly from his SEP-IRA to give him a little joy, and reduce RMDs in the future. Ironically, after all these years of squirreling away funds, his SEP-IRA growth is outpacing his withdrawals, so we will also need to convert some of it this year.
All the spreadsheets are good! It's a wild feeling to know that my years of planning and plotting and saving have stayed so close to a plan - and results! - that I devised 15 years ago.
Post by: weebs on July 06, 2023, 04:57:34 PM
OK, the accounts are definitely on an upswing! FIRE date is mid-September, 2025, and I am getting restless.
Our annual raise is applied this month, with the check coming on August 1; I have already upped the contribution to the Mega-Backdoor Roth account. Kind of weird to realize I will only have two more raises in my work history before I am done.
DH turned 59.5, so he's beginning to take a small amount monthly from his SEP-IRA to give him a little joy, and reduce RMDs in the future. Ironically, after all these years of squirreling away funds, his SEP-IRA growth is outpacing his withdrawals, so we will also need to convert some of it this year.
All the spreadsheets are good! It's a wild feeling to know that my years of planning and plotting and saving have stayed so close to a plan - and results! - that I devised 15 years ago.
Congrats! It sounds like life is good on multiple fronts and all is proceeding as planned. I record our account balances in a "state of the union" spreadsheet and was surprised to see that we are back to Q4 2021 balances before the SHTF, so things have defintely been on the upswing. Like you, I'm getting restless. It's been hard to concentrate on work and I find myself running simutions on firecalc with dates that are closer and closer to the present.
Last week a friend told me that he plans on retiring in 2 years at age 55 and a fellow coworker told me today that he's also planning his exit in two years. It must be something in the water. :-)
Post by: Sandi_k on July 06, 2023, 06:40:48 PM
Congrats! It sounds like life is good on multiple fronts and all is proceeding as planned. I record our account balances in a "state of the union" spreadsheet and was surprised to see that we are back to Q4 2021 balances before the SHTF, so things have defintely been on the upswing. Like you, I'm getting restless. It's been hard to concentrate on work and I find myself running simutions on firecalc with dates that are closer and closer to the present.
Last week a friend told me that he plans on retiring in 2 years at age 55 and a fellow coworker told me today that he's also planning his exit in two years. It must be something in the water. :-)
Ha! I have multiple spreadsheets, depending on the purpose:
- one that forecasts the investment balance into age 99, and includes columns for Social Security elections, and pension income;
- another with net worth, every Jan. 1 and July 1;
- another that is the annual budget, with monthly tabs;
- another that is the "retirement" budget (which is how I know we'll pay more in taxes once retired, with no tax sheltering available);
- another that is our monthly snapshot of our investment account details and Asset Allocation;
- another that is our mortgage's amortization table.
So yeah; I like spreadsheets. ;)
Our high in cash and investments was in November 2021; we're not *quite* back to that level, but we're getting close.
Post by: weebs on July 07, 2023, 02:32:23 PM
So yeah; I like spreadsheets. ;)
Indeed. All hail the Spreadsheet Queen! ;-) I only have two:
* net worth (aka 'state of the union'), updated quarterly
* monthly budget, updated as needed.
I adjust the second one as needed (rarely). I set up a money pipeline between our various accounts and it's apparent when/where there's a shortfall.
Post by: farmecologist on July 07, 2023, 02:44:43 PM
So yeah; I like spreadsheets. ;)
Indeed. All hail the Spreadsheet Queen! ;-) I only have two:
* net worth (aka 'state of the union'), updated quarterly
* monthly budget, updated as needed.
I adjust the second one as needed (rarely). I set up a money pipeline between our various accounts and it's apparent when/where there's a shortfall.
@Sandi_k
This is going to sound weird...but my "spreadsheet" is currently a text file. Yes, an actual text file...lol. On top of that, I'm an engineer and love numbers and such. However, I haven't seen the need to get to get 100% , down to the penny, accurate with it. I suppose I should switch to a spreadsheet at some point.
It isn't as bad as it sounds though. We have consolidated things and only have a few accounts to track. We are also completely debt free...so no mortgage planning is necessary. For retirement projection planning, I use a few retirement calculators that are available online, etc...
Multiple spreadsheets are too much work for me at this point....but I certainly understand the appeal of them!
Post by: Sandi_k on August 04, 2023, 12:58:02 PM
Nerd Alert: I did my estimation for the August 1 deposit, including FICA, mandatory pension contributions, OASDI costs, increases in Fed and State taxes, and a hike in my mega-backdoor Roth contribution. So, lots of moving parts.
My estimate was within $2 of the final deposit amount. :D
Post by: Republic DC-9 on August 05, 2023, 07:18:52 AM
We’re at $1.0 with a paid off house with what seems to be $5K or less in spending per month with room to cut before and after work stops.
It seems possible given a yearly pension of $12.5K a year if I depart at age 50 that I didn’t realize I had and several calculators seem to agree it’s possible.
Also making lists of things to fix and do prior to retirement and also start planning what we’ll actually do (go to an all perennial backyard, gourmet cooking at home, etc…hobbies that are healthy and cheap).
In any case it’s sort of reassuring to know if I lose my job at this point we’re better off.
Post by: oneday on August 05, 2023, 10:04:48 PM
My estimate was within $2 of the final deposit amount. :D
👏Well done!👏
Having you in this cohort makes it more real to me that I won't be fully FIRE by 2025 (you are So Prepared: spreadsheets, bigger stash, real estate, 2-player mode, pensions, etc). I'm not giving up, though. Who knows what could happen? 12/31/25 is still technically 2025, so that's my goal. :)
Post by: frugalecon on August 06, 2023, 06:32:11 AM
So the first paycheck with the raise hit on Tuesday. I am also doing a PT gig in another department for the summer, so I have a 15% stipend added to the base salary. So a swing of about 20% from the July 1 paycheck.
Nerd Alert: I did my estimation for the August 1 deposit, including FICA, mandatory pension contributions, OASDI costs, increases in Fed and State taxes, and a hike in my mega-backdoor Roth contribution. So, lots of moving parts.
My estimate was within $2 of the final deposit amount. :D
Nerds rule!
Post by: Bird In Hand on August 06, 2023, 08:56:02 AM
2025 is probably in the ballpark, so I'll join. DW and I will be in our upper 40's then, which still counts as RE I think.
We've saved 19x-23x our expected retirement expenses, with the range representing a slightly higher down to slightly lower standard of living. If we include our home equity, we've saved 23x-28x.
If we keep making the same mortgage payments that we have been making for the last ~7 years, the mortgage should be gone in ~3 years. At that point we could afford to drastically increase our after-tax savings, or downshift and coast ESR-style while our 'stache (hopefully) grows to a number that screams 'RE!' to us.
It's funny to see how things line up (or not) with plans made a few years ago. We've revised our anticipated spending upward, but there's still a lot of uncertainty about that. Our oldest will be entering college in 2025, and we could be paying tuition from ~2025-2035. Our best guess is that our portfolio is currently 85% of what we think we'll need by 2025.
Our mortgage is now paid off (as of today!), and that means we can save more, spend more, work less, or some combination. I think it will be some combination. We're going to bolster our non-investment savings so that all the major systems in the house (HVAC, roof, driveway, etc.) have a replacement fund. We're probably going to do a couple renovations around the house. And soon, possibly later this year, I intend to switch to an 80% schedule at work.
My wife and I both like our jobs, and we don't intend to actually quit our jobs in 2025 (or at any particular point). At the same time, we both want a more relaxed pace and a bit more free time for personal pursuits. So the next phase will be to gradually downshift our work hours. Ideally I'd be down to ~60% by 2025. But these are just my current thoughts, and are subject to change at any time and for any reason. :)
Over the last 3.5 years my wife and I have both dabbled with PT schedules but we're currently FT. It's hard to imagine an easy way to get back to PT in the near future, but it's still the goal.
Financially we're still on track for FIRE in 2025; two years of average market gains (plus our contributions) should have our investments ready for a ~3.5% SWR which would support our current spending. Accounting for taxes and ACA premiums probably puts us closer to 4.5%. FIRECalc says 5% is safe (95%+ success) taking into consideration a future with 75% of expected SS benefits.
All of the above is strictly academic though, as we both plan to continue working at least PT for the foreseeable future.
Anyway...we're still in this cohort -- which is pretty cool considering we joined it on a whim six years ago!
Post by: Sandi_k on August 06, 2023, 10:37:37 AM
My estimate was within $2 of the final deposit amount. :D
👏Well done!👏
Having you in this cohort makes it more real to me that I won't be fully FIRE by 2025 (you are So Prepared: spreadsheets, bigger stash, real estate, 2-player mode, pensions, etc). I'm not giving up, though. Who knows what could happen? 12/31/25 is still technically 2025, so that's my goal. :)
It's a great goal! And having a date is very inspiring for me - in terms of stepping back at work (gotta make sure my #2 folks are trained and prepared!) and in terms of beginning to plan the fun stuff.
I was talking to my cousin yesterday, and she and her sister are IN on the retirement trip to the Caribbean. Now *that* is inspiring for the Planner Me. ;) I plan to use my Vacation Leave payout of 300+ hours to rent a villa for 2 weeks in the Caribbean - and rotate in 3 sets of folks for 5 nights each. I pay for lodging at the All Inclusive resort, and they have to manage their airfare/arrivals. SO FUN to start browsing resort sites. ;)
Post by: weebs on August 06, 2023, 01:40:29 PM
Accounting for taxes and ACA premiums...
I'm still working through the tax and ACA details and I'm not 100% sure I have it right. For example, based on the following assumptions:
* 2M 'stache - Vanguard mutual funds + brokerage account, all funds held for 1 year or longer.
* 5% return (aka 100K income)
* 10K in ACA premiums for DW and myself
and the information contained in the linked GoCurryCracker blog post https://www.gocurrycracker.com/never-pay-taxes-again/ referred to from this sticky - https://forum.mrmoneymustache.com/taxes/taxes-in-early-retirement-(gocurrycracker-links)/ :
* We only have to pay taxes on $11,250 (100K income - 10K ACA deduction - 78,750 long term capital gains allowance).
* Our ACA premium is calculated using a MAGI starting with an AGI of 90K.
Does that look right to everyone?
Anyway...we're still in this cohort -- which is pretty cool considering we joined it on a whim six years ago!
Congrats on staying the course and being on track for FIRE in 2025.
Post by: oneday on August 06, 2023, 06:34:32 PM
My estimate was within $2 of the final deposit amount. :D
👏Well done!👏
Having you in this cohort makes it more real to me that I won't be fully FIRE by 2025 (you are So Prepared: spreadsheets, bigger stash, real estate, 2-player mode, pensions, etc). I'm not giving up, though. Who knows what could happen? 12/31/25 is still technically 2025, so that's my goal. :)
It's a great goal! And having a date is very inspiring for me - in terms of stepping back at work (gotta make sure my #2 folks are trained and prepared!) and in terms of beginning to plan the fun stuff.
I was talking to my cousin yesterday, and she and her sister are IN on the retirement trip to the Caribbean. Now *that* is inspiring for the Planner Me. ;) I plan to use my Vacation Leave payout of 300+ hours to rent a villa for 2 weeks in the Caribbean - and rotate in 3 sets of folks for 5 nights each. I pay for lodging at the All Inclusive resort, and they have to manage their airfare/arrivals. SO FUN to start browsing resort sites. ;)
I can recommend Turtle Beach Resort in Barbados :) Separately, the Mt. Gay distillery tour was a blast. Be sure Tina is your host for that, be prepared to verbally spar and laugh your tuchus off!
Post by: oneday on August 06, 2023, 06:51:07 PM
Accounting for taxes and ACA premiums...
I'm still working through the tax and ACA details and I'm not 100% sure I have it right. For example, based on the following assumptions:
* 2M 'stache - Vanguard mutual funds + brokerage account, all funds held for 1 year or longer.
* 5% return (aka 100K income)
* 10K in ACA premiums for DW and myself
and the information contained in the linked GoCurryCracker blog post https://www.gocurrycracker.com/never-pay-taxes-again/ referred to from this sticky - https://forum.mrmoneymustache.com/taxes/taxes-in-early-retirement-(gocurrycracker-links)/ :
* We only have to pay taxes on $11,250 (100K income - 10K ACA deduction - 78,750 long term capital gains allowance).
* Our ACA premium is calculated using a MAGI starting with an AGI of 90K.
Does that look right to everyone?
Depends on the nature of your income. Sale of mutual fund & qualified dividends are in your 78,750 allowance. Ordinary dividends and withdrawls from traditional IRA/401(k) are taxed as ordinary income. This amount may still squeak in under the standard deduction amount, so there's a possibility of no taxes there. I don't know about the ACA yet, so can't speak to that part.
Post by: weebs on August 07, 2023, 05:58:30 AM
Depends on the nature of your income. Sale of mutual fund & qualified dividends are in your 78,750 allowance. Ordinary dividends and withdrawls from traditional IRA/401(k) are taxed as ordinary income. This amount may still squeak in under the standard deduction amount, so there's a possibility of no taxes there.
Thanks, that makes sense. Under the current plan, ~2/3 of our income would be taxed as ordinary income. Bummer, but I have a couple years to figure out how to minimize our taxes.
Post by: evanc on August 25, 2023, 01:55:47 PM
Greetings! Fellow 2025er. I found MMM in 2016 and got the face punch I was searching for. Fortunately, DW was on board once I shared the “shockingly simple math” post. We realized for the first time that we could actually do this (RE). Up to that point, basically everything I read said it was impossible. Once we made a plan, we set our sights on 2025 and haven’t looked back since. Like some of you, we anticipate higher expenses post retirement due to a combination of increased healthcare costs, additional travel, and inflation. Here’s how we have progressed thus far with current levels of spending in parentheses for comparison purposes.
T-8 years: 5.77x (7.21)
-7: 7.13 (8.92)
-6: 9.06 (11.33)
-5: 10.52 (13.14)
and project the following:
-4: 12.85 (16.07)
-3: 15.65 (19.56)
-2: 18.64 (23.3)
-1: 21.83 (27.29)
FIRE: 26x (32.5)
There is some room, but the biggest added expense is healthcare on ACA or whatever is available at that point. Cautiously optimistic that we can make it happen in 2025. As of now, right on track. I will be 46 and DW a few years older.
As of today, 15.15x (18.93). Still projecting 2025 FIRE, but unofficially hopeful it could be sooner.
Update as of 1/1/22: 20.2x (25.3)
Mathematically, DW and I are FI with current expenses (seems weird even saying that, as this is the first time I've seen it on paper). However, still both working to achieve fat fire by 2025.
As of 1/1/23: Bear market has us at 18.78x (23.48). However, high savings rate has us on track for mid-late 2025 retirement nonetheless. Time to buy more stocks on discount!
Update 8/25/23: Riding the recent wave, back up. All time high of 22.91x (28.64). Oh, so close!
Post by: SaucyAussie on August 28, 2023, 08:51:31 AM
491 days
11798 hours
707890 minutes
42473421 seconds
Post by: tj on August 28, 2023, 08:19:26 PM
Post by: afuera on August 29, 2023, 07:51:10 AM
Last time I checked in the Mad Fientist Lab, I'm about 4 years from hitting my the necessary numbers (assuming my investments don't have an epic collapse between now and then), so maybe it'll be 2027.
I'm in a similar boat but I'm having a hard time letting go of this cohort, which I picked 9 years ago sort of randomly because 2025 had a nice ring to it.
Post by: SaucyAussie on August 29, 2023, 08:00:41 AM
Last time I checked in the Mad Fientist Lab, I'm about 4 years from hitting my the necessary numbers (assuming my investments don't have an epic collapse between now and then), so maybe it'll be 2027.
I'm in a similar boat but I'm having a hard time letting go of this cohort, which I picked 9 years ago sort of randomly because 2025 had a nice ring to it.
It's great to see some of the "Page 1" people still around, with so many floating in and out of the FIRE universe and jumping to different cohorts.
Post by: frugalecon on August 29, 2023, 04:26:29 PM
Last time I checked in the Mad Fientist Lab, I'm about 4 years from hitting my the necessary numbers (assuming my investments don't have an epic collapse between now and then), so maybe it'll be 2027.
I'm in a similar boat but I'm having a hard time letting go of this cohort, which I picked 9 years ago sort of randomly because 2025 had a nice ring to it.
It's great to see some of the "Page 1" people still around, with so many floating in and out of the FIRE universe and jumping to different cohorts.
I have had dalliances with other cohorts, but I keep coming back to this one. The fact that I am now only around 80 weeks to my target date makes it feel super close.
Post by: LateStarter27 on September 19, 2023, 06:01:34 PM
I am much older than all of you, I am sure, but I am still looking forward to "early retirement" before 65. I have decided that I want to wake up on my 63rd birthday being retired. My birthday is in December, so it's still a bit more than two years away. Two years seems dauntingly long and alarmingly short at the same time. I have spent most of my life building up my career, so it will seem very strange to just walk away from it. But there are so many other things I want to do now - be with family, hike in the mountains, kayak on lakes and rivers, and just generally being outside and in nature as much as possible.
I am hoping that the next two years won't seem so much as a countdown, but as an opportunity for mentorship and knowledge transfer.
Having said that - only 815 days to go!
Post by: frugalecon on September 20, 2023, 03:40:43 PM
Hello Class of 2025
I am much older than all of you, I am sure, but I am still looking forward to "early retirement" before 65. I have decided that I want to wake up on my 63rd birthday being retired. My birthday is in December, so it's still a bit more than two years away. Two years seems dauntingly long and alarmingly short at the same time. I have spent most of my life building up my career, so it will seem very strange to just walk away from it. But there are so many other things I want to do now - be with family, hike in the mountains, kayak on lakes and rivers, and just generally being outside and in nature as much as possible.
I am hoping that the next two years won't seem so much as a countdown, but as an opportunity for mentorship and knowledge transfer.
