The Money Mustache Community
General Discussion => Throw Down the Gauntlet => Topic started by: SwordGuy on September 26, 2019, 09:36:41 PM
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For the last 3 years, I've been hosting a poll on the forum that asks how close people are to FI.
There are lots of "Race to $X Net Worth" threads but, honestly, that doesn't tell anyone how close someone is to being FI in terms of passive income already achieved.
If you're aiming for a given amount of passive income, via whatever plan you're using, how close are you?
For example, if you're aiming for a passive income of $40,000 using a 4% SWR via a 100% stocks and bonds portfolio, and your portfolio is now worth $500,000, you're at 50%.
If you're planning on $20,000 in rental profits and $20,000 in stock/bond profits at a 5% withdrawal rate, then if your current rental profits are $12,000 and your stock/bond portfolio is $160,000, you're at 50%, too.
If you're going to sell your $500,000 paid for house with a realtor and buy a $200,000 house and invest the rest at in stocks and bonds with a 4% SWR, then you can count the equity as $300,000 * .094 (less realtor costs) as $282,000, which would shed off $11280. Technically you have zero passive income, from this source, but, heck, the purpose is to figure out how close you are, and you're a lot closer than someone who doesn't have $300,000 in house equity that they can (and will) convert to stocks!
Oh, if you've got a $500,000 paid for house but you're not going to sell it when you FIRE, it counts as $0 towards your target income.
If you have stock options or a pension that you aren't vested in yet, technically, you may not have anything (unless the pension has some kind of cash out option for early terminations). But again, if you will be vesting in 5 years and feel relatively sure you'll get there, you could pro-rate it to get an idea of how well your plan is working. (But if it was me, I would calculate two numbers, one if things go according to plan and one where they don't and they never vest to full value, and track both of them. I would do the same if I was counting on student loan forgiveness programs, just in case the government cancels them and screws people over.)
If you have the info, show us your FI percentage over the last few years.
I'm curious! Enquiring minds want to know! :)
You can see last few year's polls here if you're interested in comparing results:
https://forum.mrmoneymustache.com/welcome-to-the-forum/what's-your-current-of-your-target-passive-income-as-of-eoy-2018/
https://forum.mrmoneymustache.com/welcome-to-the-forum/what's-your-current-eoy-2017-of-your-target-passive-income/
https://forum.mrmoneymustache.com/welcome-to-the-forum/how-close-to-fi-are-you-what's-your-current-of-your-target-passive-income
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I can’t see polls on damn Tapatalk so I’ve bookmarked this to go back later on a computer. Last time we updated the spreadsheet it said 97% there.
My husband does want to find the time to dig deeply into the numbers and philosophy behind everything I’ve put together to truly believe that The Number really is The Number. So he feels a little uncertain but I don’t.
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I can’t see polls on damn Tapatalk so I’ve bookmarked this to go back later on a computer. Last time we updated the spreadsheet it said 97% there.
My husband does want to find the time to dig deeply into the numbers and philosophy behind everything I’ve put together to truly believe that The Number really is The Number. So he feels a little uncertain but I don’t.
I didn't add a poll to this one. More like the other "Race threads" was the idea.
Think I should add a poll? It will take a couple days, I'm travelling for a few. Hitting the sack now.
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Haha, don’t ask my opinion as I won’t see it if you do add one. :)
Sorry for the confusion on my part.
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Good idea. However, if you chose to pay off your mortgage early rather than invest it would give a low % of passive income to FI.
We have a paid for house but our invested assets are only about 30% of FIRE level but I'd say we're more like 60% of the way to FIRE from starting with no house and no investments. At least no mortgage means lower expenses and our % should increase quickly.
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Good idea. However, if you chose to pay off your mortgage early rather than invest it would give a low % of passive income to FI.
We have a paid for house but our invested assets are only about 30% of FIRE level but I'd say we're more like 60% of the way to FIRE from starting with no house and no investments. At least no mortgage means lower expenses and our % should increase quickly.
That doesn’t make a lot of sense to me. It should be (approximately) six of one, half dozen of the other. Either your investments are going up or your planned expenses in FI are going down. Your needed investments shouldn’t include the cost of a mortgage in perpetuity.
For example, my FI number is an investment stash needed to support our expected living plus a lump sum equal to the outstanding mortgage balance.
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I just looked at the old polls and realized I voted exactly the same all three years (40 - 50%)! I guess we're probably 50 - 60% now/finally.
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This topic is a good idea. As per my calculations, we are now well over 100% of the way to FI in my household.
Our situation in a nutshell - thanks to well paying jobs (especially in the past 5 years), we have met all of our targets. I quit my megacorp job and am working at a very risky tech startup for the fun of it (although it pays pretty well). Wife enjoys her job and has no plans to quit anytime soon. I hope to completely retire next year.
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Added a poll. This poll has no expiration date.
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We're in the 110%+ and FIRED group. We're ridiculously above 110% but on personal financial topics, I'm very conservative. :)
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Ah shoot. I fat-fingered my response and now it doesn’t look like I can go back an edit it. Can you unlock?
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Answered 80-90% and not FIREd. If we downsize the house by my estimated amount, we'd be at 85%. Currently with invested assets only we're at 75%.
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Ah shoot. I fat-fingered my response and now it doesn’t look like I can go back an edit it. Can you unlock?
Doesn't seem to be an option. :(
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We're in the 110%+ and FIRED group. We're ridiculously above 110% but on personal financial topics, I'm very conservative. :)
+1
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Bam
In chrono order for your polls
40-50%
50-60%
70-80%
and now 100-110% and FIREd as of next week, age 32.
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Ah shoot. I fat-fingered my response and now it doesn’t look like I can go back an edit it. Can you unlock?
Doesn't seem to be an option. :(
Moderators, is there any way to change the poll so people can change their vote?
This thread will be more useful over time if they can.
Thanks!
MOD EDIT: Done! Thanks for using the "report to moderator" button.
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More categories might be helpful as well. We are probably 200% and FIRED because I was a big scaredy cat.
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Thanks for fixing the poll! I have corrected my answer.
My spreadsheet last night said 99% and we are not FIREd.
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More categories might be helpful as well. We are probably 200% and FIRED because I was a big scaredy cat.
I've been (somewhat rightly!) accused of that. But the 110%+ category covers that. At 110% of your FIRE number, you've pretty much won. :)
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Thanks for fixing the poll! I have corrected my answer.
My spreadsheet last night said 99% and we are not FIREd.
Soooooo close!
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I chose 100.01 to 110% and NOT FIRED.
But it is not entirely true. It does require that we can sell our home for a certain minimum price. We only have about 40% or our FIRE sum in stocks and cash, the rest is in our home. Still, we have chosen to FIRE in Jan 2020, regardless of whether we manage to sell our home before that time. We are putting it for sale at the end of this month though, but things could take time.
In worst case, if we really can't get the right price, we should perhaps consider going back to work after taking a year off.
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Well that's depressing.
1.4% to 3.9% over the last 12 months.
Well, adding today's contributions makes it 4.0%. Woo...
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Well that's depressing.
1.4% to 3.9% over the last 12 months.
It is super slow in the beginning because you are doing all the lifting yourself. I remember starting out with saving and investing and meticulously updating my net worth each week, plotting it and waiting for the curve to start looking exponential. It probably did around the time I gave up plotting and focused on other things in life. ;-)
Now the growth rate of our investments is wild due to compound interest. It feels like we started the race crawling, then sprinted, and now are taking a race car to the finish line.
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Well that's depressing.
1.4% to 3.9% over the last 12 months.
It is super slow in the beginning because you are doing all the lifting yourself. I remember starting out with saving and investing and meticulously updating my net worth each week, plotting it and waiting for the curve to start looking exponential. It probably did around the time I gave up plotting and focused on other things in life. ;-)
Now the growth rate of our investments is wild due to compound interest. It feels like we started the race crawling, then sprinted, and now are taking a race car to the finish line.
I was cleaning up some papers when I came across my very first 401k statement from early in 1993. I had a grand total of $613 in my account. Like @ysette9 I used to watch the numbers increase painfully slowly. However those early investments are what allowed me to reach FI 25 years later.
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Well that's depressing.
1.4% to 3.9% over the last 12 months.
It is super slow in the beginning because you are doing all the lifting yourself. I remember starting out with saving and investing and meticulously updating my net worth each week, plotting it and waiting for the curve to start looking exponential. It probably did around the time I gave up plotting and focused on other things in life. ;-)
Now the growth rate of our investments is wild due to compound interest. It feels like we started the race crawling, then sprinted, and now are taking a race car to the finish line.
It really does seem horribly slow. The only thing that's even slower is getting from the negative percentages to 0%, because then you're fighting the interest.
@DadJokes, what's your savings rate?
PS -- the upcoming recession will be GREAT for you! You'll be buying stocks on sale, so don't worry about your FI % dropping when it hits. It will be a blessing for you (assuming you stay employed).
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Well that's depressing.
1.4% to 3.9% over the last 12 months.
It is super slow in the beginning because you are doing all the lifting yourself. I remember starting out with saving and investing and meticulously updating my net worth each week, plotting it and waiting for the curve to start looking exponential. It probably did around the time I gave up plotting and focused on other things in life. ;-)
Now the growth rate of our investments is wild due to compound interest. It feels like we started the race crawling, then sprinted, and now are taking a race car to the finish line.
It really does seem horribly slow. The only thing that's even slower is getting from the negative percentages to 0%, because then you're fighting the interest.
@DadJokes, what's your savings rate?
PS -- the upcoming recession will be GREAT for you! You'll be buying stocks on sale, so don't worry about your FI % dropping when it hits. It will be a blessing for you (assuming you stay employed).
I'm not actually depressed. My savings rate varies between 45-50% (or add another 5% if you count mortgage principal). The net worth is growing well enough that I'm pleased, but that small percentage is a bit of a gut punch. I'm just an impatient person. I know it'll be a 10-15 year journey, but that doesn't stop me from wanting faster results.
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Well that's depressing.
1.4% to 3.9% over the last 12 months.
It is super slow in the beginning because you are doing all the lifting yourself. I remember starting out with saving and investing and meticulously updating my net worth each week, plotting it and waiting for the curve to start looking exponential. It probably did around the time I gave up plotting and focused on other things in life. ;-)
Now the growth rate of our investments is wild due to compound interest. It feels like we started the race crawling, then sprinted, and now are taking a race car to the finish line.
It really does seem horribly slow. The only thing that's even slower is getting from the negative percentages to 0%, because then you're fighting the interest.
@DadJokes, what's your savings rate?
PS -- the upcoming recession will be GREAT for you! You'll be buying stocks on sale, so don't worry about your FI % dropping when it hits. It will be a blessing for you (assuming you stay employed).
I'm not actually depressed. My savings rate varies between 45-50% (or add another 5% if you count mortgage principal). The net worth is growing well enough that I'm pleased, but that small percentage is a bit of a gut punch. I'm just an impatient person. I know it'll be a 10-15 year journey, but that doesn't stop me from wanting faster results.
Oh, that's great! You're going to make real progress at that savings rate.
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I like this poll/race a lot, far more comparable.
Okay, I have the numbers for end of the quarter and including all our accounts settling under our control. We FIREd end of March 2019, but it took a while for everything to clear (and I only update quarterly, ha).
We picked our FIRE date by date not dollar and are willing to draw more than 4% (more like 4.5%), but given the lovely ranges of the survey that puts us in the 90-100% range using either calculation.
Using today's numbers as 100% for easy math we have:
2019: 100%
2018: 71% (actually down $104 between these two years)
2017: 71%
2016: 49%
2015: 39%
2014: 27%
2013: 19%
Loren
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I like this poll/race a lot, far more comparable.
Okay, I have the numbers for end of the quarter and including all our accounts settling under our control. We FIREd end of March 2019, but it took a while for everything to clear (and I only update quarterly, ha).
We picked our FIRE date by date not dollar and are willing to draw more than 4% (more like 4.5%), but given the lovely ranges of the survey that puts us in the 90-100% range using either calculation.
Using today's numbers as 100% for easy math we have:
2019: 100%
2018: 71% (actually down $104 between these two years)
2017: 71%
2016: 49%
2015: 39%
2014: 27%
2013: 19%
Loren
Very nice progress over not a whole lot of years.
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Thanks for linking the other surveys. Looks like as of Dec 2017 timeframe I was 30-40%. Then Dec 2018 I was 40-50%. Now I'm at 61%! Somedays I feel like I am still SO FAR AWAY from FIRE, a great reminder that it really picks up steam as you continue along the journey. =D
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Thanks for linking the other surveys. Looks like as of Dec 2017 timeframe I was 30-40%. Then Dec 2018 I was 40-50%. Now I'm at 61%! Somedays I feel like I am still SO FAR AWAY from FIRE, a great reminder that it really picks up steam as you continue along the journey. =D
It really is amazing how that compounding works!
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I put 50%, but my numbers are really fuzzy right now, because I'm not sure what my mortgage will end up being next year. But I'm far enough along, that I went part-time at work.
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I got to 100.5% at the end of September.
Now that the math has taken care of itself I need to get myself “in shape” for the life change.
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I put 50%, but my numbers are really fuzzy right now, because I'm not sure what my mortgage will end up being next year. But I'm far enough along, that I went part-time at work.
50% and part time work is WAY BETTER than most people manage! Congrats!
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I got to 100.5% at the end of September.
Now that the math has taken care of itself I need to get myself “in shape” for the life change.
Way to go!!!
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I got to 100.5% at the end of September.
Now that the math has taken care of itself I need to get myself “in shape” for the life change.
Way to go!!!
That is awesome. As someone sitting on the cusp, I’m curious if you felt any different once you officially passed the 100% line? I feel like once we do it will be anti-climactic and we won’t really believe it. Being at 97% or whatever the last spreadsheet update said doesn’t feel like we are solid enough to pull the plug.
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I got to 100.5% at the end of September.
Now that the math has taken care of itself I need to get myself “in shape” for the life change.
Way to go!!!
That is awesome. As someone sitting on the cusp, I’m curious if you felt any different once you officially passed the 100% line? I feel like once we do it will be anti-climactic and we won’t really believe it. Being at 97% or whatever the last spreadsheet update said doesn’t feel like we are solid enough to pull the plug.
I'm not @ScreamingHeadGuy, but I remember passing 100%. For me, it was anticlimactic. I knew for years that I was doing all the proper things, and that the math of exponential growth was inevitably going to get me there as long as catastrophe didn't strike.
After I hit 100%, I did start to think about it a lot more pragmatically. Like which time of year would I actually retire, how much notice would I give, which accounts would I pull from first, etc. I started to think of the actual implementation stuff of actually FIREing.
Along with that, I decided sometime before FIREing to do the Roth conversion ladder, so I asked questions about that, and in my case started tracking a secondary goal of having five years of living expenses in after-tax locations. I hit that point pretty quickly after hitting FI.
It can take quite a while to "feel FIREd" after actually being FI and even being FIREd. I was FI 5 years ago, REd 3 years ago, and probably only in the last six months or so have I actually feel like I'm legitimately OK financially. There are certainly feelings of "Yay, I don't have to go to work (because I quit)!" and "Man, this is better than a 9-5!" but actually believing that I don't have to go back has taken until very recently.
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I'm glad you included these FIRED / NOT FIRED categories SwordGuy (as well as the detailed descriptions and links to past surveys), interesting stuff. If only we had thousands of responses to see if there was any statistical significance!
80.01 to 90% and FIRED 3 (4.2%)
80.01 to 90% and NOT FIRED 5 (6.9%)
90.01 to 100% and FIRED 1 (1.4%)
90.01 to 100% and NOT FIRED 3 (4.2%)
100.01 to 110% and FIRED 3 (4.2%)
100.01 to 110% and NOT FIRED 6 (8.3%)
110.01 and up, and FIRED 6 (8.3%)
110.01 and up, and NOT FIRED 4 (5.6%)
Edit to add - I haven't voted yet. I think I'm 110.01 and up, and NOT FIRED
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Currently, I have a single family rental which cashflows about $500/mo net, plus am renting my basement on airbnb for about $1,100 net (average-- it fluctuates much higher in the summer, and much lower in the winter). My FI/RE goal is $2,000-2,500/month passive income, which puts me at about 70-75% complete. Once I finish the remodel and landscaping of the rest of the house, I will be able to rent the whole place out much more lucratively and that will put me near or over 100%.
Or conversely, I am basically barista-FIRE right now. My current project (other than the major house remodel/landscaping) is to get my income up above median from the ~$30k/yr that it's been for the last 9-ish years.
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I'm glad you included these FIRED / NOT FIRED categories SwordGuy (as well as the detailed descriptions and links to past surveys), interesting stuff. If only we had thousands of responses to see if there was any statistical significance!
80.01 to 90% and FIRED 3 (4.2%)
80.01 to 90% and NOT FIRED 5 (6.9%)
90.01 to 100% and FIRED 1 (1.4%)
90.01 to 100% and NOT FIRED 3 (4.2%)
100.01 to 110% and FIRED 3 (4.2%)
100.01 to 110% and NOT FIRED 6 (8.3%)
110.01 and up, and FIRED 6 (8.3%)
110.01 and up, and NOT FIRED 4 (5.6%)
Edit to add - I haven't voted yet. I think I'm 110.01 and up, and NOT FIRED
My hope is that, over time, most forum users will use this to record where they are. (Plus fill out the yearly, point in time ones.)
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Currently, I have a single family rental which cashflows about $500/mo net, plus am renting my basement on airbnb for about $1,100 net (average-- it fluctuates much higher in the summer, and much lower in the winter). My FI/RE goal is $2,000-2,500/month passive income, which puts me at about 70-75% complete. Once I finish the remodel and landscaping of the rest of the house, I will be able to rent the whole place out much more lucratively and that will put me near or over 100%.
Or conversely, I am basically barista-FIRE right now. My current project (other than the major house remodel/landscaping) is to get my income up above median from the ~$30k/yr that it's been for the last 9-ish years.
I salute you! That's pretty awesome for your income!
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I'm not @ScreamingHeadGuy, but I remember passing 100%. For me, it was anticlimactic. I knew for years that I was doing all the proper things, and that the math of exponential growth was inevitably going to get me there as long as catastrophe didn't strike.
After I hit 100%, I did start to think about it a lot more pragmatically. Like which time of year would I actually retire, how much notice would I give, which accounts would I pull from first, etc. I started to think of the actual implementation stuff of actually FIREing.
Same here.
It can take quite a while to "feel FIREd" after actually being FI and even being FIREd. I was FI 5 years ago, REd 3 years ago, and probably only in the last six months or so have I actually feel like I'm legitimately OK financially. There are certainly feelings of "Yay, I don't have to go to work (because I quit)!" and "Man, this is better than a 9-5!" but actually believing that I don't have to go back has taken until very recently.
18 months since we FIRED and about 3 years since FI. I'm still adjusting.
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I got to 100.5% at the end of September.
Now that the math has taken care of itself I need to get myself “in shape” for the life change.
Way to go!!!
That is awesome. As someone sitting on the cusp, I’m curious if you felt any different once you officially passed the 100% line? I feel like once we do it will be anti-climactic and we won’t really believe it. Being at 97% or whatever the last spreadsheet update said doesn’t feel like we are solid enough to pull the plug.
No, I didn’t feel any difference on 9/30. I didn’t feel any different back in July when my stache spent a few days above 100%, either. As others have said it doesn’t “feel real” to me yet. There is a detached rational part of my brain that understands the import of the numbers, but that has yet to translate to anything in my life. So I’d say anticlimactic is a good description - after so many years of investing it was fait accompli.
I will see how the next few month to a year go and maybe move up my RE date by a few months. In the meantime it’s all about making the best of my life now in preparation of a change.
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Delurking after an extended forum hiatus to vote, 30.01-40% range.
Since the beginning of the journey toward FI/RE, the goalposts of the "am-I-FI" calculation have moved considerably. At some point soon I'm hoping I'll get a chance to reboot/necropost in my mothballed journal to talk more at length about this, but the TLDR version is that a lot of life happened, and my goals evolved. For one, it isn't all about "my" goals anymore, as I am not on this journey alone anymore (replace "my" with "our" - I found a keeper!). "Our" FI/RE target number is a lot higher than one that only included myself (duh), and it also includes big financial decisions I would almost certainly not have made by myself (buying a fixer-upper house, pets, etc.). Now that there are two of us pulling the sled, it will be interesting to see if/how we can continue to move the needle.
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For the last 3 years, I've been hosting a poll on the forum that asks how close people are to FI.
There are lots of "Race to $X Net Worth" threads but, honestly, that doesn't tell anyone how close someone is to being FI in terms of passive income already achieved.
If you're aiming for a given amount of passive income, via whatever plan you're using, how close are you?
For example, if you're aiming for a passive income of $40,000 using a 4% SWR via a 100% stocks and bonds portfolio, and your portfolio is now worth $500,000, you're at 50%.
If you're planning on $20,000 in rental profits and $20,000 in stock/bond profits at a 5% withdrawal rate, then if your current rental profits are $12,000 and your stock/bond portfolio is $160,000, you're at 50%, too.
