Author Topic: Broke the 500k mark  (Read 2626 times)

mr shankly

  • 5 O'Clock Shadow
  • *
  • Posts: 11
Broke the 500k mark
« on: May 15, 2017, 10:26:17 AM »
Was checking Personal Capital the other day and it appears DW and I broke the $500k mark in our 401k & IRA.

Nowhere else to "brag" where they'd understand  :)

Been putting 25% into 401k since early last year (been saving there for years but really started ramping up after paying off the house in 2016 ... I make around ~ $75k with overtime)

Was able to hit this number mainly because my company disbursed everyone's pension early as a lump sum, based on age & years of service. Most folks retire from here at 55.  That bumped our retirement savings up by $150k or so all at once, which was great.

I'm 47 ... biggest problem I can see now is that we have very little in taxable savings. Almost all of it is locked up in the 401 and IRA, so I guess that's the next thing to figure out before FIRE, along with dialing in our spending some more. There are face-punch moments here and there.

Our target number is ~ $600k ... the youngest squirrel still has 3 years of high school, so part of me says keep working until he graduates, but man... early retirement is getting really tempting.  :D

DieHard_772

  • Pencil Stache
  • ****
  • Posts: 511
  • Location: California
Re: Broke the 500k mark
« Reply #1 on: May 16, 2017, 09:53:28 AM »
That is awesome! Congrats

FrugalFisherman10

  • Bristles
  • ***
  • Posts: 390
    • Fly Fishing Photo Project
Re: Broke the 500k mark
« Reply #2 on: May 16, 2017, 11:28:06 AM »
That's awesome! I'm planning to hit $100k this year and I'm pumped about it.

There are ways to access your 'locked up' money. If you don't know about them already, they include some of the following strategies for example:
1.Your Contributions to taxable/Post-tax retirement accounts (like a Roth IRA) are generally withdrawable without penalty and without tax (this excludes any growth). "For Roth IRAs, you can always remove post-tax contributions (also known as "basis") from your Roth IRA without penalty. "
2. Contributions to a Roth 401k are generally withdrawable without penalty and without tax.
"If a withdrawal is made from a Roth 401(k) account that does not meet the above criteria, it is considered "unqualified" and incurs income taxes. However, taxes are only assessed on the earnings portion of the withdrawal. Since Roth contributions are made with after-tax dollars, you do not need to pay taxes on that portion again."
3. Additionally, there is all the stuff about building a Roth Ladder with your accounts, letting them 'season' for five years etc. Research Roth Ladder if you haven't already. Seems to take a little planning but very doable.

Best