Having said that - only 815 days to go!
Welcome to the 2025 cohort! I am just a couple of years younger than you, so my “early retirement” is relative to standard expectations, and less so relative to the norm among the MMM crowd. I really resonate with your desire to have the freedom to do other things. I struggle a bit with the “countdown” aspect of targeting a time certain. I try to manage it by having things to look forward to short of the actual retirement goal…trips, projects, time spent with people I care about.
Post by: Silrossi46 on September 20, 2023, 05:04:04 PM
Hello Class of 2025
I am much older than all of you, I am sure, but I am still looking forward to "early retirement" before 65. I have decided that I want to wake up on my 63rd birthday being retired. My birthday is in December, so it's still a bit more than two years away. Two years seems dauntingly long and alarmingly short at the same time. I have spent most of my life building up my career, so it will seem very strange to just walk away from it. But there are so many other things I want to do now - be with family, hike in the mountains, kayak on lakes and rivers, and just generally being outside and in nature as much as possible.
I am hoping that the next two years won't seem so much as a countdown, but as an opportunity for mentorship and knowledge transfer.
Having said that - only 815 days to go!
Welcome to the 2025 cohort! I am just a couple of years younger than you, so my “early retirement” is relative to standard expectations, and less so relative to the norm among the MMM crowd. I really resonate with your desire to have the freedom to do other things. I struggle a bit with the “countdown” aspect of targeting a time certain. I try to manage it by having things to look forward to short of the actual retirement goal…trips, projects, time spent with people I care about.
Hope you fulfill all your dreams!
Post by: asauer on September 25, 2023, 06:04:45 AM
Post by: Sandi_k on September 25, 2023, 10:09:48 AM
Feeling really good about an October 2025 out-the-door date. ;)
Post by: SaucyAussie on September 26, 2023, 01:04:59 PM
https://smartasset.com/retirement/irs-delays-catch-up-contribution-rule-2026
Post by: Silrossi46 on September 26, 2023, 04:20:18 PM
Good news for the 50+ crowd in this group - the IRS has delayed changes to 401k catchup contributions until 2026. Should be well and truly retired by then!
https://smartasset.com/retirement/irs-delays-catch-up-contribution-rule-2026
I put a post out on this as well. Really helpful for me since I am a government employee leaving at 55. I will be in year 3 of double catch-up 457b provisions in 2024 and leaving in 2025. The 2026 date works perfectly for as I am over that salary threshold and would have to take a higher tax hit on the lowered contributions to tax deferred amounts.
Post by: Freedomin5 on October 18, 2023, 07:09:06 AM
Our circumstances have changed with a health issue that has cropped up, as well as changes in the work environment (hello toxic coworkers) that have made FIRE-ing much more appealing. Our current plan is to FIRE once we pay off our mortgage. Target is June 2025.
I’ll be 44 and DH will be 45.
Post by: LightStache on October 18, 2023, 09:11:28 AM
Hi, joining this cohort after OMY’ing six times. We were originally in the 2019 cohort, but then COVID happened, and we decided to OMY to pad the stash a bit and not have to deal with an international move in the middle of a pandemic.
Our circumstances have changed with a health issue that has cropped up, as well as changes in the work environment (hello toxic coworkers) that have made FIRE-ing much more appealing. Our current plan is to FIRE once we pay off our mortgage. Target is June 2025.
I’ll be 44 and DH will be 45.
Will you try to find a less toxic environment for the final 20 months or just power through?
Post by: Turtle on October 18, 2023, 10:48:41 AM
Good news for the 50+ crowd in this group - the IRS has delayed changes to 401k catchup contributions until 2026. Should be well and truly retired by then!
https://smartasset.com/retirement/irs-delays-catch-up-contribution-rule-2026
I'm already putting my catch up contributions in Roth regardless. so it actually doesn't effect me any either way.
Post by: Freedomin5 on October 18, 2023, 03:52:37 PM
Hi, joining this cohort after OMY’ing six times. We were originally in the 2019 cohort, but then COVID happened, and we decided to OMY to pad the stash a bit and not have to deal with an international move in the middle of a pandemic.
Our circumstances have changed with a health issue that has cropped up, as well as changes in the work environment (hello toxic coworkers) that have made FIRE-ing much more appealing. Our current plan is to FIRE once we pay off our mortgage. Target is June 2025.
I’ll be 44 and DH will be 45.
Will you try to find a less toxic environment for the final 20 months or just power through?
Powering through. There is enough documented evidence that HR and managers know these employees are toxic. Hopefully, it’s enough for them to take steps to address the situations.
Post by: Fomerly known as something on October 18, 2023, 07:58:25 PM
Post by: frugalecon on October 19, 2023, 04:55:04 AM
21 months yesterday. It’s going to be a challenging job for many of those 21 months. First stop getting through a major project the week before Thanksgiving. So close, yet so far. (Pension issues so not leaving earlier)
I hear you. I have 16 months and change, and it feels like a grind. Lots of deadlines over the next three months. I have scheduled a couple of trips for the first half of 2024, though, so that might help. The psychology of the endgame is hard, for me at least.
Post by: oneday on October 19, 2023, 09:38:08 AM
The psychology of the endgame is hard, for me at least.
1000% agree. It's like Senioritis, but much longer lasting.
Just under 26 1/2 months for me.
Post by: Sandi_k on October 19, 2023, 10:02:36 AM
I am bummed that the investments are still lingering between the July 2021 and January 2022 values. The net worth is still increasing, because the value of our house is more, and the equity has increased due to both appreciation and pay down. The lump sum value of my pension is increasing as well.
One mental trick that has helped, since a pension means I'm hanging on until the multiplier maxes out in mid-September 2025:
I can always elect FML, and just exit for a few weeks or months if my mom or a family member needs me. Because it's the date that matters, not my months of service credit at this point...I can give myself some additional space if needed.
Post by: farmecologist on October 19, 2023, 10:13:32 AM
About 23 months left for me.
I am bummed that the investments are still lingering between the July 2021 and January 2022 values. The net worth is still increasing, because the value of our house is more, and the equity has increased due to both appreciation and pay down. The lump sum value of my pension is increasing as well.
One mental trick that has helped, since a pension means I'm hanging on until the multiplier maxes out in mid-September 2025:
I can always elect FML, and just exit for a few weeks or months if my mom or a family member needs me. Because it's the date that matters, not my months of service credit at this point...I can give myself some additional space if needed.
Yes...I think the markets have set quite a few people back. It has been pretty brutal...on both the stock side and bond side. Ugh...
We are continuing to full fund all of our investment accounts...but sometimes it feels like shoveling money into a furnace. The good news is that we are DCA'ing at a "low point"...and I keep telling myself that, but the psychology of this is tough for many ( including us )!
This isn't our first rodeo though...as we got through the 2008/2009 crash, and every dip and crash since then. I will say that it is much harder to tolerate these poor market conditions the closer we are to retirement though!
Post by: weebs on October 19, 2023, 02:10:43 PM
Yes...I think the markets have set quite a few people back. It has been pretty brutal...on both the stock side and bond side. Ugh...
We are continuing to full fund all of our investment accounts...but sometimes it feels like shoveling money into a furnace. The good news is that we are DCA'ing at a "low point"...and I keep telling myself that, but the psychology of this is tough for many ( including us )!
This isn't our first rodeo though...as we got through the 2008/2009 crash, and every dip and crash since then. I will say that it is much harder to tolerate these poor market conditions the closer we are to retirement though!
I feel the same way and it's comforting to know it's not just me. Our TNW is *just* under the high water mark hit in Q2 2022. I was thinking about SORR while walking the dog this morning (yeah...I'm fun at parties) and I'm thankful that I didn't bail last year. My job has taken a turn for the better since this spring, so at least that has relieved some of the pressure.
The lump sum value of my pension is increasing as well.
Nice. We're in a similar position. My initial estimates for our pensions were too conservative. Assuming we both continue working until early Q3 2025, our combined pensions will pay out 1K more per month above and beyond my original estimate.
Post by: SaucyAussie on October 19, 2023, 02:13:46 PM
Post by: frugalecon on October 21, 2023, 04:02:01 AM
21 months yesterday. It’s going to be a challenging job for many of those 21 months. First stop getting through a major project the week before Thanksgiving. So close, yet so far. (Pension issues so not leaving earlier)
I hear you. I have 16 months and change, and it feels like a grind. Lots of deadlines over the next three months. I have scheduled a couple of trips for the first half of 2024, though, so that might help. The psychology of the endgame is hard, for me at least.
FWIW, as of today, I have 500 calendar days until my intended last day at work. I don’t know if the “countdown clock” approach helps or hurts with the psychology, but I can’t seem to resist it!
Post by: Porkins on October 30, 2023, 10:51:14 AM
2016: 9.67xBeen a while since I calculated. I appear to have run into a slowdown on accumulation. Buckling down on savings rate and hoping for better returns!
2017: 11.83x
2018: 12.91x
2019: 16.91x
2020: 21.93x
2023: 23.75x
Post by: SotI on November 02, 2023, 01:29:56 PM
Mind you, I am contractually bound, so this means I will stop working regardless of my NW at the time. But with a 4-year payment deal, I got until 2029 to fill any gaps
Post by: frugalecon on November 06, 2023, 03:39:45 PM
21 months yesterday. It’s going to be a challenging job for many of those 21 months. First stop getting through a major project the week before Thanksgiving. So close, yet so far. (Pension issues so not leaving earlier)
I hear you. I have 16 months and change, and it feels like a grind. Lots of deadlines over the next three months. I have scheduled a couple of trips for the first half of 2024, though, so that might help. The psychology of the endgame is hard, for me at least.
FWIW, as of today, I have 500 calendar days until my intended last day at work. I don’t know if the “countdown clock” approach helps or hurts with the psychology, but I can’t seem to resist it!
It really does feel like time starts moving faster once you are below 500 days…can’t imagine what it will be like at 50 days to go! Given where I am at, I have started taking more concrete steps, like getting an estimate from HR on what my pension benefits will look like, and thinking about how to arrange things to fund the first year after the paycheck ends. Also been thinking about whether I want to do a big trip, and where it would be. Have long been interested in the idea of visiting New Zealand, but it is so far away it feels like I would want to do a three-week trip to do it justice. Same deal for Australia, or even a little longer there!
Post by: frugalecon on November 14, 2023, 04:31:10 PM
Post by: OurTown on November 27, 2023, 10:31:15 AM
Now, I need to go save some more money!
Post by: Sandi_k on November 27, 2023, 10:13:10 PM
So I endlessly have thoughts of "why can't I just be done with it all?!" and quit now.
So then I go back to the spreadsheet, and look at the pension differential between now and 9/2025. It really does make optimal sense to wait until then.
I recently had another thought: if I need to take a Leave of Absence (LOA) to assist my mom or the in-laws, I could get some time off, while still preserving my employment status, and extend me closer to the expected retirement date. I no longer need "service credit" - I need "age at retirement" to be as close to age 60 as I can manage.
So - I am down to 1.75 years....or less. Every month is a victory. ;)
Post by: Fomerly known as something on November 27, 2023, 10:18:30 PM
21 months yesterday. It’s going to be a challenging job for many of those 21 months. First stop getting through a major project the week before Thanksgiving. So close, yet so far. (Pension issues so not leaving earlier)
I hear you. I have 16 months and change, and it feels like a grind. Lots of deadlines over the next three months. I have scheduled a couple of trips for the first half of 2024, though, so that might help. The psychology of the endgame is hard, for me at least.
FWIW, as of today, I have 500 calendar days until my intended last day at work. I don’t know if the “countdown clock” approach helps or hurts with the psychology, but I can’t seem to resist it!
It really does feel like time starts moving faster once you are below 500 days…can’t imagine what it will be like at 50 days to go! Given where I am at, I have started taking more concrete steps, like getting an estimate from HR on what my pension benefits will look like, and thinking about how to arrange things to fund the first year after the paycheck ends. Also been thinking about whether I want to do a big trip, and where it would be. Have long been interested in the idea of visiting New Zealand, but it is so far away it feels like I would want to do a three-week trip to do it justice. Same deal for Australia, or even a little longer there!
I was in New Zealand for 4 weeks in 2017, it wasn’t enough time. The next time I go it will likely be multiple months.
Post by: Zamboni on November 28, 2023, 09:28:43 AM
Technically FI now, but not sure when I'll actually do the RE part. My situation is quite fortunate in that I've been able to structure my work life now in such a way that I have a very flexibly schedule and plenty of time to do non-work things that I enjoy. I can also do quite a lot of my work remotely, which has allowed me tremendous latitude in travel without my colleagues even realizing where I am. All of this makes me wonder why I should retire from a job like this.
I'm class of 2025 still . . . and we'll see.
Post by: Turtle on November 28, 2023, 10:32:00 AM
I'm getting a bad case of "senior-itis." I had to do a "once every 3-5 years" assignments recently, and all I could think of was "this is probably the last time I ever have to do this assignment."
So I endlessly have thoughts of "why can't I just be done with it all?!" and quit now.
So then I go back to the spreadsheet, and look at the pension differential between now and 9/2025. It really does make optimal sense to wait until then.
I recently had another thought: if I need to take a Leave of Absence (LOA) to assist my mom or the in-laws, I could get some time off, while still preserving my employment status, and extend me closer to the expected retirement date. I no longer need "service credit" - I need "age at retirement" to be as close to age 60 as I can manage.
So - I am down to 1.75 years....or less. Every month is a victory. ;)
I can so relate. Taking FMLA sooner rather than later so that you can squeeze in doing it more than once in the next couple years might be optimal.
Post by: weebs on November 28, 2023, 11:01:38 AM
I'm getting a bad case of "senior-itis."
I can so relate.
Ditto. I've gone "Full Lebowski" at work. This was the first year I put ZERO effort into a self eval. Having a good ski season is more important to me than my review.
All of this makes me wonder why I should retire from a job like this.
That's a perfectly valid question. To me, the RE part of FIRE is about have the ability to do what I want when I want without work getting in the way. Your current gig provides that flexibilty and enables, rather than prevents, you doing things you enjoy. There's no reason to get off that horse if you're still enjoying the ride.
Post by: tj on November 28, 2023, 11:19:40 AM
I'm pretty much on a smooth glide path to FIRE.
Technically FI now, but not sure when I'll actually do the RE part. My situation is quite fortunate in that I've been able to structure my work life now in such a way that I have a very flexibly schedule and plenty of time to do non-work things that I enjoy. I can also do quite a lot of my work remotely, which has allowed me tremendous latitude in travel without my colleagues even realizing where I am. All of this makes me wonder why I should retire from a job like this.
I'm class of 2025 still . . . and we'll see.
Sound like the dream job. How did you find it?
Post by: Sandi_k on November 28, 2023, 09:53:59 PM
I'm getting a bad case of "senior-itis." I had to do a "once every 3-5 years" assignments recently, and all I could think of was "this is probably the last time I ever have to do this assignment."
So I endlessly have thoughts of "why can't I just be done with it all?!" and quit now.
So then I go back to the spreadsheet, and look at the pension differential between now and 9/2025. It really does make optimal sense to wait until then.
I recently had another thought: if I need to take a Leave of Absence (LOA) to assist my mom or the in-laws, I could get some time off, while still preserving my employment status, and extend me closer to the expected retirement date. I no longer need "service credit" - I need "age at retirement" to be as close to age 60 as I can manage.
So - I am down to 1.75 years....or less. Every month is a victory. ;)
I can so relate. Taking FMLA sooner rather than later so that you can squeeze in doing it more than once in the next couple years might be optimal.
Even better - my employer has created a Family Leave program that pays for 8 weeks out of the workplace for family care needs. So I wouldn't need to use SL or VL to take the time, it's fully paid, and they'll pay all employer contributions to benefits while out.
So...with elderly family members, I can totally see this being useful in the next two years - getting my mom settled in a care facility, or interviewing, hiring, and moving in a home health care aid.
So....the brain is spinning. We'll see.
Post by: k290 on November 30, 2023, 01:39:26 AM
I joined this cohort about 9 years ago. For me 2025 is when I switch to coast fire: Freelancing, part-time contracts etc. A huge milestone.
I had multiple career breaks along the way to where I am today.
Last year I got hit with a chronic illness which will be with me forever. I couldnt work for 6 months and medical expenses have been insane in spite of insurance. Nonetheless I think I'm still on track, but it'll likely happen in December 2025 instead of January 2025 :)
Post by: Turtle on November 30, 2023, 07:53:41 AM
I'm getting a bad case of "senior-itis." I had to do a "once every 3-5 years" assignments recently, and all I could think of was "this is probably the last time I ever have to do this assignment."
So I endlessly have thoughts of "why can't I just be done with it all?!" and quit now.
So then I go back to the spreadsheet, and look at the pension differential between now and 9/2025. It really does make optimal sense to wait until then.
I recently had another thought: if I need to take a Leave of Absence (LOA) to assist my mom or the in-laws, I could get some time off, while still preserving my employment status, and extend me closer to the expected retirement date. I no longer need "service credit" - I need "age at retirement" to be as close to age 60 as I can manage.
So - I am down to 1.75 years....or less. Every month is a victory. ;)
I can so relate. Taking FMLA sooner rather than later so that you can squeeze in doing it more than once in the next couple years might be optimal.
Even better - my employer has created a Family Leave program that pays for 8 weeks out of the workplace for family care needs. So I wouldn't need to use SL or VL to take the time, it's fully paid, and they'll pay all employer contributions to benefits while out.
So...with elderly family members, I can totally see this being useful in the next two years - getting my mom settled in a care facility, or interviewing, hiring, and moving in a home health care aid.
So....the brain is spinning. We'll see.
Paid leave is even better.