If you're going to sell your $500,000 paid for house with a realtor and buy a $200,000 house and invest the rest at in stocks and bonds with a 4% SWR, then you can count the equity as $300,000 * .094 (less realtor costs) as $282,000, which would shed off $11280. Technically you have zero passive income, from this source, but, heck, the purpose is to figure out how close you are, and you're a lot closer than someone who doesn't have $300,000 in house equity that they can (and will) convert to stocks!
If you have the info, show us your FI percentage over the last few years.
I'm curious! Enquiring minds want to know! :)
Interesting exercise
I’m in my mid-40s... I haven’t calculated “100% FI” like this before, but I’m game...
Using your example, if I’m aiming for $40k passive... assets generate over $200k passive (honestly not sure how much over, but it’s a good lower-bound estimate) so the answer is ~500+%
Or we can use a goal of $80k passive (as a couple)... so we’re at ~250+%
We probably hit 100% passive when I hit early-mid 30s (around then)... 33? It was awhile ago
And we also have non-passive income so the percentages relative to $40k/$80k are higher than the 500%/250% calculated using only passive sources
$5m in NW
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Interesting exercise
I’m in my mid-40s... I haven’t calculated “100% FI” like this before, but I’m game...
Using your example, if I’m aiming for $40k passive... assets generate over $200k passive (honestly not sure how much over, but it’s a good lower-bound estimate) so the answer is ~500+%
Or we can use a goal of $80k passive (as a couple)... so we’re at ~250+%
We probably hit 100% passive when I hit early-mid 30s (around then)... 33? It was awhile ago
And we also have non-passive income so the percentages relative to $40k/$80k are higher than the 500%/250% calculated using only passive sources
$5m in NW
So you are 110.01 and up. Are you FIRED or NOT FIRED?
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Fired where we wanted too a little over 4.5 years ago though do some side gigs. We are currently about 115% above our goal +/- figuring a 4% withdrawal which this year wont be near do to side gig and excluding paid for house, zero debt.
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I FIREd in April of this year at age 42, and am currently in the 110+% and FIREd category.
At the end of each year we were at:
2008 - 13%
2009 - 23%
2010 - 29%
2011 - 32%
2012 - 40%
2013 - 53%
2014 - 58% (Found MMM / FIRE)
2015 - 62%
2016 - 71%
2017 - 91%
2018 - 96%
Those numbers aren't exactly correct because we paid off the mortgage in 2018 to lower our income needs (reducing ACA costs and taxes significantly) and I didn't include mortgage debt in my numbers, but they track our non-housing ratios well and our house is a relatively small part of our NW.
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I've added a special version of this poll for families making less than the median household income.
https://forum.mrmoneymustache.com/throw-down-the-gauntlet/race-to-100-fi-(only-if-below-median-household-income!!!)/
(https://forum.mrmoneymustache.com/throw-down-the-gauntlet/race-to-100-fi-(only-if-below-median-household-income!!!)/)
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I am at a whopping 6.5%... but that's up from 2.9% earlier this year. Chug chug chugging along! One day I too will benefit from crazy compounding. ;)
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@ysette9 Thank you. Going from making way below median household income to above while knocking out the copious student loans really changed the slope of our graph. The bull market helped too :).
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I am at about 4% FI which is up from -4% last year. Seems....slow.... On the other hand, that represents $80k difference and little to no compound interest.
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I am at about 4% FI which is up from -4% last year. Seems....slow.... On the other hand, that represents $80k difference and little to no compound interest.
That is AWESOME!!!
That's a double-whammy of awesomeness! No only did you go up 8% (with no compounding), but you went from negative to positive!
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I am at about 4% FI which is up from -4% last year. Seems....slow.... On the other hand, that represents $80k difference and little to no compound interest.
The first few years, when compounding interest is negligible compared to your input, is bound to be slow.
But you’ve made an awesome step - from negative to positive net worth. Think how much better off you are than so many other people and be thankful.
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So far, 59.1% of respondents are halfway (or better!) to FIRE.
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We got above 0 about a year and a half ago (~March 2018). Back of the napkin math, we're at about 6%?
I feel like I've been on this road forever, and that's a sad percentage to have, but in reality we got our first "real" jobs in the last 2-3 years and had to dig out of a lot of student loans. So I appreciate all the support for the early days on this thread - gotta get compound interest on my side!
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@SwordGuy and @ScreamingHeadGuy
Yeah you both are right. I know that it is moving quickly. It just sucks still having to sit chained watching the shadows on the cave wall while knowing there is an outside (Plato's cave).
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@SwordGuy and @ScreamingHeadGuy
Yeah you both are right. I know that it is moving quickly. It just sucks still having to sit chained watching the shadows on the cave wall while knowing there is an outside (Plato's cave).
One of my favorite t-shirts says "Plato's Cave Search and Rescue Team" on the front. On the back it says, "Bringing people to the light since 380 BCE." (Actually, I'm not going to go look up the exact year it says, but that's close enough to get the point. :) )
Damn near no one gets it. :(
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I'm going to have to figure this out before I answer the poll. I like this way of thinking better than those races you mention (I participate in two of them right now, depending on what's included).
I might say 80% and I might say 60%. Or some other number. It depends on how I look at things. I'm still feeding my retirement accounts, but I guess I can consider the current balances and what I'd take out at 4% SWR and then include rental income and pension.
Posting to remind myself to get back to this.
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I'm going to have to figure this out before I answer the poll. I like this way of thinking better than those races you mention (I participate in two of them right now, depending on what's included).
I might say 80% and I might say 60%. Or some other number. It depends on how I look at things. I'm still feeding my retirement accounts, but I guess I can consider the current balances and what I'd take out at 4% SWR and then include rental income and pension.
Posting to remind myself to get back to this.
Let's pretend that Joe has a target FI number of $50,000 per year. He's 41 years old and plans to retire at 46, 20 years before he's going to take his social security.
He has a 70/30 stock/bond stash worth $200,000. He's going to use a 4% withdrawal strategy, so that's $8,000 in income.
He has a rental property worth $50,000 that produces a profit of $5,000 a year. He won't be selling it. His running total of FI income is $8000 + $5000, or $13,000.
He has $12,000 in royalties coming in from some material he wrote that is likely to last until he's 66, when his social security kicks in. That puts him at $8000 + $5000 + $12000 or $25,000.
He has $50,000 stock that his employer gave him as a bonus but it doesn't vest for 3 more years of employment. That would be another $2000 per year but it's not vested and there's no guarantee it ever will vest, so it's worth nothing today. So, he's still at $25,000 in FI income.
He has a house that's worth $500,000 and which he owes $100,000 on, giving him $400,000 in equity. When he retires he plans to sell this house and buy another one for $100,000 cash. That means his FI stash will grow by $300,000 or another $12,000 a year. I would count this in Joe's FI total even though the house hasn't been sold and the real estate market might go down for a few years. Before Joe pulls the FI trigger and quits, he'll have checked the market and made sure those numbers are still solid, or he might even sell first, then go FI. So, $25,000 + $12,000 puts Joe at $37,000, or 75% of FI.
Pensions are sort of between the unvested stock and the unsold house example, depending upon how they are structured. Some can be cashed out early at a reduced value (which makes it easy to calculate the FI dollars for), others are all or nothing. If I had an all or nothing pension, I would track two FI percentages, one with the value at $0 and the other pro-rated based on the proportion of time put into it. Example, a military 20-year pension is an all or nothing pension. So, if I want to know, "How much of my FIRE expenses could I cover if I left the Army today", that pension would produce $0. If I was 15 years into earning that 20 year pension, it's value will technically $0 until the first day of the 20th year. But, I might also consider it worth 15/20 or 75% of that pension value in my second calculation. The second calculation gives me a better view of how my plan is currently working out assuming my plan comes to fruition.
For answering the poll, the all or nothing pension would be worth nothing.
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I'm going to have to figure this out before I answer the poll. I like this way of thinking better than those races you mention (I participate in two of them right now, depending on what's included).
I might say 80% and I might say 60%. Or some other number. It depends on how I look at things. I'm still feeding my retirement accounts, but I guess I can consider the current balances and what I'd take out at 4% SWR and then include rental income and pension.
Posting to remind myself to get back to this.
<snip>
He has a rental property worth $50,000 that produces a profit of $5,000 a year. He won't be selling it. His running total of FI income is $8000 + $5000, or $13,000.
<snip>
He has a house that's worth $500,000 and which he owes $100,000 on, giving him $400,000 in equity. When he retires he plans to sell this house and buy another one for $100,000 cash. That means his FI stash will grow by $300,000 or another $12,000 a year. I would count this in Joe's FI total even though the house hasn't been sold and the real estate market might go down for a few years. Before Joe pulls the FI trigger and quits, he'll have checked the market and made sure those numbers are still solid, or he might even sell first, then go FI. So, $25,000 + $12,000 puts Joe at $37,000, or 75% of FI.
<snip>
I'm not sure what to do with the rental equity. We don't plan to sell for a while, but eventually (many years into FI) we probably will. So do I add the amount of equity to the cash assets? If I include the net rental profit and then I add back the principal that we pay each month I get a very different number than if I don't. Loans will be paid off in ~10 years. I could consider that amount? Different ways to look at this.
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I'm going to have to figure this out before I answer the poll. I like this way of thinking better than those races you mention (I participate in two of them right now, depending on what's included).
I might say 80% and I might say 60%. Or some other number. It depends on how I look at things. I'm still feeding my retirement accounts, but I guess I can consider the current balances and what I'd take out at 4% SWR and then include rental income and pension.
Posting to remind myself to get back to this.
<snip>
He has a rental property worth $50,000 that produces a profit of $5,000 a year. He won't be selling it. His running total of FI income is $8000 + $5000, or $13,000.
<snip>
He has a house that's worth $500,000 and which he owes $100,000 on, giving him $400,000 in equity. When he retires he plans to sell this house and buy another one for $100,000 cash. That means his FI stash will grow by $300,000 or another $12,000 a year. I would count this in Joe's FI total even though the house hasn't been sold and the real estate market might go down for a few years. Before Joe pulls the FI trigger and quits, he'll have checked the market and made sure those numbers are still solid, or he might even sell first, then go FI. So, $25,000 + $12,000 puts Joe at $37,000, or 75% of FI.
<snip>
I'm not sure what to do with the rental equity. We don't plan to sell for a while, but eventually (many years into FI) we probably will. So do I add the amount of equity to the cash assets? If I include the net rental profit and then I add back the principal that we pay each month I get a very different number than if I don't. Loans will be paid off in ~10 years. I could consider that amount? Different ways to look at this.
When you're calculating these numbers, it's very important to know exactly what you want to know, because that governs what numbers you include in your calculation.
In this case, we have a target income we are aiming for and we want to know how close we are to being able to provide that income after FI.
So, let's say I have two assets that I won't or can't sell and can't tap for equity, that each provide me with an income of $5,000 a year ($10,000 combined). It literally doesn't matter whether those assets are worth $1 or $5 bazillion dollars because -- drum roll -- they won't be put up for sale. Let's say one is worth $50,000 and the other would be worth $500,000, we own them free and clear, and there are no costs to sell them (i.e., taxes or realtor fees). For purposes of this specific example of this %FI income calculation, they are exactly equal.
Now, let's remove those restrictions on those two assets. They are no longer exactly equal for this purpose.
Asset one could be worth $5000 a year in direct income or it could be sold and translated into a stock/bond portfolio that would shed $2000 a year using the 4% rule. In this case, selling is crazy talk.
Asset two could be worth $5000 a year in direct income or sold for $500,000, which could be turned into a stock/bond portfolio with an income of $20,000 a year using the 4% rule. In this case, sell, sell, sell!
But this next point is important -- for purposes of this calculation, the asset is EITHER producing direct income for owning it OR is turned into some other asset that produces direct income. It can't be counted BOTH WAYS at the same time.
You can pick either one you want, but you can't pick both.
The next point I'll bring up is you mentioned selling them well into FIRE. In that case, since the calculation we're putting together is SOLELY for the purpose of knowing how close to being FI we are, it's a moot point. For purposes of this calculation, you've chosen to value them for their direct income.
Does that help?
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I'm going to have to figure this out before I answer the poll. I like this way of thinking better than those races you mention (I participate in two of them right now, depending on what's included).
I might say 80% and I might say 60%. Or some other number. It depends on how I look at things. I'm still feeding my retirement accounts, but I guess I can consider the current balances and what I'd take out at 4% SWR and then include rental income and pension.
Posting to remind myself to get back to this.
<snip>
He has a rental property worth $50,000 that produces a profit of $5,000 a year. He won't be selling it. His running total of FI income is $8000 + $5000, or $13,000.
<snip>
He has a house that's worth $500,000 and which he owes $100,000 on, giving him $400,000 in equity. When he retires he plans to sell this house and buy another one for $100,000 cash. That means his FI stash will grow by $300,000 or another $12,000 a year. I would count this in Joe's FI total even though the house hasn't been sold and the real estate market might go down for a few years. Before Joe pulls the FI trigger and quits, he'll have checked the market and made sure those numbers are still solid, or he might even sell first, then go FI. So, $25,000 + $12,000 puts Joe at $37,000, or 75% of FI.
<snip>
I'm not sure what to do with the rental equity. We don't plan to sell for a while, but eventually (many years into FI) we probably will. So do I add the amount of equity to the cash assets? If I include the net rental profit and then I add back the principal that we pay each month I get a very different number than if I don't. Loans will be paid off in ~10 years. I could consider that amount? Different ways to look at this.
When you're calculating these numbers, it's very important to know exactly what you want to know, because that governs what numbers you include in your calculation.
In this case, we have a target income we are aiming for and we want to know how close we are to being able to provide that income after FI.
So, let's say I have two assets that I won't or can't sell and can't tap for equity, that each provide me with an income of $5,000 a year ($10,000 combined). It literally doesn't matter whether those assets are worth $1 or $5 bazillion dollars because -- drum roll -- they won't be put up for sale. Let's say one is worth $50,000 and the other would be worth $500,000, we own them free and clear, and there are no costs to sell them (i.e., taxes or realtor fees). For purposes of this specific example of this %FI income calculation, they are exactly equal.
Now, let's remove those restrictions on those two assets. They are no longer exactly equal for this purpose.
Asset one could be worth $5000 a year in direct income or it could be sold and translated into a stock/bond portfolio that would shed $2000 a year using the 4% rule. In this case, selling is crazy talk.
Asset two could be worth $5000 a year in direct income or sold for $500,000, which could be turned into a stock/bond portfolio with an income of $20,000 a year using the 4% rule. In this case, sell, sell, sell!
But this next point is important -- for purposes of this calculation, the asset is EITHER producing direct income for owning it OR is turned into some other asset that produces direct income. It can't be counted BOTH WAYS at the same time.
You can pick either one you want, but you can't pick both.
The next point I'll bring up is you mentioned selling them well into FIRE. In that case, since the calculation we're putting together is SOLELY for the purpose of knowing how close to being FI we are, it's a moot point. For purposes of this calculation, you've chosen to value them for their direct income.
Does that help?
Yes, thanks. :-)
Our rental expenses vary, so I'm basing the number just on this year's rental expenses to date. We did a lot of work on the properties so it's going to be a bit of a high year. And we really aren't totally decided on our FIRE number, but for this poll say, let it be $50,000. Then we're at 64% or better (in a more typical year for rental expenses). Cool.
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And we really aren't totally decided on our FIRE number, but for this poll say, let it be $50,000. Then we're at 64% or better (in a more typical year for rental expenses). Cool.
@monarda , 64% is awesome! That's some real financial security and FU money right there!
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I'm around 40%+. It's felt like quite a grind so far despite a friendly bull market. Here's to hoping the next 40%+ goes along okay despite it possibly taking longer (I think it's bizarre how long the bull market has lasted lol).
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I'm around 40%+. It's felt like quite a grind so far despite a friendly bull market. Here's to hoping the next 40%+ goes along okay despite it possibly taking longer (I think it's bizarre how long the bull market has lasted lol).
If we have a recession and the market drops in value big time for a couple of years, it would certainly feel depressing feeling like your FI% just went downwards.
But if you just keep on investing during that time, when the market returns in a few years, you'll see your FI% skyrocket to higher than it otherwise would have been 'cause you've been buying stocks on sale!
So, an up or down market is good news for you at this point in your accumulation cycle! :)
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10/1/2017: 15.5%
10/1/2018: 19.6%
10/1/2019: 22.9%
Weirdly, I feel farther along than this? FIRE has permeated my thinking, and I feel like I can clearly see where we're going. In any case, onward!
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10/1/2017: 15.5%
10/1/2018: 19.6%
10/1/2019: 22.9%
Weirdly, I feel farther along than this? FIRE has permeated my thinking, and I feel like I can clearly see where we're going.
My guess? When you reach 20+% FI, you can recover quickly from a whole lot of the dammits that life tosses your way. What used to be a real problem is turned into a minor nuisance. You can just cruise along and deal with it without fuss or bother.
In any case, onward!
That's the spirit!
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57%.
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57%.
Oh, that's a sweet spot. Lots of financial security when you hit 57%! Way easier to roll with most punches!
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I've wanted to answer for quite a while but couldn't decide what my answer was. Based on a few earlier posts, I've decided I'm at 48%. This is based on the stash only, not the pension or the real estate. In 21 months, I'll be at 100+% because I'll be eligible for my pension AND the rental properties will be paid off AND my stash will have (hopefully) grown. Interesting thought exercise for me. Thanks!
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10/1/2017: 15.5%
10/1/2018: 19.6%
10/1/2019: 22.9%
Weirdly, I feel farther along than this? FIRE has permeated my thinking, and I feel like I can clearly see where we're going.
My guess? When you reach 20+% FI, you can recover quickly from a whole lot of the dammits that life tosses your way. What used to be a real problem is turned into a minor nuisance. You can just cruise along and deal with it without fuss or bother.
I had a realization a year or so ago that if we were to save not another penny between now and traditional retirement age (we're currently in our mid-30s), we'd still be able to retire comfortably around 60 or 65, just through the power of compounding on what we have now. That's the sort of realization that makes one sleep better at night: it builds a ton of safety margin into our life TODAY that already makes many possible futures look at least reasonably rosy.
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10/1/2017: 15.5%
10/1/2018: 19.6%
10/1/2019: 22.9%
Weirdly, I feel farther along than this? FIRE has permeated my thinking, and I feel like I can clearly see where we're going.
My guess? When you reach 20+% FI, you can recover quickly from a whole lot of the dammits that life tosses your way. What used to be a real problem is turned into a minor nuisance. You can just cruise along and deal with it without fuss or bother.
I had a realization a year or so ago that if we were to save not another penny between now and traditional retirement age (we're currently in our mid-30s), we'd still be able to retire comfortably around 60 or 65, just through the power of compounding on what we have now. That's the sort of realization that makes one sleep better at night: it builds a ton of safety margin into our life TODAY that already makes many possible futures look at least reasonably rosy.
So very true!!!
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14.8%
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Well that's depressing.
1.4% to 3.9% over the last 12 months.
Well, adding today's contributions makes it 4.0%. Woo...
4.63% today - 2 more months, and I can (hopefully) change my answer on the poll
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Well that's depressing.
1.4% to 3.9% over the last 12 months.
Well, adding today's contributions makes it 4.0%. Woo...
4.63% today - 2 more months, and I can (hopefully) change my answer on the poll
That's good progress! And it gets faster as time goes by, too, once the investments start to do the heavy lifting!
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148 poll entries so far!
I would love to see a couple thousand!
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Posting to follow here, we just paid off our mortgage with a wire transfer today and now I need to get back to this FI / FIRE planning. We have three kids and I'm reading Zac Bissonnette's Debt Free U, a good book to help me mentally prepare for the college years ahead, only 3.5 years away for our oldest.
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Posting to follow here, we just paid off our mortgage with a wire transfer today and now I need to get back to this FI / FIRE planning. We have three kids and I'm reading Zac Bissonnette's Debt Free U, a good book to help me mentally prepare for the college years ahead, only 3.5 years away for our oldest.
@KBecks , that's good news! Not sure where you live, but if you're open to moving, NC has several state universities where local students can get thru a 4 year degree for about $18K. The rest of the state universities are pretty affordable if you live within commuting distance of them.
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I selected 80 to 90, but I'm struggling with trying to figure out what my target really is. I'm currently telling myself it's $30k/yr.
I expect to travel much more in retirement, but in my current role I have a limited amount of time off so I don't really have a great idea of how much it's really going to cost as I don't travel currently and depending on how your go about traveling the costs can vary wildly from person to person.
I'm definitely FI right now as I'm on track to spend around $20k which is about 3.2% of my current stash. I generally try set my budget to 4% of the prior years year end stash and this is the first year where I feel like that resulted in a pretty easy, comfortable level I could deal with long term that feels not at all painful and allowed me to have... That's expensive, but f#$! it I can afford it moments once a quarter or so. During some years those moments would need to go to things like oh shit, the car is broken or other such things The I've been lucky to not have happen in the past couple years. Mortgage is done and no car payments recently. I do expect to need to acquire new transportation a few more times in life.
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Looks like we're 150% of our planned withdrawal amount based on 4% and a 60k withdrawal annually.
