Author Topic: 2029 FIRE Cohort  (Read 145732 times)

Chranstronaut

  • Pencil Stache
  • ****
  • Posts: 713
Re: 2029 FIRE Cohort
« Reply #200 on: March 19, 2019, 12:51:18 PM »
For me, I lean heavier on the time killing bit right now - as I think I've got a good chunk of my overall planning done. Just gotta wait and see where I end up and what bumps in the road start looming.

Hah, I could use some time killing too.  I just ruminate over my spreadsheets these days... endless, endless spreadsheets.

One worry my husband brought up recently is what if future tax laws prohibit the backdoor Roth pipeline.  Our plan relies on that, but I never gave it a ton of thought before.  I was pleasantly surprised to run a trade study and see that the SEPP and some rejiggering around with my Taxable account would get me pretty close, enough that if I was already FIRE I could probably stay retired.

BuffaloStache

  • Handlebar Stache
  • *****
  • Posts: 1298
  • Location: The boring middle accumulation phase
Re: 2029 FIRE Cohort
« Reply #201 on: March 22, 2019, 11:03:16 AM »
How does everyone stay on top of long term planning when there are so many variables?

I'm pregnant with my first kid, so that is making me question my future earnings (and savings, and expenses) and then much of my long-term vision relies on selling the HCOL properties and buying something without a mortgage.

How do you account for these big life possibilities but still feel forward momentum?

In my case, I don't. Sure, I can run projections on when we will be FI using current spending and current savings, current spending and only tax-advantaged savings, projected retirement spending and current savings, projected retirement spending and only tax-advantage savings... but you're right, there are too many variables to expect that I can accurately predict what our finances will look like in 10 years. What I do is track everything month-to-month, that way I can clearly see the progress over time and stay motivated. Always keep that big goal in mind (e.g. FIRE by 40) and weigh every decision against it.

@Off the Wheel Another thing that I've found very helpful is to set smaller milestones for myself, and make sure to celebrate them when you hit them- even if it feels funny. Yes, getting to the next $50k net worth may not seem like a lot when you are going for an end goal of $1M+, but I think it helps to celebrate all of the victories you can. I also agree with Philociraptor- seeing continuous growth and progress (even when it's small) on my spreadsheet definitely lifts the spirits. Good luck!

BuffaloStache

  • Handlebar Stache
  • *****
  • Posts: 1298
  • Location: The boring middle accumulation phase
Re: 2029 FIRE Cohort
« Reply #202 on: March 22, 2019, 11:09:17 AM »
...
One worry my husband brought up recently is what if future tax laws prohibit the backdoor Roth pipeline.  Our plan relies on that, but I never gave it a ton of thought before.  I was pleasantly surprised to run a trade study and see that the SEPP and some rejiggering around with my Taxable account would get me pretty close, enough that if I was already FIRE I could probably stay retired.

It won't completely allay your fears, but check out the "Pay the Penalty" and "Comparison" sections in this MadFientist article (www.madfientist.com/how-to-access-retirement-funds-early/). It's crazy and something I had never thought of, but even by just paying the 10% pre-withdrawal fees you typically still come out ahead when investing in 401(k)'s and other tax-protected accounts. It may push you to work OMY or more to cover the 10% fees (or even have a slow 'transition' into RE with a couple years of part-time work), but it was really an eye opener for me: closing of that pipeline shouldn't completely derail your FI(RE) dreams.

caracarn

  • Handlebar Stache
  • *****
  • Posts: 1920
  • Age: 53
  • Location: Ohio
Re: 2029 FIRE Cohort
« Reply #203 on: March 23, 2019, 06:40:49 AM »
Your projections likely involve extending some version of the present out ten years and seeing if that will get you to retirement.

The single biggest variable with kids is probably what you plan to spend on childcare (I spend more than my housing budget), and how both partners will plan their work (Mrs. TallTexan works 80% of a full schedule). You could take those projections now and see how far that gets you. It may even make sense to start saving $300/week into a special savings account called "MaryPoppins" with the understanding that this will pay for childcare.
I agree on the kid front.  I just has a conversation last night where I found out one of my kids is losing (very likely, term not done yet, but she has an F and a D in two of her classes after mid-terms after a first semester where her GPA was below the minimum) her $8K/year scholarship.  Will be having to have the difficult conversation that we are not going to bail her out and she has to figure out how to make up the shortfall if she wants to continue, but others may choose a different path and diverting $24K from your savings to one of you kids over three years would have a very large effect on your ten year plan.  Things like that are what kids throw at you all the time.