Post by: mistymoney on December 01, 2023, 09:05:09 AM
I have made the difficult, yet prudent, decision to bow out of the 2023 cohort and go 2MYs into the 2025 cohort. Doing this puts me a little bit into FIR rather than FIRE. I will likely be 59, depending on which month I pick. Will think about that more careful after 2024 rings in and I make my plans on the new time frame. Currently, I want to focus on the holidays and merriment and family and stop crunching numbers for a wee bit. :)
The 2023 cohort decision was made in 2021 when things were up and inflation was down. The sobering 2 years since then, I tried and tried to make the numbers work - I learned alot! - but still think I need to continue with planning rather than executing.
Post by: Sandi_k on December 01, 2023, 12:06:55 PM
Embrace me as your own!
I have made the difficult, yet prudent, decision to bow out of the 2023 cohort and go 2MYs into the 2025 cohort. Doing this puts me a little bit into FIR rather than FIRE. I will likely be 59, depending on which month I pick. Will think about that more careful after 2024 rings in and I make my plans on the new time frame. Currently, I want to focus on the holidays and merriment and family and stop crunching numbers for a wee bit. :)
The 2023 cohort decision was made in 2021 when things were up and inflation was down. The sobering 2 years since then, I tried and tried to make the numbers work - I learned alot! - but still think I need to continue with planning rather than executing.
Consider yourself embraced!
And I would still call it FIRE - according to longer lifespans and SocSec, our retirement age is 67! So 59 is damn near a decade early!
Sandi, who plans to retire at age 60, when the pension formula maxes out....
Post by: weebs on December 01, 2023, 02:55:47 PM
Embrace me as your own!
I have made the difficult, yet prudent, decision to bow out of the 2023 cohort and go 2MYs into the 2025 cohort. Doing this puts me a little bit into FIR rather than FIRE. I will likely be 59, depending on which month I pick. Will think about that more careful after 2024 rings in and I make my plans on the new time frame. Currently, I want to focus on the holidays and merriment and family and stop crunching numbers for a wee bit. :)
The 2023 cohort decision was made in 2021 when things were up and inflation was down. The sobering 2 years since then, I tried and tried to make the numbers work - I learned alot! - but still think I need to continue with planning rather than executing.
Welcome! You're right - the last two years have been educational and I understand the appeal of taking some time to get your ducks in a row.
Post by: frugalecon on December 01, 2023, 07:15:16 PM
Embrace me as your own!
I have made the difficult, yet prudent, decision to bow out of the 2023 cohort and go 2MYs into the 2025 cohort. Doing this puts me a little bit into FIR rather than FIRE. I will likely be 59, depending on which month I pick. Will think about that more careful after 2024 rings in and I make my plans on the new time frame. Currently, I want to focus on the holidays and merriment and family and stop crunching numbers for a wee bit. :)
The 2023 cohort decision was made in 2021 when things were up and inflation was down. The sobering 2 years since then, I tried and tried to make the numbers work - I learned alot! - but still think I need to continue with planning rather than executing.
Welcome to the 2025 cohort! For me, that is close enough that it is very real, and as you allude to, it is a good amount of time to complete the planning for a successful transition to the next phase. I am about the same age as you, so I have mentally prepared myself for some to scoff at me as not “retiring early,” but on the other hand I still feel young and have a lot of energy, so that should mean I likely have a lot of time to devote to whatever comes next.
Post by: AK on December 02, 2023, 08:58:47 AM
House Paid in Jan 21. While saving a high % in investments, we still had extra so we decided to payoff the house. We took the house payment and have been contributing that towards 529s for the kids.
Quit Job in Jan 22 to try semi-Fire. With a big bonus coming in April and having already having a nice cash cushion with low expenses, I wanted to see what semi-FIRE was like. I enrolled in Obama Care and resumed my freelancing. Most of 2022 through the summer of 2023, I worked maybe 400 hours and that was amazing! I spent time with my 4 year old daughter before she started Kindergarten and my wife. We would go to the park, trampoline park, the zoo and other things. I got hooked on Chess too and dived into that which lead to joining the local Chess club and getting some more friends. I also partnered with another company in my industry to create courses and now have 4 out there which helps with passive income. I really enjoy making them even though they're a lot of work.
Over this past summer, we remodeled our kitchen and first floor which took a big chunk of our liquid cash. I felt compelled to earn more so I took some longer contracts and the work is ok and sometimes fun. I work with a great team so it's not too bad. I'm working on additional courses and have plenty more I'd like to do. The courses pay monthly and this past month was my best ever.
Going forward, my plan is to continue freelancing and creating courses. The work pays well, enjoyable, and fulfilling. Having low expenses and pretty much everything I want, I'm not all-in on saving and investing every cent like I used to be. It's more about living my best life with my family and I am.
Cheers,
AK
Post by: mistymoney on December 02, 2023, 01:40:02 PM
Consider yourself embraced!
And I would still call it FIRE - according to longer lifespans and SocSec, our retirement age is 67! So 59 is damn near a decade early!
Sandi, who plans to retire at age 60, when the pension formula maxes out....
Thanks! True that we will be way ahead of a lot of people - as many need to work well pass the SSA retirement age. I do want to be happy with where I am and thankful I am secure and planning to retire somewhat early with a high probability of never having a loss on that security.
Welcome! You're right - the last two years have been educational and I understand the appeal of taking some time to get your ducks in a row.
One thing I started to do was to read over at bogleheads. They are so risk adverse - and so rich, lol. I won't ever get to that level, but taking a few leaves out of that book I think will help me a bit in terms of heading off any SORR. Which is my main buggaboo right now.
Welcome to the 2025 cohort! For me, that is close enough that it is very real, and as you allude to, it is a good amount of time to complete the planning for a successful transition to the next phase. I am about the same age as you, so I have mentally prepared myself for some to scoff at me as not “retiring early,” but on the other hand I still feel young and have a lot of energy, so that should mean I likely have a lot of time to devote to whatever comes next.
LOL, I have to admit I feel like I lost a lot of vigor in the last 2 years, and gained a bit of weight. Hopefully the vigor returns when the weight departs. One goal in the coming 2 years is to focus much more on my health than the job. This will include taking sick days willy nilly and using the time while I'm still working to splurge a little bit on things like yoga classes, and the occasional massage. Even if I need to lower my 401k contributions to do so. The heavy lifting is done on building the stash, and I do need to get a bit more bounce in the step to make delay worthwhile overall, not just financially.
Post by: mistymoney on December 02, 2023, 01:48:44 PM
Update time:
House Paid in Jan 21. While saving a high % in investments, we still had extra so we decided to payoff the house. We took the house payment and have been contributing that towards 529s for the kids.
Quit Job in Jan 22 to try semi-Fire. With a big bonus coming in April and having already having a nice cash cushion with low expenses, I wanted to see what semi-FIRE was like. I enrolled in Obama Care and resumed my freelancing. Most of 2022 through the summer of 2023, I worked maybe 400 hours and that was amazing! I spent time with my 4 year old daughter before she started Kindergarten and my wife. We would go to the park, trampoline park, the zoo and other things. I got hooked on Chess too and dived into that which lead to joining the local Chess club and getting some more friends. I also partnered with another company in my industry to create courses and now have 4 out there which helps with passive income. I really enjoy making them even though they're a lot of work.
Over this past summer, we remodeled our kitchen and first floor which took a big chunk of our liquid cash. I felt compelled to earn more so I took some longer contracts and the work is ok and sometimes fun. I work with a great team so it's not too bad. I'm working on additional courses and have plenty more I'd like to do. The courses pay monthly and this past month was my best ever.
Going forward, my plan is to continue freelancing and creating courses. The work pays well, enjoyable, and fulfilling. Having low expenses and pretty much everything I want, I'm not all-in on saving and investing every cent like I used to be. It's more about living my best life with my family and I am.
Cheers,
AK
Hey AK, would you tell us more about the course income? I have a background in instructional design, wondering if I could do something along that line?
Post by: Silrossi46 on December 02, 2023, 02:25:13 PM
The date I can actually go without penalty in my pension is 7/1/2025. If I stay till 12/31/2025 I get the maximum vacation I can cash out. 50 days which at my rate of pay would be 35k. Max sick time cash out is 15k which I will also get. That’s 50k which we can defer into the 457b the following two years post retirement date. No clue where that rule came from but I like it.
I suppose these are good problems to have.
Post by: AK on December 03, 2023, 07:10:01 AM
Update time:
House Paid in Jan 21. While saving a high % in investments, we still had extra so we decided to payoff the house. We took the house payment and have been contributing that towards 529s for the kids.
Quit Job in Jan 22 to try semi-Fire. With a big bonus coming in April and having already having a nice cash cushion with low expenses, I wanted to see what semi-FIRE was like. I enrolled in Obama Care and resumed my freelancing. Most of 2022 through the summer of 2023, I worked maybe 400 hours and that was amazing! I spent time with my 4 year old daughter before she started Kindergarten and my wife. We would go to the park, trampoline park, the zoo and other things. I got hooked on Chess too and dived into that which lead to joining the local Chess club and getting some more friends. I also partnered with another company in my industry to create courses and now have 4 out there which helps with passive income. I really enjoy making them even though they're a lot of work.
Over this past summer, we remodeled our kitchen and first floor which took a big chunk of our liquid cash. I felt compelled to earn more so I took some longer contracts and the work is ok and sometimes fun. I work with a great team so it's not too bad. I'm working on additional courses and have plenty more I'd like to do. The courses pay monthly and this past month was my best ever.
Going forward, my plan is to continue freelancing and creating courses. The work pays well, enjoyable, and fulfilling. Having low expenses and pretty much everything I want, I'm not all-in on saving and investing every cent like I used to be. It's more about living my best life with my family and I am.
Cheers,
AK
Hey AK, would you tell us more about the course income? I have a background in instructional design, wondering if I could do something along that line?
Since I work from home and like to collaborate with others, I joined some community Slacks in my industry where folks can chat, collaborate, share knowledge, etc. Having helped others for years and given back in other ways, another person in the industry, who has a well established website and a large following, noticed I was interested in creating courses and approached me. We chatted and came to a revenue sharing arrangement. This was about a year ago in Dec 2022.
The first course took 150 hours and a few months. There was a lot of self-learning with buying a microphone, camera, video editing software and trying different things. The first course released in March 2023 and is my best seller so far. Since then I created 3 other courses and each took about 50 hours each but were shorter. At first, sales were discouraging but I was having fun doing it so I continued and had 4 courses out by the summer. I took the summer off and had lots of fun with the family. My partner started bundling the courses in different ways and promoting it and sales went up significantly last month. I'm unsure if it's sustainable but it has reinvigorated my motivation to make more courses.
Udemy was briefly looked at but their revenue sharing model is complex and last I heard, they only give like 30% to the author on discounted courses. They often significantly discount courses to drive sales. For example, if a course sells for $100, they often discount it by 60-70%. If it sells for $30, you earn $9. With many other competitors on the same platform, it didn't seem like the best approach so I lucked out with finding a partner in my industry. My partner has been amazing to work with and supportive that I hope to work with them for years to come.
Unfortunately, I can't share numbers but the passive income is icing on the cake.
Post by: mistymoney on December 04, 2023, 10:45:47 AM
Update time:
House Paid in Jan 21. While saving a high % in investments, we still had extra so we decided to payoff the house. We took the house payment and have been contributing that towards 529s for the kids.
Quit Job in Jan 22 to try semi-Fire. With a big bonus coming in April and having already having a nice cash cushion with low expenses, I wanted to see what semi-FIRE was like. I enrolled in Obama Care and resumed my freelancing. Most of 2022 through the summer of 2023, I worked maybe 400 hours and that was amazing! I spent time with my 4 year old daughter before she started Kindergarten and my wife. We would go to the park, trampoline park, the zoo and other things. I got hooked on Chess too and dived into that which lead to joining the local Chess club and getting some more friends. I also partnered with another company in my industry to create courses and now have 4 out there which helps with passive income. I really enjoy making them even though they're a lot of work.
Over this past summer, we remodeled our kitchen and first floor which took a big chunk of our liquid cash. I felt compelled to earn more so I took some longer contracts and the work is ok and sometimes fun. I work with a great team so it's not too bad. I'm working on additional courses and have plenty more I'd like to do. The courses pay monthly and this past month was my best ever.
Going forward, my plan is to continue freelancing and creating courses. The work pays well, enjoyable, and fulfilling. Having low expenses and pretty much everything I want, I'm not all-in on saving and investing every cent like I used to be. It's more about living my best life with my family and I am.
Cheers,
AK
Hey AK, would you tell us more about the course income? I have a background in instructional design, wondering if I could do something along that line?
Since I work from home and like to collaborate with others, I joined some community Slacks in my industry where folks can chat, collaborate, share knowledge, etc. Having helped others for years and given back in other ways, another person in the industry, who has a well established website and a large following, noticed I was interested in creating courses and approached me. We chatted and came to a revenue sharing arrangement. This was about a year ago in Dec 2022.
The first course took 150 hours and a few months. There was a lot of self-learning with buying a microphone, camera, video editing software and trying different things. The first course released in March 2023 and is my best seller so far. Since then I created 3 other courses and each took about 50 hours each but were shorter. At first, sales were discouraging but I was having fun doing it so I continued and had 4 courses out by the summer. I took the summer off and had lots of fun with the family. My partner started bundling the courses in different ways and promoting it and sales went up significantly last month. I'm unsure if it's sustainable but it has reinvigorated my motivation to make more courses.
Udemy was briefly looked at but their revenue sharing model is complex and last I heard, they only give like 30% to the author on discounted courses. They often significantly discount courses to drive sales. For example, if a course sells for $100, they often discount it by 60-70%. If it sells for $30, you earn $9. With many other competitors on the same platform, it didn't seem like the best approach so I lucked out with finding a partner in my industry. My partner has been amazing to work with and supportive that I hope to work with them for years to come.
Unfortunately, I can't share numbers but the passive income is icing on the cake.
Thanks AK. I have a special area of expertise that I was considering doing a youtube channel or something on, and your course idea sounded like a good alternative to that especially as I have that instuctional design background and have done some college level teaching. Also, while my work is ok with other jobs, etc. I think it best I sheild my name from the public sphere on this just in case and on that score a course offering seemed an interesting angle. Seems that a personal connection was key for you though. One of my offspring is in the podcast sphere (They were recently recognized in public for one!) so when they visit for Christmas, I'll pick their brains about my best bet to monitize my idea.
Post by: AK on December 04, 2023, 03:12:07 PM
Update time:
House Paid in Jan 21. While saving a high % in investments, we still had extra so we decided to payoff the house. We took the house payment and have been contributing that towards 529s for the kids.
Quit Job in Jan 22 to try semi-Fire. With a big bonus coming in April and having already having a nice cash cushion with low expenses, I wanted to see what semi-FIRE was like. I enrolled in Obama Care and resumed my freelancing. Most of 2022 through the summer of 2023, I worked maybe 400 hours and that was amazing! I spent time with my 4 year old daughter before she started Kindergarten and my wife. We would go to the park, trampoline park, the zoo and other things. I got hooked on Chess too and dived into that which lead to joining the local Chess club and getting some more friends. I also partnered with another company in my industry to create courses and now have 4 out there which helps with passive income. I really enjoy making them even though they're a lot of work.
Over this past summer, we remodeled our kitchen and first floor which took a big chunk of our liquid cash. I felt compelled to earn more so I took some longer contracts and the work is ok and sometimes fun. I work with a great team so it's not too bad. I'm working on additional courses and have plenty more I'd like to do. The courses pay monthly and this past month was my best ever.
Going forward, my plan is to continue freelancing and creating courses. The work pays well, enjoyable, and fulfilling. Having low expenses and pretty much everything I want, I'm not all-in on saving and investing every cent like I used to be. It's more about living my best life with my family and I am.
Cheers,
AK
Hey AK, would you tell us more about the course income? I have a background in instructional design, wondering if I could do something along that line?
Since I work from home and like to collaborate with others, I joined some community Slacks in my industry where folks can chat, collaborate, share knowledge, etc. Having helped others for years and given back in other ways, another person in the industry, who has a well established website and a large following, noticed I was interested in creating courses and approached me. We chatted and came to a revenue sharing arrangement. This was about a year ago in Dec 2022.
The first course took 150 hours and a few months. There was a lot of self-learning with buying a microphone, camera, video editing software and trying different things. The first course released in March 2023 and is my best seller so far. Since then I created 3 other courses and each took about 50 hours each but were shorter. At first, sales were discouraging but I was having fun doing it so I continued and had 4 courses out by the summer. I took the summer off and had lots of fun with the family. My partner started bundling the courses in different ways and promoting it and sales went up significantly last month. I'm unsure if it's sustainable but it has reinvigorated my motivation to make more courses.
Udemy was briefly looked at but their revenue sharing model is complex and last I heard, they only give like 30% to the author on discounted courses. They often significantly discount courses to drive sales. For example, if a course sells for $100, they often discount it by 60-70%. If it sells for $30, you earn $9. With many other competitors on the same platform, it didn't seem like the best approach so I lucked out with finding a partner in my industry. My partner has been amazing to work with and supportive that I hope to work with them for years to come.
Unfortunately, I can't share numbers but the passive income is icing on the cake.
Thanks AK. I have a special area of expertise that I was considering doing a youtube channel or something on, and your course idea sounded like a good alternative to that especially as I have that instuctional design background and have done some college level teaching. Also, while my work is ok with other jobs, etc. I think it best I sheild my name from the public sphere on this just in case and on that score a course offering seemed an interesting angle. Seems that a personal connection was key for you though. One of my offspring is in the podcast sphere (They were recently recognized in public for one!) so when they visit for Christmas, I'll pick their brains about my best bet to monitize my idea.
You're welcome. Hope it works out!
Post by: farmecologist on December 05, 2023, 09:22:46 AM
HOWEVER, I'm really struggling with motivation at work. I've been at my tech megacorp for 30+ years now...and I'm completely burnt out and disinterested. The company has also made some internal changes that I'm not happy with. I'm trying to coast the best I can...but I may not make it until 2025!