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I selected 80 to 90, but I'm struggling with trying to figure out what my target really is. I'm currently telling myself it's $30k/yr.
I expect to travel much more in retirement, but in my current role I have a limited amount of time off so I don't really have a great idea of how much it's really going to cost as I don't travel currently and depending on how your go about traveling the costs can vary wildly from person to person.
I'm definitely FI right now as I'm on track to spend around $20k which is about 3.2% of my current stash. I generally try set my budget to 4% of the prior years year end stash and this is the first year where I feel like that resulted in a pretty easy, comfortable level I could deal with long term that feels not at all painful and allowed me to have... That's expensive, but f#$! it I can afford it moments once a quarter or so. During some years those moments would need to go to things like oh shit, the car is broken or other such things The I've been lucky to not have happen in the past couple years. Mortgage is done and no car payments recently. I do expect to need to acquire new transportation a few more times in life.
@pdxmonkey , 80-90% !!?? You're on the home stretch!
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Looks like we're 150% of our planned withdrawal amount based on 4% and a 60k withdrawal annually.
150%!! That's a swell safety margin! Have you FIRED yet?
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Posting to follow here, we just paid off our mortgage with a wire transfer today and now I need to get back to this FI / FIRE planning. We have three kids and I'm reading Zac Bissonnette's Debt Free U, a good book to help me mentally prepare for the college years ahead, only 3.5 years away for our oldest.
@KBecks , that's good news! Not sure where you live, but if you're open to moving, NC has several state universities where local students can get thru a 4 year degree for about $18K. The rest of the state universities are pretty affordable if you live within commuting distance of them.
We are lifelong Wisconsinites, but NC sounds like a nice place!
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Looks like we're 150% of our planned withdrawal amount based on 4% and a 60k withdrawal annually.
150%!! That's a swell safety margin! Have you FIRED yet?
No not FIRE'd yet. In fact I'm thinking of pushing till 2023 at 55. Probably drop to 2 percent withdrawal rate by then. I've gotten addicted to watching the money grow.
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14.8%
That's solid progress! That's the point at which your finances start to get a whole lot easier because the medium-sized dammits are a whole lot easier to handle.
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9.6% soooo close to the next bracket! Hopefully by the end of the year I'll make it into the double digit percentages.
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9.6% soooo close to the next bracket! Hopefully by the end of the year I'll make it into the double digit percentages.
Keep plugging! You've got a good sized stash at this point that can get you thru many a hiccup on life's journey.
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Just hit 8%, should hit 10% part way through 2020.
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Just hit 8%, should hit 10% part way through 2020.
Great! That's a solid start! It should be big enough to start growing on its own where you can see real results. :)
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I'm going to have to figure this out before I answer the poll. I like this way of thinking better than those races you mention (I participate in two of them right now, depending on what's included).
I might say 80% and I might say 60%. Or some other number. It depends on how I look at things. I'm still feeding my retirement accounts, but I guess I can consider the current balances and what I'd take out at 4% SWR and then include rental income and pension.
Posting to remind myself to get back to this.
<snip>
He has a rental property worth $50,000 that produces a profit of $5,000 a year. He won't be selling it. His running total of FI income is $8000 + $5000, or $13,000.
<snip>
He has a house that's worth $500,000 and which he owes $100,000 on, giving him $400,000 in equity. When he retires he plans to sell this house and buy another one for $100,000 cash. That means his FI stash will grow by $300,000 or another $12,000 a year. I would count this in Joe's FI total even though the house hasn't been sold and the real estate market might go down for a few years. Before Joe pulls the FI trigger and quits, he'll have checked the market and made sure those numbers are still solid, or he might even sell first, then go FI. So, $25,000 + $12,000 puts Joe at $37,000, or 75% of FI.
<snip>
I'm not sure what to do with the rental equity. We don't plan to sell for a while, but eventually (many years into FI) we probably will. So do I add the amount of equity to the cash assets? If I include the net rental profit and then I add back the principal that we pay each month I get a very different number than if I don't. Loans will be paid off in ~10 years. I could consider that amount? Different ways to look at this.
When you're calculating these numbers, it's very important to know exactly what you want to know, because that governs what numbers you include in your calculation.
In this case, we have a target income we are aiming for and we want to know how close we are to being able to provide that income after FI.
So, let's say I have two assets that I won't or can't sell and can't tap for equity, that each provide me with an income of $5,000 a year ($10,000 combined). It literally doesn't matter whether those assets are worth $1 or $5 bazillion dollars because -- drum roll -- they won't be put up for sale. Let's say one is worth $50,000 and the other would be worth $500,000, we own them free and clear, and there are no costs to sell them (i.e., taxes or realtor fees). For purposes of this specific example of this %FI income calculation, they are exactly equal.
Now, let's remove those restrictions on those two assets. They are no longer exactly equal for this purpose.
Asset one could be worth $5000 a year in direct income or it could be sold and translated into a stock/bond portfolio that would shed $2000 a year using the 4% rule. In this case, selling is crazy talk.
Asset two could be worth $5000 a year in direct income or sold for $500,000, which could be turned into a stock/bond portfolio with an income of $20,000 a year using the 4% rule. In this case, sell, sell, sell!
But this next point is important -- for purposes of this calculation, the asset is EITHER producing direct income for owning it OR is turned into some other asset that produces direct income. It can't be counted BOTH WAYS at the same time.
You can pick either one you want, but you can't pick both.
The next point I'll bring up is you mentioned selling them well into FIRE. In that case, since the calculation we're putting together is SOLELY for the purpose of knowing how close to being FI we are, it's a moot point. For purposes of this calculation, you've chosen to value them for their direct income.
Does that help?
Yes, thanks. :-)
Our rental expenses vary, so I'm basing the number just on this year's rental expenses to date. We did a lot of work on the properties so it's going to be a bit of a high year. And we really aren't totally decided on our FIRE number, but for this poll say, let it be $50,000. Then we're at 64% or better (in a more typical year for rental expenses). Cool.
Changing my number and my poll vote because I asked the retirement office for an official estimate of my pension, which is much higher than the guesstimate I used to reach the number above. So now we're at 75%
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Changing my number and my poll vote because I asked the retirement office for an official estimate of my pension, which is much higher than the guesstimate I used to reach the number above. So now we're at 75%
Woo hoo!!! Now that's good news!!!
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9.6% soooo close to the next bracket! Hopefully by the end of the year I'll make it into the double digit percentages.
I just moved up to the next bracket (10.19%) :D
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9.6% soooo close to the next bracket! Hopefully by the end of the year I'll make it into the double digit percentages.
I just moved up to the next bracket (10.19%) :D
Yeah!!!
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I am at a whopping 6.5%... but that's up from 2.9% earlier this year. Chug chug chugging along! One day I too will benefit from crazy compounding. ;)
8.1%. So excited for double digits!
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Hey everyone! Don't forget to update your status for the new year!
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Well that's depressing.
1.4% to 3.9% over the last 12 months.
Well, adding today's contributions makes it 4.0%. Woo...
4.63% today - 2 more months, and I can (hopefully) change my answer on the poll
5.35% today - I changed my selection on the poll. I'm aiming for 9% by the end of 2020, though I can't really control what the market does.
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It really depends on how conservative I calculate my target numbers:
My pension should cover half of my (anticipated) annual spend in 10 years. If I take this into account, I am at 30% of the required NW. I voted for the 20-30% bracket, as this is the most likely scenario.
However, if I ignore pensions and aim to cover my expenses with own funds, I am only at 18-19% of NW.
Home equity not included, as I don't plan to sell.
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It really depends on how conservative I calculate my target numbers:
My pension should cover half of my (anticipated) annual spend in 10 years. If I take this into account, I am at 30% of the required NW. I voted for the 20-30% bracket, as this is the most likely scenario.
However, if I ignore pensions and aim to cover my expenses with own funds, I am only at 18-19% of NW.
Home equity not included, as I don't plan to sell.
@SotI ,
You're calculating things both ways (very wise and prudent of you!) and using the MMM ray gun of optimism to evaluate where you are (also very wise!)
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We are between 10-12%, depending on where we net out for our planned annual spend at 4% withdrawal rate. Crazy considering we were between 2-3% a year ago.
Can't wait for compounding to really amp things up!
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We are between 10-12%, depending on where we net out for our planned annual spend at 4% withdrawal rate. Crazy considering we were between 2-3% a year ago.
Can't wait for compounding to really amp things up!
Awesome!
I believe that the 10% level is about where people start to reach financial stability. An expensive dammit becomes an annoyance instead of a disaster because the resources exist to deal with it. And the positive cash flow that funded creating that 10% level makes recovery a whole lot easier, too.
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Update your status for the start of 2020!
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Hey everyone! Don't forget to update your status for the new year!
Update your status for the start of 2020!
It's only been ~3 months since this thread was created. Nothing to update yet for me.
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Hey everyone! Don't forget to update your status for the new year!
Update your status for the start of 2020!
It's only been ~3 months since this thread was created. Nothing to update yet for me.
Just advertising for the thread. Lots of folks probably haven't seen it yet. :)
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I missed this thread when it first came out. I've been FIREd since January, 2018. I'm currently at 126% of my income target.
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Apologies if this has already been answered somewhere but....
Define FI?
Is it that 4% of your stash covers your expenses? What about healthcare? I have accurate expenses for the last 3 years and they're nearly identical. But I'm currently covered by employer insurance. If I use the ACA and keep my income low I can get about the same price for healthcare. So yeah, I'm 100% FI if you base it off of ACA healthcare.
And I assume that you can't include your home in your stash if you're going to live in it.
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Apologies if this has already been answered somewhere but....
Define FI?
Is it that 4% of your stash covers your expenses? What about healthcare? I have accurate expenses for the last 3 years and they're nearly identical. But I'm currently covered by employer insurance. If I use the ACA and keep my income low I can get about the same price for healthcare. So yeah, I'm 100% FI if you base it off of ACA healthcare.
And I assume that you can't include your home in your stash if you're going to live in it.
Use whatever definition works for you. If you wanted to quit working tomorrow, how much of a stash would you need? You might need to include extra to account for medical (or less due to geo-arbitrage), and your plan might involve a paid off house, living with a mortgage, or selling and renting.
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My FI number is still a bit of a SWAG since I plan move and have kids soon but I put myself in the 5-10% spot. Not too bad for being at negative 5-10% recently and just crossing zero in 2018.
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Apologies if this has already been answered somewhere but....
Define FI?
Is it that 4% of your stash covers your expenses? What about healthcare? I have accurate expenses for the last 3 years and they're nearly identical. But I'm currently covered by employer insurance. If I use the ACA and keep my income low I can get about the same price for healthcare. So yeah, I'm 100% FI if you base it off of ACA healthcare.
And I assume that you can't include your home in your stash if you're going to live in it.
Use whatever definition works for you. If you wanted to quit working tomorrow, how much of a stash would you need? You might need to include extra to account for medical (or less due to geo-arbitrage), and your plan might involve a paid off house, living with a mortgage, or selling and renting.
Lots of good examples in the very first post in the thread.
Your FI number needs to include spending on things you will be spending money on, whatever those things are and whatever they cost.
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I'm going to have to figure this out before I answer the poll. I like this way of thinking better than those races you mention (I participate in two of them right now, depending on what's included).
I might say 80% and I might say 60%. Or some other number. It depends on how I look at things. I'm still feeding my retirement accounts, but I guess I can consider the current balances and what I'd take out at 4% SWR and then include rental income and pension.
Posting to remind myself to get back to this.
<snip>
He has a rental property worth $50,000 that produces a profit of $5,000 a year. He won't be selling it. His running total of FI income is $8000 + $5000, or $13,000.
<snip>
He has a house that's worth $500,000 and which he owes $100,000 on, giving him $400,000 in equity. When he retires he plans to sell this house and buy another one for $100,000 cash. That means his FI stash will grow by $300,000 or another $12,000 a year. I would count this in Joe's FI total even though the house hasn't been sold and the real estate market might go down for a few years. Before Joe pulls the FI trigger and quits, he'll have checked the market and made sure those numbers are still solid, or he might even sell first, then go FI. So, $25,000 + $12,000 puts Joe at $37,000, or 75% of FI.
<snip>
I'm not sure what to do with the rental equity. We don't plan to sell for a while, but eventually (many years into FI) we probably will. So do I add the amount of equity to the cash assets? If I include the net rental profit and then I add back the principal that we pay each month I get a very different number than if I don't. Loans will be paid off in ~10 years. I could consider that amount? Different ways to look at this.
When you're calculating these numbers, it's very important to know exactly what you want to know, because that governs what numbers you include in your calculation.
In this case, we have a target income we are aiming for and we want to know how close we are to being able to provide that income after FI.
So, let's say I have two assets that I won't or can't sell and can't tap for equity, that each provide me with an income of $5,000 a year ($10,000 combined). It literally doesn't matter whether those assets are worth $1 or $5 bazillion dollars because -- drum roll -- they won't be put up for sale. Let's say one is worth $50,000 and the other would be worth $500,000, we own them free and clear, and there are no costs to sell them (i.e., taxes or realtor fees). For purposes of this specific example of this %FI income calculation, they are exactly equal.
Now, let's remove those restrictions on those two assets. They are no longer exactly equal for this purpose.
Asset one could be worth $5000 a year in direct income or it could be sold and translated into a stock/bond portfolio that would shed $2000 a year using the 4% rule. In this case, selling is crazy talk.
Asset two could be worth $5000 a year in direct income or sold for $500,000, which could be turned into a stock/bond portfolio with an income of $20,000 a year using the 4% rule. In this case, sell, sell, sell!
But this next point is important -- for purposes of this calculation, the asset is EITHER producing direct income for owning it OR is turned into some other asset that produces direct income. It can't be counted BOTH WAYS at the same time.
You can pick either one you want, but you can't pick both.
The next point I'll bring up is you mentioned selling them well into FIRE. In that case, since the calculation we're putting together is SOLELY for the purpose of knowing how close to being FI we are, it's a moot point. For purposes of this calculation, you've chosen to value them for their direct income.
Does that help?
Yes, thanks. :-)
Our rental expenses vary, so I'm basing the number just on this year's rental expenses to date. We did a lot of work on the properties so it's going to be a bit of a high year. And we really aren't totally decided on our FIRE number, but for this poll say, let it be $50,000. Then we're at 64% or better (in a more typical year for rental expenses). Cool.
Changing my number and my poll vote because I asked the retirement office for an official estimate of my pension, which is much higher than the guesstimate I used to reach the number above. So now we're at 75%
Changing my number and my poll vote again because I see an error in my rental income spreadsheet - I've double deducted my rental insurance premium- whoopsie. And I put in this year's rental expenses, which are lower than last years' and are more typical of a normal year's expenses. Fixed that and now at 102%. Whaddaya know. Hasn't sunk in quite yet.
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I'm going to have to figure this out before I answer the poll. I like this way of thinking better than those races you mention (I participate in two of them right now, depending on what's included).
I might say 80% and I might say 60%. Or some other number. It depends on how I look at things. I'm still feeding my retirement accounts, but I guess I can consider the current balances and what I'd take out at 4% SWR and then include rental income and pension.
Posting to remind myself to get back to this.
<snip>
He has a rental property worth $50,000 that produces a profit of $5,000 a year. He won't be selling it. His running total of FI income is $8000 + $5000, or $13,000.
<snip>
He has a house that's worth $500,000 and which he owes $100,000 on, giving him $400,000 in equity. When he retires he plans to sell this house and buy another one for $100,000 cash. That means his FI stash will grow by $300,000 or another $12,000 a year. I would count this in Joe's FI total even though the house hasn't been sold and the real estate market might go down for a few years. Before Joe pulls the FI trigger and quits, he'll have checked the market and made sure those numbers are still solid, or he might even sell first, then go FI. So, $25,000 + $12,000 puts Joe at $37,000, or 75% of FI.
<snip>
I'm not sure what to do with the rental equity. We don't plan to sell for a while, but eventually (many years into FI) we probably will. So do I add the amount of equity to the cash assets? If I include the net rental profit and then I add back the principal that we pay each month I get a very different number than if I don't. Loans will be paid off in ~10 years. I could consider that amount? Different ways to look at this.
When you're calculating these numbers, it's very important to know exactly what you want to know, because that governs what numbers you include in your calculation.
In this case, we have a target income we are aiming for and we want to know how close we are to being able to provide that income after FI.
So, let's say I have two assets that I won't or can't sell and can't tap for equity, that each provide me with an income of $5,000 a year ($10,000 combined). It literally doesn't matter whether those assets are worth $1 or $5 bazillion dollars because -- drum roll -- they won't be put up for sale. Let's say one is worth $50,000 and the other would be worth $500,000, we own them free and clear, and there are no costs to sell them (i.e., taxes or realtor fees). For purposes of this specific example of this %FI income calculation, they are exactly equal.
Now, let's remove those restrictions on those two assets. They are no longer exactly equal for this purpose.
Asset one could be worth $5000 a year in direct income or it could be sold and translated into a stock/bond portfolio that would shed $2000 a year using the 4% rule. In this case, selling is crazy talk.
Asset two could be worth $5000 a year in direct income or sold for $500,000, which could be turned into a stock/bond portfolio with an income of $20,000 a year using the 4% rule. In this case, sell, sell, sell!
But this next point is important -- for purposes of this calculation, the asset is EITHER producing direct income for owning it OR is turned into some other asset that produces direct income. It can't be counted BOTH WAYS at the same time.
You can pick either one you want, but you can't pick both.
The next point I'll bring up is you mentioned selling them well into FIRE. In that case, since the calculation we're putting together is SOLELY for the purpose of knowing how close to being FI we are, it's a moot point. For purposes of this calculation, you've chosen to value them for their direct income.
Does that help?
Yes, thanks. :-)
Our rental expenses vary, so I'm basing the number just on this year's rental expenses to date. We did a lot of work on the properties so it's going to be a bit of a high year. And we really aren't totally decided on our FIRE number, but for this poll say, let it be $50,000. Then we're at 64% or better (in a more typical year for rental expenses). Cool.
Changing my number and my poll vote because I asked the retirement office for an official estimate of my pension, which is much higher than the guesstimate I used to reach the number above. So now we're at 75%
Changing my number and my poll vote again because I see an error in my rental income spreadsheet - I've double deducted my rental insurance premium- whoopsie. And I put in this year's rental expenses, which are lower than last years' and are more typical of a normal year's expenses. Fixed that and now at 102%. Whaddaya know. Hasn't sunk in quite yet.
102%!!! That's great!
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77%
By my calculations we should be FI in the next 5 years or so.
I'm already retired but my partner is still working and likes it. If he decides he wants to quit there are many ways we could reduce our spending (we spend a lot on charity and vacations) and still be quite happy. Or we could get part time jobs.
Thanks for the post, it was good to revisit the spreadsheets and see where we are at. I think our spending has increased significantly over the past year but since he wants to continue to work it's probably ok.
77% and 5 years?! That's a solid position to build from! 4 years will go by quickly. That fifth year might drag a bit... :)
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Answered 80-90% and not FIREd. If we downsize the house by my estimated amount, we'd be at 85%. Currently with invested assets only we're at 75%.
Now I'm at 83% WITHOUT the house downsize. This past year has been very kind to investors. I won't change my poll answer, but it's nice to see this kind of progress!
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I've had to change my vote to 110.1%+ and not FIREd. (Hooray/not really!)
Usually I don't check my balance in the middle of the month, but I'd seen the market returns so far and I was checking if Vanguard had my tax forms ready (nope) anyways, so I just went and redid my net worth calculation in lieu of doing my taxes.
When I was still in the mid-80% range I thought "Why are those folks at 110%+ still working?" and now I know why. For me it's because I told myself this OMY was my time to get all my ducks in a row (financially) and mentally prepare for the change. Plus I'm just holding on to see what happens in the November elections - maybe I'll be scared into changing my plan. But, yes, at this point the numbers are all taken care of and it's all about being ready to switch from accumulation to draw-down.
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I've had to change my vote to 110.1%+ and not FIREd. (Hooray/not really!)
Usually I don't check my balance in the middle of the month, but I'd seen the market returns so far and I was checking if Vanguard had my tax forms ready (nope) anyways, so I just went and redid my net worth calculation in lieu of doing my taxes.
When I was still in the mid-80% range I thought "Why are those folks at 110%+ still working?" and now I know why. For me it's because I told myself this OMY was my time to get all my ducks in a row (financially) and mentally prepare for the change. Plus I'm just holding on to see what happens in the November elections - maybe I'll be scared into changing my plan. But, yes, at this point the numbers are all taken care of and it's all about being ready to switch from accumulation to draw-down.
It took us an extra year on top of the planned extra year to pull the plug. It's a big deal, so I fully understand why!
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96.5%. The work is almost done.
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Interesting thread. I am at 13% using 4% w/d rate and last year's spending.
I am curious to know how others handle the future input of social security to the FIRE equation since it will decrease the need for passive investment income at a future date.
If I were young, I would probably just ignore it, but it is not that far down the road for me (I am 46).
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Interesting thread. I am at 13% using 4% w/d rate and last year's spending.
