Hi Folks,
Very first post. Connected to MMM via a link in Lifehacker last week. I have been devouring the content here and just wading into the forums. My mind is whirling and I am thinking that, holy shit, I could quit my job tomorrow. Please rain on my parade, cover me with a wet blanket, tell me I am wrong....and tell me why.
Data:
Me, turning 55 this summer
Wife 47
Kid 4, one year of preschool left
House: Own it outright, value ~$550,000; efficiency apartment rented out that almost covers utilities and taxes.
Retirement (401K and IRAs): $610K for me; $250K for wife
Non-retirement investments: $480K
Adequate education fund in lump sum for kids college (not sure amount, it is on my wife's ledger)
When we had a financial analyst run scenarios a few years ago, she plugged in social security starting at 67 for both of us beginning at $27,000.
Annual expenses: perhaps 55-60K, haven't tracked it that closely, but could recreate from bank/cc statements (obviously could be reduced, especially given that our rental covers property tax and utilities, I hear you seasoned ones coughing into your sleeves)
When I run FIRECalc and the flexibleretirement monte carlo calculator, I come up looking great for immediate retirement. 100% success. I have played around with the parameters, etc and the only challenging ones are when I crank up the expense to 75k or more
So please please please tell me where the deep flaw in my logic is. Help me see through the fog, oh seasoned mustachioed ones.
Both wife and I have pretty cool jobs in the non-profit sector doing important work so don't necessarily want to pull the plug tomorrow. And we have lots of fun ideas and skills that could be parlayed into income in the future. But just the emotional freedom to contemplate employment freedom (an option, not a necessity) has been mind-blowing to me for the past few days.
thanks in advance. This site is great and I look forward to being part of the dialog
Rand