Anyone else really struggling with work leading up to 2025?
Post by: Sandi_k on December 05, 2023, 09:52:34 AM
Anyone else really struggling with work leading up to 2025?
Me. Sorta. I really want to be done, as the degradation of DH's back means he is now essentially retired; his work is much more physical, and he cannot manage lifting, standing, etc. without great discomfort any more. We're staring down a second spinal surgery for him. :( So since he's home all day....I don't wanna go to work. ;)
What's keeping me on is reminding me that I spent 12 years with a bully of a boss, and I am now in line for another promotion. And the spreadsheet don't lie. Retiring now vs. retiring at age 60 - when the pension multiplier maxes out - is a difference of $30k per year. Over a 30 year retirement, that's $1M+, given the COLA.
I am not so FI that I can walk away from $1M. Yet.
Every month is a victory, as the gap narrows between future pension and current estimates.
To be crass, both of us stand to inherit a goodly sum, so if shenanigans ensue, I can absolutely quit. I just want my belt *and* suspenders.
Post by: Turtle on December 05, 2023, 10:18:18 AM
Anyone else really struggling with work leading up to 2025?
Me. Sorta. I really want to be done, as the degradation of DH's back means he is now essentially retired; his work is much more physical, and he cannot manage lifting, standing, etc. without great discomfort any more. We're staring down a second spinal surgery for him. :( So since he's home all day....I don't wanna go to work. ;)
What's keeping me on is reminding me that I spent 12 years with a bully of a boss, and I am now in line for another promotion. And the spreadsheet don't lie. Retiring now vs. retiring at age 60 - when the pension multiplier maxes out - is a difference of $30k per year. Over a 30 year retirement, that's $1M+, given the COLA.
I am not so FI that I can walk away from $1M. Yet.
Every month is a victory, as the gap narrows between future pension and current estimates.
To be crass, both of us stand to inherit a goodly sum, so if shenanigans ensue, I can absolutely quit. I just want my belt *and* suspenders.
An extra 30K per year is definitely worth working another couple years for.
I'm in a similar situation but more tied to optimizing benefits at this point than anything else.
Post by: SotI on December 05, 2023, 08:51:52 PM
But yes, it's turning into a slog. Based on my level of expertise, I get the high visibility/board level projects - so slacking will be difficult, at least in 2024.
Post by: SaucyAussie on December 06, 2023, 05:16:34 AM
I could really walk away at any time. I have told my boss I would happily accept a payout, but I'm not that lucky!
Post by: Sandi_k on December 06, 2023, 02:13:18 PM
Some days it feels like 2025 is so far away and I am not going to make it. But the spreadsheets don't lie, another 18 months of work will make a huge difference.
I could really walk away at any time. I have told my boss I would happily accept a payout, but I'm not that lucky!
I cannot tell my boss. He is in a 5 year contract; this month ends 2.5 years. So if I leave in Sept/October 2025, it leaves him without a critical member of his leadership team. And I have a strong feeling he does NOT plan to renew for a second contract, which means he may tender his resignation in April or May of 2025, to allow the organization a year to search for a replacement, nationally.
Then the question is - will I need to stay in order to recruit a new leader for our unit? That's gonna be a VERY tough call, since I am the senior member of the leadership team, both in terms of pay grade, and in terms of seniority of service time....
Post by: farmecologist on December 06, 2023, 04:13:06 PM
Some days it feels like 2025 is so far away and I am not going to make it. But the spreadsheets don't lie, another 18 months of work will make a huge difference.
I could really walk away at any time. I have told my boss I would happily accept a payout, but I'm not that lucky!
I cannot tell my boss. He is in a 5 year contract; this month ends 2.5 years. So if I leave in Sept/October 2025, it leaves him without a critical member of his leadership team. And I have a strong feeling he does NOT plan to renew for a second contract, which means he may tender his resignation in April or May of 2025, to allow the organization a year to search for a replacement, nationally.
Then the question is - will I need to stay in order to recruit a new leader for our unit? That's gonna be a VERY tough call, since I am the senior member of the leadership team, both in terms of pay grade, and in terms of seniority of service time....
Do you care? Frankly, I'm going to walk away from my team when the time comes and let them figure it out.
Post by: Sandi_k on December 06, 2023, 06:40:19 PM
Some days it feels like 2025 is so far away and I am not going to make it. But the spreadsheets don't lie, another 18 months of work will make a huge difference.
I could really walk away at any time. I have told my boss I would happily accept a payout, but I'm not that lucky!
I cannot tell my boss. He is in a 5 year contract; this month ends 2.5 years. So if I leave in Sept/October 2025, it leaves him without a critical member of his leadership team. And I have a strong feeling he does NOT plan to renew for a second contract, which means he may tender his resignation in April or May of 2025, to allow the organization a year to search for a replacement, nationally.
Then the question is - will I need to stay in order to recruit a new leader for our unit? That's gonna be a VERY tough call, since I am the senior member of the leadership team, both in terms of pay grade, and in terms of seniority of service time....
Do you care? Frankly, I'm going to walk away from my team when the time comes and let them figure it out.
I do care. After 30+ years in the larger organization, and 20+ in this particular unit? Yeah, I care. I may make them recall me and pay me, though. :-)
Post by: farmecologist on December 07, 2023, 08:25:19 AM
Some days it feels like 2025 is so far away and I am not going to make it. But the spreadsheets don't lie, another 18 months of work will make a huge difference.
I could really walk away at any time. I have told my boss I would happily accept a payout, but I'm not that lucky!
I cannot tell my boss. He is in a 5 year contract; this month ends 2.5 years. So if I leave in Sept/October 2025, it leaves him without a critical member of his leadership team. And I have a strong feeling he does NOT plan to renew for a second contract, which means he may tender his resignation in April or May of 2025, to allow the organization a year to search for a replacement, nationally.
Then the question is - will I need to stay in order to recruit a new leader for our unit? That's gonna be a VERY tough call, since I am the senior member of the leadership team, both in terms of pay grade, and in terms of seniority of service time....
Do you care? Frankly, I'm going to walk away from my team when the time comes and let them figure it out.
I do care. After 30+ years in the larger organization, and 20+ in this particular unit? Yeah, I care. I may make them recall me and pay me, though. :-)
Interesting...I've been at my megacorp 30+ years...and absolutely don't care at all...haha.
Post by: SaucyAussie on December 14, 2023, 05:53:32 AM
TBH, I may be a little on the thin side so I will try to add some padding over the next 12 months while also trying to get my head around what post-FIRE life is going to actually look like!
Post by: Sandi_k on December 14, 2023, 09:16:59 AM
Monday was 1.75 years, for an anticipated retirement date of 9/11/2025. :D
Post by: weebs on December 14, 2023, 01:47:17 PM
Yesterday's market tickle pushed me over my FI number - now it's just a matter of running out the clock until Jan 1, 2025.
TBH, I may be a little on the thin side so I will try to add some padding over the next 12 months while also trying to get my head around what post-FIRE life is going to actually look like!
Congrats. That same tickle bumped our LNW past what I would have considered a stretch goal when I first joined MMM. My current goal is to hang on until at least 09/01/2025 due to how the math works out for my pension, but my motivation is lacking. Like you, I'm also trying to wrap my head around post-FIRE life. DW will probably continue working for a couple years if I punch out in 2025, so I need to keep myself busy and out of her hair. :-)
Post by: farmecologist on December 14, 2023, 03:24:05 PM
Yesterday's market tickle pushed me over my FI number - now it's just a matter of running out the clock until Jan 1, 2025.
TBH, I may be a little on the thin side so I will try to add some padding over the next 12 months while also trying to get my head around what post-FIRE life is going to actually look like!
Congrats. That same tickle bumped our LNW past what I would have considered a stretch goal when I first joined MMM. My current goal is to hang on until at least 09/01/2025 due to how the math works out for my pension, but my motivation is lacking. Like you, I'm also trying to wrap my head around post-FIRE life. DW will probably continue working for a couple years if I punch out in 2025, so I need to keep myself busy and out of her hair. :-)
Haha are we twins? I feel exactly the same way.
I'm trying to hang on until 2025 as well....but yeah...motivation is lacking. Plus, my megacorp is trying to push a "high performance culture" lately....which doesn't exactly jive with my current mindset. And to be frank,my company has no "culture" whatsoever..haha. I fully expect I may be let go at some point...but hopefully I can stick it out until 2025. Time will tell.
And yeah...the recent market gains are not helping on the work motivation front! In fact, we are just about at "and beyond" territory, which amazes me. I never in a million years thought we would ever be in the position we are at right now!
Post by: weebs on December 15, 2023, 05:51:47 AM
Haha are we twins? I feel exactly the same way.
I'm trying to hang on until 2025 as well....but yeah...motivation is lacking. Plus, my megacorp is trying to push a "high performance culture" lately....which doesn't exactly jive with my current mindset. And to be frank,my company has no "culture" whatsoever..haha. I fully expect I may be let go at some point...but hopefully I can stick it out until 2025. Time will tell.
And yeah...the recent market gains are not helping on the work motivation front! In fact, we are just about at "and beyond" territory, which amazes me. I never in a million years thought we would ever be in the position we are at right now!
"high performance culture" is corporate speak for "work you to death". It's right up there with "right sizing" and "synchronize our synergies". You have FU money at this point, so let 'em come. A layoff package would be nice sendoff into retirement. :-)
Post by: TempusFugit on December 23, 2023, 10:04:27 AM
I was pretty close to my target number at the end of 2021, but we all know how that went. Even with my numbers having recovered and now hit all time highs (thanks, Santa Claus rally!) I’m not quiiiiiiite at the (new) target number. Funny how that target moves as you get closer, isn’t it?
Until now, I’ve been using a simple spreadsheet approach to my planning along with FIREcalc type online tools for basic sanity testing. Recently I started plugging all my numbers into a more full-featured tool, NewRetirement, which lets me play with different spending patterns and include irregular expenses like big vacations, or home renovations. So far the results are looking pretty good and aligning with my projections. I’m going to talk with some financial planners to get a second set of eyes on things over the next few months just to hopefully give me even more confidence.
Of course, even if all the math and all the tools tell me that I’m good to go, I will definitely have to work on my mental state. I think I’d really love to be able to work occasional small projects, like a few hours a week a few months a year. What I’m tired of is the constant obligations and lack of control over my time. Having to plan around a regular full time job is just not for me anymore. But I am worried that without *some* structure and engagement I might struggle with lack of purpose, lack of motivation. What I need is a good experiment, an extended sabbatical so I can see how I adjust. I may try to negotiate such a thing once I’ve hit the financial targets.
Post by: weebs on December 24, 2023, 06:49:39 AM
Howdy, folks. I think I’m going to hop over here to the 2025 cohort. I was in the 2022 group but funny thing, the markets sucked and the world seemed to be swirling into some bad places so I did not retire in 2022.
I was pretty close to my target number at the end of 2021, but we all know how that went. Even with my numbers having recovered and now hit all time highs (thanks, Santa Claus rally!) I’m not quiiiiiiite at the (new) target number. Funny how that target moves as you get closer, isn’t it?
Until now, I’ve been using a simple spreadsheet approach to my planning along with FIREcalc type online tools for basic sanity testing. Recently I started plugging all my numbers into a more full-featured tool, NewRetirement, which lets me play with different spending patterns and include irregular expenses like big vacations, or home renovations. So far the results are looking pretty good and aligning with my projections. I’m going to talk with some financial planners to get a second set of eyes on things over the next few months just to hopefully give me even more confidence.
Of course, even if all the math and all the tools tell me that I’m good to go, I will definitely have to work on my mental state. I think I’d really love to be able to work occasional small projects, like a few hours a week a few months a year. What I’m tired of is the constant obligations and lack of control over my time. Having to plan around a regular full time job is just not for me anymore. But I am worried that without *some* structure and engagement I might struggle with lack of purpose, lack of motivation. What I need is a good experiment, an extended sabbatical so I can see how I adjust. I may try to negotiate such a thing once I’ve hit the financial targets.
Welcome! It's cool to see some of the same folks from the 'race' threads in this cohort (yourself, farmecologist). FWIW, I spoke with an advisor last year for the same reason. The conversation wasn't ground breaking, but it was nice to get another pair of eyes on our numbers and verify that I wasn't missing anything. Good luck with the sabbatical and it will be interesting to hear how (if at all) you structure the time.
Post by: farmecologist on December 29, 2023, 08:44:58 AM
Haha are we twins? I feel exactly the same way.
I'm trying to hang on until 2025 as well....but yeah...motivation is lacking. Plus, my megacorp is trying to push a "high performance culture" lately....which doesn't exactly jive with my current mindset. And to be frank,my company has no "culture" whatsoever..haha. I fully expect I may be let go at some point...but hopefully I can stick it out until 2025. Time will tell.
And yeah...the recent market gains are not helping on the work motivation front! In fact, we are just about at "and beyond" territory, which amazes me. I never in a million years thought we would ever be in the position we are at right now!
"high performance culture" is corporate speak for "work you to death". It's right up there with "right sizing" and "synchronize our synergies". You have FU money at this point, so let 'em come. A layoff package would be nice sendoff into retirement. :-)
Haha yep..."let 'em come" is is my motto at this point. However, the company has been getting even more stingy with letting people go...resorting to some slimy tactics involving putting folks on "performance improvement plans" to get around having to pay severance. This makes me dislike upper management ( and my job ) even more. Oh well...it is what it is.
Post by: weebs on December 29, 2023, 10:00:25 AM
However, the company has been getting even more stingy with letting people go...resorting to some slimy tactics involving putting folks on "performance improvement plans" to get around having to pay severance. This makes me dislike upper management ( and my job ) even more. Oh well...it is what it is.
That's dirty pool...and completely expected. One of my former employers was notorious for doing that (among other things). A PIP is the kiss of death and starts the clock ticking.
Post by: farmecologist on December 29, 2023, 01:42:29 PM
However, the company has been getting even more stingy with letting people go...resorting to some slimy tactics involving putting folks on "performance improvement plans" to get around having to pay severance. This makes me dislike upper management ( and my job ) even more. Oh well...it is what it is.
That's dirty pool...and completely expected. One of my former employers was notorious for doing that (among other things). A PIP is the kiss of death and starts the clock ticking.
Yes it is...very dirty pool. There are rumors the company MAY also be working with "McKinsey & Company", a notoriously scummy operation, in a bid to reduce headcount in "expensive" geographies.
Check out this video about McKinsey and prepare to be utterly disgusted : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AiOUojVd6xQ
I fully expect a PIP at some point given my current lack of motivation and unwillingness to work my ass off for the company anymore, combined with the fact the company is trying to squeeze more and more out of reduced staff. I just don't have it in me anymore after a long career! If it happens, I'll likely tell them to go pound sand.
Post by: weebs on December 30, 2023, 07:52:09 AM
Check out this video about McKinsey and prepare to be utterly disgusted : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AiOUojVd6xQ
That was fantastic. John Oliver is a master of combining outrage with humor. I try not to be too cynical, but that behavior is exactly what I expect from large companies, especially if the company is publicly held. I learned very early in my career that, despite appearances to the contrary, employers are not your friend. I've worked as contractor and a FTE, but treat every gig like a contract by managing the relationship as a partnership between two businesses that could be dissolved at any time by either side.
Post by: SaucyAussie on January 02, 2024, 06:57:29 AM
Is it too early to set a specific date?
Post by: farmecologist on January 02, 2024, 08:19:03 AM
Check out this video about McKinsey and prepare to be utterly disgusted : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AiOUojVd6xQ
That was fantastic. John Oliver is a master of combining outrage with humor. I try not to be too cynical, but that behavior is exactly what I expect from large companies, especially if the company is publicly held. I learned very early in my career that, despite appearances to the contrary, employers are not your friend. I've worked as contractor and a FTE, but treat every gig like a contract by managing the relationship as a partnership between two businesses that could be dissolved at any time by either side.
Oh trust me...I agree. Megacorps are nobody's friend ( except shareholders ). And honestly...usually only LARGE shareholders get any say in the matter.
My megacorp has never treated employees well...never. From layoffs every...single...year, benefit cuts, massive offshoring ( that usually ends up failing ), toxic upper management, etc...it has never been good. Honestly, I'm not sure how I ever made it 30+ years...other than I have always really liked all of my immediate teams.
Post by: Turtle on January 02, 2024, 09:50:09 AM
Check out this video about McKinsey and prepare to be utterly disgusted : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AiOUojVd6xQ
That was fantastic. John Oliver is a master of combining outrage with humor. I try not to be too cynical, but that behavior is exactly what I expect from large companies, especially if the company is publicly held. I learned very early in my career that, despite appearances to the contrary, employers are not your friend. I've worked as contractor and a FTE, but treat every gig like a contract by managing the relationship as a partnership between two businesses that could be dissolved at any time by either side.
Oh trust me...I agree. Megacorps are nobody's friend ( except shareholders ). And honestly...usually only LARGE shareholders get any say in the matter.
My megacorp has never treated employees well...never. From layoffs every...single...year, benefit cuts, massive offshoring ( that usually ends up failing ), toxic upper management, etc...it has never been good. Honestly, I'm not sure how I ever made it 30+ years...other than I have always really liked all of my immediate teams.
Totally agree.
Post by: Fomerly known as something on January 02, 2024, 01:53:53 PM
Actually, in theory I have 3, any day if I can figure out a health issue since I now have enough leave (between Sick, Annual and Leave Without Pay) to never have to go into the office again and I would still be eligible for that pension date.
Post by: SaucyAussie on January 02, 2024, 04:49:14 PM
Post by: farmecologist on January 03, 2024, 07:56:39 AM
I have a few possible dates also. Jan 1, rule of 55 kicks in. But it sure would be nice to fill up that 10-12% tax bucket, that gets me into May. And if I make it that far, I might as well hang around until June 31. Hard to see a reason to go beyond that, but we'll see what happens!