I am curious to know how others handle the future input of social security to the FIRE equation since it will decrease the need for passive investment income at a future date.
If I were young, I would probably just ignore it, but it is not that far down the road for me (I am 46).
I started off using a spreadsheet, then switched to www.cfiresim.com (http://www.cfiresim.com). Either way, you don't need as much up front because SS will cover some of the costs later. (I would budget for 75% of expected SS benefits at most.)
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Just posting to add to the poll. Best wishes, racers!
Fwiw, I put "80 to 90%, but FIRE". Floating through accidental thin FIRE, lazily.
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How is everyone doing on their FI journey?
Moving forwards despite the 2020 craziness?
Update your poll entry and let us know!
We're still comfortably FIRED. :)
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4.8% here
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Still comfortably FIREd as well.
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4.8% here
That's a good, solid buffer against lots of life's dammits!
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It is!
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Well that's depressing.
1.4% to 3.9% over the last 12 months.
Well, adding today's contributions makes it 4.0%. Woo...
4.63% today - 2 more months, and I can (hopefully) change my answer on the poll
5.35% today - I changed my selection on the poll. I'm aiming for 9% by the end of 2020, though I can't really control what the market does.
In 6 months, I've gone up to 7.16%. 9% by year-end still looks likely.
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Still comfortably FIREd as well.
Ditto. Even saving more (or rather spending less) now then before Covid.
Yeah, if we don't do any traveling during the remainder of the year, which is looking increasingly likely, we are on track to come in about $10k below our already super-safe annual spending limit.
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I've amended my vote as I've moved up to the 70-80% band from the 60-70% band since my original vote in September.
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I've amended my vote as I've moved up to the 70-80% band from the 60-70% band since my original vote in September.
Sweet! Way to go!
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I am back to the >110.01 and NOT FIRED section. In <7 months I will change my response again one way or another (hopefully to the >110.01 and FIRED column, but we'll see what the market says to my plan).
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I am back to the >110.01 and NOT FIRED section. In <7 months I will change my response again one way or another (hopefully to the >110.01 and FIRED column, but we'll see what the market says to my plan).
I can understand a bit of extra caution in times like these!
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I think we are around 40% to FI and about 5-10 years away. We currently save 30% of our income that goes directly into stock investments. We also have 3 rentals (4 doors).
We are not really in a rush because my current full-time job is somewhat similar to a barista FI part-time job. However, I still like the idea of FI, just in case my job ever became toxic.
I teach community college and work 30 hours/week M-Th on campus and another 5 hours/week from home. Each semester is 15 weeks + 1 week of prep. 32 weeks total is 1,120 hours/year. If you divide this by 52 weeks, I average 21.5 hours/week. My wife works 13.5 hours/week at Target. Our combined working hours are 35 hours/week. We still have plenty of time for hobbies, travel, etc...
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How is everyone doing? Backsliding due to covid 19 damage to your plan? Moving forward?
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At some point I answered 30-40% but didn't comment so I can't tell when I voted.
Updating that because I just crossed 50% !
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We went from 75% when I first answered this poll, to 62% in the covid dip, to now ~90%. It's a roller coaster.
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6.2% presently
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I am at a whopping 6.5%... but that's up from 2.9% earlier this year. Chug chug chugging along! One day I too will benefit from crazy compounding. ;)
Now at 9.91%. I'm starting to get to the point where I have enough assets that crazy compounding can really be a thing.
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Bam
In chrono order for your polls
40-50%
50-60%
70-80%
and now 100-110% and FIREd as of next week, age 32.
Wam bam, 197%
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Up to about 63% now. Moved up one bracket on the poll!
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I am at about 4% FI which is up from -4% last year. Seems....slow.... On the other hand, that represents $80k difference and little to no compound interest.
Just crossed over to 10%. Also just had my roommates move out so my SR has decreased to about 55%. A good trade off but still sad to see the number go up slower.
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Crazy year so far, huh? March 2018 was at about 78%, April 2019 at 97%, Started 2020 at 100%, Feb high of 103%, dropped to about 78% in March, now back to 101%. I better hurry up and RE before it turns again ;-)
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Crazy year so far, huh? March 2018 was at about 78%, April 2019 at 97%, Started 2020 at 100%, Feb high of 103%, dropped to about 78% in March, now back to 101%. I better hurry up and RE before it turns again ;-)
We chose a different bucket of income streams (including SS because we're older) so March 2018 was 110% for us (FIRED in April) and because we don't depend on the market for our normal living expenses, we've been at over 100% the whole time. The market is for long term growth to support our mentally handicapped daughter.
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Just voted and believe I was conservatively in the 40-50% range.
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Just voted and believe I was conservatively in the 40-50% range.
That's great! Well done!
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7.3%!
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7.3%!
That's enough to take the sting out of quite a few dammits life can toss your way!
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I made it to 99.96% before the market stopped it's crazy upward climb. I'm somewhere below that now. I'm also thinking of increasing my target # again. Looking around I'm probably still not allocating enough for self paid health insurance. I used to have $0 allocated as I figured it would keep changing wildly and I'd figure it out when I got closer. I added a bit to my number for it, but I don't think it's enough to generate monthly premium using 4% rule.
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Interesting thread. I am at 13% using 4% w/d rate and last year's spending.
I am curious to know how others handle the future input of social security to the FIRE equation since it will decrease the need for passive investment income at a future date.
If I were young, I would probably just ignore it, but it is not that far down the road for me (I am 46).
I started off using a spreadsheet, then switched to www.cfiresim.com (http://www.cfiresim.com). Either way, you don't need as much up front because SS will cover some of the costs later. (I would budget for 75% of expected SS benefits at most.)
Thanks for the link, that was super helpful! I would like to FIRE in 2030 when my daughter is out of the house and do a lot of RV traveling.
Based on this goal, I'm at 21%. Woot woot!
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Interesting thread. I am at 13% using 4% w/d rate and last year's spending.
I am curious to know how others handle the future input of social security to the FIRE equation since it will decrease the need for passive investment income at a future date.
If I were young, I would probably just ignore it, but it is not that far down the road for me (I am 46).
I started off using a spreadsheet, then switched to www.cfiresim.com (http://www.cfiresim.com). Either way, you don't need as much up front because SS will cover some of the costs later. (I would budget for 75% of expected SS benefits at most.)
Thanks for the link, that was super helpful! I would like to FIRE in 2030 when my daughter is out of the house and do a lot of RV traveling.
Based on this goal, I'm at 21%. Woot woot!
21% is an awesome place to reach! You've got a great money-making tailwind pushing you forward and enough reserves to take on most setbacks and recover from them.
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I am at a whopping 6.5%... but that's up from 2.9% earlier this year. Chug chug chugging along! One day I too will benefit from crazy compounding. ;)
11% now, a year later -- I get to change in the poll!
Slowly making my way forward. \o/
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I am at a whopping 6.5%... but that's up from 2.9% earlier this year. Chug chug chugging along! One day I too will benefit from crazy compounding. ;)
11% now, a year later -- I get to change in the poll!
Slowly making my way forward. \o/
You're starting to get to the point where compound growth starts to noticeably kick in to help you out!
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@SwordGuy i love how encouraging you are in this thread!
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I am at a whopping 6.5%... but that's up from 2.9% earlier this year. Chug chug chugging along! One day I too will benefit from crazy compounding. ;)
11% now, a year later -- I get to change in the poll!
Slowly making my way forward. \o/
You're starting to get to the point where compound growth starts to noticeably kick in to help you out!
I am! It's starting to be a thing and I am enjoying it. (I'm also wondering how well I'll handle the next great market tumble, because so far the rises and tumbles both have only been in the four figures -- at some point in the next year or two it's gonna hit five figures rises and tumbles and that will be a New Thing for sure. Good thing I have been prepared to steel myself against it.)
ETA: Agreed that I love how encouraging this thread is -- thanks. :3
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You're starting to get to the point where compound growth starts to noticeably kick in to help you out!
I am! It's starting to be a thing and I am enjoying it. (I'm also wondering how well I'll handle the next great market tumble, because so far the rises and tumbles both have only been in the four figures -- at some point in the next year or two it's gonna hit five figures rises and tumbles and that will be a New Thing for sure. Good thing I have been prepared to steel myself against it.)
Oh, that's easy! When the market goes up, you say, "Yeah! I have more wealth!" and when it goes down you say, "Yeah! I can buy wealth more cheaply!" :)
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You're starting to get to the point where compound growth starts to noticeably kick in to help you out!
I am! It's starting to be a thing and I am enjoying it. (I'm also wondering how well I'll handle the next great market tumble, because so far the rises and tumbles both have only been in the four figures -- at some point in the next year or two it's gonna hit five figures rises and tumbles and that will be a New Thing for sure. Good thing I have been prepared to steel myself against it.)
Oh, that's easy! When the market goes up, you say, "Yeah! I have more wealth!" and when it goes down you say, "Yeah! I can buy wealth more cheaply!" :)
That's been my strategy so far! Let's hope it holds up. :)
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You're starting to get to the point where compound growth starts to noticeably kick in to help you out!
I am! It's starting to be a thing and I am enjoying it. (I'm also wondering how well I'll handle the next great market tumble, because so far the rises and tumbles both have only been in the four figures -- at some point in the next year or two it's gonna hit five figures rises and tumbles and that will be a New Thing for sure. Good thing I have been prepared to steel myself against it.)
Oh, that's easy! When the market goes up, you say, "Yeah! I have more wealth!" and when it goes down you say, "Yeah! I can buy wealth more cheaply!" :)
That's been my strategy so far! Let's hope it holds up. :)
This time it's different ;)
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Let us all know how you're doing at the end of this crazy year!
We're still at 110%+ and FIRED. And very happily so! We just dropped our annual expenses by paying off our mortgage AND we upped our annual charitable donations substantially. Over $14,000 this year and next year we're likely to get up to $16,000.
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We just moved to the 110%+ and Not FIRE'd cohort.
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Bumped into the next poll option at 10.2 as of today.
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We just moved to the 110%+ and Not FIRE'd cohort.
Well, I won't cast any stones about being EXTRA SURE before one up and quits, 'cause if'n I did folks who read my journal would call me out on it.
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Bumped into the next poll option at 10.2 as of today.
@MudPuppy , good job! That's a major life accomplishment because it means you can roll with a whole lot of the dammits life tosses at you every so often. Much better for them to be a nuisance rather than a disaster!
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Our rental expenses vary, so I'm basing the number just on this year's rental expenses to date. We did a lot of work on the properties so it's going to be a bit of a high year. And we really aren't totally decided on our FIRE number, but for this poll say, let it be $50,000. Then we're at 64% or better (in a more typical year for rental expenses). Cool.
Changing my number and my poll vote because I asked the retirement office for an official estimate of my pension, which is much higher than the guesstimate I used to reach the number above. So now we're at 75%
Changing my number and my poll vote again because I see an error in my rental income spreadsheet - I've double deducted my rental insurance premium- whoopsie. And I put in this year's rental expenses, which are lower than last years' and are more typical of a normal year's expenses. Fixed that and now at 102%. Whaddaya know. Hasn't sunk in quite yet.
We just did a cash-out refinance because next year is going to be an expensive year for the rentals (roof, paint job, sewer). We're temporarily at 107% now, but after all of those 2021 expenses** we'll dip down below 100% and need to build reserves back up. Hoping by 2022 to be back where we are now.
**But then all three houses will have a new roof and fresh paint, so we shouldn't have big expenses for quite some time after that.
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Our rental expenses vary, so I'm basing the number just on this year's rental expenses to date. We did a lot of work on the properties so it's going to be a bit of a high year. And we really aren't totally decided on our FIRE number, but for this poll say, let it be $50,000. Then we're at 64% or better (in a more typical year for rental expenses). Cool.
Changing my number and my poll vote because I asked the retirement office for an official estimate of my pension, which is much higher than the guesstimate I used to reach the number above. So now we're at 75%
Changing my number and my poll vote again because I see an error in my rental income spreadsheet - I've double deducted my rental insurance premium- whoopsie. And I put in this year's rental expenses, which are lower than last years' and are more typical of a normal year's expenses. Fixed that and now at 102%. Whaddaya know. Hasn't sunk in quite yet.
We just did a cash-out refinance because next year is going to be an expensive year for the rentals (roof, paint job, sewer). We're temporarily at 107% now, but after all of those 2021 expenses** we'll dip down below 100% and need to build reserves back up. Hoping by 2022 to be back where we are now.
**But then all three houses will have a new roof and fresh paint, so we shouldn't have big expenses for quite some time after that.
@monarda,
I understand how that works. We have 2 roofs and 2 hvac units coming up in the next few years, but everything else is still pretty darn new.
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Still in the 110%+ and FIRED group. I'm coming up on my 3rd anniversary of FIRE. Our net worth has increased by 10-15% during that time, despite spending a lot of extra money in 2019. I can't take credit, though; just benefiting from the lucky market streak.
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Crazy year so far, huh? March 2018 was at about 78%, April 2019 at 97%, Started 2020 at 100%, Feb high of 103%, dropped to about 78% in March, now back to 101%. I better hurry up and RE before it turns again ;-)
Looks like I hit 110%+ now. I thought for sure during much of the year this would be my first year in 20 where my net worth was going to drop, but instead its up over 2x annual spending.
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Moved from 40% to 60% this year!!!
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Moved from 40% to 60% this year!!!
Way to go! @fuzzy math
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Still 110%+ and NOT FIRE. I still plan to change that condition in a few months (and hope the global financial conditions don’t make my category change in a direction different than my plan).
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Great thread, never saw it before.
TNW = 92% of goal.
However like you say a disconnect as a lot of my TNW is property (primary res) and pension, that I cant touch for another 16 yrs.
Sooo... my actual % is 46%. But its growing fast, real fast. My current "predictor-matic-5000" has me anywhere from 20-28 months out from 100%.
By which point I have a feeling I will be at c.110-115% TNW goal.
So, anyway I will vote 40-50%.
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Great thread, never saw it before.
TNW = 92% of goal.
However like you say a disconnect as a lot of my TNW is property (primary res) and pension, that I cant touch for another 16 yrs.
Sooo... my actual % is 46%. But its growing fast, real fast. My current "predictor-matic-5000" has me anywhere from 20-28 months out from 100%.
By which point I have a feeling I will be at c.110-115% TNW goal.
So, anyway I will vote 40-50%.
Glad you like the thread!
I think it's really good to track the "% To FI" . It's a good exercise to focus on the numbers that really matter! :)
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Ok, everyone, it's that time of year to update your Race to 100% FI polling!
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Moved up to 39% if I only cover the target level minus the part covered by my expected pension.
Without the pension coverage, I am at 24%.
Moving along, slowly, but on track for FI by 2029.
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Answer changed as we have surpassed 10% - we should hang out in this range for a couple years
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Answer changed as we have surpassed 10% - we should hang out in this range for a couple years
10%!! That's awesome! That means you've got the savings to turn most disasters into nuisances and that's a real life-enhancing superpower!
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We went from 75% when I first answered this poll, to 62% in the covid dip, to now ~90%. It's a roller coaster.
Now at 100-110% and not FIREd. (Technically semi-FIRE).
It's odd, I thought I'd be really happy about hitting this FI milestone, and I am feeling maybe more relieved than thrilled, because it seems like so much of the world is suffering right now. And this year has been so up and down. I skipped a level in this poll, just in the past few months. Still going to hang on to the jobs - I think this needs to sink in and feel more real.
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We went from 75% when I first answered this poll, to 62% in the covid dip, to now ~90%. It's a roller coaster.
Now at 100-110% and not FIREd. (Technically semi-FIRE).
It's odd, I thought I'd be really happy about hitting this FI milestone, and I am feeling maybe more relieved than thrilled, because it seems like so much of the world is suffering right now. And this year has been so up and down. I skipped a level in this poll, just in the past few months. Still going to hang on to the jobs - I think this needs to sink in and feel more real.
Wow! Congrats @Mmm_Donuts ! Out of curiosity, are you holding out on FIRE because you like your job? Because you are scared of the optics or retiring during everything that's going on? Because you feel 110% of FIRE isn't a strong enough buffer? What's really holding you back from setting a retirement date and putting in your notice?
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Ok, the final numbers can now be calculated!
Get busy! Update your FI % in the poll and tell us a bit about it in the comments!
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Went from 5% to 15%! Wheeee!
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Just crossed over to 101%!
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Went from 5% to 15%! Wheeee!
@bbates , oh, that's GREAT! You're at the point where most disasters become inconveniences.
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Just crossed over to 101%!
@goat_music_generator , hurray! Are you retiring?
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Just crossed over to 101%!
@goat_music_generator , hurray! Are you retiring?
Yes, most likely in a week or two :-)
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10/1/2017: 15.5%
10/1/2018: 19.6%
10/1/2019: 22.9%
Updated stats:
10/1/2017: 15.5%
10/1/2018: 19.6%
10/1/2019: 22.9%
01/1/2021: 36.4%
2020 was a very good year for us financially, despite the worldwide dumpster fire. Jobs stayed stable; market went bonkers-high; small inheritance. Onward!
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At the beginning of 2020, our investment accounts were about about 10% of our target amounts (adjusted for inflation and expecting approximately 50% of retirement spending to come from a pension). At the end of 2020 they are at about 18% of this target. Using the cash out value of the pension contributions thus far, we would be 14% FI. Minimum age to take the pension is just over 6 years away, projected FIRE is currently about 11 years away.
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Just crossed over to 101%!
@goat_music_generator , hurray! Are you retiring?
Yes, most likely in a week or two :-)
Heh, definitely no OMY issues here!
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I've bumped up to the 70-80% bracket. Extremely close to 25x of current expenses.
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Response changed because my status changed last week. Yee-ha!
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@ScreamingHeadGuy , I'm guessing you moved up the %FI scale, which is awesome!
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Updating b/c I cracked the 40% bracket! (42.3% on the investment part accounting for expected pension)
W/o pension, I am still at lowly 27.5%.
Still, progress is progress ....
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Updating b/c I cracked the 40% bracket! (42.3% on the investment part accounting for expected pension)
W/o pension, I am still at lowly 27.5%.
Still, progress is progress ....
42.3% is AWESOME! So is 27.5%!!!
At 27.5% outside of your pension, you can take a major hit in income and still be ok. You can have some expensive dammits and recover fairly quickly from it.
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42.3% is AWESOME! So is 27.5%!!!
At 27.5% outside of your pension, you can take a major hit in income and still be ok. You can have some expensive dammits and recover fairly quickly from it.
Thank you for the encouragement. I have definitely made good progress since I found this forum, just shame it took me so long (I was more the YOLO type before, just lucky that I am not a natural big spender).
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At ~22.2%, but am BURNING to get to 30%. That 100% feels so far away when I put it in % form, but hopefully compounding works in my favor within the next decade (the working-to-earn-and-save and frugality are a given). I am stretching for FI by 2029.
LETS DO THIS...!
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At ~22.2%, but am BURNING to get to 30%. That 100% feels so far away when I put it in % form, but hopefully compounding works in my favor within the next decade (the working-to-earn-and-save and frugality are a given). I am stretching for FI by 2029.
LETS DO THIS...!
If you do nothing but let your stash compound at historically average US stock market rates, you'll be at 44.4% FI (in today's dollars) in ten years.
Anything you add to it will speed that up rather nicely!
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100%-110% and not fired feels right. Really, I guess the issue is that I'm not SURE we're at 100% -- we've hit our number, but we recently moved from Tampa to Nova Scotia, and I want to make sure our expenses are basically the same. Realistically, though, DW and I both will probably work part-time (at least during the school year) so we're definitely at the point where we could do that. I'm working FT, and DW is looking for PT work (starting in the fall). With the move, my employer has engaged a PEO to employ me legally in Canada starting in July, and I want to give them a year or so of that before I quit / shift to part-time because there were some initial expenses they incurred in setting it up, and they did it entirely at my request.
All that is to say -- 100% and not fired, but reasons. :)
Oh, and just to give a quick sense of timing, here's our progression. And we're all low-cost index funds (ie no real estate rentals or dividend focus). Compound interest really is amazing!
Jan 2013: 18%
Jan 2014: 25%
Jan 2015: 29%
Jan 2016: 32%
Jan 2017: 44%
Jan 2018: 56%
Jan 2019: 56%
Jan 2020: 73%
Jan 2021: 100%
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Congrats @FLBiker !!! I am at 22.2%. I am hoping you are right about the trajectory, I am also solely in low cost index funds. Planning to plug away for at least 5-6 more years!
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@FLBiker , I totally understand treating people right, especially when they've gone out of their way. It's good karma! A year or two and you'll have an extra padded stash, plus if you don't like it in the new area, you won't feel financially stuck there. Sounds like a plan!
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Bumped into the next poll option at 10.2 as of today.
And not quite 4 months later, we are at 14%. Our spending has been wild, so I only have the markets to blame/thank for the increases.
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I voted a long time ago in the 40-50% bracket.
Just calculated today and have moved to 52%!
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Congrats everyone on your progress!
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Refound this going down a rabbit hole and updated. Still FIREd (2 years) now but currently WELL over 110%. We can now take a massive hit and still be jolly. Well, we are always jolly so that isn't saying much. :).