Emerald

  • 5 O'Clock Shadow
  • *
  • Posts: 97
Re: 2029 FIRE Cohort
« Reply #204 on: March 27, 2019, 06:54:22 PM »
So, 2029 is the absolute latest I want to retire.  I'm shooting for earlier, but for now I reckon I'll hang out in here for awhile.

DeskJockey2028

  • Pencil Stache
  • ****
  • Posts: 899
  • Aiming for 2028
Re: 2029 FIRE Cohort
« Reply #205 on: March 28, 2019, 08:07:54 AM »
Welcome Emerald! I hope you do go earlier but until then, feel free to hang with us!

So, 2029 is the absolute latest I want to retire.  I'm shooting for earlier, but for now I reckon I'll hang out in here for awhile.

SharkStomper

  • 5 O'Clock Shadow
  • *
  • Posts: 82
  • Age: 54
  • Location: Great State of Tennessee
Re: 2029 FIRE Cohort
« Reply #206 on: March 29, 2019, 12:17:57 AM »
Welcome!  I think we're all hoping for earlier.  I'm pulling for ya.

FireDAD

  • Stubble
  • **
  • Posts: 130
  • Location: Northern Colorado Mountains
  • firedad.blog
    • FireDAD Blog
Re: 2029 FIRE Cohort
« Reply #207 on: April 11, 2019, 10:19:16 AM »
I'm throwing my hat in the ring on this one.

June 2029 is my date.
I'll be 43 and my wife will be 38.

Because if a pension that kicks in at 2045 to pay for all our expenses our stache only needs to last 16 years. I could leave my $200,000 in stache alone now and in 10 years it would be enough to lean fire for that 16 years. Instead I'm just going to keep piling it on and see what happens!

DeskJockey2028

  • Pencil Stache
  • ****
  • Posts: 899
  • Aiming for 2028
Re: 2029 FIRE Cohort
« Reply #208 on: April 11, 2019, 10:20:44 AM »
Welcome to the cohort!

BuffaloStache

  • Handlebar Stache
  • *****
  • Posts: 1298
  • Location: The boring middle accumulation phase
Re: 2029 FIRE Cohort
« Reply #209 on: April 11, 2019, 10:24:32 PM »
...

Because if a pension that kicks in at 2045 to pay for all our expenses our stache only needs to last 16 years. I could leave my $200,000 in stache alone now and in 10 years it would be enough to lean fire for that 16 years. Instead I'm just going to keep piling it on and see what happens!


Sounds like a pretty good strategy to me! Good luck, and welcome!

FireDAD

  • Stubble
  • **
  • Posts: 130
  • Location: Northern Colorado Mountains
  • firedad.blog
    • FireDAD Blog
Re: 2029 FIRE Cohort
« Reply #210 on: April 12, 2019, 10:16:15 AM »
...

Because if a pension that kicks in at 2045 to pay for all our expenses our stache only needs to last 16 years. I could leave my $200,000 in stache alone now and in 10 years it would be enough to lean fire for that 16 years. Instead I'm just going to keep piling it on and see what happens!


Sounds like a pretty good strategy to me! Good luck, and welcome!

Thanks! I'm also in Colorado. We are in Estes, where are you located?

Chranstronaut

  • Pencil Stache
  • ****
  • Posts: 713
Re: 2029 FIRE Cohort
« Reply #211 on: April 15, 2019, 03:01:51 PM »
...
One worry my husband brought up recently is what if future tax laws prohibit the backdoor Roth pipeline.  Our plan relies on that, but I never gave it a ton of thought before.  I was pleasantly surprised to run a trade study and see that the SEPP and some rejiggering around with my Taxable account would get me pretty close, enough that if I was already FIRE I could probably stay retired.