I'm shooting for 55 as well...the "rule of 55" is a nice little loophole! Retire at "55 in '25" is my motto lately!
Post by: Sandi_k on January 03, 2024, 11:06:00 AM
I am in line for a promotion, and that may make a difference, as well. I have a hard time leaving money on the table. ;)
Post by: farmecologist on January 03, 2024, 11:55:40 AM
My pension multiplier maxes out in September 2025. So some time around then.
I am in line for a promotion, and that may make a difference, as well. I have a hard time leaving money on the table. ;)
I think you are joking about sticking around.
However, don't fall for the "OMY syndrome" trap! Too many do...and regret it.
Post by: Sandi_k on January 03, 2024, 06:35:15 PM
My pension multiplier maxes out in September 2025. So some time around then.
I am in line for a promotion, and that may make a difference, as well. I have a hard time leaving money on the table. ;)
I think you are joking about sticking around.
However, don't fall for the "OMY syndrome" trap! Too many do...and regret it.
I'm not joking. My pension uses "High Three" salary x multiplier x Years of Service. A promotion will help the High Three number. But probably not a lot, in terms of 22 months rather than 24 months at that higher number.
I will be done by the end of 2025, pretty much no matter what. I want my paid-out "vacation leave mondo overwithholding" refunded to me quickly, instead of waiting for 12-15 months.
Post by: Silrossi46 on January 03, 2024, 06:39:20 PM
My pension multiplier maxes out in September 2025. So some time around then.
I am in line for a promotion, and that may make a difference, as well. I have a hard time leaving money on the table. ;)
I think you are joking about sticking around.
However, don't fall for the "OMY syndrome" trap! Too many do...and regret it.
I'm not joking. My pension uses "High Three" salary x multiplier x Years of Service. A promotion will help the High Three number. But probably not a lot, in terms of 22 months rather than 24 months at that higher number.
I will be done by the end of 2025, pretty much no matter what. I want my paid-out "vacation leave mondo overwithholding" refunded to me quickly, instead of waiting for 12-15 months.
My pension works the same way average high three. I know I will be offered a promotion and more money to stay past 2025. The problem is the time it takes to fully marinate will not be worth the extra payout to me. Just my 2 cents.
Post by: SaucyAussie on January 04, 2024, 07:28:44 AM
Stay the course! 🤠
Post by: jimmyshutter on January 04, 2024, 08:47:46 AM
My pension multiplier maxes out in September 2025. So some time around then.
I am in line for a promotion, and that may make a difference, as well. I have a hard time leaving money on the table. ;)
I think you are joking about sticking around.
However, don't fall for the "OMY syndrome" trap! Too many do...and regret it.
I'm not joking. My pension uses "High Three" salary x multiplier x Years of Service. A promotion will help the High Three number. But probably not a lot, in terms of 22 months rather than 24 months at that higher number.
I will be done by the end of 2025, pretty much no matter what. I want my paid-out "vacation leave mondo overwithholding" refunded to me quickly, instead of waiting for 12-15 months.
My pension works the same way average high three. I know I will be offered a promotion and more money to stay past 2025. The problem is the time it takes to fully marinate will not be worth the extra payout to me. Just my 2 cents.
I stopped factoring in potential pension increases. Conservatively estimating a 5% return on $1M would equal $50k/year return....but...if I work one more year I can an extra $1k/year? Nah.....For me it's such an insignificant increase it's not worth thinking about.
Post by: Sandi_k on January 04, 2024, 04:49:17 PM
My pension multiplier maxes out in September 2025. So some time around then.
I am in line for a promotion, and that may make a difference, as well. I have a hard time leaving money on the table. ;)
I think you are joking about sticking around.
However, don't fall for the "OMY syndrome" trap! Too many do...and regret it.
I'm not joking. My pension uses "High Three" salary x multiplier x Years of Service. A promotion will help the High Three number. But probably not a lot, in terms of 22 months rather than 24 months at that higher number.
I will be done by the end of 2025, pretty much no matter what. I want my paid-out "vacation leave mondo overwithholding" refunded to me quickly, instead of waiting for 12-15 months.
My pension works the same way average high three. I know I will be offered a promotion and more money to stay past 2025. The problem is the time it takes to fully marinate will not be worth the extra payout to me. Just my 2 cents.
I stopped factoring in potential pension increases. Conservatively estimating a 5% return on $1M would equal $50k/year return....but...if I work one more year I can an extra $1k/year? Nah.....For me it's such an insignificant increase it's not worth thinking about.
I'm not that bad at math.
And I'm not talking about one more year; I'm talking about 3-4 months, past Sept. 2025. The multiplier on my pension is turbo-charged; the difference between retiring today vs. retiring in 20 months is about $24k per year.
Post by: oneday on January 07, 2024, 10:34:46 PM
2025 just one year away! 🎉🎉🎉
Is it too early to set a specific date?
I don't think so :) My date is 12/31/2025. It has become a long shot if I can accumulate enough by then. Originally I was part of a couple, but divorced in 2018. However, I don't want to give up on the original date!
PS - @Sandi_k from what I can tell, your math is outstanding :)
Post by: Sandi_k on January 08, 2024, 12:27:45 AM
2025 just one year away! 🎉🎉🎉
Is it too early to set a specific date?
I don't think so :) My date is 12/31/2025. It has become a long shot if I can accumulate enough by then. Originally I was part of a couple, but divorced in 2018. However, I don't want to give up on the original date!
PS - @Sandi_k from what I can tell, your math is outstanding :)
I am rooting for you!
Post by: mistymoney on January 08, 2024, 09:35:49 AM
2025 just one year away! 🎉🎉🎉
Is it too early to set a specific date?
I don't think so :) My date is 12/31/2025. It has become a long shot if I can accumulate enough by then. Originally I was part of a couple, but divorced in 2018. However, I don't want to give up on the original date!
Hoping you make it work!
I am counting on a positive market myself to do so.
Post by: OurTown on January 09, 2024, 09:16:37 AM
Post by: mistymoney on January 09, 2024, 10:08:48 AM
I too am thinking about a date. Optimistic estimate: March 31 or June 30 (EOQ). Pessimistic estimate: OMY. If I get into 3rd or 4th quarter I will likely plow through the rest of the year so I can FIRE into a lower tax bracket the following year & so I can collect end of year bonus.
That is a consideration! But every working day brings a small monetary bonus - some larger, some smaller! like - just regular pay, or bonus, pension, ect. I guess even social security is getting a bit plumper for each additional day of labor!
Depending on market performance between now and mid-ish 2025, I will need to evaluate how vital those little extras are for my overall plan.
In general, I think picking a date will help me focus and plan, so I am going to put some thought into that maybe over the next weekend. This is the first full week back at work since having a really long and lovely year end holiday break. Struggle to get back into the harness without a lot of negativity, lol!
On a hilarious note! this got me to thinking about what I am absolutely gaining on a per workday basis. 4% of my inputted daily contributions result in an additional $6.50 to my annual spend! Could I get a fancy coffee for that at starbucks? Not sure these days! But I will think throughout today on all the different ways I might spend that in my future retirement years :).
Post by: grantmeaname on January 09, 2024, 10:17:17 AM
Post by: EngineerYogi on January 09, 2024, 09:17:57 PM
Late 2025 is my and Mr. Yogi's target retirement. He will wrap up 20 years in the military and start collecting his pension (barring any unforeseen circumstances.) He'll be 40 and I'll be 36. It's possible I will continue to work, but we will see.
We are both high earners and getting serious with our savings this year for the first time. We still have a lot of work to do on lowering our expenses, but most of our spending is discretionary and if we buckled down we could do much better. This year I started using YNAB so I have a good handle on where our money is going. We are not mustachian by nature so this is a journey and a process for us.
Long time no post, wake up call hit last month, we let spending balloon the last three years but still had some baseline savings automated (maxing tax advantaged accounts and a small additional amount). Mr Yogi will retire from the military in 2025, no questions there. We have $1 mil in our investment portfolio today and if we stick to budget ($175k spend, yes I know, I don't belong on this forum with that spend) we should be able to save ~$125k this year and next year (nearly double our current automated savings). Mr Yogi's pension will pay ~$50k/yr (taxes still a consideration), we're considering geoarbitrage as a cost cutting solution to retire us both in 2025.
Oh, our confounding variable: since my post in 2016 our family has doubled to four, we have a 6 and 3 year old. Geoarbitrage would include homeschooling them.
So I'm back, following, and working on this 2025 goal!
Post by: jade on January 19, 2024, 10:32:45 AM
Post by: never give up on January 20, 2024, 06:12:52 AM
Post by: jade on January 22, 2024, 03:29:48 AM
That’s brilliant jade, very well done. Excited for you!
Ooh.. nice to see you hear NGU! thank you so much.
Post by: jade on January 22, 2024, 03:30:30 AM
Post by: never give up on January 22, 2024, 03:42:03 AM
Post by: jade on January 22, 2024, 08:51:04 AM
Post by: jimmyshutter on January 22, 2024, 09:16:04 AM
So instead I've been gifting my son money. It's really rewarding because he's using the money to fund his Roth IRA and high interest savings account.
I also have enough AL to only work weekends (which i prefer anyway) until 2025 so I'll be working "part-time" for at least this year with full-time pay. Hopefully by the time I've had enough with working I can comfortably buy my son a small starter home.
So my new plan is to tentatively join the 2025 cohort BUT I could still retire this year OR maybe I'll work until 2026 and beyond? What a tough decision to have; life is good. :)
Post by: jade on January 23, 2024, 12:10:15 AM
Post by: Turtle on January 25, 2024, 08:14:00 AM
I too am thinking about a date. Optimistic estimate: March 31 or June 30 (EOQ). Pessimistic estimate: OMY. If I get into 3rd or 4th quarter I will likely plow through the rest of the year so I can FIRE into a lower tax bracket the following year & so I can collect end of year bonus.
Because of the way bonuses are structured at my company, this will be my case as well. 2025 will be my last full year of work, and early 2026 will be my exit.
Post by: swashbucklinstache on January 25, 2024, 10:25:10 AM
2023 EOY net worth is 1253k2022 wraps at 928k. Wait, we're going the wrong way!2021 closed at 957k. My original WAG FIRE number in 2016 was 900k, which is 1040k in 2021 dollars. I'm 32 and figuring out my long term desired spend & seeing how a new potentially long term romantic partnership plays out. So, still targeting 2025. Assuming average returns and regular contributions I would land at 1.7 million in today's dollars, 55k at 3.25% WR. I'm 100% stocks so absent a big market crash it's all about long term spend at this point, as I'm at 38x trailing 3 year average expenses.Like many, I'm fortunate to say that 2020 was good to my assets. I closed the year at 711k net worth. That's good for 28x my trailing three years of expenses. I'm pushing on to 1mm mostly to account for desired lifestyle changes (travel, big city living) + flexibility (family) in retirement. But, that could be as soon as 1.4 years from now with 6.7% returns and 110-120 annual contributions. We'll see what mr market has to say, but decent chance I check out ahead of 2025 at this point. If I do see 7 figures with such high valuations I might turn to one of several "step towards FIRE" plans rather than leap outright. 2025 projects at 1.5mm if nothing changes and averages hold, so probably wouldn't hang around that long barring big lifestyle changes.Yah chief, sign me up. Likely as FI rather than FIRE, with a few extra years to pad on after, but so much could change from now to then. Aged 27, 8.5x current expense saved, no house, 65% or so savings rate give or take. Single, readiness-to-mingle currently TBD
Well, there was my original post in 12/2016! In the intervening 9 months I've moved from 8.5x current expenses to 10.96x and upped my savings rate a few percentage points! I'm still an immature smartass though :).
My life is so far from where it'll be in 2025 that it's hard to say how i'm doing, but things are headed in the right direction. I could be in the 650k-900k range if things go roughly how they've gone so far. The high end of that is looking damn near the end of things for full-time worker bee me if I'm still single and childless at that time, or at least time to ask for a stupid amount of money not to go a-wanderin'.
Hope everyone else is on track, too.
Update, maybe I'll keep an annually running tab in this thread if people don't mind :).
stache as multiple of 3 year trailing current expenses
12/2016: 8.5x
09/2017: 10.96x
12/2017: 11.6x - would be higher but have had an expensive year
2018 EOY update:
2016: 8.5x
09/2017: 10.96x
2017: 11.6x
2018: 13.65x
I'm aiming for ~45x with these numbers for FIRE (health insurance, likely lifestyle changes etc.).
How is everyone else doing as we start 2019?
2019 EOY update:
2016: 8.5x
09/2017: 10.96x
2017: 11.6x
2018: 13.65x
2019: 16.99x (with a high expense year! trailing 3 years is more like 19.26x)
Getting there! Closing in on half a million with a minimum FI goal of 1 million and saving 100-115 a year right now means I might be as little as ~3 years out with just a little above average returns or some raises.
How is everyone else?
2022 EOY update of stache divided by expenses:
2016: 8.5x
2017: 11.6x
2018: 13.65x
2019: 16.99x
2020: 29.63x
2021: 42.25x
2022: 29.23x
Covid expenses mess with those numbers and I'm aiming for about 66x current numbers to reflect inflated RE expenses so we're still not close. At 930k and hoping for 2 million while saving 125k a year. So 2025 is looking like quite an optimistic goal right now! With average returns I might see 1.7 real by the end of that year. OMY beckons...
How is it looking for others?
Multiple of trailing 3 year expenses. Which doesn't mean much as my RE expenses will be higher.
2016: 8.5x
2017: 11.6x
2018: 13.65x
2019: 16.99x
2020: 29.63x
2021: 42.25x
2022: 29.23x
2023: 37.69x
I'm aiming for about 66x current numbers to reflect inflated RE expenses so we're still not close. Hoping for 2 million while saving 130k a year. So 2025 is looking like quite an optimistic goal right now! We're at 3 years from today assuming average returns so might miss 2025 by a year.
Post by: grantmeaname on January 25, 2024, 11:21:11 AM
Post by: swashbucklinstache on January 25, 2024, 11:41:42 AM
That's... quite conservative. Have you run the math on what your proposed new lifestyle would cost - like getting a concrete estimate for rent in the big city, or doing a couple international trips and seeing what amount of travel spend you want in your dream FIRE life? Or is it just back-of-the-envelope estimates?The big one is those numbers are just for me but the past few years have brought in player 2 and she's behind plus spends more! That's not (yet) a permanent thing. I'm unlikely to quit while she's working + our combined multiple is more reasonable. I'm also currently spending just 26-32k a year and I'm more comfortable closer to median household income. I'll also admit to house dreaming =)
I should add that to quote for next year's update =)
Post by: grantmeaname on January 25, 2024, 12:11:55 PM
Post by: evanc on January 25, 2024, 01:27:43 PM
Greetings! Fellow 2025er. I found MMM in 2016 and got the face punch I was searching for. Fortunately, DW was on board once I shared the “shockingly simple math” post. We realized for the first time that we could actually do this (RE). Up to that point, basically everything I read said it was impossible. Once we made a plan, we set our sights on 2025 and haven’t looked back since. Like some of you, we anticipate higher expenses post retirement due to a combination of increased healthcare costs, additional travel, and inflation. Here’s how we have progressed thus far with current levels of spending in parentheses for comparison purposes.
T-8 years: 5.77x (7.21)
-7: 7.13 (8.92)
-6: 9.06 (11.33)
-5: 10.52 (13.14)
and project the following:
-4: 12.85 (16.07)
-3: 15.65 (19.56)
-2: 18.64 (23.3)
-1: 21.83 (27.29)
FIRE: 26x (32.5)
There is some room, but the biggest added expense is healthcare on ACA or whatever is available at that point. Cautiously optimistic that we can make it happen in 2025. As of now, right on track. I will be 46 and DW a few years older.
As of today, 15.15x (18.93). Still projecting 2025 FIRE, but unofficially hopeful it could be sooner.
Update as of 1/1/22: 20.2x (25.3)
Mathematically, DW and I are FI with current expenses (seems weird even saying that, as this is the first time I've seen it on paper). However, still both working to achieve fat fire by 2025.
As of 1/1/23: Bear market has us at 18.78x (23.48). However, high savings rate has us on track for mid-late 2025 retirement nonetheless. Time to buy more stocks on discount!
Update 8/25/23: Riding the recent wave, back up. All time high of 22.91x (28.64). Oh, so close!
As of 1/1/24: 25.72x (32.15), so technically though barely crossing the threshold of FI, as defined by the 4% rule. Planning to push through OMY for some breathing room (and also due to some newly anticipated increase in housing costs with relocation to a HCOL area).
The temptation to move to 2024 cohort is real!
Post by: swashbucklinstache on January 25, 2024, 02:00:16 PM
so you're at like 15x the median HH income, 60% of the way to 25x, or halfway to 3.25% SWR?Yeah, that's probably a better way to frame it while the future gets figured out.
Post by: afuera on January 25, 2024, 02:45:14 PM
There's no way I'm going to give up $25-50K of free tax-deferred money so I guess I am officially out of this cohort.
Post by: evanc on January 25, 2024, 02:55:32 PM
I just realized that my new 401K doesn't fully vest until 2026 :(.
There's no way I'm going to give up $25-50K of free tax-deferred money so I guess I am officially out of this cohort.
Bummer. To push back a little, we always leave money on the table (sometimes quite substantial amounts) by not continuing to work OMY… Until 2027 or 2028. What is $25k in the scope of your overall stash? Is $25k worth an entire year of your time?
Post by: jimmyshutter on January 25, 2024, 03:31:09 PM
I just realized that my new 401K doesn't fully vest until 2026 :(.
There's no way I'm going to give up $25-50K of free tax-deferred money so I guess I am officially out of this cohort.