We now have the option and opportunity to split money off the main stash for other long term things, so we are pretty excited about that.
So glad others are making such good progress too. Keep it up!
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I'm at 17%
I just hit 89k. With 3.5% SWR and a target income of 1500$/month.
Madfientist's lab says I am just over 9 years away. I think it will be sooner if I can get a paid off house with a couple of paying roommates.
(https://i.imgur.com/MujSCpL.png)
Realistically though, I don't want to really but I may try to do more remote work or more work on my own terms. I do live my career in software, however.
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At ~22.2%, but am BURNING to get to 30%. That 100% feels so far away when I put it in % form, but hopefully compounding works in my favor within the next decade (the working-to-earn-and-save and frugality are a given). I am stretching for FI by 2029.
LETS DO THIS...!
Came back to update, a little over two months later I am surprised to find I went quickly to 26.0%. A modest bonus helped, and I was promoted recently and am earning ~8% more. When we send our son back to preschool things are sure to slow down, but I am feeling good today about where I'm at.
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At ~22.2%, but am BURNING to get to 30%. That 100% feels so far away when I put it in % form, but hopefully compounding works in my favor within the next decade (the working-to-earn-and-save and frugality are a given). I am stretching for FI by 2029.
LETS DO THIS...!
Came back to update, a little over two months later I am surprised to find I went quickly to 26.0%. A modest bonus helped, and I was promoted recently and am earning ~8% more. When we send our son back to preschool things are sure to slow down, but I am feeling good today about where I'm at.
I know it's frustrating at first because the progress seems so slot and a big market drop makes one feel like all the contributions just got lost, too.
But historical average market returns on $100,000 are a bit over $10,000. If someone is contributing $10,000 a year they are now growing at twice that rate, or 20% increase in savings that year. If the next year also provides average returns, the growth rate is 22%, because the growth is on $120,000, for $12,000 in earnings. And it grows more every year even though the contribution stays the same.
Compound growth supplemented by regular contributions is an awesome force!
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Up to 15 now!
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At ~22.2%, but am BURNING to get to 30%. That 100% feels so far away when I put it in % form, but hopefully compounding works in my favor within the next decade (the working-to-earn-and-save and frugality are a given). I am stretching for FI by 2029.
LETS DO THIS...!
Came back to update, a little over two months later I am surprised to find I went quickly to 26.0%. A modest bonus helped, and I was promoted recently and am earning ~8% more. When we send our son back to preschool things are sure to slow down, but I am feeling good today about where I'm at.
I know it's frustrating at first because the progress seems so slot and a big market drop makes one feel like all the contributions just got lost, too.
But historical average market returns on $100,000 are a bit over $10,000. If someone is contributing $10,000 a year they are now growing at twice that rate, or 20% increase in savings that year. If the next year also provides average returns, the growth rate is 22%, because the growth is on $120,000, for $12,000 in earnings. And it grows more every year even though the contribution stays the same.
Compound growth supplemented by regular contributions is an awesome force!
Compounding truly is the great builder of long-term wealth.
The longer I go in finance, the more I see and understand compounding and the more impressed by the whole thing I am.
As you said, the beginning feels so tediously slow because the dollar amounts and, therefore, the percentage are increasing at small incremental rates. But each year compounds on the previous and it doesn't take long to see the snowball takeover.
"The Shockingly Simple Math to Early Retirement" is one I re-read from time-to-time just for this reason. Seeing how a person can, fairly easily, become FI if they just live below their means. And how even small increases in contributing makes a huge long-term impact.
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Related to this conversation: https://fourpillarfreedom.com/why-saving-your-first-100k-is-a-big-deal/ (https://fourpillarfreedom.com/why-saving-your-first-100k-is-a-big-deal/)
I think this blog post does a great job of trying to visualize why the first $100k in invested assets is such of a big deal, and some of the points made above. In the "contributing $10k a year" case outlined below, getting to a $100k balance constitutes ~26% of the total duration of your accumulation phase on the path to $1Million.
Charlie Munger is also often attributed to saying something similar. There are many different versions of his quote, but this is one of my favorite versions:
"The first $100,000 is a bitch, but you gotta do it. I don’t care what you have to do—if it means walking everywhere and not eating anything that wasn’t purchased with a coupon, find a way to get your hands on $100,000. After that, you can ease off the gas a little bit.”
Regardless, I just found this thread and am excited to join! I've really noticed a huge difference in the rate of change of my "% to FI" since I crossed over the ~25% threshold.
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I agree that the first $100,000 is the hardest part.
At that point, average market returns will bring in $10,000 a year.
That's a non-trivial amount of income. Aside from its compounding growth wonderfulness, $10,000 is enough to pay for a new HVAC system, or put a chunk on a car and pay it off the following year, or cover expenses if you get ill and can't work for awhile. It helps protect against the dark side in the really bad years, too.
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We're right around the $100k mark in assets held across all our defined contribution retirement accounts (we have no taxable investments). If we also add in the current value of the defined benefit pension plan, we would have enough to pay off our mortgage (though not likely enough to also pay the taxes on the disbursement, but we might get there if also including our bank account balances) so our current net worth is very close to whatever the current market value of our home is.
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Thanks for starting this thread @SwordGuy. Reading your posts reminded me that absolute total savings is not the right goal, it's how close you are to generating the passive income you want/need based on a given SWR that is important.
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Thanks for starting this thread @SwordGuy. Reading your posts reminded me that absolute total savings is not the right goal, it's how close you are to generating the passive income you want/need based on a given SWR that is important.
You're very welcome! I think %FI is the right measurement too.
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I am not sure what is my FIRE number but I reallly want to put my foot down and say 2 million should be enough.
If that is the case then I am a little over 25%.
Not bad starting from 0 6 years ago.
I hope to be able to get to 50% in 4 years...
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10/1/2017: 15.5%
10/1/2018: 19.6%
10/1/2019: 22.9%
01/1/2021: 36.4%
Bumped into the next rung on the poll...
10/1/2017: 15.5%
10/1/2018: 19.6%
10/1/2019: 22.9%
10/1/2020: 30.0%
06/1/2021: 41.9%
Fast progress in the last ~8 months due to crazy stock market, and an annual revision of target FIRE spending (lowered it a bit based on actuals from the past couple of years; might well bump it back up again in the years to come...)
Onward!
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10/1/2017: 15.5%
10/1/2018: 19.6%
10/1/2019: 22.9%
01/1/2021: 36.4%
Bumped into the next rung on the poll...
10/1/2017: 15.5%
10/1/2018: 19.6%
10/1/2019: 22.9%
10/1/2020: 30.0%
06/1/2021: 41.9%
Fast progress in the last ~8 months due to crazy stock market, and an annual revision of target FIRE spending (lowered it a bit based on actuals from the past couple of years; might well bump it back up again in the years to come...)
Onward!
Great news!
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Question for those who track home equity as part of Net Worth, how do you do it? Specifically, how often do you do it? My original plan was once a year when I get the taxable value of my home, but with prices skyrocketing up so much this year, I'm concerned these values won't hold and it'll lead to unrealistic home valuation.
For those who do it, what's your source of truth and how often do you update it? And, how are you handling the crazy price jumps this year?
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Question for those who track home equity as part of Net Worth, how do you do it? Specifically, how often do you do it? My original plan was once a year when I get the taxable value of my home, but with prices skyrocketing up so much this year, I'm concerned these values won't hold and it'll lead to unrealistic home valuation.
For those who do it, what's your source of truth and how often do you update it? And, how are you handling the crazy price jumps this year?
Historically, homes appreciate by around 2-4% (although I've seen a lot of different estimates). I ignore the noise of the current craze and use a conservative 2.5%. Either we eventually sell and hopefully get a nice bonus, or we don't, and it doesn't matter.
Edit: I also don't include my home value in my "% FI" calculations, only my less useful but more ego-stroking net worth value.
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Question for those who track home equity as part of Net Worth, how do you do it? Specifically, how often do you do it? My original plan was once a year when I get the taxable value of my home, but with prices skyrocketing up so much this year, I'm concerned these values won't hold and it'll lead to unrealistic home valuation.
For those who do it, what's your source of truth and how often do you update it? And, how are you handling the crazy price jumps this year?
I track home equity as part of my net worth because, well, it **IS** part of my net worth.
I don't track it as part of my FI stash because I have no intention to sell it and live off of any portion of the proceeds.
We have rental property as well and we (generally) follow the same guidelines.
I update the values at the end of the year or if something major happens that might greatly affect the value. In the past, that has usually been when we've upgraded a property and increased its potential sale value. This time, I updated the values at the 1/2 year mark because of the big run up in sales prices. About 15 years ago we had a big run-up in property values in my area because the government was moving some important military assets to the nearby post and that meant more people with good jobs.
I don't take Zillow as gospel. I'll look at some other houses that I think are comparable that are selling in the area. If I know my property is better or worse than average for the houses around it I'll adjust accordingly. One house is on a block where there were a lot of foreclosures. The houses were renovated and rented out (instead of flipped and sold) so that block hasn't had its valuations properly adjusted yet, so I added some in for that.
It really doesn't matter whether I get it exactly right or not. The purpose of tracking net worth, for us, is to look at trends over time. If prices drop back down then, well, that portion of our net worth will drop with them. But because most people don't buy their homes for cash, if the homes drop below what they owe on their mortgages they'll have to cough up the difference. That tends to slow down the price drops because people can't afford to sell at the lower prices.
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Question for those who track home equity as part of Net Worth, how do you do it? Specifically, how often do you do it? My original plan was once a year when I get the taxable value of my home, but with prices skyrocketing up so much this year, I'm concerned these values won't hold and it'll lead to unrealistic home valuation.
For those who do it, what's your source of truth and how often do you update it? And, how are you handling the crazy price jumps this year?
I track home equity as part of my net worth because, well, it **IS** part of my net worth.
I don't track it as part of my FI stash because I have no intention to sell it and live off of any portion of the proceeds.
We have rental property as well and we (generally) follow the same guidelines.
I update the values at the end of the year or if something major happens that might greatly affect the value. In the past, that has usually been when we've upgraded a property and increased its potential sale value. This time, I updated the values at the 1/2 year mark because of the big run up in sales prices. About 15 years ago we had a big run-up in property values in my area because the government was moving some important military assets to the nearby post and that meant more people with good jobs.
I don't take Zillow as gospel. I'll look at some other houses that I think are comparable that are selling in the area. If I know my property is better or worse than average for the houses around it I'll adjust accordingly. One house is on a block where there were a lot of foreclosures. The houses were renovated and rented out (instead of flipped and sold) so that block hasn't had its valuations properly adjusted yet, so I added some in for that.
It really doesn't matter whether I get it exactly right or not. The purpose of tracking net worth, for us, is to look at trends over time. If prices drop back down then, well, that portion of our net worth will drop with them. But because most people don't buy their homes for cash, if the homes drop below what they owe on their mortgages they'll have to cough up the difference. That tends to slow down the price drops because people can't afford to sell at the lower prices.
Exactly. This is why I track different subtotals, with and without real estate equity (in our two rentals or primary residence), on the various Races here. So many landmarks to celebrate. That's all I use these Racing threads for ... keeping track of landmarks as an excuse to celebrate. :-)
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Question for those who track home equity as part of Net Worth, how do you do it? Specifically, how often do you do it? My original plan was once a year when I get the taxable value of my home, but with prices skyrocketing up so much this year, I'm concerned these values won't hold and it'll lead to unrealistic home valuation.
For those who do it, what's your source of truth and how often do you update it? And, how are you handling the crazy price jumps this year?
I track home equity as part of my net worth because, well, it **IS** part of my net worth.
I don't track it as part of my FI stash because I have no intention to sell it and live off of any portion of the proceeds.
We have rental property as well and we (generally) follow the same guidelines.
I update the values at the end of the year or if something major happens that might greatly affect the value. In the past, that has usually been when we've upgraded a property and increased its potential sale value. This time, I updated the values at the 1/2 year mark because of the big run up in sales prices. About 15 years ago we had a big run-up in property values in my area because the government was moving some important military assets to the nearby post and that meant more people with good jobs.
I don't take Zillow as gospel. I'll look at some other houses that I think are comparable that are selling in the area. If I know my property is better or worse than average for the houses around it I'll adjust accordingly. One house is on a block where there were a lot of foreclosures. The houses were renovated and rented out (instead of flipped and sold) so that block hasn't had its valuations properly adjusted yet, so I added some in for that.
It really doesn't matter whether I get it exactly right or not. The purpose of tracking net worth, for us, is to look at trends over time. If prices drop back down then, well, that portion of our net worth will drop with them. But because most people don't buy their homes for cash, if the homes drop below what they owe on their mortgages they'll have to cough up the difference. That tends to slow down the price drops because people can't afford to sell at the lower prices.
Exactly. This is why I track different subtotals, with and without real estate equity (in our two rentals or primary residence), on the various Races here. So many landmarks to celebrate. That's all I use these Racing threads for ... keeping track of landmarks as an excuse to celebrate. :-)
I track my property in my net worth, but my 'money' is a different number. That's the one I really keep a close eye on because that's the one I have to live on. As far as property values, I generally just keep either the purchase price or the latest appraisal amount. Mainly because I never plan to sell any of them so their 'value' is not really a number I need to track. That could also be laziness.
@monarda you've helped me clarify my thoughts about the 'Race to' threads. I too have enjoyed using the racing threads for tracking and celebration. I just hit a milestone but don't want to move to the next thread because I'm not sure it's healthy for me. I always want to keep in mind the concept of enough, not what's the next huge amount of money I can strive for. Now I'm sad because I don't know if I'll move to the next thread but if I don't, will tracking be the same...
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...
Edit: I also don't include my home value in my "% FI" calculations, only my less useful but more ego-stroking net worth value.
Ditto here. Just chiming in to state the (perhaps obvious) thing that I do count my mortgage against me in my "% FI" calculation. In my mind, you'll always need a place to live, but you have to account for the mortgage payment (and/or paying off the mortgage completely) somehow even after you FIRE and/or retire.
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I really appreciate all the feedback (and I'm always open for more). I think I'm going to follow @DadJokes method of setting a yearly % increase.
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Question for those who track home equity as part of Net Worth, how do you do it? Specifically, how often do you do it? My original plan was once a year when I get the taxable value of my home, but with prices skyrocketing up so much this year, I'm concerned these values won't hold and it'll lead to unrealistic home valuation.
For those who do it, what's your source of truth and how often do you update it? And, how are you handling the crazy price jumps this year?
For % FI I count mortgage but not home (or car, etc) value. Only dollars v debt. For NW I count the house value, using whatever the zestimate is on the yearly anniversary of our purchase. We don’t intend to sell when we retire, but you never know!
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We're at the halfway mark for the year, everybody update their FI%! :)
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From 11% in October 2020 to 16% as of right now.
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From 11% in October 2020 to 16% as of right now.
That's great!
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It turns out that plonking money into investments over time works! ;)
(Considering that at the start of 2016 I had no investments and a -$40k net worth... behold the power of plonking money into investments! And I've got a pretty "standard" MMM fire target number, too, not anything ERE.)
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I voted a little while ago, but I'll officially enter the race. I'm currently at 40.8% FI (was 34% at the end of 2020).
Target for 100% and RE is sometime in 2029, at age 55. Daily prayers to the market!
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I voted a little while ago, but I'll officially enter the race. I'm currently at 40.8% FI (was 34% at the end of 2020).
Target for 100% and RE is sometime in 2029, at age 55. Daily prayers to the market!
34% is great and 40.8% is even better! You have the financial stability to recover from a host of problems that would really mess up others.
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I voted a little while ago, but I'll officially enter the race. I'm currently at 40.8% FI (was 34% at the end of 2020).
Target for 100% and RE is sometime in 2029, at age 55. Daily prayers to the market!
34% is great and 40.8% is even better! You have the financial stability to recover from a host of problems that would really mess up others.
Thanks. Amazing what knowing that does to my sleep pattern :)
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Just crossed over 10% of the way
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Just crossed over 10% of the way
10% is awesome! It's enough to cover a month or so without pay. It's enough to cover a major repair.
And it's enough to jumpstart that climb to 100%!
Congrats!
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Just crossed over 10% of the way
10% is awesome! It's enough to cover a month or so without pay. It's enough to cover a major repair.
And it's enough to jumpstart that climb to 100%!
Congrats!
Thanks! 10% of our FI number is actually enough that we could probably live on it for 3-4 years without making any sacrifices, of course then we’d be broke and back to square one, haha, so definitely trying to leave it invested. Definitely enough that I don’t have to stress about repairs or inconsistent income (which I have since my job is seasonal)
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Speaking of how long that money lasts, one of my favorite yearly trackers is the Financial Freedom Calculator (https://engaging-data.com/freedom-calculator/)
Basically, it calculates how far into a year your nest egg would get you based on your planned future withdraw rate and current nest egg. 10% puts you at February 5th, I believe. Which is BONKES AWESOME!
I add my "Current Freedom Date" to my yearly tracking, and it is so rewarding to see the days grow year-over-year. My dates over the last four years break down like this (as of January 1st of each year):
2017: Jan 17th
2018: Jan 19th
2019: Feb 13th
2020: Mar 20th
I think the really cool thing about the Freedom Calculator is it really shows the power of compounding. I gained 2 days in 2018 (when I didn't invest just saved for a down payment), 25 days in 2019, and 35 in 2020. My Goal for 2021 will put me past April 20th. Maybe I can push my way into May if I'm extra aggressive the second half of the year!
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Speaking of how long that money lasts, one of my favorite yearly trackers is the Financial Freedom Calculator (https://engaging-data.com/freedom-calculator/)
Basically, it calculates how far into a year your nest egg would get you based on your planned future withdraw rate and current nest egg. 10% puts you at February 5th, I believe. Which is BONKES AWESOME!
I add my "Current Freedom Date" to my yearly tracking, and it is so rewarding to see the days grow year-over-year. My dates over the last four years break down like this (as of January 1st of each year):
2017: Jan 17th
2018: Jan 19th
2019: Feb 13th
2020: Mar 20th
I think the really cool thing about the Freedom Calculator is it really shows the power of compounding. I gained 2 days in 2018 (when I didn't invest just saved for a down payment), 25 days in 2019, and 35 in 2020. My Goal for 2021 will put me past April 20th. Maybe I can push my way into May if I'm extra aggressive the second half of the year!
That’s cool, I like the idea of breaking it down into how much of a year I could cover indefinitely. Hopefully I can cover until close to mid-February by the end of the year, Feb 11 or later would be awesome
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Just crossed over 10% of the way
10% is awesome! It's enough to cover a month or so without pay. It's enough to cover a major repair.
And it's enough to jumpstart that climb to 100%!
Congrats!
Thanks! 10% of our FI number is actually enough that we could probably live on it for 3-4 years without making any sacrifices, of course then we’d be broke and back to square one, haha, so definitely trying to leave it invested. Definitely enough that I don’t have to stress about repairs or inconsistent income (which I have since my job is seasonal)
Ah, yes, that way it would.
I was referring to just using the extra income to cover problems without touching the investment proper. Communication is such a chancy thing!
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Just crossed over 10% of the way
10% is awesome! It's enough to cover a month or so without pay. It's enough to cover a major repair.
And it's enough to jumpstart that climb to 100%!
Congrats!
Thanks! 10% of our FI number is actually enough that we could probably live on it for 3-4 years without making any sacrifices, of course then we’d be broke and back to square one, haha, so definitely trying to leave it invested. Definitely enough that I don’t have to stress about repairs or inconsistent income (which I have since my job is seasonal)
Ah, yes, that way it would.
I was referring to just using the extra income to cover problems without touching the investment proper. Communication is such a chancy thing!
Ah, got it! Yeah I could 4% my way out of a lot of stuff like a month off or a repair bill, cool way to look at it. In fact I guess I already did that this year, DW got a new job a few months ago and needed a separate car for commuting, so we spent ~3.5% to get her a good little car and barely felt it
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Ah, yes, that way it would.
I was referring to just using the extra income to cover problems without touching the investment proper. Communication is such a chancy thing!
Ah, got it! Yeah I could 4% my way out of a lot of stuff like a month off or a repair bill, cool way to look at it. In fact I guess I already did that this year, DW got a new job a few months ago and needed a separate car for commuting, so we spent ~3.5% to get her a good little car and barely felt it
THAT's why I cheer people on so much when they reach the 10% mark. The psychological stress difference between "OMG! What are we to do?" and "Meh. It's no big deal." is IMMENSE.
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Ah, yes, that way it would.
I was referring to just using the extra income to cover problems without touching the investment proper. Communication is such a chancy thing!
Ah, got it! Yeah I could 4% my way out of a lot of stuff like a month off or a repair bill, cool way to look at it. In fact I guess I already did that this year, DW got a new job a few months ago and needed a separate car for commuting, so we spent ~3.5% to get her a good little car and barely felt it
THAT's why I cheer people on so much when they reach the 10% mark. The psychological stress difference between "OMG! What are we to do?" and "Meh. It's no big deal." is IMMENSE.