It won't completely allay your fears, but check out the "Pay the Penalty" and "Comparison" sections in this MadFientist article (www.madfientist.com/how-to-access-retirement-funds-early/). It's crazy and something I had never thought of, but even by just paying the 10% pre-withdrawal fees you typically still come out ahead when investing in 401(k)'s and other tax-protected accounts. It may push you to work OMY or more to cover the 10% fees (or even have a slow 'transition' into RE with a couple years of part-time work), but it was really an eye opener for me: closing of that pipeline shouldn't completely derail your FI(RE) dreams.

Thanks!  That's very interesting...
We've also looked into making small amounts of money for some added piece of mind.  Even just ~10k a year could really change things, and we have some pretty useful hobbies - wrenching on cars, fixing up the house, art and engineering of various sorts. I hope it's as much a safety net as it is a way to pull the plug a wee bit quicker.

Calimerostache

  • 5 O'Clock Shadow
  • *
  • Posts: 57
Re: 2029 FIRE Cohort
« Reply #212 on: May 27, 2019, 10:12:16 PM »
Joining the club 😀
Obviously a lot of assumptions going in the plan .
Kind of curious what you are considering for some big ticket items
Collège :considering 28k$ Per year ( in state) with 6% annual inflation and funding 100% of it
Medical post FIRE : 20k$ per year
Portfolio growth rate : 5% per year

Make me feel good to see that there are a lot of people out there enjoying the long term financial planning.
Keep it up!

DeskJockey2028

  • Pencil Stache
  • ****
  • Posts: 899
  • Aiming for 2028
Re: 2029 FIRE Cohort
« Reply #213 on: May 28, 2019, 05:02:28 AM »
Welcome to the cohort!

For us, the kids will be mostly on their own for college expenses. We started this whole FIRE journey a bit later than others, which is affecting that. We're going to try to help them make the most financially sound decisions that still give them the education and experience they're looking for.

As for medical, we're luckier than some in that respect. If I stay at my job until I'm 55, I just pay the current employee premium on healthcare (which is honestly relatively low) and the job picks up the rest until I transition to Medicare.

Joining the club 😀
Obviously a lot of assumptions going in the plan .
Kind of curious what you are considering for some big ticket items
Collège :considering 28k$ Per year ( in state) with 6% annual inflation and funding 100% of it
Medical post FIRE : 20k$ per year
Portfolio growth rate : 5% per year

Make me feel good to see that there are a lot of people out there enjoying the long term financial planning.
Keep it up!

50ShadesOfStache

  • 5 O'Clock Shadow
  • *
  • Posts: 31
  • Age: 29
  • Location: Here
Re: 2029 FIRE Cohort
« Reply #214 on: May 28, 2019, 08:48:12 AM »
Do you already have kids, and if so when will they be in collage? DW and I aren't planning to have ours until we are very close to being FIRE, so odd jobs and growth in the stach  will cover collage expenses. That being said, I will expect them to work and save money for college themselves. As a side benefit, if you are retired and not earning money when they go into college, they might get some decent financial aid. Also, doing your first two years at community college drops the cost dramatically. I think I only payed for my books the two years I went to my local community college. As a side benefit, it was my experience that the teachers at my community college were much better at teaching then those at the sate university.

For any cost post fire, you can plan for it by just adjusting your number. If you anticipate 20K in medical a year, then use the 4% rule and bump your FIRE number up by $500k. That being said, If your consistently paying 20K a year out of pocket, you might want to look at other insurance options.

Calimerostache

  • 5 O'Clock Shadow
  • *
  • Posts: 57
Re: 2029 FIRE Cohort
« Reply #215 on: May 29, 2019, 10:40:58 PM »
I have kids and they will be in college from 2027 to 2035!!! So planning on Being FIRE in the beginning of the college phase.
I was lucky enough to have my parents pay for college and I’d like to do the same for my kids, so they don’t start with huge amount of debt...
I had not thought about community college . That might be an option

For medical I have inideed 500k$ added to my FIRE number ... I would think that 10k$ of premium + 10k of out of pocket should be reasonably conservative ..

DeskJockey2028

  • Pencil Stache
  • ****
  • Posts: 899
  • Aiming for 2028
Re: 2029 FIRE Cohort
« Reply #216 on: June 03, 2019, 06:00:39 AM »
3500

Hey everyone, today's a neat day in our arbitrary numbering system! As we roll through various time zones and 00:00:01 comes to us all, we'll hit less than 3,500 days until January 1st, 2029.