Bummer. To push back a little, we always leave money on the table (sometimes quite substantial amounts) by not continuing to work OMY… Until 2027 or 2028. What is $25k in the scope of your overall stash? Is $25k worth an entire year of your time?
When you mentioned "we always leave money on the table" I initially assumed you meant we almost always die with unspent cash. I suppose that's also true, at least for those who are financially responsible.
Post by: Turtle on January 25, 2024, 04:01:32 PM
I just realized that my new 401K doesn't fully vest until 2026 :(.
There's no way I'm going to give up $25-50K of free tax-deferred money so I guess I am officially out of this cohort.
Hopefully earlier in 2026 rather than later. That's a sizeable enough amount of money and a short enough amount of time that I can see why it would be tempting to stay just a few more months.
Post by: frugalecon on January 25, 2024, 06:06:39 PM
And none too soon. Just learned of another friend who died, at what I consider the young age of 66. She had been retired for about 5 years, so she got to enjoy some time of freedom, until she was diagnosed with cancer. It is sobering. If there are things you want to do, and you can afford to do them, don’t put them off for a tomorrow that might never come. At least that is the conclusion that I draw.
Post by: mistymoney on January 25, 2024, 07:22:36 PM
I just realized that my new 401K doesn't fully vest until 2026 :(.
There's no way I'm going to give up $25-50K of free tax-deferred money so I guess I am officially out of this cohort.
Hopefully earlier in 2026 rather than later. That's a sizeable enough amount of money and a short enough amount of time that I can see why it would be tempting to stay just a few more months.
could be 2/3 months.....or 18+ months....@afuera, how much time we talking about?
Post by: afuera on January 26, 2024, 09:23:18 AM
I also have a fairly big ARM mortgage that I need to refinance before 2027 so there is more than one factor pushing me to OMY.
Post by: mistymoney on January 26, 2024, 10:35:15 AM
It goes from 0% vested to 100% vested in September 2026. It was not clear from the plan documents and honestly, I forgot to look into when I started the job so only just recently thought to call my 401K provider and check. My company match is 10% plus a yearly variable bonus so its definitely a lot of money to leave on the table between 4 years of contributions and growth.
I also have a fairly big ARM mortgage that I need to refinance before 2027 so there is more than one factor pushing me to OMY.
That is a couple of thing to consider heavily, so makes sense. Good luck in the 2026 cohort!
Post by: Louise on February 09, 2024, 07:39:52 AM
Oh, our confounding variable: since my post in 2016 our family has doubled to four, we have a 6 and 3 year old. Geoarbitrage would include homeschooling them.
So I'm back, following, and working on this 2025 goal!
I always thought this would be a wonderful way to raise children. I knew someone who was homeschooled on a sailboat.
Post by: Louise on February 09, 2024, 07:45:25 AM
We still have a child at home for a couple more years and I've started thinking about moves we should make this year before we have to worry about things like ACA, FAFSA, etc.
Post by: marblejane on February 12, 2024, 10:19:09 PM
Post by: jade on February 13, 2024, 12:40:28 AM
Timing is coming into view. Given the leave I plan to take this year, and what I will earn, the plan is to have 1/31/25 be my last day in the office, and then take about a month and a half of leave to finish things out. Very close to the “one year to go” mark.
And none too soon. Just learned of another friend who died, at what I consider the young age of 66. She had been retired for about 5 years, so she got to enjoy some time of freedom, until she was diagnosed with cancer. It is sobering. If there are things you want to do, and you can afford to do them, don’t put them off for a tomorrow that might never come. At least that is the conclusion that I draw.
Good conclusion IMO. I too had a friend that died at 62 but fortunately had retired at 50 so had that time but yes, we don't know what's round the corner. I'm just over a year to go too frugalecon .. I'll still be working a few hours a week after that but the bulk of my work life will be done. It's exciting isn't it?!
Post by: OurTown on February 16, 2024, 09:33:25 AM
Post by: asauer on February 21, 2024, 07:29:58 AM
Post by: SaucyAussie on February 21, 2024, 08:50:56 AM
But a lot of variables - my twins start college next year and I plan to sell my house and move in with my partner. Depending on how that goes, the June 30 date could change.
Post by: weebs on February 21, 2024, 05:31:03 PM
I will have about 5 years left on the mortgage (2.5%), I am just going to cash flow that sucker during early FIRE. I have an equal offsetting asset in my after-tax brokerage account, so I could pay the mortgage off in one fell swoop, but will likely just let it ride.
Good plan. A friend of mine is in a similar position with his mortgage and came to the same conclusion. There's no reason to pay off a mortgage at 2.5% with interest rates where they are.
We graduated to the highest "race to" thread based on LNW in Q4 2023 and TNW (including our pensions) has us knocking on the door of "and beyond", but I still don't feel ready. My original goal was to retire late Q3 2025 and I'd like to stick to the plan. My hesitation is rooted in a lack of confidence - sometimes I feel like I've wrapped my head around managing our finances and other times it feels like I have no idea what the hell I'm doing. I've learned a lot from hanging out here over the last couple years, but I'm not ready to pull the plug just yet. I'm all over the place.
Post by: Sandi_k on February 21, 2024, 10:11:12 PM
I think that means a retirement date somewhere in the realm of 9/30/2025, in order to get the full 18 months on the record. I'm not willing to work though Oct, Nov, and December - I want my two months of accrued vacation leave paid out in a lump sum, and then recaptured with our tax filing in Feb. 2026. So I don't want salary *and* vacation payout, as that will surely throw us into the 24% bracket for 2025. And I also selfishly want to have our anniversary, Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays with NO WORK RESIDUE for the first time since 1982.
I have never actually been fired or laid off, and I've been working (or will have been working) for 43 years. I'm done. And ending on a High Note!
Post by: grantmeaname on February 22, 2024, 06:10:42 AM
Post by: TempusFugit on February 27, 2024, 09:09:54 PM
I’d expect that all of us have at a minimum done the work of figuring our our spending needs for retirement. What approach have you taken to come up with those numbers? I’ve been tracking my spending for the past 5 years, pretty much to the dollar (ok to within a few hundred dollars annually) so I know what I’ve been spending and I am adding onto that some estimated healthcare costs and some more travel costs and just a basic bump in general spending over my recent years’. I’m using that number for my spending (exclusive of one-time items) for my first 15 years of retirement.
I’ve started using a package called New Retirement, which seems really powerful. It calculates taxes, which I’ve been afraid might be a blind spot for my plan. I can put in lots of one-time expenses very easily to account for cars, new roofs, new HVAC systems, big vacations, etc. I’ve been modeling some bigger spending early years and then reduced spending for a few years and then a jump back up for higher late in life costs. I think they call that the ‘smile’ spending model.
Tools like cfireSim and FIRECalc have some ability to model these kinds of things but not to the same extent, of course.
Post by: tj on February 27, 2024, 09:16:07 PM
https://engaging-data.com/will-money-last-retire-early
Post by: Sandi_k on February 27, 2024, 11:21:43 PM
I've also signed up with PlanVision, so that I can use eMoney for modeling (the same tool used by Fidelity). PlanVision is $299 for the first year, and then $8 per month thereafter. They keep it cheap because you do ALL of your own data entry, and they force you to estimate retirement expenses. They then spit out an income and expense cashflow plan, which is useful. We're checking in again with them this next month, as we're getting close too, and I'd like some guidance on when DH should apply for his Social Security income.
I also have used a "flat" spreadsheet for ~ 10 years now. Each row is a year, and each column is an income source. Some sources have inflation adjustments, once they're "turned on."
Since each row is a year, I can make adjustments to income in the future, by adding income at the intersection of "my age in 2035" and "Sandi claims Social Security". And then future cells in that column have a 2% inflation adjustment.
It's really helpful - I have IRMAA-snapshot year at age 63 noted (to keep income under the IRMAA tier); I have claiming age of SocSec for DH and for me; I have notes of the year the mortgage is paid off; a big expense year when we do some house upgrades.
It may not be 100% accurate, but it gives me a path to plan for - and so far, it's astonishing at how well the plan has evidenced itself to align with reality. Thus far, at least.
Post by: OurTown on February 29, 2024, 08:14:11 AM
Post by: Sandi_k on February 29, 2024, 08:56:02 AM
If you are a Fidelity customer, Fidelity has a pretty versatile retirement planning tool online.
The Fidelity tool is eMoney, which is the same software used by PlanVision. But with PlanVision, I can ask them to change various (behind the curtain) assumptions.
The Fidelity tool wasn't as "unlocked", so I prefer the PV version, and New Retirement.
Post by: MMMarbleheader on February 29, 2024, 09:47:33 AM
I always thought I would walk away and I do plan on being 4% on our core spending. BUT our travel spending has inflated alot as the kids have gotten older. I am thinking about working 2-3 days a week until I hit 3% and re-evaluate.
Post by: jade on February 29, 2024, 09:52:44 AM
Anyone thinking about working part time post 2025?
I always thought I would walk away and I do plan on being 4% on our core spending. BUT our travel spending has inflated alot as the kids have gotten older. I am thinking about working 2-3 days a week until I hit 3% and re-evaluate.
In theory I can retire next year (a lean retirement but that suits us) but am planning to work two short days a week bc I enjoy my job and abit of extra padding will be helpful. How are you feeling about PT work?
Post by: OurTown on February 29, 2024, 10:13:39 AM
Post by: SaucyAussie on February 29, 2024, 10:27:44 AM
Anyone thinking about working part time post 2025?
I always thought I would walk away and I do plan on being 4% on our core spending. BUT our travel spending has inflated alot as the kids have gotten older. I am thinking about working 2-3 days a week until I hit 3% and re-evaluate.
My partner is a teacher and needs 4 more years until their pension kicks in. So my original plan of travelling the world full time is probably not gonna fly.
I've thought about taking short term contracts, working at the local golf course, substitute teaching, or even driving a school bus.
Post by: swashbucklinstache on February 29, 2024, 11:58:26 AM
Post by: evanc on February 29, 2024, 12:24:24 PM
Anyone thinking about working part time post 2025?
I always thought I would walk away and I do plan on being 4% on our core spending. BUT our travel spending has inflated alot as the kids have gotten older. I am thinking about working 2-3 days a week until I hit 3% and re-evaluate.
Lots of room between 4% and 3%. Have you considered working 1 day per week to get to 3.7% or 3.5%? I'm getting the impression that you are only working to keep the WR <4%, but does it necessarily have to jump all the way down to 3%?
Post by: evanc on February 29, 2024, 12:28:35 PM
And I also selfishly want to have our anniversary, Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays with NO WORK RESIDUE for the first time since 1982.
Work residue – LOL! You may have just coined a term.
Post by: AK on February 29, 2024, 01:19:12 PM
Anyone thinking about working part time post 2025?
I always thought I would walk away and I do plan on being 4% on our core spending. BUT our travel spending has inflated alot as the kids have gotten older. I am thinking about working 2-3 days a week until I hit 3% and re-evaluate.
I started creating courses in my area of expertise to share my knowledge and generate passive income. The passive income is starting to be worthwhile. I'm hoping that it'll cover my expenses and the portfolio is just gravy. Freelancing is also fun too so the plan is to continue doing both while they're enjoyable. Thankfully, our expenses are pretty low and the pay is good enough that I already only have to work part-time.
Post by: Freedomin5 on February 29, 2024, 08:35:55 PM
Anyone thinking about working part time post 2025?
I always thought I would walk away and I do plan on being 4% on our core spending. BUT our travel spending has inflated alot as the kids have gotten older. I am thinking about working 2-3 days a week until I hit 3% and re-evaluate.
Yes, it's part of our SORR mitigation strategy. There's a role I really want to try, and there's a part-time position that pays well, allows me to get my feet wet, while also providing the opportunity to try different things and to potentially grow the business. It should be about 1-2 days per week.
Post by: Sandi_k on February 29, 2024, 09:33:47 PM
And I also selfishly want to have our anniversary, Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays with NO WORK RESIDUE for the first time since 1982.
Work residue – LOL! You may have just coined a term.
Ha! Hadn't thought of that. It just...weighs on me, you know?
Post by: jade on March 01, 2024, 02:50:39 AM
And I also selfishly want to have our anniversary, Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays with NO WORK RESIDUE for the first time since 1982.
Work residue – LOL! You may have just coined a term.
+1!
Post by: MMMarbleheader on March 01, 2024, 06:58:05 AM
Anyone thinking about working part time post 2025?
I always thought I would walk away and I do plan on being 4% on our core spending. BUT our travel spending has inflated alot as the kids have gotten older. I am thinking about working 2-3 days a week until I hit 3% and re-evaluate.
Yes, it's part of our SORR mitigation strategy. There's a role I really want to try, and there's a part-time position that pays well, allows me to get my feet wet, while also providing the opportunity to try different things and to potentially grow the business. It should be about 1-2 days per week.
Nice! Same on my end as I don't own real estate. I am thinking about one of two things:
1) Sticking with that I do but trying it part time. I like it enough, but I am good at it and will make almost $100k and keep benefits if I went to 24 hours a week.
2) Try something new which would probably be closer to $50,000 per year and require me to go on the ACA.
My spending is only about $4k a month so #2 would cover expenses but it would be stepping out of the comfort zone but I kind of welcome that change.
Post by: Fomerly known as something on March 01, 2024, 05:02:34 PM
Post by: frugalecon on March 02, 2024, 05:57:21 AM
If it weren’t for a meaningful bump from going until March 2025, I would be pulling the rip cord now.
Post by: TempusFugit on March 02, 2024, 09:46:54 AM
Anyone thinking about working part time post 2025?
I always thought I would walk away and I do plan on being 4% on our core spending. BUT our travel spending has inflated alot as the kids have gotten older. I am thinking about working 2-3 days a week until I hit 3% and re-evaluate.
I am thinking that I would like to take on small paid projects a couple of times a year. I’ve done lots of freelance development work in the past, though not since COVID. My same contacts have told me they have plenty of things to do. My concern is that I want to find the sweet spot of having a little bit to do, maybe 2-3 projects per year that take 40-50 hours (about a month of 10-12 hour weeks). That’s being pretty picky, I know!
It isn’t primarily about the money, though bringing in 10-20K a year in the first 5 years of my planned retirement would be a nice extra cushion. My current financial plan has me spending about 5% for years 1-5 before my pension starts. It shouldn’t be any problem since my WR will drop almost 2% at year 5, but still having a little income in those early years might be psychologically comforting.
Post by: Freedomin5 on March 02, 2024, 02:38:05 PM
Anyone thinking about working part time post 2025?
I always thought I would walk away and I do plan on being 4% on our core spending. BUT our travel spending has inflated alot as the kids have gotten older. I am thinking about working 2-3 days a week until I hit 3% and re-evaluate.
I am thinking that I would like to take on small paid projects a couple of times a year. I’ve done lots of freelance development work in the past, though not since COVID. My same contacts have told me they have plenty of things to do. My concern is that I want to find the sweet spot of having a little bit to do, maybe 2-3 projects per year that take 40-50 hours (about a month of 10-12 hour weeks). That’s being pretty picky, I know!
It isn’t primarily about the money, though bringing in 10-20K a year in the first 5 years of my planned retirement would be a nice extra cushion. My current financial plan has me spending about 5% for years 1-5 before my pension starts. It shouldn’t be any problem since my WR will drop almost 2% at year 5, but still having a little income in those early years might be psychologically comforting.
You can afford to be picky. :)
Post by: MMMarbleheader on March 04, 2024, 09:40:40 AM
Anyone thinking about working part time post 2025?
I always thought I would walk away and I do plan on being 4% on our core spending. BUT our travel spending has inflated alot as the kids have gotten older. I am thinking about working 2-3 days a week until I hit 3% and re-evaluate.
I am thinking that I would like to take on small paid projects a couple of times a year. I’ve done lots of freelance development work in the past, though not since COVID. My same contacts have told me they have plenty of things to do. My concern is that I want to find the sweet spot of having a little bit to do, maybe 2-3 projects per year that take 40-50 hours (about a month of 10-12 hour weeks). That’s being pretty picky, I know!
It isn’t primarily about the money, though bringing in 10-20K a year in the first 5 years of my planned retirement would be a nice extra cushion. My current financial plan has me spending about 5% for years 1-5 before my pension starts. It shouldn’t be any problem since my WR will drop almost 2% at year 5, but still having a little income in those early years might be psychologically comforting.
This all makes me think of some musing from Cal Newport
https://www.nytimes.com/2024/02/16/opinion/creative-work-productivity-seasonality.html
Post by: TempusFugit on March 04, 2024, 11:34:54 AM
Anyone thinking about working part time post 2025?
I always thought I would walk away and I do plan on being 4% on our core spending. BUT our travel spending has inflated alot as the kids have gotten older. I am thinking about working 2-3 days a week until I hit 3% and re-evaluate.
I am thinking that I would like to take on small paid projects a couple of times a year. I’ve done lots of freelance development work in the past, though not since COVID. My same contacts have told me they have plenty of things to do. My concern is that I want to find the sweet spot of having a little bit to do, maybe 2-3 projects per year that take 40-50 hours (about a month of 10-12 hour weeks). That’s being pretty picky, I know!
It isn’t primarily about the money, though bringing in 10-20K a year in the first 5 years of my planned retirement would be a nice extra cushion. My current financial plan has me spending about 5% for years 1-5 before my pension starts. It shouldn’t be any problem since my WR will drop almost 2% at year 5, but still having a little income in those early years might be psychologically comforting.
This all makes me think of some musing from Cal Newport
https://www.nytimes.com/2024/02/16/opinion/creative-work-productivity-seasonality.html
This rings true to me - the idea that we need seasons off and away from work. I can’t recall who said it, but the concept of a ‘vacation’ can really mean just doing *something* else. I’d love to take a 3-6 month sabbatical as a trial retirement. Who knows, maybe I’d find out that I really miss being part of a large organization working on common goals. Maybe I’ll be bored out of my mind after a couple months.