And the answer that people in that situation come to often ends up being “finance the replacement car”, or “put the water heater replacement bill on the credit card and make minimum payments”. I’ve got a long road still ahead to get to 100% FI, but I feel really fortunate that I’ll likely never be forced to choose those kinds of options. I had been keeping an eye out for a good used car for about a month, and was able to jump on a wicked deal that popped up on Facebook Marketplace literally minutes after it was posted because I was ready with cash in hand
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Ah, yes, that way it would.
I was referring to just using the extra income to cover problems without touching the investment proper. Communication is such a chancy thing!
Ah, got it! Yeah I could 4% my way out of a lot of stuff like a month off or a repair bill, cool way to look at it. In fact I guess I already did that this year, DW got a new job a few months ago and needed a separate car for commuting, so we spent ~3.5% to get her a good little car and barely felt it
THAT's why I cheer people on so much when they reach the 10% mark. The psychological stress difference between "OMG! What are we to do?" and "Meh. It's no big deal." is IMMENSE.
And the answer that people in that situation come to often ends up being “finance the replacement car”, or “put the water heater replacement bill on the credit card and make minimum payments”. I’ve got a long road still ahead to get to 100% FI, but I feel really fortunate that I’ll likely never be forced to choose those kinds of options. I had been keeping an eye out for a good used car for about a month, and was able to jump on a wicked deal that popped up on Facebook Marketplace literally minutes after it was posted because I was ready with cash in hand
When this happened for me, it was when I finally felt like financial independence was possible. Having enough to survive tragedy is so freeing! As everyone has already said...when something breaks, it's not a big deal! When tragedy strikes, money isn't a concern. It's such a different mindset to living and it's WONDERFUL
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Speaking of how long that money lasts, one of my favorite yearly trackers is the Financial Freedom Calculator (https://engaging-data.com/freedom-calculator/)
Basically, it calculates how far into a year your nest egg would get you based on your planned future withdraw rate and current nest egg. 10% puts you at February 5th, I believe. Which is BONKES AWESOME!
I add my "Current Freedom Date" to my yearly tracking, and it is so rewarding to see the days grow year-over-year. My dates over the last four years break down like this (as of January 1st of each year):
2017: Jan 17th
2018: Jan 19th
2019: Feb 13th
2020: Mar 20th
I think the really cool thing about the Freedom Calculator is it really shows the power of compounding. I gained 2 days in 2018 (when I didn't invest just saved for a down payment), 25 days in 2019, and 35 in 2020. My Goal for 2021 will put me past April 20th. Maybe I can push my way into May if I'm extra aggressive the second half of the year!
This is a pretty cool idea. I started tracking in 2016.
End of:
2016: February 14th
2017: March 5th
2018: March 23rd
2019: May 9th
2020: June 27th
Right now we are right at about 50% of the way to our #.
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Speaking of how long that money lasts, one of my favorite yearly trackers is the Financial Freedom Calculator (https://engaging-data.com/freedom-calculator/)
Basically, it calculates how far into a year your nest egg would get you based on your planned future withdraw rate and current nest egg. 10% puts you at February 5th, I believe. Which is BONKES AWESOME!
I add my "Current Freedom Date" to my yearly tracking, and it is so rewarding to see the days grow year-over-year. My dates over the last four years break down like this (as of January 1st of each year):
2017: Jan 17th
2018: Jan 19th
2019: Feb 13th
2020: Mar 20th
I think the really cool thing about the Freedom Calculator is it really shows the power of compounding. I gained 2 days in 2018 (when I didn't invest just saved for a down payment), 25 days in 2019, and 35 in 2020. My Goal for 2021 will put me past April 20th. Maybe I can push my way into May if I'm extra aggressive the second half of the year!
This is a pretty cool idea. I started tracking in 2016.
End of:
2016: February 14th
2017: March 5th
2018: March 23rd
2019: May 9th
2020: June 27th
Right now we are right at about 50% of the way to our #.
WOW!!! One thing that's amazing about having a June date...you could technically go six months without income or tapping your emergency fund.
Six months. Every Year. Forever.
That's awesome
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I'm at 25.93 as of my last spreadsheet update. This past year has been bonkers. It's got me to a point where I should really be starting to notice the compounding, and I am, but it's currently going at what is likely an unsustainable rate, so I fear my view of compounding will eventually look like a slowdown.
Either way, can't complain, I'm in a better spot than I was 6 years ago, that's for sure.
For those of you liking the days of freedom method, there's a tracking thread for that in the Share Your Badassity forum.
https://forum.mrmoneymustache.com/share-your-badassity/i-just-bought-2-days-per-year-of-free-life-indefinitely-363-to-go/
Both cool ways of tracking, and my spreadsheet has both metrics.
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I voted a little while ago, but I'll officially enter the race. I'm currently at 40.8% FI (was 34% at the end of 2020).
Target for 100% and RE is sometime in 2029, at age 55. Daily prayers to the market!
41.36% at the end of July :)
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Still in the 40.01-50% range, but closer to the top.
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Question for those who track home equity as part of Net Worth, how do you do it? Specifically, how often do you do it? My original plan was once a year when I get the taxable value of my home, but with prices skyrocketing up so much this year, I'm concerned these values won't hold and it'll lead to unrealistic home valuation.
For those who do it, what's your source of truth and how often do you update it? And, how are you handling the crazy price jumps this year?
I track home equity as part of my net worth because, well, it **IS** part of my net worth.
I don't track it as part of my FI stash because I have no intention to sell it and live off of any portion of the proceeds.
We have rental property as well and we (generally) follow the same guidelines.
I update the values at the end of the year or if something major happens that might greatly affect the value. In the past, that has usually been when we've upgraded a property and increased its potential sale value. This time, I updated the values at the 1/2 year mark because of the big run up in sales prices. About 15 years ago we had a big run-up in property values in my area because the government was moving some important military assets to the nearby post and that meant more people with good jobs.
I don't take Zillow as gospel. I'll look at some other houses that I think are comparable that are selling in the area. If I know my property is better or worse than average for the houses around it I'll adjust accordingly. One house is on a block where there were a lot of foreclosures. The houses were renovated and rented out (instead of flipped and sold) so that block hasn't had its valuations properly adjusted yet, so I added some in for that.
It really doesn't matter whether I get it exactly right or not. The purpose of tracking net worth, for us, is to look at trends over time. If prices drop back down then, well, that portion of our net worth will drop with them. But because most people don't buy their homes for cash, if the homes drop below what they owe on their mortgages they'll have to cough up the difference. That tends to slow down the price drops because people can't afford to sell at the lower prices.
This is generally how I do it too. I want all "balance sheet surprises" to be GOOD surprises. If we have a rental property that we bought for $110K and I know I could sell it tomorrow for $160K, then I'll carry it on my spreadsheet at something like 90% of anticipated net sale proceeds after brokerage commissions. That way, I'm in no real danger of overestimating my net worth and making poor decisions on that basis. And when we sell it for $170K with no broker, to the extent it's a surprise, all consequences of the surprise are positive.
I suppose one could argue it's possible to be too conservative in these matters, but I've never experienced any downside. The way I want my finances working is: every time anything happens, it's somewhere between a half-step and two-steps forward, rather than a step back. Nothing's in the bank until it's in the bank.
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At ~22.2%, but am BURNING to get to 30%. That 100% feels so far away when I put it in % form, but hopefully compounding works in my favor within the next decade (the working-to-earn-and-save and frugality are a given). I am stretching for FI by 2029.
LETS DO THIS...!
Came back to update, a little over two months later I am surprised to find I went quickly to 26.0%. A modest bonus helped, and I was promoted recently and am earning ~8% more. When we send our son back to preschool things are sure to slow down, but I am feeling good today about where I'm at.
March 2021: 22.2%
May 2021: 26.0%
August 2021: 27.7%
Yep, things slowing down. No longer renting out a room in our house, and son is back in preschool- so growth has slowed as expected. Both good changes though! And some growth >>> no growth.
Yearning to change my vote and join the 30% club! Will get there soon enough :)
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So as I understand what we're measuring, investment account balances times some percentage count as "passive income". This is, of course, different from what a lot of people call passive income, which would only consider dividends. I have to laugh at real estate returns (not REITS) as being passive. I rented my house out while I was away at grad school with a manager and even then, it was absolutely not passive. But anyways, any asset counts here, I guess....even the house if the plan is to sell the house in retirement and rent.
So I can actually go to my spread sheet. My liquid investments are at 53.25 times spending, so I'm certainly 110% plus. House is paid for. 4 cars are paid for (younger son drives one). No debt. DW and I are both still working full time. I've been trying to urge DW to quit her job (health care and become very stressful with people leaving, taking leaves or now summer vacations). But any large ongoing expense spooks her. It used to be college expenses for the kids (all done) and now is health insurance.
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I have to laugh at real estate returns (not REITS) as being passive.
We have four rental properties.
I can handle 4-8 hours of work a year for $2,500 to $5000 an hour.
About 1/2 that effort is replying "Thank you." to the property manager who's just informed me about something they did on our behalf.
You can laugh or not about it being passive enough for you, but I'm putting $20,000 in the bank for that effort.
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... And some growth >>> no growth.
Yearning to change my vote and join the 30% club! Will get there soon enough :)
Agreed! Some growth is better than none. I'm close to joining the 50% club, also yearning to get there and change my vote :).
Finally, @SwordGuy , excellent use of the gif. I totally agree; while not completely "passive", being a landlord can be fairly low effort compared to any other non-investment income source.
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Posting to follow, mostly.
I am at 162.% FI based on my current annual spend, but my housing costs are practically non-existent while I live with the parents. (Rent is paid in housework and occasional home health care.)
I'm 19.5% to what I think might be my bare bones number, with RE hopefully only ten years away. My current strategy is to stash as much as possible now so that when I eventually do need to spend a bunch on housing I can dial back investments while still having compound interest do some of the work for me.
So who knows, really, but I look forward to watching everyone's progress!
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Just about at 46% FI for target spend, 54% FI current spend. Estimating 3 years to FI if my wife and I continue to live and work where we do now.
One of my favorite metrics is how long would my stash last? Say I have a stash of ‘Z’ and withdrawal’Y’ per year and the remainder grows at ‘X’ percent - how long until Z=0? Right now I am sitting around 23 years with current spend. That is a hell of an emergency fund!
One cool thing that happens is at >40% FI your portfolio growth becomes more than your expenses ‘on average’ assuming a ~10% nominal return. That was last year for me, really solidified this whole FI thing. From here on out I am just padding the stash to overcome SORR and inflation.
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I almost don't trust it, but I just crossed the 50% threshold at the end of last month! I do have some big purchases planned in the next calendar year (a sorely overdue bathroom remodel, potentially a new-to-me car). so we'll see if I stay here for a while or can keep moving on up.
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I'm so tickled to see so many people making important progress in their races! Go team!
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Moved up to a bracket that gives me an option of FIRED or NOT FIRED! Seems weird that anyone would FIRE at 80-90% of their target spend
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Moved up to a bracket that gives me an option of FIRED or NOT FIRED! Seems weird that anyone would FIRE at 80-90% of their target spend
Some people feel lucky.
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Been lurking for a while, expenses have been all over the place for the past few years due to moving and buying a house, but I now feel comfortable with my yearly expense report and have determined the net worth I will need to be FIRE:
*First % is without a mortgage payment, second % is with current mortgage payment (13.5 years left at 1.75%)*
September 2021: 8.02%; 4.78%
I look forward to tracking my progress here with you all!
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Moved up to a bracket that gives me an option of FIRED or NOT FIRED! Seems weird that anyone would FIRE at 80-90% of their target spend
Or could be someone hit their target number, fired and then for one reason or another their spending or savings were affected by something they didn’t account for and are now in the position of being retired with less than they planned for
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Moved up to a bracket that gives me an option of FIRED or NOT FIRED! Seems weird that anyone would FIRE at 80-90% of their target spend
Or could be someone hit their target number, fired and then for one reason or another their spending or savings were affected by something they didn’t account for and are now in the position of being retired with less than they planned for
Yeah - once I am within ~80% target then I could see a CoastFI arrangement. DW and I would need to work 2-3 days a week ea. at $15/hr to close the gap. Once I could conceivably teach snowboarding or work front desk at the rock climbing gym on weekends and maintain my lifestyle then I might pull the plug on the 8-6 corporate gig and call myself "FIRE" even though I am not really FI or retired - just would need to coast a few years until the stash catches up. I kinda plan on doing this anyway, if for nothing other than the social interaction and routine, even if I am 100%+ FI.
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Happy to have an increase with the market downturn and unexpected expenses last month!
*First % is without a mortgage payment, second % is with current mortgage payment (13.5 years left at 1.75%)*
September 2021: 8.02%; 4.78%
October 2021: 8.19%; 4.88%
I would love to reach 10% (FI without a Mortgage) by the end of the year, we will have to see how the next few months turn out!
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10/1/2017: 15.5%
10/1/2018: 19.6%
10/1/2019: 22.9%
10/1/2020: 30.0%
06/1/2021: 41.9%
10/1/2017: 15.5%
10/1/2018: 19.6%
10/1/2019: 22.9%
10/1/2020: 30.0%
10/1/2021: 44.0%
... for the sake of evening up my stats on an annual cadence.
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10/1/2017: 15.5%
10/1/2018: 19.6%
10/1/2019: 22.9%
10/1/2020: 30.0%
06/1/2021: 41.9%
10/1/2017: 15.5%
10/1/2018: 19.6%
10/1/2019: 22.9%
10/1/2020: 30.0%
10/1/2021: 44.0%
... for the sake of evening up my stats on an annual cadence.
Up 14% this past year, that is amazing to see!
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10/1/2017: 15.5%
10/1/2018: 19.6%
10/1/2019: 22.9%
10/1/2020: 30.0%
10/1/2021: 44.0%
... for the sake of evening up my stats on an annual cadence.
Up 14% this past year, that is amazing to see!
Yes, the market has been bonkers and very kind to us (the month of September notwithstanding). TBD what happens in the future, of course! But enjoying the ride at present...
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Ok, I am about to reach 45% FI based on my previous metric.
However, I decided to recalcuate my target FI number based on the fact that my work contract has changed to allow me to retire by end of 2025 instead of 2029.
If I factor this in, my necessary stache requirement would drop a bit, as corp pension and state's pension together would cover a large part of my expenses. I would be almost 60% "there" (58.9%) with current stache.
However, me being risk-averse, this freaks me out a bit, as this implies also the dependency on corporate pay-off as well as state's pension. I mean it's great to have both to hopefully come in as planned, and with no major disaster, this will work out great.
Still, in order to have a full fallback planned, I will change my counting metric here to "fully independent from state/corp pension". With this in mind, I will slide back to the 30% range.
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I fully understand your unwillingness to fully trust a corporation to properly fund its pension plan.
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It's a moving target . . . both due to economics and due to my fluctuating personal life and life goals.
For example, I used to want to travel a lot. So I've done that. Now I'm kind of tired of it, although slow travel still has some allure. So do I need extra stash for extra travel . . . or not? I'm just not sure anymore.
My health-related bills have gone up over time. Another area of moving target in my life.
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It's a moving target . . . both due to economics and due to my fluctuating personal life and life goals.
For example, I used to want to travel a lot. So I've done that. Now I'm kind of tired of it, although slow travel still has some allure. So do I need extra stash for extra travel . . . or not? I'm just not sure anymore.
My health-related bills have gone up over time. Another area of moving target in my life.
We just handled it by having a solid cushion in our budget in the first place and planning on having fairly low fixed expenses. Fairly low by regular standards (paid off house and cars, no debt, etc.), not by the much lower spending standards by some on this blog
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Up 20% now from 10ish last year. Doubled sounds nicer!
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Changing my number and my poll vote again because I see an error in my rental income spreadsheet - I've double deducted my rental insurance premium- whoopsie. And I put in this year's rental expenses, which are lower than last years' and are more typical of a normal year's expenses. Fixed that and now at 102%. Whaddaya know. Hasn't sunk in quite yet.
We just did a cash-out refinance because next year is going to be an expensive year for the rentals (roof, paint job, sewer). We're temporarily at 107% now, but after all of those 2021 expenses** we'll dip down below 100% and need to build reserves back up. Hoping by 2022 to be back where we are now.
**But then all three houses will have a new roof and fresh paint, so we shouldn't have big expenses for quite some time after that.
Well, all of expensive 2021 is paid. We just did yet another cash-out refi. 2.25% loan!! (15Y)
And surprisingly, we're now at 116% and not FIRED, but I did switch down to part-time at work this month.
So partially RE'd?
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Just crossed over into the 20% range :D 1/5 of the way there. The next 20% should be much quicker too.
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At ~22.2%, but am BURNING to get to 30%. That 100% feels so far away when I put it in % form, but hopefully compounding works in my favor within the next decade (the working-to-earn-and-save and frugality are a given). I am stretching for FI by 2029.
LETS DO THIS...!
Came back to update, a little over two months later I am surprised to find I went quickly to 26.0%. A modest bonus helped, and I was promoted recently and am earning ~8% more. When we send our son back to preschool things are sure to slow down, but I am feeling good today about where I'm at.
March 2021: 22.2%
May 2021: 26.0%
August 2021: 27.7%
Yep, things slowing down. No longer renting out a room in our house, and son is back in preschool- so growth has slowed as expected. Both good changes though! And some growth >>> no growth.
Yearning to change my vote and join the 30% club! Will get there soon enough :)
March 2021: 22.2%
May 2021: 26.0%
August 2021: 27.7%
November 2021: 30.1%
Yay I crossed over finally! It doesn't *look* like it took a long time to go from 22.2% to 30.1% (9 months) on paper, but it sure felt like it. Onward and upward.
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Changing my number and my poll vote again because I see an error in my rental income spreadsheet - I've double deducted my rental insurance premium- whoopsie. And I put in this year's rental expenses, which are lower than last years' and are more typical of a normal year's expenses. Fixed that and now at 102%. Whaddaya know. Hasn't sunk in quite yet.
We just did a cash-out refinance because next year is going to be an expensive year for the rentals (roof, paint job, sewer). We're temporarily at 107% now, but after all of those 2021 expenses** we'll dip down below 100% and need to build reserves back up. Hoping by 2022 to be back where we are now.
**But then all three houses will have a new roof and fresh paint, so we shouldn't have big expenses for quite some time after that.
Well, all of expensive 2021 is paid. We just did yet another cash-out refi. 2.25% loan!! (15Y)
And surprisingly, we're now at 116% and not FIRED, but I did switch down to part-time at work this month.
So partially RE'd?
CONGRATULATIONS!!! That must feel wonderful.
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...
March 2021: 22.2%
May 2021: 26.0%
August 2021: 27.7%
November 2021: 30.1%
Yay I crossed over finally! It doesn't *look* like it took a long time to go from 22.2% to 30.1% (9 months) on paper, but it sure felt like it. Onward and upward.
Congrats! Love seeing the progress on this thread.
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Just tallying my figures for YE 2021, looking now at 31.1% (of the full independence goal).
The NW increments have continously increased since I joined the forum.
Now I just need to keep the momentum going ...
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Congrats to all of you!
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Speaking of how long that money lasts, one of my favorite yearly trackers is the Financial Freedom Calculator (https://engaging-data.com/freedom-calculator/)
Basically, it calculates how far into a year your nest egg would get you based on your planned future withdraw rate and current nest egg. 10% puts you at February 5th, I believe. Which is BONKES AWESOME!
I add my "Current Freedom Date" to my yearly tracking, and it is so rewarding to see the days grow year-over-year. My dates over the last four years break down like this (as of January 1st of each year):
2017: Jan 17th
2018: Jan 19th
2019: Feb 13th
2020: Mar 20th
I think the really cool thing about the Freedom Calculator is it really shows the power of compounding. I gained 2 days in 2018 (when I didn't invest just saved for a down payment), 25 days in 2019, and 35 in 2020. My Goal for 2021 will put me past April 20th. Maybe I can push my way into May if I'm extra aggressive the second half of the year!
That’s cool, I like the idea of breaking it down into how much of a year I could cover indefinitely. Hopefully I can cover until close to mid-February by the end of the year, Feb 11 or later would be awesome
2021 is over and I’m almost at 12%, which puts me at Feb 12 so pretty much on track where I was hoping to be. For 2022 I’ll be aiming to hit to 15%
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Got to update my place in the chart today, at 31% for the year!! Pretty cool! that also means I'm Financially Independent through April 28th forever. That's INSANE. Four entire months I could not work and still be just fine.
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Finished out the year at over 10% of my FI goal without a mortgage payment (achieving my yearly goal)! Happy with the progress and I will be attempting to make it to 18% next year with a stretch goal of 20%!
*First % is without a mortgage payment, second % is with current mortgage payment (13.5 years left at 1.75%)*
September 2021: 8.02%; 4.78%
October 2021: 8.19%; 4.88%
January 2022: 10.01%; 6.00%
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Finished out the year at over 10% of my FI goal without a mortgage payment (achieving my yearly goal)! Happy with the progress and I will be attempting to make it to 18% next year with a stretch goal of 20%!
*First % is without a mortgage payment, second % is with current mortgage payment (13.5 years left at 1.75%)*
September 2021: 8.02%; 4.78%
October 2021: 8.19%; 4.88%
January 2022: 10.01%; 6.00%
Oh, 10% is awesome! It means you have the financial wherewithal to, most of the time, turn what others would consider a financial emergency into a simple darn-it. That's really, really big.