The first count I see on our group was March 16, 2017 with "just 4,309 days".

talltexan

  • Walrus Stache
  • *******
  • Posts: 5344
Re: 2029 FIRE Cohort
« Reply #217 on: June 03, 2019, 07:54:40 AM »
Thank you for this post, it's really great to think about this.

I was bragging the other day that I got carded for buying beer at 14,207 days old.

bbates728

  • Stubble
  • **
  • Posts: 217
  • Age: 30
  • Location: PNW
Re: 2029 FIRE Cohort
« Reply #218 on: June 03, 2019, 10:21:42 AM »
Woohoooo!

Wife and I hit Net Worth=$0 this past month (Now sitting at $7000 after a month that saw an extra paycheck and lower than normal spending).

I have been thinking about how quickly 3500 days will pass here recently. I can't believe that I have been married now for 5 years or that I have been working for 3. Yet on the other hand, I can't imagine working for another 8-10 years. My wife and I have briefly discussed the possibility of me going part time in 5 years or so which seems much more attainable butI don't hear of too many part time accounting roles. Maybe that will change when I get some more skills under my belt; we will see.

DeskJockey2028

  • Pencil Stache
  • ****
  • Posts: 899
  • Aiming for 2028
Re: 2029 FIRE Cohort
« Reply #219 on: June 05, 2019, 07:07:41 AM »
That first step past zero is pretty awesome. It's as if your whole outlook has tilted a bit in the correct direction!

Woohoooo!

Wife and I hit Net Worth=$0 this past month (Now sitting at $7000 after a month that saw an extra paycheck and lower than normal spending).

I have been thinking about how quickly 3500 days will pass here recently. I can't believe that I have been married now for 5 years or that I have been working for 3. Yet on the other hand, I can't imagine working for another 8-10 years. My wife and I have briefly discussed the possibility of me going part time in 5 years or so which seems much more attainable butI don't hear of too many part time accounting roles. Maybe that will change when I get some more skills under my belt; we will see.

caracarn

  • Handlebar Stache
  • *****
  • Posts: 1920
  • Age: 53
  • Location: Ohio
Re: 2029 FIRE Cohort
« Reply #220 on: June 05, 2019, 01:49:56 PM »
So is the "shiny new penny" period on a new job about 90 days?  I'm coming up on that time period in the new role I took to save my sanity as I move towards my 2029 target and I found myself this morning feeling that "I've got 9+ years of this left?" sadness creeping in.  Have not really felt that way since I began and been enjoying the job and usually have at least one incident a week (actually more like one a day) when I validate I made the right choice, because those hairy corporate politics problems that were my daily life rear up, but not my boss is handling them and I just go back to my cube and keep getting rave reviews.  So my enjoyment of perception of the job has not changed, but it does not seem to outweigh the desire to be done with the daily slog once again.  So it is a net positive from where I was at more than 90 days ago when I wanted to be done with the daily slog but was also miserable to boot.

I'm trying to spin up a side hustle financial coaching gig in my off hours from this job, but not sure yet if that will have any legs.  People I've talked with say it sounds good and certainly is needed, but that has not turned into any paying clients yet.  Not unexpected in that I have not really gotten all my collateral together in a presentable format yet, so I'm not charging hard with any marketing, but it also is causing a motivation shortfall to get those done as I still have my doubts on how successful this can be.  I would love to make an extra $5-10K a year off this and that might help make a dent on the FIRE date.

bbates728

  • Stubble
  • **
  • Posts: 217
  • Age: 30
  • Location: PNW
Re: 2029 FIRE Cohort
« Reply #221 on: June 06, 2019, 09:28:52 AM »
So is the "shiny new penny" period on a new job about 90 days? 

90 days sounds about right in my estimation. It is about then that most of the disfunction of a role is solidified. It is when my frame of mind shifts from "I must not be understanding this yet" to "These f****** don't have any idea how this works or how it can be manipulated". At about 1.5-2 years I am shifting to "I have improved what I have the political power to improve and the rest can go to hell. Just don't come to me when it does."