Over the holidays I had lunch with an old friend who is a university professor (tenured) and he told me how much he enjoys the ‘seasonality’ of his job. Every semester is new, and summer is different from the academic semesters. It seems like a great way to have some variety that most regular corporate types may not get. I’m sure academia has some big down sides, especially for the non-tenured, but in this aspect it sounds lovely.
Post by: MMMarbleheader on March 04, 2024, 11:55:31 AM
Anyone thinking about working part time post 2025?
I always thought I would walk away and I do plan on being 4% on our core spending. BUT our travel spending has inflated alot as the kids have gotten older. I am thinking about working 2-3 days a week until I hit 3% and re-evaluate.
I am thinking that I would like to take on small paid projects a couple of times a year. I’ve done lots of freelance development work in the past, though not since COVID. My same contacts have told me they have plenty of things to do. My concern is that I want to find the sweet spot of having a little bit to do, maybe 2-3 projects per year that take 40-50 hours (about a month of 10-12 hour weeks). That’s being pretty picky, I know!
It isn’t primarily about the money, though bringing in 10-20K a year in the first 5 years of my planned retirement would be a nice extra cushion. My current financial plan has me spending about 5% for years 1-5 before my pension starts. It shouldn’t be any problem since my WR will drop almost 2% at year 5, but still having a little income in those early years might be psychologically comforting.
This all makes me think of some musing from Cal Newport
https://www.nytimes.com/2024/02/16/opinion/creative-work-productivity-seasonality.html
This rings true to me - the idea that we need seasons off and away from work. I can’t recall who said it, but the concept of a ‘vacation’ can really mean just doing *something* else. I’d love to take a 3-6 month sabbatical as a trial retirement. Who knows, maybe I’d find out that I really miss being part of a large organization working on common goals. Maybe I’ll be bored out of my mind after a couple months.
Over the holidays I had lunch with an old friend who is a university professor (tenured) and he told me how much he enjoys the ‘seasonality’ of his job. Every semester is new, and summer is different from the academic semesters. It seems like a great way to have some variety that most regular corporate types may not get. I’m sure academia has some big down sides, especially for the non-tenured, but in this aspect it sounds lovely.
Well said
I went to Northeastern University which is known for it's co-op program. I LOVED co-op, school was OK but co-op was great. It was 6 month work, 6 months school for three years. You couldnt pull me away from it.
I was excited for work every day. That continued for about a year of full time work. Then I kind of came to a realization that well, this is it. Originally I thought that it was because co-op was the low responsibility, decent pay factor. plus I was hourly. But I think I have come to realize it was the school/work cycle that I missed (and still do). Though I was not a huge fan of being in school, I still had breaks to re-charge and school life was a different schedule.
I had some slower periods in my work life when younger. I work on construction projects and the start/end are usually slower than the middle. So you would get maybe 6months of one ending and another starting. But the cruel reality as I got more experience is now I typically get pulled from a project when it is substantially complete and added to a new project that I am now in charge of. Thank god for FIRE, I am so over it.
Tax prep, though possibly boring, I could see myself getting into if my part time pursuits within my current line of work don't work out post - FIRE.
Either way, I am not about to do this for another 25-30 years.
Post by: jade on March 06, 2024, 01:39:08 AM
Post by: SaucyAussie on March 07, 2024, 09:01:29 AM
I don't know if this makes it feel closer or further away, but we are this close to 2025 -
491 days
11798 hours
707890 minutes
42473421 seconds
Going fast!
299 days
7189 hours
431340 minutes
25880429 seconds
Post by: mistymoney on March 07, 2024, 09:14:00 AM
I don't know if this makes it feel closer or further away, but we are this close to 2025 -
491 days
11798 hours
707890 minutes
42473421 seconds
Going fast!
299 days
7189 hours
431340 minutes
25880429 seconds
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bagCdMUuevQ
Post by: frugalecon on March 07, 2024, 04:04:02 PM
I don't know if this makes it feel closer or further away, but we are this close to 2025 -
491 days
11798 hours
707890 minutes
42473421 seconds
Going fast!
299 days
7189 hours
431340 minutes
25880429 seconds
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bagCdMUuevQ
My personal countdown has me 365 days (yes! Exactly 1 year today!) until my target retirement date, with 199 total workdays required. But in truth, I have really been feeling like I am operating on fumes, and considering decamping for the 2024 cohort. I know I should tough it out for the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow, but sometimes it is hard.
Post by: Metalcat on March 09, 2024, 07:32:56 AM
Anyone thinking about working part time post 2025?
I always thought I would walk away and I do plan on being 4% on our core spending. BUT our travel spending has inflated alot as the kids have gotten older. I am thinking about working 2-3 days a week until I hit 3% and re-evaluate.
I have always intended to keep working part time. DH as well, but we really like our work.
Post by: obstinate on March 09, 2024, 09:07:48 AM
At this point we have saved up something like 40x annual expenses, ignoring housing cost, taxes, and health insurance. We are considering relocating from our current HCOL location to an MCOL location, where a whole house of a similar quality to the one we have can be purchased for just the equity we have in our current house.
Moreover, if we were retired, I reckon we would be able to immediately cut about 1/4 of our overall expenses, which are currently spent on afterschool care and full day+sleep away summer camps for the kids.
Health insurance is somewhat of an unknown for me. At this point, I'm trying to approach the problem by looking at the upper bound of expenses. According to the health insurance transparency page for the state we're considering moving to, we'd be spending about $1,500/mo for our family to be on a gold plan. I think we would actually be fine on a silver plan as we have no significant health issues and could probably afford to self-insure.
I also find it difficult to game out exactly how much I'm going to spend on taxes. I've just estimated 25% average on rich-broke-dead, and the model seems to think we'd be fine.
In light of all this, I think we're about as safe to retire as you could really ask for. I think the bigger questions are the intangibles. Would we really be as happy in the medium sized city we'd be moving to? It has much better outdoor options and kids stuff than where we currently live, but not as many fancy restaurants and cultural options. As parents of young children, we don't currently take much advantage of all that fancy big city stuff. We would miss the mass transit options, but we also don't mind driving that much either. Would we miss work? Would we suddenly decide that we really want to buy a boat and a plane if we retired? Probably not, but the overcautious worrier in me can't help thinking about it.
This is such an interesting problem because you can't really talk it out with the "normies" in your life. People where we live just do not think about retiring or quitting the rat race. Also, most of our friends are still struggling to acquire a house adequate to their family needs, to say nothing of having enough saved up to live off their investments. Chatting about already having way too much, or the unthinkable luxury of not having to work, with such folks is not something I really feel that comfortable with.
To dip my toes in the pool of early retirement, I'm planning to start taking a lot more vacation over the next year. My idea is to just take vacation any time I want until I run out, and, if I want to do more vacationing beyond that, take unpaid time off. I could probably even retire in place, although we'd be much closer to the line, and I'm not sure I really want to be retired in this city.
Post by: Metalcat on March 09, 2024, 12:03:34 PM
I've been starting to consider the possibility of retiring in 2025. I've been following MrMoneyMustache since very nearly the start of my career. I've also been lucky enough to be paid very well for my labor, have a similarly minded partner, and also make some luckily timed financial moves regarding housing.
At this point we have saved up something like 40x annual expenses, ignoring housing cost, taxes, and health insurance. We are considering relocating from our current HCOL location to an MCOL location, where a whole house of a similar quality to the one we have can be purchased for just the equity we have in our current house.
Moreover, if we were retired, I reckon we would be able to immediately cut about 1/4 of our overall expenses, which are currently spent on afterschool care and full day+sleep away summer camps for the kids.
Health insurance is somewhat of an unknown for me. At this point, I'm trying to approach the problem by looking at the upper bound of expenses. According to the health insurance transparency page for the state we're considering moving to, we'd be spending about $1,500/mo for our family to be on a gold plan. I think we would actually be fine on a silver plan as we have no significant health issues and could probably afford to self-insure.
I also find it difficult to game out exactly how much I'm going to spend on taxes. I've just estimated 25% average on rich-broke-dead, and the model seems to think we'd be fine.
In light of all this, I think we're about as safe to retire as you could really ask for. I think the bigger questions are the intangibles. Would we really be as happy in the medium sized city we'd be moving to? It has much better outdoor options and kids stuff than where we currently live, but not as many fancy restaurants and cultural options. As parents of young children, we don't currently take much advantage of all that fancy big city stuff. We would miss the mass transit options, but we also don't mind driving that much either. Would we miss work? Would we suddenly decide that we really want to buy a boat and a plane if we retired? Probably not, but the overcautious worrier in me can't help thinking about it.
This is such an interesting problem because you can't really talk it out with the "normies" in your life. People where we live just do not think about retiring or quitting the rat race. Also, most of our friends are still struggling to acquire a house adequate to their family needs, to say nothing of having enough saved up to live off their investments. Chatting about already having way too much, or the unthinkable luxury of not having to work, with such folks is not something I really feel that comfortable with.
To dip my toes in the pool of early retirement, I'm planning to start taking a lot more vacation over the next year. My idea is to just take vacation any time I want until I run out, and, if I want to do more vacationing beyond that, take unpaid time off. I could probably even retire in place, although we'd be much closer to the line, and I'm not sure I really want to be retired in this city.
First, you can talk to anyone about this stuff, you just can't necessarily expect people not to react as though you are strange.
Once you get accustomed to people thinking you are strange as a totally reasonable outcome of being authentic, it's very easy to talk about your authentic life experiences.
As for whether things will make you happy, it's impossible to know what your future self will want. They will be wiser and far more informed than you are.
Leaving work will fundamentally alters your relationship to the world, to time, to just about everything. There's a whole process of getting to know this version of yourself who has totally different needs and constraints than your working self.
You didn't have all the answers of how things would play out when you started working, you also don't have all the answers of how things will play out if/when you choose to leave your job(s).
I left my career almost exactly 4 years ago and nothing, and I mean NOTHING has played out as I expected.
But present me is much wiser and far more equipped to build the optimal life I enjoy most than a more ignorant, past version of myself that didn't really quite understand what matters most.
There's SO MUCH my career self just didn't know about me and had to learn for present me to have the insights that I do now about happiness and well being.
So don't put pressure on yourself to have it all figured out. I pretty much guarantee that the future you from a few years from now will have learned so much about themselves that they will look back on present you with condescending fondness and a "there there silly" perception.
At least that's the hope.
The greatest privilege in life is to look back on oneself as foolish because you've become much wiser about life.
Post by: frugalecon on March 20, 2024, 07:32:07 PM
I don't know if this makes it feel closer or further away, but we are this close to 2025 -
491 days
11798 hours
707890 minutes
42473421 seconds
Going fast!
299 days
7189 hours
431340 minutes
25880429 seconds
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bagCdMUuevQ
My personal countdown has me 365 days (yes! Exactly 1 year today!) until my target retirement date, with 199 total workdays required. But in truth, I have really been feeling like I am operating on fumes, and considering decamping for the 2024 cohort. I know I should tough it out for the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow, but sometimes it is hard.
Strangely, since I posted this, I have moved into a feeling of deep calm. (190 workdays at this point) My situation at work abruptly changed, with a new assignment, and that has given me a bit of wind in my sails. If I like it, great. If I don’t like it, I have a plan to go in 2024. Something about being at less than a year makes it feel like the bulls#$t can just roll off my back.
Post by: jade on March 21, 2024, 01:02:09 AM
I don't know if this makes it feel closer or further away, but we are this close to 2025 -
491 days
11798 hours
707890 minutes
42473421 seconds
Going fast!
299 days
7189 hours
431340 minutes
25880429 seconds
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bagCdMUuevQ
My personal countdown has me 365 days (yes! Exactly 1 year today!) until my target retirement date, with 199 total workdays required. But in truth, I have really been feeling like I am operating on fumes, and considering decamping for the 2024 cohort. I know I should tough it out for the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow, but sometimes it is hard.
Strangely, since I posted this, I have moved into a feeling of deep calm. (190 workdays at this point) My situation at work abruptly changed, with a new assignment, and that has given me a bit of wind in my sails. If I like it, great. If I don’t like it, I have a plan to go in 2024. Something about being at less than a year makes it feel like the bulls#$t can just roll off my back.
LOVE this!
Post by: MMMarbleheader on March 21, 2024, 06:12:01 AM
Post by: stealthwealth on March 21, 2024, 03:20:00 PM
1) We owe $50k on our house (prob worth $250k as is), and are probably going to put $150k into our house the next couple years to definitively repair and update it from 1975 (would recover every bit of that in a sale). We may eventually want to relocated to a slightly higher COL location in the future (north and/or west - with 4 full seasons), but still not coasts or super hot city.
2) We have $2.1M in investable assets.
3) No debt besides the mortgage.
4) Kids have $160k in college savings funds.
5) Wife started a job she digs, making $90k a year, and it pays for half tuition for the kids in 7 years if she sticks around. I make $120-150k depending on bonuses.
6) If I stick around my job another 18 months, I'll get 1100 PSI and 1100 RSI shares of stock (at least half no matter what) currently worth $140/share. So between 150-300k after taxes maybe. I like my coworkers and the job is interesting, so after the RSI and/or PSI vest next August, I'll maybe try to go part time. But I also wouldn't mind just riding my bike, playing music, helping my folks, kid time, and pursuing other interests instead.
Anyway, I've recently come to realize that with my wife's income, our investable stash is probably plenty. Am I overthinking this? I feel like something is missing in my itemization.
Post by: grantmeaname on March 21, 2024, 03:31:50 PM
Post by: stealthwealth on March 21, 2024, 03:59:47 PM
Post by: grantmeaname on March 21, 2024, 05:09:09 PM
Post by: weebs on March 22, 2024, 06:52:35 AM
6) If I stick around my job another 18 months, I'll get 1100 PSI and 1100 RSI shares of stock (at least half no matter what) currently worth $140/share. So between 150-300k after taxes maybe. I like my coworkers and the job is interesting, so after the RSI and/or PSI vest next August, I'll maybe try to go part time. But I also wouldn't mind just riding my bike, playing music, helping my folks, kid time, and pursuing other interests instead.
You're already FI, but this seems like a no-brainer. That's a nice payout in a relatively short amount of time.
Post by: WorkingToUnwind on March 22, 2024, 05:32:53 PM
Post by: ca-rn on March 22, 2024, 09:56:29 PM
I've been technically able to FIRE for a couple years, but I'm aiming for fat/ter fire. I live in a low/medium COL part of the Midwest. A couple developments in that time frame, and some of the math:
1) We owe $50k on our house (prob worth $250k as is), and are probably going to put $150k into our house the next couple years to definitively repair and update it from 1975 (would recover every bit of that in a sale). We may eventually want to relocated to a slightly higher COL location in the future (north and/or west - with 4 full seasons), but still not coasts or super hot city.
2) We have $2.1M in investable assets.
3) No debt besides the mortgage.
4) Kids have $160k in college savings funds.
5) Wife started a job she digs, making $90k a year, and it pays for half tuition for the kids in 7 years if she sticks around. I make $120-150k depending on bonuses.
6) If I stick around my job another 18 months, I'll get 1100 PSI and 1100 RSI shares of stock (at least half no matter what) currently worth $140/share. So between 150-300k after taxes maybe. I like my coworkers and the job is interesting, so after the RSI and/or PSI vest next August, I'll maybe try to go part time. But I also wouldn't mind just riding my bike, playing music, helping my folks, kid time, and pursuing other interests instead.
Anyway, I've recently come to realize that with my wife's income, our investable stash is probably plenty. Am I overthinking this? I feel like something is missing in my itemization.
Healthcare.
Is healthcare covered at your wife's job or if you quit, will you need to buy via ACA?
Post by: stealthwealth on March 25, 2024, 01:15:56 PM
I've been technically able to FIRE for a couple years, but I'm aiming for fat/ter fire. I live in a low/medium COL part of the Midwest. A couple developments in that time frame, and some of the math:
1) We owe $50k on our house (prob worth $250k as is), and are probably going to put $150k into our house the next couple years to definitively repair and update it from 1975 (would recover every bit of that in a sale). We may eventually want to relocated to a slightly higher COL location in the future (north and/or west - with 4 full seasons), but still not coasts or super hot city.
2) We have $2.1M in investable assets.
3) No debt besides the mortgage.
4) Kids have $160k in college savings funds.
5) Wife started a job she digs, making $90k a year, and it pays for half tuition for the kids in 7 years if she sticks around. I make $120-150k depending on bonuses.
6) If I stick around my job another 18 months, I'll get 1100 PSI and 1100 RSI shares of stock (at least half no matter what) currently worth $140/share. So between 150-300k after taxes maybe. I like my coworkers and the job is interesting, so after the RSI and/or PSI vest next August, I'll maybe try to go part time. But I also wouldn't mind just riding my bike, playing music, helping my folks, kid time, and pursuing other interests instead.
Anyway, I've recently come to realize that with my wife's income, our investable stash is probably plenty. Am I overthinking this? I feel like something is missing in my itemization.
Healthcare.
Is healthcare covered at your wife's job or if you quit, will you need to buy via ACA?
We currently use my health insurance, but would switch to hers when the time comes.
Post by: OurTown on March 27, 2024, 02:06:51 PM
Post by: TempusFugit on March 28, 2024, 11:56:06 AM
March 31, 2025. Hold me to it!
The twelve month countdown begins….
Do you have a list of items to work through in preparation?
Post by: obstinate on March 29, 2024, 08:26:58 AM
First, ... The greatest privilege in life is to look back on oneself as foolish because you've become much wiser about life.Metalcat, thanks for your kind response. I've done a few things, partly inspired by your words.
I have started sharing a sketch of my plan with various people in my life, and I have found that you are right, I can talk to people about this, and it's not terribly weird. I've gotten a whole range of responses, from "you'll be bored" to "I wish I could do that." And people have offered a lot of helpful advice as well.