And congrats on your plans for next year!
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Sigh, I’ve been stuck somewhere between 90-95% now for 4 years as I keep revising my retirement budget upwards.
At some point I will have to call enough, and 90 something percent will instantly become 100%
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Thanks for the ability to remove my vote. It's really fun to be able to go up on it!
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Thanks for the ability to remove my vote. It's really fun to be able to go up on it!
You're welcome! That was the intent of the poll, to see where you are now on your race!
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Sigh, I’ve been stuck somewhere between 90-95% now for 4 years as I keep revising my retirement budget upwards.
At some point I will have to call enough, and 90 something percent will instantly become 100%
Why are you revising your budget up? What changed to cause the increase? I ask because I was doing the same thing recently; underestimated some expenses being gone. Being more honest with myself about what we spend in a given year, etc...
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2021: Goal (10%)
2022: Goal (18% with stretch goal of 20%)
*First % is without a mortgage payment, second % is with current mortgage payment (~13.5 years left at 1.75%)*
September 2021: 8.02%; 4.78%
October 2021: 8.19%; 4.88%
January 2022: 10.01%; 6.00%
February 2022: 10.27%; 6.12%
-
2021: Goal (10%)
2022: Goal (18% with stretch goal of 20%)
*First % is without a mortgage payment, second % is with current mortgage payment (~13.5 years left at 1.75%)*
**4% withdrawal rate**
September 2021: 8.02%; 4.78%
October 2021: 8.19%; 4.88%
January 2022: 10.01%; 6.00%
February 2022: 10.27%; 6.12%
March 2022: 11.14%; 6.63%
-
I think we are around 40% to FI and about 5-10 years away. We currently save 30% of our income that goes directly into stock investments. We also have 3 rentals (4 doors).
We are not really in a rush because my current full-time job is somewhat similar to a barista FI part-time job. However, I still like the idea of FI, just in case my job ever became toxic.
I teach community college and work 30 hours/week M-Th on campus and another 5 hours/week from home. Each semester is 15 weeks + 1 week of prep. 32 weeks total is 1,120 hours/year. If you divide this by 52 weeks, I average 21.5 hours/week. My wife works 13.5 hours/week at Target. Our combined working hours are 35 hours/week. We still have plenty of time for hobbies, travel, etc...
About 18 months ago I said we were 5-10 years away from FI. Now after the real estate boom, my new estimate is 4-5 years. Our path is around zero to 2 million in about 15-16 years.
-
2021: Goal (10%)
2022: Goal (18% with stretch goal of 20%)
*First % is without a mortgage payment, second % is with current mortgage payment (~13.5 years left at 1.75%)*
**4% withdrawal rate**
September 2021: 8.02%; 4.78%
October 2021: 8.19%; 4.88%
January 2022: 10.01%; 6.00%
February 2022: 10.27%; 6.12%
March 2022: 11.14%; 6.63%
April 2022: 11.93%; 7.10%
-
After 2 1/2 years of tracking monthly expenses, moving twice during that time, changing jobs and all kinds of other changes, I finally feel there've been enough monkey wrenches thrown into the works to be confident in my annual expenses on a macro level. So I can finally participate, woo!
01/01/98 0.0%
04/30/11 5.1%
03/31/16 10.2%
03/31/19 20.6%
08/31/20 30.6%
06/30/21 40.5%
04/30/22 48.7%
-
Goal 2021: 10%
Goal 2022: 18%; stretch goal 20%
*First % is without a mortgage payment, second % is with current mortgage payment (~13.5 years remaining at 1.75%)*
**4% withdrawal rate**
SEP 2021: 8.02%; 4.78%
OCT 2021: 8.19%; 4.88%
NOV 2021: 8.44%; 5.03%
DEC 2021: 8.38%; 4.99%
JAN 2022: 10.01%; 6.00%
FEB 2022: 10.27%; 6.12%
MAR 2022: 11.14%; 6.63%
APR 2022: 11.93%; 7.10%
MAY 2022: 11.30%; 6.73%
Continuing to jam as much cash into my investment accounts as possible. Whenever the market decides to swing upwards, I expect large gains!
-
Goal 2021: 10%
Goal 2022: 18%; stretch goal 20%
*First % is without a mortgage payment, second % is with current mortgage payment (~13.5 years remaining at 1.75%)*
**4% withdrawal rate**
SEP 2021: 8.02%; 4.78%
OCT 2021: 8.19%; 4.88%
NOV 2021: 8.44%; 5.03%
DEC 2021: 8.38%; 4.99%
JAN 2022: 10.01%; 6.00%
FEB 2022: 10.27%; 6.12%
MAR 2022: 11.14%; 6.63%
APR 2022: 11.93%; 7.10%
MAY 2022: 11.30%; 6.73%
JUN 2022: 11.94%; 6.74%
Big, planned expenses this month, hoping to break even!
-
Just popping in to say, changed my poll response from 110% and not FIREd to 90-100% and not FIREd. Sadly our accounts have gone down and expenses have gone up. We'll probably hang in and FIRE in a year or so depending on the markets / inflation situations. I'm sure many are in this situation, I still feel pretty fortunate and expenses this year have been high due to factors other than inflation (needed some expensive house repairs, helping out family members, etc.) I would love to be working at lowering expenses but it's hard to feel motivated - there's a little bit of "Treat Yoself" / YOLO after so many COVID restrictions lifting and 2+ years of various levels of lockdown.
-
@Mmm_Donuts , I can understand that!
You're close to FI and, frankly, very well off to be that way! Good job!
-
Goal 2021: 10%
Goal 2022: 18%; stretch goal 20%
*First % is without a mortgage payment, second % is with current mortgage payment (~13.5 years remaining at 1.75%)*
**4% withdrawal rate**
SEP 2021: 8.02%; 4.78%
OCT 2021: 8.19%; 4.88%
NOV 2021: 8.44%; 5.03%
DEC 2021: 8.38%; 4.99%
JAN 2022: 10.01%; 6.00%
FEB 2022: 10.27%; 6.12%
MAR 2022: 11.14%; 6.63%
APR 2022: 11.93%; 7.10%
MAY 2022: 11.30%; 6.73%
JUN 2022: 11.94%; 6.94%
SEP 2022: 12.39%; 7.37%
Did not update in July and August, but glad to see forward progress. I anticipate still making my goal for the year, as I will see a large, one time influx of money in October!
-
Just popping in to say, changed my poll response from 110% and not FIREd to 90-100% and not FIREd. Sadly our accounts have gone down and expenses have gone up. We'll probably hang in and FIRE in a year or so depending on the markets / inflation situations. I'm sure many are in this situation, I still feel pretty fortunate and expenses this year have been high due to factors other than inflation (needed some expensive house repairs, helping out family members, etc.) I would love to be working at lowering expenses but it's hard to feel motivated - there's a little bit of "Treat Yoself" / YOLO after so many COVID restrictions lifting and 2+ years of various levels of lockdown.
Not in the same situation, but I had to change my response and move it down ~3% (was at ~51%, now at 48%). Hang in there, Donuts! Hopefully this is short lived and a future recovery will give you a boost as you go into your FIRE'd life!
-
Speaking of how long that money lasts, one of my favorite yearly trackers is the Financial Freedom Calculator (https://engaging-data.com/freedom-calculator/)
Basically, it calculates how far into a year your nest egg would get you based on your planned future withdraw rate and current nest egg. 10% puts you at February 5th, I believe. Which is BONKES AWESOME!
I add my "Current Freedom Date" to my yearly tracking, and it is so rewarding to see the days grow year-over-year. My dates over the last four years break down like this (as of January 1st of each year):
2017: Jan 17th
2018: Jan 19th
2019: Feb 13th
2020: Mar 20th
I think the really cool thing about the Freedom Calculator is it really shows the power of compounding. I gained 2 days in 2018 (when I didn't invest just saved for a down payment), 25 days in 2019, and 35 in 2020. My Goal for 2021 will put me past April 20th. Maybe I can push my way into May if I'm extra aggressive the second half of the year!
That’s cool, I like the idea of breaking it down into how much of a year I could cover indefinitely. Hopefully I can cover until close to mid-February by the end of the year, Feb 11 or later would be awesome
2021 is over and I’m almost at 12%, which puts me at Feb 12 so pretty much on track where I was hoping to be. For 2022 I’ll be aiming to hit to 15%
At 12.1%, only about 0.2% above where I was at the start of the year despite contributing over 2% of my FIRE number to retirement accounts so far this year.
-
Speaking of how long that money lasts, one of my favorite yearly trackers is the Financial Freedom Calculator (https://engaging-data.com/freedom-calculator/)
Basically, it calculates how far into a year your nest egg would get you based on your planned future withdraw rate and current nest egg. 10% puts you at February 5th, I believe. Which is BONKES AWESOME!
I add my "Current Freedom Date" to my yearly tracking, and it is so rewarding to see the days grow year-over-year. My dates over the last four years break down like this (as of January 1st of each year):
2017: Jan 17th
2018: Jan 19th
2019: Feb 13th
2020: Mar 20th
I think the really cool thing about the Freedom Calculator is it really shows the power of compounding. I gained 2 days in 2018 (when I didn't invest just saved for a down payment), 25 days in 2019, and 35 in 2020. My Goal for 2021 will put me past April 20th. Maybe I can push my way into May if I'm extra aggressive the second half of the year!
That’s cool, I like the idea of breaking it down into how much of a year I could cover indefinitely. Hopefully I can cover until close to mid-February by the end of the year, Feb 11 or later would be awesome
2021 is over and I’m almost at 12%, which puts me at Feb 12 so pretty much on track where I was hoping to be. For 2022 I’ll be aiming to hit to 15%
At 12.1%, only about 0.2% above where I was at the start of the year despite contributing over 2% of my FIRE number to retirement accounts so far this year.
Just keep reminding yourself that you're buying low.
I'm over 4 1/2 years FIREd now, but times like these make me nostalgic for the days when I was buying low. Now I'm trying to minimize selling low.
-
We paid off our house and then maxed out our 401Ks in about 2010. Those lowered prices added a sweet bonus to our portfolio growth!
If we had known about investing two years earlier we would have slowed down paying off the house! We were making 2 1/2 to 3 /12 mortgage payments a month during that time!
-
Goal 2021: 10%
Goal 2022: 18%; stretch goal 20%
*First % is without a mortgage payment, second % is with current mortgage payment (~13.5 years remaining at 1.75%)*
**4% withdrawal rate**
SEP 2021: 8.02%; 4.78%
OCT 2021: 8.19%; 4.88%
NOV 2021: 8.44%; 5.03%
DEC 2021: 8.38%; 4.99%
JAN 2022: 10.01%; 6.00%
FEB 2022: 10.27%; 6.12%
MAR 2022: 11.14%; 6.63%
APR 2022: 11.93%; 7.10%
MAY 2022: 11.30%; 6.73%
JUN 2022: 11.94%; 6.94%
SEP 2022: 12.39%; 7.37%
OCT 2022: 11.49%; 6.84%
Still increasing the number of shares I own, and I am still enjoying the stock market sale!
-
Goal 2021: 10%
Goal 2022: 18%; stretch goal 20%
*First % is without a mortgage payment, second % is with current mortgage payment (~13.0 years remaining at 1.75%)*
**4% withdrawal rate**
SEP 2021: 8.02%; 4.78%
OCT 2021: 8.19%; 4.88%
NOV 2021: 8.44%; 5.03%
DEC 2021: 8.38%; 4.99%
JAN 2022: 10.01%; 6.00%
FEB 2022: 10.27%; 6.12%
MAR 2022: 11.14%; 6.63%
APR 2022: 11.93%; 7.10%
MAY 2022: 11.30%; 6.73%
JUN 2022: 11.94%; 6.94%
SEP 2022: 12.39%; 7.37%
OCT 2022: 11.49%; 6.84%
NOV 2022: 12.46%; 7.42%
Still pushing forward, I am happy with my savings rate for the year, even if my net worth does not reflect the progress!
-
NOV 2022: 12.46%; 7.42%
Still pushing forward, I am happy with my savings rate for the year, even if my net worth does not reflect the progress!
12.46% passive income is a biggie! It gives you resiliency to weather an expensive dammit and come out ok.
And all those shares you're buying at depressed prices are going to make you real happy when the market recovers!
-
Goal 2021: 10%
Goal 2022: 18%; stretch goal 20%
*First % is without a mortgage payment, second % is with current mortgage payment (~13.0 years remaining at 1.75%)*
**4% withdrawal rate**
SEP 2021: 8.02%; 4.78%
OCT 2021: 8.19%; 4.88%
NOV 2021: 8.44%; 5.03%
DEC 2021: 8.38%; 4.99%
JAN 2022: 10.01%; 6.00%
FEB 2022: 10.27%; 6.12%
MAR 2022: 11.14%; 6.63%
APR 2022: 11.93%; 7.10%
MAY 2022: 11.30%; 6.73%
JUN 2022: 11.94%; 6.94%
SEP 2022: 12.39%; 7.37%
OCT 2022: 11.49%; 6.84%
NOV 2022: 12.46%; 7.42%
DEC 2022: 13.73%; 8.17%
Very unlikely to reach my yearly goal, but I expect to see a serious increase once the market rebounds. In the meantime, I'll continue my stock buying spree!
-
Goal 2021: 10%
Goal 2022: 18%; stretch goal 20%
~Snip
Very unlikely to reach my yearly goal, but I expect to see a serious increase once the market rebounds. In the meantime, I'll continue my stock buying spree!
Same here.
I expect to end the year in the same bracket that I started. Have to keep reminding myself that buying stocks on sale is good.
-
I liked the format used by @2Birds1Stone so I checked my status. Come on stock market!
(https://i.imgur.com/FcnVqRY.png)
-
Just tallying my figures for YE 2021, looking now at 31.1% (of the full independence goal).
The NW increments have continously increased since I joined the forum.
Financially, this turned out a pretty sh***y year. Some major renovation plus the general state of affairs leaves me pretty much where I was by end of last year. Moved marginally up to 33.3 % - next year I really need to stop the spending leaks again, though.
-
I liked the format used by @2Birds1Stone so I checked my status. Come on stock market!
(https://i.imgur.com/FcnVqRY.png)
@johndoe, thanks for the shout out :)
Why/how does your rolling 12 month end up so lumpy in 2021? If you use a rolling 12 months it should look a bit smoother, no?
-
I want a @2Birds1Stone chart too!
-
Why/how does your rolling 12 month end up so lumpy in 2021? If you use a rolling 12 months it should look a bit smoother, no?
That's due to a big lump sum of mortgage payoff. (No one needs to remind me that that was a mistake ha) Since I finished that off in July '20 it fully rolled off the chart a year later. Interestingly I've been at about 25x spending for the last almost 1.5 years.
-
Goal 2021: 10%
Goal 2022: 18%; stretch goal 20%
*First % is without a mortgage payment, second % is with current mortgage payment (~13.0 years remaining at 1.75%)*
**4% withdrawal rate**
SEP 2021: 8.02%; 4.78%
OCT 2021: 8.19%; 4.88%
NOV 2021: 8.44%; 5.03%
DEC 2021: 8.38%; 4.99%
JAN 2022: 10.01%; 6.00%
FEB 2022: 10.27%; 6.12%
MAR 2022: 11.14%; 6.63%
APR 2022: 11.93%; 7.10%
MAY 2022: 11.30%; 6.73%
JUN 2022: 11.94%; 6.94%
SEP 2022: 12.39%; 7.37%
OCT 2022: 11.49%; 6.84%
NOV 2022: 12.46%; 7.42%
DEC 2022: 13.73%; 8.17%
JAN 2023: 14.03%; 8.35%
I didn't reach my goal this year, but it wasn't for a lack of effort! I have significantly increased the number of shares I hold this year, and had a very high savings rate. I too, am optimistic for 2023. I have no planned major expenses, have some already paid for trips planned, and expect to have an even higher savings rate!
Goal for end of 2023: 24%; stretch goal of 28%
-
Goal 2021: 10%
Goal 2022: 18%; Stretch goal 20%
Goal 2023: 24%; Stretch goal 28%
*First % is without a mortgage payment, second % is with current mortgage payment (~13.0 years remaining at 1.75%)*
**4% withdrawal rate**
SEP 2021: 8.02%; 4.78%
OCT 2021: 8.19%; 4.88%
NOV 2021: 8.44%; 5.03%
DEC 2021: 8.38%; 4.99%
JAN 2022: 10.01%; 6.00%
FEB 2022: 10.27%; 6.12%
MAR 2022: 11.14%; 6.63%
APR 2022: 11.93%; 7.10%
MAY 2022: 11.30%; 6.73%
JUN 2022: 11.94%; 6.94%
SEP 2022: 12.39%; 7.37%
OCT 2022: 11.49%; 6.84%
NOV 2022: 12.46%; 7.42%
DEC 2022: 13.73%; 8.17%
JAN 2023: 14.03%; 8.35%
FEB 2023: 15.73%; 9.36%
Happy with the progress this month!
-
01/01/98 0.0%
03/31/11 5.0%
08/31/11 4.8%
12/31/11 5.0%
10/31/15 10.0%
12/31/15 9.9%
03/31/16 10.2%
03/31/19 20.6%
08/31/20 30.6%
06/30/21 40.5%
11/30/21 50.7%
04/30/22 48.7%
07/31/22 50.1%
08/31/22 48.8%
11/30/22 51.9%
12/31/22 49.3%
01/31/23 53.0%
Added a few data points to show how market volatility has affected even this broad-strokes measurement method.
It becomes obvious this is not the first time I've topped 50.0%, however with the volatility of the recent past, it hasn't stuck. Can't promise it will this time, but maybe 4th time's a charm? :D As an added bonus, my NW is at an all time high (by about $900-but a record is a record!)
-
...
It becomes obvious this is not the first time I've topped 50.0%, however with the volatility of the recent past, it hasn't stuck. ...
Same here. I'm back above 50%, but not holding my breath that it'll last. Here's to hoping it will!
-
Goal 2021: 10%
Goal 2022: 18%; Stretch goal 20%
Goal 2023: 24%; Stretch goal 28%
*First % is without a mortgage payment, second % is with current mortgage payment (~13.0 years remaining at 1.75%)*
**4% withdrawal rate**
SEP 2021: 8.02%; 4.78%
OCT 2021: 8.19%; 4.88%
NOV 2021: 8.44%; 5.03%
DEC 2021: 8.38%; 4.99%
JAN 2022: 10.01%; 6.00%
FEB 2022: 10.27%; 6.12%
MAR 2022: 11.14%; 6.63%
APR 2022: 11.93%; 7.10%
MAY 2022: 11.30%; 6.73%
JUN 2022: 11.94%; 6.94%
SEP 2022: 12.39%; 7.37%
OCT 2022: 11.49%; 6.84%
NOV 2022: 12.46%; 7.42%
DEC 2022: 13.73%; 8.17%
JAN 2023: 14.03%; 8.35%
FEB 2023: 15.73%; 9.36%
MAR 2023: 15.51%; 9.23%
Continuing to buy low!
-
Goal 2021: 10%
Goal 2022: 18%; Stretch goal 20%
Goal 2023: 24%; Stretch goal 28%
*First % is without a mortgage payment, second % is with current mortgage payment (~13.0 years remaining at 1.75%)*
**4% withdrawal rate**
SEP 2021: 8.02%; 4.78%
OCT 2021: 8.19%; 4.88%
NOV 2021: 8.44%; 5.03%
DEC 2021: 8.38%; 4.99%
JAN 2022: 10.01%; 6.00%
FEB 2022: 10.27%; 6.12%
MAR 2022: 11.14%; 6.63%
APR 2022: 11.93%; 7.10%
MAY 2022: 11.30%; 6.73%
JUN 2022: 11.94%; 6.94%
SEP 2022: 12.39%; 7.37%
OCT 2022: 11.49%; 6.84%
NOV 2022: 12.46%; 7.42%
DEC 2022: 13.73%; 8.17%
JAN 2023: 14.03%; 8.35%
FEB 2023: 15.73%; 9.36%
MAR 2023: 15.51%; 9.23%
APR 2023: 16.86%; 10.03%
Over 1% closer to my goal since last month, hoping to continue forward at ~1% rate each month for the remainder of the year!
-
Just tallying my figures for YE 2021, looking now at 31.1% (of the full independence goal).
The NW increments have continously increased since I joined the forum.
Financially, this turned out a pretty sh***y year. Some major renovation plus the general state of affairs leaves me pretty much where I was by end of last year. Moved marginally up to 33.3 % - next year I really need to stop the spending leaks again, though.
Q1/2023: pretty much unchanged, compared to December. Seems I have to count my blessing just keeping NW stable ...