DeskJockey2028

  • Pencil Stache
  • ****
  • Posts: 899
  • Aiming for 2028
Re: 2029 FIRE Cohort
« Reply #222 on: June 06, 2019, 09:30:59 AM »
At almost 15 years, I mainly don't care about much that has to do with the job after I walk out the door. I've learned to switch it off. At work, "going with the flow" is like a legitimate super power.


So is the "shiny new penny" period on a new job about 90 days? 

90 days sounds about right in my estimation. It is about then that most of the disfunction of a role is solidified. It is when my frame of mind shifts from "I must not be understanding this yet" to "These f****** don't have any idea how this works or how it can be manipulated". At about 1.5-2 years I am shifting to "I have improved what I have the political power to improve and the rest can go to hell. Just don't come to me when it does."

HeadedWest2029

  • Bristles
  • ***
  • Posts: 318
Re: 2029 FIRE Cohort
« Reply #223 on: June 06, 2019, 09:53:25 AM »
Totally on the same wavelength with you here.  I've thought about doing this post-FIRE to add some structure and meaning to my life after the full-time career or just pulling the cord and do it now, but I'm too chicken**** to do it.  I'm with you that I don't expect it to be a major money maker.  I'm mostly a lurker on a FB group for financial coaches and it definitely sounds like you have to hustle a lot to make it work as a full-time gig (because we're all in sales whether we like it or not).  It would kind of bum me out to be hands off with the investment side of things too, so I've thought about becoming a RIA and being a hourly fee advisor too.  It's hard to get motivated about it when you're already working a regular 40-50 hr week job though

I'm trying to spin up a side hustle financial coaching gig in my off hours from this job, but not sure yet if that will have any legs.  People I've talked with say it sounds good and certainly is needed, but that has not turned into any paying clients yet.  Not unexpected in that I have not really gotten all my collateral together in a presentable format yet, so I'm not charging hard with any marketing, but it also is causing a motivation shortfall to get those done as I still have my doubts on how successful this can be.  I would love to make an extra $5-10K a year off this and that might help make a dent on the FIRE date.

caracarn

  • Handlebar Stache
  • *****
  • Posts: 1920
  • Age: 53
  • Location: Ohio
Re: 2029 FIRE Cohort
« Reply #224 on: June 06, 2019, 02:48:02 PM »
At almost 15 years, I mainly don't care about much that has to do with the job after I walk out the door. I've learned to switch it off. At work, "going with the flow" is like a legitimate super power.


So is the "shiny new penny" period on a new job about 90 days? 

90 days sounds about right in my estimation. It is about then that most of the disfunction of a role is solidified. It is when my frame of mind shifts from "I must not be understanding this yet" to "These f****** don't have any idea how this works or how it can be manipulated". At about 1.5-2 years I am shifting to "I have improved what I have the political power to improve and the rest can go to hell. Just don't come to me when it does."
I'm good at switching it off, always have been, but in the high level executive jobs I finally used the buffer some of my FU money allows to leave, when someone is calling you our screaming at you, you cannot exactly "switch that off". 

What I was asking about was more the inner "excitement" of this is new and fun and I am invigorated to go in before it just turns into a job that I go to every day until I can not do that with FIRE in 10 years.

DeskJockey2028

  • Pencil Stache
  • ****
  • Posts: 899
  • Aiming for 2028
Re: 2029 FIRE Cohort
« Reply #225 on: June 07, 2019, 07:15:28 AM »
Ahhh. I've never actually had that - a new, exciting job I am invigorated to go to. Any job that would do that for me tends to pay far, far less than I'd need to support my family and save for my future at the rate I wish.

Every job has always been just an exchange of work for money for me, with the exception of a few small side gigs that netted me a couple of hundred dollars over time. Sometimes I'm excited at a pay raise I've gotten changing jobs, or excited that I actually got a job after being unemployed for a while - but that was all in the past. Even with my current job, I often enjoy my co-workers, but would almost always rather be somewhere else, doing something else if I had the ability to do so.

I'm not moping about either, and with my current job I often don't mind going in - but I've never been excited to go to work for the work.



At almost 15 years, I mainly don't care about much that has to do with the job after I walk out the door. I've learned to switch it off. At work, "going with the flow" is like a legitimate super power.


So is the "shiny new penny" period on a new job about 90 days? 