I'm not sure if I mentioned this earlier, but we have kinda vastly overshot on how much to save. We are at maybe 1.3x our current HCOL expenses, or 2+x what we would be at for MCOL. As such, one of the changes I've immediately decided to make is to start treating my vacation as unlimited. I can take unpaid time at work and I've confirmed with my boss that it's not going to be an issue if I'm out of the office for a larger fraction of the year. This has been a good stress reducer, because it's allowing me to consider trips that would have been marginal before.
I'm pondering very hard about whether next summer is the time.
Post by: markbike528CBX on March 29, 2024, 09:23:35 AM
March 31, 2025. Hold me to it!
The twelve month countdown begins….
Do you have a list of items to work through in preparation?
I’d suggest https://forum.mrmoneymustache.com/post-fire/pre-fire-checklist/msg986025/#msg986025
and the rest of the sticky thread.
Not everything will be applicable to you, but it is comforting to to have a list of most everything possible.
Post by: SEAK on March 29, 2024, 11:55:45 AM
Post by: Freedomin5 on March 29, 2024, 01:01:39 PM
Post by: SotI on March 30, 2024, 02:51:41 PM
So, something like 570 days to go ....
This is the first year I actually need to deal with some current health issues - this reconfirms the decision I made 2.5 years ago to phase out my career.
Post by: SharkStomper on April 04, 2024, 05:38:04 AM
Post by: weebs on April 04, 2024, 09:34:12 AM
Mind if I join you all for 2025? When I first joined MMM I jumped into the 2029 cohort, but we've done a decent job of saving and I believe we'll be able to retire next year. I'll be 55 and the wife will be 61. No firm date as of yet.
Come on in, the water is fine. Nicely done going from 2029 to 2025. 4LY is quite a jump.
Post by: SaucyAussie on April 04, 2024, 10:12:08 AM
Jan 1 - rule of 55 kicks in
April 1 - stock vests
June 30 - annual bonus accrues.
Any of those dates seem like good RE opportunities, but I would say June 30 is the current frontrunner.
Post by: jade on April 04, 2024, 11:01:40 AM
Post by: Turtle on April 04, 2024, 11:04:21 AM
Critical dates for me:
Jan 1 - rule of 55 kicks in
April 1 - stock vests
June 30 - annual bonus accrues.
Any of those dates seem like good RE opportunities, but I would say June 30 is the current frontrunner.
Good for you for maximizing your exit strategy!
Post by: farmecologist on April 04, 2024, 02:56:17 PM
Critical dates for me:
Jan 1 - rule of 55 kicks in
April 1 - stock vests
June 30 - annual bonus accrues.
Any of those dates seem like good RE opportunities, but I would say June 30 is the current frontrunner.
Rule of 55 kicks in on Jan 1st for me as well...as soon as vesting of an employer healthcare "assistance" account.
More options are always good!
Post by: frugalecon on April 04, 2024, 06:48:59 PM
I have started thinking about how much time I will ask for to organize my files and other materials for retention after I leave. Sounds like a two week job, at least.
Post by: Fomerly known as something on April 05, 2024, 03:15:26 PM
Post by: frugalecon on April 17, 2024, 06:04:21 AM
48 weeks left to go for me as of tomorrow, i.e., 240 work days…but I will have 60 days of holidays and vacation available to me during this period. I’ve got this.
I have started thinking about how much time I will ask for to organize my files and other materials for retention after I leave. Sounds like a two week job, at least.
Interesting crossover point for me: I now have or will earn enough sick and annual leave to get to my target retirement date without working another day. Given that I have an elderly parent who could suddenly need help, that makes me feel a lot more secure.
Post by: mistymoney on April 17, 2024, 12:57:50 PM
Oof! better make a dental appt.
Post by: fireready on April 17, 2024, 02:31:46 PM
Getting excited!
Post by: Freedomin5 on April 17, 2024, 04:07:35 PM
Thinking we are moving up from the March of 2026 Fire date to March of 2025. We are at our number now and after having a good friend of 20 years pass (he was 53) last year and now my wife's brother just passed of prostate cancer (53), we are seeing that life is short and willing to take some chances. Though math and calculators show there is almost no risk at a 3.5% WR.
Getting excited!
Yay! Congratulations!
Post by: frugalecon on April 17, 2024, 05:02:36 PM
Thinking we are moving up from the March of 2026 Fire date to March of 2025. We are at our number now and after having a good friend of 20 years pass (he was 53) last year and now my wife's brother just passed of prostate cancer (53), we are seeing that life is short and willing to take some chances. Though math and calculators show there is almost no risk at a 3.5% WR.
Getting excited!
My degree of excitement ratcheted up considerably once my target date was less than a year away. Every day I can say, “Well, that’s the last [insert date] I’ll ever spend working in a full-time job!”
Post by: bananas on April 17, 2024, 05:33:51 PM
My degree of excitement ratcheted up considerably once my target date was less than a year away. Every day I can say, “Well, that’s the last [insert date] I’ll ever spend working in a full-time job!”
Oh, man. Future me is excited to experience this!!
Post by: Fomerly known as something on April 17, 2024, 07:33:51 PM
48 weeks left to go for me as of tomorrow, i.e., 240 work days…but I will have 60 days of holidays and vacation available to me during this period. I’ve got this.
I have started thinking about how much time I will ask for to organize my files and other materials for retention after I leave. Sounds like a two week job, at least.
Interesting crossover point for me: I now have or will earn enough sick and annual leave to get to my target retirement date without working another day. Given that I have an elderly parent who could suddenly need help, that makes me feel a lot more secure.
Does quick calculations, I think I also have enough leave to not work a single day again. Most of it is sick leave so I’d kind of need to be ill.
Post by: markbike528CBX on April 17, 2024, 07:54:27 PM
Mojo Nixon says :48 weeks left to go for me as of tomorrow, i.e., 240 work days…but I will have 60 days of holidays and vacation available to me during this period. I’ve got this.
I have started thinking about how much time I will ask for to organize my files and other materials for retention after I leave. Sounds like a two week job, at least.
Interesting crossover point for me: I now have or will earn enough sick and annual leave to get to my target retirement date without working another day. Given that I have an elderly parent who could suddenly need help, that makes me feel a lot more secure.
Does quick calculations, I think I also have enough leave to not work a single day again. Most of it is sick leave so I’d kind of need to be ill.
And I'm gonna call my job up I'm gonna talk to my boss
And say, "Oh, Mr. Boss Mr. Boss, I'm so sick I'm so sick
I can't go to work I'm so sick
I gotta go to a party at the beach You hear me?
https://lyrics.az/mojo-nixon-skid-roper/get-out-of-my-way/get-out-of-my-way.html
Post by: Freedomin5 on April 17, 2024, 08:15:09 PM
48 weeks left to go for me as of tomorrow, i.e., 240 work days…but I will have 60 days of holidays and vacation available to me during this period. I’ve got this.
I have started thinking about how much time I will ask for to organize my files and other materials for retention after I leave. Sounds like a two week job, at least.
Interesting crossover point for me: I now have or will earn enough sick and annual leave to get to my target retirement date without working another day. Given that I have an elderly parent who could suddenly need help, that makes me feel a lot more secure.
Does quick calculations, I think I also have enough leave to not work a single day again. Most of it is sick leave so I’d kind of need to be ill.
Do mental health days count? At my work, we don't need a doctor's note if we are out for fewer than 3 days. And mental health counts for sick leave.
Post by: tj on April 17, 2024, 08:50:23 PM
48 weeks left to go for me as of tomorrow, i.e., 240 work days…but I will have 60 days of holidays and vacation available to me during this period. I’ve got this.
I have started thinking about how much time I will ask for to organize my files and other materials for retention after I leave. Sounds like a two week job, at least.
Interesting crossover point for me: I now have or will earn enough sick and annual leave to get to my target retirement date without working another day. Given that I have an elderly parent who could suddenly need help, that makes me feel a lot more secure.
Does quick calculations, I think I also have enough leave to not work a single day again. Most of it is sick leave so I’d kind of need to be ill.
Do mental health days count? At my work, we don't need a doctor's note if we are out for fewer than 3 days. And mental health counts for sick leave.
How many weeks in a row can you do that before they start bugging you? I'd take sick leave every time I have to go in the office and just work my telework days.
Post by: weebs on April 18, 2024, 08:22:26 AM
Do mental health days count? At my work, we don't need a doctor's note if we are out for fewer than 3 days. And mental health counts for sick leave.
I wish we could do that. I'm rarely sick (knocks on wood), so I've accrued over 10 weeks sick time. I could work 4 day weeks until my planned FIRE date if I could use my sick time as mental health days. Oh, well.
Post by: Sandi_k on April 18, 2024, 09:35:58 AM
Do mental health days count? At my work, we don't need a doctor's note if we are out for fewer than 3 days. And mental health counts for sick leave.
I wish we could do that. I'm rarely sick (knocks on wood), so I've accrued over 10 weeks sick time. I could work 4 day weeks until my planned FIRE date if I could use my sick time as mental health days. Oh, well.
I strongly encourage you to take a day or two as needed for your mental resiliency. You have already given your employer a huge gift by not using 400+ hours that they have planned for as a financial liability.
I've been clear with my staff that if they need a MH day, to take one. No one does better or stays engaged when they are burned out. My CFO simply tells me that she's "not feeling well enough to come to work" - and that's all I need to hear. She's an outstanding and conscientious employee, so a day out of the office to reset is perfectly fine.
Post by: mistymoney on April 18, 2024, 10:07:58 AM
Do mental health days count? At my work, we don't need a doctor's note if we are out for fewer than 3 days. And mental health counts for sick leave.
I wish we could do that. I'm rarely sick (knocks on wood), so I've accrued over 10 weeks sick time. I could work 4 day weeks until my planned FIRE date if I could use my sick time as mental health days. Oh, well.
Yeah, most places are very limited on how you can use sick days for more than just a day or two here and there without some documented health concern. and most jobs just get flushed when quit or retire, not paid out like vacay. I have about 6 weeks saved up and am trying to take as many as I can. ((Want to say "this last year" but I'm worried I'm going to have to OMY it and trying not to jinx it!))
I've moved to taking 1/2 days for dr and dentist appts when I can. Also remember you can use them for taking family to appts - our ee manual specifies parents and kid (including step, foster, etc) for use of sick time.
even if you cant take a mental health day every week, could you 1xmonth? or every other month or quarterly? I myself find this difficult as I have meetings all the time. Important meetings (supposedly!), high profile anyway.
But I need to work harder on this!! Mine will be flushed when I FIRE, so that is helping to motivate me. I also no longer need to save them up in case of sickness/disability as I have a least megaFU money if not full FIRE amounts. No need to hoard these anymore.
start using them!!
Post by: pdxvandal on April 18, 2024, 10:24:19 AM
Post by: fireready on April 18, 2024, 10:27:22 AM
Thinking we are moving up from the March of 2026 Fire date to March of 2025. We are at our number now and after having a good friend of 20 years pass (he was 53) last year and now my wife's brother just passed of prostate cancer (53), we are seeing that life is short and willing to take some chances. Though math and calculators show there is almost no risk at a 3.5% WR.
Getting excited!
Yay! Congratulations!
Thank you!
My degree of excitement ratcheted up considerably once my target date was less than a year away. Every day I can say, “Well, that’s the last [insert date] I’ll ever spend working in a full-time job!”
I am doing the same thing! Also getting nervous if this is the right decision or time. But I think I will ALWAYS think that.
Post by: Turtle on April 18, 2024, 11:05:33 AM
I've been using small chunks of sick time in the past few months instead of taking vacation hours. Fortunately, my employer does pay out 60% of accrued sick time value, but I'd rather be more strategic and slowly burn some sick time and get paid out 100% on unused vacation.
I've managed to use the amount I've accrued so far this year, but I still have over 2 weeks which was carried over from last year. As far as I know, none of mine will be paid out, so I might as well use it.
Post by: Fomerly known as something on April 18, 2024, 11:57:26 AM
I have a pension so unused sick time gets added into the calculation. I will retire with 26 years of service vs 25. I only have so much sick leave because we use to need to use it with baby leave, but I never ended up with the baby. Now it just tells me if I get truly sick, I can take all the time I need/want.
Post by: weebs on April 18, 2024, 02:16:26 PM
Post by: Sandi_k on April 19, 2024, 12:10:03 AM
@Sandi_k & @mistymoney - thanks for applying a gentle nudge regarding the sick time. I asked my boss about taking the occasional mental health day and he gave me the thumbs up.
YAY! Congrats on doing the hard work, and asking for something that wasn't in your comfort zone.
Post by: weebs on April 20, 2024, 05:44:35 AM
YAY! Congrats on doing the hard work, and asking for something that wasn't in your comfort zone.
Thanks! I didn't realize how far outside my comfort zone it was until I asked.
Post by: SaucyAussie on April 22, 2024, 07:10:27 AM
It's a great tool for factoring in social security and other changes to income and spending. I especially like the explanation of the many different withdrawal strategies. We hear so much about the 4% rule in the accumulation phase but help on how to draw down is harder to find.
ficalc ended up pointing me towards the VPW method developed by Bogleheads. Seems this strategy is aimed at those with significant additional fixed income streams such as social security and/or pensions, or those that have some flexibility built into their spending.
VPW factors in age when calculating withdrawal rates, so it is particularly interesting to those of us in the 50+ crowd. For a example, a 45 year old with 1M invested, (and an estimated monthly SS benefit of 3K at age 70) can withdraw 4.7%. With those same numbers, a 55 year old can withdraw 5.9%.
Post by: tj on April 22, 2024, 08:25:12 AM
I spent some time this weekend running the numbers on https://ficalc.app/
It's a great tool for factoring in social security and other changes to income and spending. I especially like the explanation of the many different withdrawal strategies. We hear so much about the 4% rule in the accumulation phase but help on how to draw down is harder to find.
ficalc ended up pointing me towards the VPW method developed by Bogleheads. Seems this strategy is aimed at those with significant additional fixed income streams such as social security and/or pensions, or those that have some flexibility built into their spending.
VPW factors in age when calculating withdrawal rates, so it is particularly interesting to those of us in the 50+ crowd. For a example, a 45 year old with 1M invested, (and an estimated monthly SS benefit of 3K at age 70) can withdraw 4.7%. With those same numbers, a 55 year old can withdraw 5.9%.
Doesn't the VPW method change the % amount you can withdraw each year? I wonder if anyone actually uses this in practice. I tend to just spend what I spend....inflation might make some things more expensive, but I don't know that I would force myself spend more just because a spreadsheet or calculator said I could.
Post by: SaucyAussie on April 22, 2024, 08:48:38 AM
I spent some time this weekend running the numbers on https://ficalc.app/
It's a great tool for factoring in social security and other changes to income and spending. I especially like the explanation of the many different withdrawal strategies. We hear so much about the 4% rule in the accumulation phase but help on how to draw down is harder to find.
ficalc ended up pointing me towards the VPW method developed by Bogleheads. Seems this strategy is aimed at those with significant additional fixed income streams such as social security and/or pensions, or those that have some flexibility built into their spending.
VPW factors in age when calculating withdrawal rates, so it is particularly interesting to those of us in the 50+ crowd. For a example, a 45 year old with 1M invested, (and an estimated monthly SS benefit of 3K at age 70) can withdraw 4.7%. With those same numbers, a 55 year old can withdraw 5.9%.
Doesn't the VPW method change the % amount you can withdraw each year? I wonder if anyone actually uses this in practice. I tend to just spend what I spend....inflation might make some things more expensive, but I don't know that I would force myself spend more just because a spreadsheet or calculator said I could.
I think that's a common misconception - the spreadsheet doesn't "force" you to spend more it just provides a withdrawal rate you can safely use for that year based on age, market performance, and other income sources. What you do with that money is up to you - you could choose spend it, put it in a Roth for heirs, or choose to not withdraw it at all!
As an "older" early retiree, I like that it allows me to withdraw a higher % earlier when I am still healthy enough to enjoy it.
Post by: weebs on April 22, 2024, 08:57:09 AM
ficalc ended up pointing me towards the VPW method developed by Bogleheads. Seems this strategy is aimed at those with significant additional fixed income streams such as social security and/or pensions, or those that have some flexibility built into their spending.
That pretty much describes DW and myself. We turn 51 this year and both of us will get SS + a pension. Thanks for the link. It's cool to be able to play with the various withdrawal methods.
Post by: Sandi_k on April 22, 2024, 11:40:40 AM
https://www.bogleheads.org/wiki/Variable_percentage_withdrawal
and if you don't want to do the spreadsheet, here is the table:
https://www.bogleheads.org/wiki/Variable_percentage_withdrawal#With_the_VPW_table
I spent some time this weekend running the numbers on https://ficalc.app/
It's a great tool for factoring in social security and other changes to income and spending. I especially like the explanation of the many different withdrawal strategies. We hear so much about the 4% rule in the accumulation phase but help on how to draw down is harder to find.
ficalc ended up pointing me towards the VPW method developed by Bogleheads. Seems this strategy is aimed at those with significant additional fixed income streams such as social security and/or pensions, or those that have some flexibility built into their spending.
VPW factors in age when calculating withdrawal rates, so it is particularly interesting to those of us in the 50+ crowd. For a example, a 45 year old with 1M invested, (and an estimated monthly SS benefit of 3K at age 70) can withdraw 4.7%. With those same numbers, a 55 year old can withdraw 5.9%.
Post by: mistymoney on April 23, 2024, 05:10:42 AM
On a hilarious note! this got me to thinking about what I am absolutely gaining on a per workday basis. 4% of my inputted daily contributions result in an additional $6.50 to my annual spend! Could I get a fancy coffee for that at starbucks? Not sure these days! But I will think throughout today on all the different ways I might spend that in my future retirement years :).
Into the fray for another $6.50 into the infinity pool!
Rise and shine y'all!