I'm not particularly interested in FIRE as a goal, but I wonder if my family might get there accidentally (which, of course, makes me wonder how much more quickly we could get there if we actually worked toward that goal).
I know our approximate annual expenditure. Per MMM himself, multiply that by approximately 25 to get a rough guesstimate of the necessary nest egg.
I know how much we are saving for retirement/ generally investing each month, and I know how much we have "saved" to date.
I put "saved" in quotes, because that amount is partially our actual savings, and partially the investment returns on that principle. Lemme tell you, there's no way we're going to be able to retire early without investment returns, and it might be difficult to retire at all without them!
So, when calculating how long I expect it will take for our family to become financially independent, how do I factor in investment returns? Let's say I am aiming for approximately $900,000 in "savings" - how much do I actually need to save, and how much might I count on the magic of compounding interest?
How have you all calculated your retirement dates?
Please and thank you!