90 days sounds about right in my estimation. It is about then that most of the disfunction of a role is solidified. It is when my frame of mind shifts from "I must not be understanding this yet" to "These f****** don't have any idea how this works or how it can be manipulated". At about 1.5-2 years I am shifting to "I have improved what I have the political power to improve and the rest can go to hell. Just don't come to me when it does."
I'm good at switching it off, always have been, but in the high level executive jobs I finally used the buffer some of my FU money allows to leave, when someone is calling you our screaming at you, you cannot exactly "switch that off". 

What I was asking about was more the inner "excitement" of this is new and fun and I am invigorated to go in before it just turns into a job that I go to every day until I can not do that with FIRE in 10 years.

catprog

  • 5 O'Clock Shadow
  • *
  • Posts: 64
Re: 2029 FIRE Cohort
« Reply #226 on: June 23, 2019, 12:37:01 AM »
My current plan is 2029.

This is determined by 10 years of a job giving you long service leave. (I was working for a different company before but they fired me just short of the 5 years that applies on termination. )

DeskJockey2028

  • Pencil Stache
  • ****
  • Posts: 899
  • Aiming for 2028
Re: 2029 FIRE Cohort
« Reply #227 on: June 24, 2019, 08:10:11 AM »
Welcome Catprog! Do your cats like progressive music or do you like progressive cats?

My current plan is 2029.

This is determined by 10 years of a job giving you long service leave. (I was working for a different company before but they fired me just short of the 5 years that applies on termination. )

catprog

  • 5 O'Clock Shadow
  • *
  • Posts: 64
Re: 2029 FIRE Cohort
« Reply #228 on: June 28, 2019, 07:35:25 PM »
Is actually the name me and my friend came up with for a programing company. But I moved and took it on as a nickname

BuffaloStache

  • Handlebar Stache
  • *****
  • Posts: 1298
  • Location: The boring middle accumulation phase
Re: 2029 FIRE Cohort
« Reply #229 on: July 05, 2019, 11:22:03 AM »
Welcome and good luck!

catprog

  • 5 O'Clock Shadow
  • *
  • Posts: 64
Re: 2029 FIRE Cohort
« Reply #230 on: July 08, 2019, 02:31:16 AM »
I have just discovered a bug in my spreadsheet. My total had been based on projections from January. 

This meant that instead of being 20k behind the original plan(due to replacement car and job loss) I was only 10k behind.

DeskJockey2028

  • Pencil Stache
  • ****
  • Posts: 899
  • Aiming for 2028
Re: 2029 FIRE Cohort
« Reply #231 on: July 08, 2019, 07:15:50 AM »
Bank error in your favor!

DeskJockey2028

  • Pencil Stache
  • ****
  • Posts: 899
  • Aiming for 2028
Re: 2029 FIRE Cohort
« Reply #232 on: July 22, 2019, 05:54:53 AM »
Today, at 4am local time, marks 20% of the way to 2029! That's 1/5th of the way there! We're starting to show some serious progress here. 3,452 days to the first day of 2029! Less than 9.5 years and way less than the nearly 4,300 we started this cohort with.

Welcome to 15% of the way to 1/1/29! Hope everyone had a decent year and that 2019 brings more good things and more retirement funds!  In 215 days or so, that is, next July, we'll be 1/5th of the way there! We're currently 3,665 days away from 1/1/29. If anyone's interested, we're also 646 days from the day I started this thread!

And just like that, we're in double digits. Happy 10% day! 1/10th of the way to 2029!

Hey all! Tomorrow, Saturday the 14th, is 5% day! Look at that, we've already more than doubled our previous 2% milestone. :) Hope to see you all again on May 18th, 2018 for 10% day!

Happy 2% day!

bbates728

  • Stubble
  • **
  • Posts: 217
  • Age: 30
  • Location: PNW
Re: 2029 FIRE Cohort
« Reply #233 on: July 22, 2019, 01:14:55 PM »
I may not have been here back in 2017 when this started but I am still going to claim that 20% figure.

Are you all going to do anything fun to commemorate this nice bonus milestone?

caracarn

  • Handlebar Stache
  • *****
  • Posts: 1920
  • Age: 53
  • Location: Ohio
Re: 2029 FIRE Cohort
« Reply #234 on: July 22, 2019, 02:02:26 PM »
I am going to go to work this week and contribute to my 401(k), like I will do every week between now and my 2029 graduation.

DeskJockey2028

  • Pencil Stache
  • ****
  • Posts: 899
  • Aiming for 2028
Re: 2029 FIRE Cohort
« Reply #235 on: July 22, 2019, 02:23:10 PM »
Well, it's business as usual for me too.  Still a decent way to go until I get to my 100%.

bbates728

  • Stubble
  • **
  • Posts: 217
  • Age: 30
  • Location: PNW
Re: 2029 FIRE Cohort
« Reply #236 on: July 22, 2019, 04:54:53 PM »
I am going to go to work this week and contribute to my 401(k), like I will do every week between now and my 2029 graduation.

Bahh. I don't get excited for holidays or anniversaries or what not but I do like to enjoy the milestones. I expect my wife and I may open up a bottle of wine and cook a nice dinner or go out for a beer or something to enjoy our small slice of success.

It doesn't hurt that we are $500 below budget for the month so far though. Takes any sting out of a $20-$30 celebration.

caracarn

  • Handlebar Stache
  • *****
  • Posts: 1920
  • Age: 53
  • Location: Ohio
Re: 2029 FIRE Cohort
« Reply #237 on: July 23, 2019, 08:31:39 AM »
Yes, that would be nice.  We've got so much going on that I've actually been very bad this month at keeping up with my YNAB, the first time in about 5 years that has happened.  I've not looked at it in almost two weeks, so we may have gotten into trouble.  It is on my list for tonight (which is was for the last week, so here's hoping....).

We've got a vacation coming up so trying to avoid a lot of spending as there will be plenty then.

BuffaloStache

  • Handlebar Stache
  • *****
  • Posts: 1298
  • Location: The boring middle accumulation phase
Re: 2029 FIRE Cohort
« Reply #238 on: July 29, 2019, 08:03:08 AM »
...We've got so much going on that I've actually been very bad this month at keeping up with my YNAB, the first time in about 5 years that has happened...

We've got a vacation coming up so trying to avoid a lot of spending as there will be plenty then.

This was me in July as well- I did go on vacation, and had a lot of car repair work/home work that costed lots of money. Here's to recovering in August!

mizzourah2006

  • Handlebar Stache
  • *****
  • Posts: 1067
  • Location: NWA
Re: 2029 FIRE Cohort
« Reply #239 on: July 29, 2019, 09:03:07 AM »
I've been tracking my monthly expenses for the past few years and this year is hard to look at :)

This is the first full year we've had 2 kids in daycare (and we switched to a slightly more expensive daycare last September). Plus we just paid to replace our carpeted rooms with wood and my wife and I recently got into mountain biking, which basically ate up my entire spot bonus from June :)

We're still perfectly on track, but it's just hard to look at the monthly aggregation compared to previous years. We are on track to spend about 33% more this year than last year, but 40% of that is the flooring, 26% was mountain bikes and 15% of it is an additional kid in daycare for 12 months vs. 8 months last year, so that accounts for about 80% of the increased expenses.



talltexan

  • Walrus Stache
  • *******
  • Posts: 5344
Re: 2029 FIRE Cohort
« Reply #240 on: August 05, 2019, 12:17:22 PM »
Daycare is expensive. My youngest is 4.5 years old, so we're starting to see some rolloff of expenses there, and it is amazing!

FireDAD

  • Stubble
  • **
  • Posts: 130
  • Location: Northern Colorado Mountains
  • firedad.blog
    • FireDAD Blog
Re: 2029 FIRE Cohort
« Reply #241 on: August 13, 2019, 11:02:01 AM »
Today I deposited $4,000 bringing my total saved in 2019 to $50k! This is the first time in my life I've been able to save that much in 1 year, let alone by August! Just wanted to share the excitement.

BuffaloStache

  • Handlebar Stache
  • *****
  • Posts: 1298
  • Location: The boring middle accumulation phase
Re: 2029 FIRE Cohort
« Reply #242 on: August 15, 2019, 01:45:00 PM »
Daycare is expensive. My youngest is 4.5 years old, so we're starting to see some rolloff of expenses there, and it is amazing!

I'm solidly in the daycare boat right now and can't wait to get to this point- congrats! Childcare is insanely expensive in the US, and I think it's a significant challenge to anyone seeking FI while having a young family.

bbates728

  • Stubble
  • **
  • Posts: 217
  • Age: 30
  • Location: PNW
Re: 2029 FIRE Cohort
« Reply #243 on: August 19, 2019, 11:24:14 AM »
Today I deposited $4,000 bringing my total saved in 2019 to $50k! This is the first time in my life I've been able to save that much in 1 year, let alone by August! Just wanted to share the excitement.

Congratulations! I am excited to total mine up at the end of the year. I know it is going to be $50k or greater as I have seen my loan balances decrease. I am stoked to look at our 401k balances and add those in too.

BuffaloStache

  • Handlebar Stache
  • *****
  • Posts: 1298
  • Location: The boring middle accumulation phase
Re: 2029 FIRE Cohort
« Reply #244 on: September 12, 2019, 01:10:47 PM »
Since we have a lot of new people on this thread since the initial discussion, I thought I'd bring back the idea of "Coast Age" that DeskJockey mentioned before:

Coasting

I cribbed this from my journal but thought it'd be interesting to see other '29ers numbers.

Have you figured out your coast age? It's a neat little number that designates at what age you could retire if you put $0.00 into your funds from here on out, and assume a specific, average rate of return over the course of your investing life. The formula goes like this: "=LN((1+7%)^A*B/C)/ln((1+7%))" and I totally stole that from some reddit thread a while back.

A is my age. B is my goal invested dollars (I use current expenses*25). C is my investment portfolio value and 7% is the expected return of my portfolio. I've been tracking this once a month for over a year, making a few adjustments here and there. This is what it looks like for the past 11 months. It's the age at which I could coast into retirement followed by the date I tracked it.

67.79 as of 8/27/17
67.25 as of 9/26/17
66.33 as of 11/27/17
65.86 as of 12/21/17
65.14 as of 1/22/18
65.45 as of 4/5/18
64.70 as of 5/22/18
64.44 as of 6/27/18
64.87 as of 7/26/18

That slight bump at the end there is because I've aged another year.

I'd put about as much stock into this as I do into my other crystal ball type equations - but it's fun to track, and gives you a good idea of how your current money is working for you. Plus I'm still getting out almost 9 years earlier than my current coast age. The two should converge together by the time I'm ready to jump out of the old FIRE airplane.


My initial coast age was 58.07 on 9/21/2018, but that was before I bought a house. Unfortunately, post house purchase, my current coast age is 64.40 as of 09/12/2019. Since the house was our last major ($50k+) purchase before FI, I'm still happy that my coast age is below 65 and has been trending in the right direction.

DeskJockey2028

  • Pencil Stache
  • ****
  • Posts: 899
  • Aiming for 2028
Re: 2029 FIRE Cohort
« Reply #245 on: September 12, 2019, 01:13:17 PM »
At 64 years and 3 months right now. But I expect that to keep dropping! :)

caracarn

  • Handlebar Stache
  • *****
  • Posts: 1920
  • Age: 53
  • Location: Ohio
Re: 2029 FIRE Cohort
« Reply #246 on: September 12, 2019, 02:26:00 PM »
64.49

catprog

  • 5 O'Clock Shadow
  • *
  • Posts: 64
Re: 2029 FIRE Cohort
« Reply #247 on: September 12, 2019, 02:50:05 PM »
58ish for me.

(Being Australian I am forced to put money into super so I count that as savings.)

65.5ish if I could somehow get the money that was going into supper.

bbates728

  • Stubble
  • **
  • Posts: 217
  • Age: 30
  • Location: PNW
Re: 2029 FIRE Cohort
« Reply #248 on: September 12, 2019, 04:08:08 PM »
I'm at 80 but it decreases quickly when I put in my 5k of savings each month.

Philociraptor

  • Handlebar Stache
  • *****
  • Posts: 1131
  • Age: 34
  • Location: NTX
  • Eat. Sleep. Invest. Repeat.
Re: 2029 FIRE Cohort
« Reply #249 on: September 13, 2019, 06:44:14 AM »
Coast age, what an interesting concept! When we first started tracking it was 82, over the past 5 years it has dropped to 49 (currently 30).

 

Wow, a phone plan for fifteen bucks!