-
Goal 2021: 10%
Goal 2022: 18%; Stretch goal 20%
Goal 2023: 24%; Stretch goal 28%
*First % is without a mortgage payment, second % is with current mortgage payment (~13.0 years remaining at 1.75%)*
**4% withdrawal rate**
SEP 2021: 8.02%; 4.78%
OCT 2021: 8.19%; 4.88%
NOV 2021: 8.44%; 5.03%
DEC 2021: 8.38%; 4.99%
JAN 2022: 10.01%; 6.00%
FEB 2022: 10.27%; 6.12%
MAR 2022: 11.14%; 6.63%
APR 2022: 11.93%; 7.10%
MAY 2022: 11.30%; 6.73%
JUN 2022: 11.94%; 6.94%
SEP 2022: 12.39%; 7.37%
OCT 2022: 11.49%; 6.84%
NOV 2022: 12.46%; 7.42%
DEC 2022: 13.73%; 8.17%
JAN 2023: 14.03%; 8.35%
FEB 2023: 15.73%; 9.36%
MAR 2023: 15.51%; 9.23%
APR 2023: 16.86%; 10.03%
MAY 2023: 17.77%; 10.58%
Another 1%(ish) month, hoping to stay at this rate for the remainder of the year, allowing me to reach my yearly goal!
-
Goal 2021: 10%
Goal 2022: 18%; Stretch goal 20%
Goal 2023: 24%; Stretch goal 28%
*First % is without a mortgage payment, second % is with current mortgage payment (~13.0 years remaining at 1.75%)*
**4% withdrawal rate**
SEP 2021: 8.02%; 4.78%
OCT 2021: 8.19%; 4.88%
NOV 2021: 8.44%; 5.03%
DEC 2021: 8.38%; 4.99%
JAN 2022: 10.01%; 6.00%
FEB 2022: 10.27%; 6.12%
MAR 2022: 11.14%; 6.63%
APR 2022: 11.93%; 7.10%
MAY 2022: 11.30%; 6.73%
JUN 2022: 11.94%; 6.94%
SEP 2022: 12.39%; 7.37%
OCT 2022: 11.49%; 6.84%
NOV 2022: 12.46%; 7.42%
DEC 2022: 13.73%; 8.17%
JAN 2023: 14.03%; 8.35%
FEB 2023: 15.73%; 9.36%
MAR 2023: 15.51%; 9.23%
APR 2023: 16.86%; 10.03%
MAY 2023: 17.77%; 10.58%
JUN 2023: 18.06%; 10.74%
May was an expensive month, should be able to make some healthy progress in June and the remainder of the summer!
-
Now 15%
-
Goal 2021: 10%
Goal 2022: 18%; Stretch goal 20%
Goal 2023: 24%; Stretch goal 28%
*First % is without a mortgage payment, second % is with current mortgage payment (~13.0 years remaining at 1.75%)*
**4% withdrawal rate**
SEP 2021: 8.02%; 4.78%
OCT 2021: 8.19%; 4.88%
NOV 2021: 8.44%; 5.03%
DEC 2021: 8.38%; 4.99%
JAN 2022: 10.01%; 6.00%
FEB 2022: 10.27%; 6.12%
MAR 2022: 11.14%; 6.63%
APR 2022: 11.93%; 7.10%
MAY 2022: 11.30%; 6.73%
JUN 2022: 11.94%; 6.94%
SEP 2022: 12.39%; 7.37%
OCT 2022: 11.49%; 6.84%
NOV 2022: 12.46%; 7.42%
DEC 2022: 13.73%; 8.17%
JAN 2023: 14.03%; 8.35%
FEB 2023: 15.73%; 9.36%
MAR 2023: 15.51%; 9.23%
APR 2023: 16.86%; 10.03%
MAY 2023: 17.77%; 10.58%
JUN 2023: 18.06%; 10.74%
JUL 2023: 20.17%; 12.01%
Very happy with my progress in June, my savings rate was high and the markets gave me a nice boost! I am already approaching my year end goal and could possibly reach it by September or October, allowing me to make a run at my stretch goal!
-
01/01/98 0.0%
03/31/11 5.0%
08/31/11 4.8%
12/31/11 5.0%
10/31/15 10.0%
12/31/15 9.9%
03/31/16 10.2%
03/31/19 20.6%
08/31/20 30.6%
06/30/21 40.5%
11/30/21 50.7%
04/30/22 48.7%
07/31/22 50.1%
08/31/22 48.8%
11/30/22 51.9%
12/31/22 49.3%
01/31/23 53.0%
06/30/23 60.2%
Did not expect to move up a bracket so soon. From past history, especially recent history, it may not stick.
-
(https://i.imgur.com/neHcYEI.png)
4% of my investments have, for the first time, eclipsed my annual spending. So that's cool.
-
@johndoe
Congratulations, that is a huge milestone! Do you have plans for the next year? Continue working part time, retire, travel??
-
@johndoe
Congratulations, that is a huge milestone! Do you have plans for the next year? Continue working part time, retire, travel??
Thanks... I'm going to be a buzzkill though, no exciting plans. I'm still ~15 years from pension eligibility, but I do enjoy the work so in no hurry to change. Also you'll notice my average spend is quite low - wouldn't want to cut anything from budget.
(My point is ~$375k working for me in market doesnt feel like enough) Perhaps I'll try to learn to "coast" and spend more! Part time work may be something I explore eventually...it'd be interesting to make more off investments than salary!
-
Oct 2017 - 4%
May 2018 - 5%
Dec 2018 - 6%
July 2019 - 7%
Nov 2019 - 8%
Aug 2020 - 9%
July 2021 - 10%
Oct 2021 - 11%
Apr 2022 - 12%
Nov 2022 - 13%
Dec 2022 - 14%
June 2023 - 15%
July 2023 - 16%
-
... I'm back above 50%, but not holding my breath that it'll last. Here's to hoping it will!
I hesitate to say it out loud, but I'm getting pretty close to moving up to the next bracket. Here's to hoping we aren't on the edge of another big market cliff!
-
Goal 2021: 10%
Goal 2022: 18%; Stretch goal 20%
Goal 2023: 24%; Stretch goal 28%
*First % is without a mortgage payment, second % is with current mortgage payment (~12.5 years remaining at 1.75%)*
**4% withdrawal rate**
SEP 2021: 8.02%; 4.78%
OCT 2021: 8.19%; 4.88%
NOV 2021: 8.44%; 5.03%
DEC 2021: 8.38%; 4.99%
JAN 2022: 10.01%; 6.00%
FEB 2022: 10.27%; 6.12%
MAR 2022: 11.14%; 6.63%
APR 2022: 11.93%; 7.10%
MAY 2022: 11.30%; 6.73%
JUN 2022: 11.94%; 6.94%
SEP 2022: 12.39%; 7.37%
OCT 2022: 11.49%; 6.84%
NOV 2022: 12.46%; 7.42%
DEC 2022: 13.73%; 8.17%
JAN 2023: 14.03%; 8.35%
FEB 2023: 15.73%; 9.36%
MAR 2023: 15.51%; 9.23%
APR 2023: 16.86%; 10.03%
MAY 2023: 17.77%; 10.58%
JUN 2023: 18.06%; 10.74%
JUL 2023: 20.17%; 12.01%
AUG 2023: 21.49%; 12.79%
Quickly approaching my goal for the year, with hopes of reaching my stretch goal! Progress will be slower next month due to some planned expenses, but my savings should resume as normal again in September/October.
-
Still in the same bracket but moving further to the upper end.
-
Goal 2021: 10%
Goal 2022: 18%; Stretch goal 20%
Goal 2023: 24%; Stretch goal 28%
*First % is without a mortgage payment, second % is with current mortgage payment (~12.5 years remaining at 1.75%)*
**4% withdrawal rate**
SEP 2021: 8.02%; 4.78%
OCT 2021: 8.19%; 4.88%
NOV 2021: 8.44%; 5.03%
DEC 2021: 8.38%; 4.99%
JAN 2022: 10.01%; 6.00%
FEB 2022: 10.27%; 6.12%
MAR 2022: 11.14%; 6.63%
APR 2022: 11.93%; 7.10%
MAY 2022: 11.30%; 6.73%
JUN 2022: 11.94%; 6.94%
SEP 2022: 12.39%; 7.37%
OCT 2022: 11.49%; 6.84%
NOV 2022: 12.46%; 7.42%
DEC 2022: 13.73%; 8.17%
JAN 2023: 14.03%; 8.35%
FEB 2023: 15.73%; 9.36%
MAR 2023: 15.51%; 9.23%
APR 2023: 16.86%; 10.03%
MAY 2023: 17.77%; 10.58%
JUN 2023: 18.06%; 10.74%
JUL 2023: 20.17%; 12.01%
AUG 2023: 21.49%; 12.79%
SEP 2023: 21.36%; 12.71%
Flat for the month but still on track to reach my yearly goal!
-
...
SEP 2023: 21.36%; 12.71%
Flat for the month but still on track to reach my yearly goal!
Good job keeping with it. I've noticed things staying relatively flat/maybe dropping slightly lately too. I'm really hoping we get a nice end of the year market up-turn, or at the very least one at the beginning of next year...
-
I’d forgotten about this thread. Last time I answered this poll on 2019, we were at 70-80% FI. Four years later, we are pretty much 100% FI but still working.
-
Goal 2021: 10%
Goal 2022: 18%; Stretch goal 20%
Goal 2023: 24%; Stretch goal 28%
*First % is without a mortgage payment, second % is with current mortgage payment (~12.5 years remaining at 1.75%)*
**4% withdrawal rate**
SEP 2021: 8.02%; 4.78%
OCT 2021: 8.19%; 4.88%
NOV 2021: 8.44%; 5.03%
DEC 2021: 8.38%; 4.99%
JAN 2022: 10.01%; 6.00%
FEB 2022: 10.27%; 6.12%
MAR 2022: 11.14%; 6.63%
APR 2022: 11.93%; 7.10%
MAY 2022: 11.30%; 6.73%
JUN 2022: 11.94%; 6.94%
SEP 2022: 12.39%; 7.37%
OCT 2022: 11.49%; 6.84%
NOV 2022: 12.46%; 7.42%
DEC 2022: 13.73%; 8.17%
JAN 2023: 14.03%; 8.35%
FEB 2023: 15.73%; 9.36%
MAR 2023: 15.51%; 9.23%
APR 2023: 16.86%; 10.03%
MAY 2023: 17.77%; 10.58%
JUN 2023: 18.06%; 10.74%
JUL 2023: 20.17%; 12.01%
AUG 2023: 21.49%; 12.79%
SEP 2023: 21.36%; 12.71%
OCT 2023: 20.79%; 12.37%
Had a large, unexpected expense in September and the markets were no help either. Still on pace to reach my yearly goal if the markets remain flat or go up!
-
I’d forgotten about this thread. Last time I answered this poll on 2019, we were at 70-80% FI. Four years later, we are pretty much 100% FI but still working.
Any reason why? I'll go digging to see if you have it elsewhere but I'm generally curious. Did you shift your 'job' or any other aspect of your life to be more aligned with your interests or values after becoming FI? Congrats either way!
-
Did not expect to move up a bracket so soon. From past history, especially recent history, it may not stick.
Chickens have come home to roost; dropped back into a lower category. This may change again as at year end I'm going to re-do my estimated FIRE spending number. It's been a few years. Hello, inflation.
01/01/98 0.0%
03/31/11 5.0%
08/31/11 4.8%
12/31/11 5.0%
10/31/15 10.0%
12/31/15 9.9%
03/31/16 10.2%
03/31/19 20.6%
08/31/20 30.6%
06/30/21 40.5%
11/30/21 50.7%
04/30/22 48.7%
07/31/22 50.1%
08/31/22 48.8%
11/30/22 51.9%
12/31/22 49.3%
01/31/23 53.0%
06/30/23 60.2%
09/30/23 58.1%
-
I'm also finding that our target has inflated... Partially inflation but mostly we bought a more expensive house.
-
I’d forgotten about this thread. Last time I answered this poll on 2019, we were at 70-80% FI. Four years later, we are pretty much 100% FI but still working.
Any reason why? I'll go digging to see if you have it elsewhere but I'm generally curious. Did you shift your 'job' or any other aspect of your life to be more aligned with your interests or values after becoming FI? Congrats either way!
Thanks! DH and I both changed jobs - me in 2019 and DH in 2021. My cushy expat package includes free housing and tuition at a good international school for DD, as well as a good work-life balance and 3 months vacation, and up until this year, the work was rather stress-free and easy. DH was recently promoted, and he wants a couple years under his belt as the head of his department. The market isn’t doing so great so we want to work another year or so to pad the stash and give our investments time to recover. For the past few years, we generally liked our jobs. We are getting ready to FIRE within the next year or so. Due to certain changes in personnel and job duties, my work is no longer very fun. Plus, it’ll be a nice transition time for DD as she will be entering middle school.
-
I'm also finding that our target has inflated... Partially inflation but mostly we bought a more expensive house.
Partly because of this, partly because of the pandemic, and partly because of the mediocre market performance over the past ~2 years, I've now been in the same bracket for almost 2 years. Here's to hoping that inflation settles down and the market does well as we get closer to 2024!
-
Going the wrong way!
(https://i.imgur.com/F8uWLpzl.png)
-
Oct 2017 - 4%
May 2018 - 5%
Dec 2018 - 6%
July 2019 - 7%
Nov 2019 - 8%
Aug 2020 - 9%
July 2021 - 10%
Oct 2021 - 11%
Apr 2022 - 12%
Nov 2022 - 13%
Dec 2022 - 14%
June 2023 - 15%
July 2023 - 16%
Nov 2023 - 17%
Looks like I could hit 20% sometime next year
-
Goal 2021: 10%
Goal 2022: 18%; Stretch goal 20%
Goal 2023: 24%; Stretch goal 28%
*First % is without a mortgage payment, second % is with current mortgage payment (~12.5 years remaining at 1.75%)*
**4% withdrawal rate**
SEP 2021: 8.02%; 4.78%
OCT 2021: 8.19%; 4.88%
NOV 2021: 8.44%; 5.03%
DEC 2021: 8.38%; 4.99%
JAN 2022: 10.01%; 6.00%
FEB 2022: 10.27%; 6.12%
MAR 2022: 11.14%; 6.63%
APR 2022: 11.93%; 7.10%
MAY 2022: 11.30%; 6.73%
JUN 2022: 11.94%; 6.94%
SEP 2022: 12.39%; 7.37%
OCT 2022: 11.49%; 6.84%
NOV 2022: 12.46%; 7.42%
DEC 2022: 13.73%; 8.17%
JAN 2023: 14.03%; 8.35%
FEB 2023: 15.73%; 9.36%
MAR 2023: 15.51%; 9.23%
APR 2023: 16.86%; 10.03%
MAY 2023: 17.77%; 10.58%
JUN 2023: 18.06%; 10.74%
JUL 2023: 20.17%; 12.01%
AUG 2023: 21.49%; 12.79%
SEP 2023: 21.36%; 12.71%
OCT 2023: 20.79%; 12.37%
NOV 2023: 20.88%; 12.43%
I am remaining optimistic that I will reach my goal for 2023. The markets thus far in November have been on a roll and I will have a 3 paycheck month in December, which will translate into big savings!
-
Goal 2021: 10%
Goal 2022: 18%; Stretch goal 20%
Goal 2023: 24%; Stretch goal 28%
*First % is without a mortgage payment, second % is with current mortgage payment (~12.5 years remaining at 1.75%)*
**4% withdrawal rate**
SEP 2021: 8.02%; 4.78%
OCT 2021: 8.19%; 4.88%
NOV 2021: 8.44%; 5.03%
DEC 2021: 8.38%; 4.99%
JAN 2022: 10.01%; 6.00%
FEB 2022: 10.27%; 6.12%
MAR 2022: 11.14%; 6.63%
APR 2022: 11.93%; 7.10%
MAY 2022: 11.30%; 6.73%
JUN 2022: 11.94%; 6.94%
SEP 2022: 12.39%; 7.37%
OCT 2022: 11.49%; 6.84%
NOV 2022: 12.46%; 7.42%
DEC 2022: 13.73%; 8.17%
JAN 2023: 14.03%; 8.35%
FEB 2023: 15.73%; 9.36%
MAR 2023: 15.51%; 9.23%
APR 2023: 16.86%; 10.03%
MAY 2023: 17.77%; 10.58%
JUN 2023: 18.06%; 10.74%
JUL 2023: 20.17%; 12.01%
AUG 2023: 21.49%; 12.79%
SEP 2023: 21.36%; 12.71%
OCT 2023: 20.79%; 12.37%
NOV 2023: 20.88%; 12.43%
I am remaining optimistic that I will reach my goal for 2023. The markets thus far in November have been on a roll and I will have a 3 paycheck month in December, which will translate into big savings!
That's a lot of progress in two years, especially given the market rollercoaster during that time. Good work.
-
11/2020: 1.3%
11/2023: 11.2%
-
Oct 2017 - 4%
May 2018 - 5%
Dec 2018 - 6%
July 2019 - 7%
Nov 2019 - 8%
Aug 2020 - 9%
July 2021 - 10%
Oct 2021 - 11%
Apr 2022 - 12%
Nov 2022 - 13%
Dec 2022 - 14%
June 2023 - 15%
July 2023 - 16%
Oct 2023 - 17%
Nov 2023 - 18%
-
Goal 2021: 10%
Goal 2022: 18%; Stretch goal 20%
Goal 2023: 24%; Stretch goal 28%
*First % is without a mortgage payment, second % is with current mortgage payment (~12.5 years remaining at 1.75%)*
**4% withdrawal rate**
SEP 2021: 8.02%; 4.78%
OCT 2021: 8.19%; 4.88%
NOV 2021: 8.44%; 5.03%
DEC 2021: 8.38%; 4.99%
JAN 2022: 10.01%; 6.00%
FEB 2022: 10.27%; 6.12%
MAR 2022: 11.14%; 6.63%
APR 2022: 11.93%; 7.10%
MAY 2022: 11.30%; 6.73%
JUN 2022: 11.94%; 6.94%
SEP 2022: 12.39%; 7.37%
OCT 2022: 11.49%; 6.84%
NOV 2022: 12.46%; 7.42%
DEC 2022: 13.73%; 8.17%
JAN 2023: 14.03%; 8.35%
FEB 2023: 15.73%; 9.36%
MAR 2023: 15.51%; 9.23%
APR 2023: 16.86%; 10.03%
MAY 2023: 17.77%; 10.58%
JUN 2023: 18.06%; 10.74%
JUL 2023: 20.17%; 12.01%
AUG 2023: 21.49%; 12.79%
SEP 2023: 21.36%; 12.71%
OCT 2023: 20.79%; 12.37%
NOV 2023: 20.88%; 12.43%
DEC 2023: 22.97%; 13.67%
Feeling like my goal of reaching 24% FI by year end is well within reach. December is a three paycheck month for me, so as long as the markets behave, I will reach my goal!
-
Goal 2021: 10%
Goal 2022: 18%; Stretch goal 20%
Goal 2023: 24%; Stretch goal 28%
*First % is without a mortgage payment, second % is with current mortgage payment (~12.5 years remaining at 1.75%)*
**4% withdrawal rate**
SEP 2021: 8.02%; 4.78%
OCT 2021: 8.19%; 4.88%
NOV 2021: 8.44%; 5.03%
DEC 2021: 8.38%; 4.99%
JAN 2022: 10.01%; 6.00%
FEB 2022: 10.27%; 6.12%
MAR 2022: 11.14%; 6.63%
APR 2022: 11.93%; 7.10%
MAY 2022: 11.30%; 6.73%
JUN 2022: 11.94%; 6.94%
SEP 2022: 12.39%; 7.37%
OCT 2022: 11.49%; 6.84%
NOV 2022: 12.46%; 7.42%
DEC 2022: 13.73%; 8.17%
JAN 2023: 14.03%; 8.35%
FEB 2023: 15.73%; 9.36%
MAR 2023: 15.51%; 9.23%
APR 2023: 16.86%; 10.03%
MAY 2023: 17.77%; 10.58%
JUN 2023: 18.06%; 10.74%
JUL 2023: 20.17%; 12.01%
AUG 2023: 21.49%; 12.79%
SEP 2023: 21.36%; 12.71%
OCT 2023: 20.79%; 12.37%
NOV 2023: 20.88%; 12.43%
DEC 2023: 22.97%; 13.67%
Feeling like my goal of reaching 24% FI by year end is well within reach. December is a three paycheck month for me, so as long as the markets behave, I will reach my goal!
Way to go!
-
Did not expect to move up a bracket so soon. From past history, especially recent history, it may not stick.
Chickens have come home to roost; dropped back into a lower category. This may change again as at year end I'm going to re-do my estimated FIRE spending number. It's been a few years. Hello, inflation.
And another wild swing in the other direction!
01/01/98 0.0%
03/31/11 5.0%
08/31/11 4.8%
12/31/11 5.0%
10/31/15 10.0%
12/31/15 9.9%
03/31/16 10.2%
03/31/19 20.6%
08/31/20 30.6%
06/30/21 40.5%
11/30/21 50.7%
04/30/22 48.7%
07/31/22 50.1%
08/31/22 48.8%
11/30/22 51.9%
12/31/22 49.3%
01/31/23 53.0%
06/30/23 60.2%
09/30/23 58.1%
11/30/23 64.1%
-
Big update today as I review my EOY finances...I'm at 50% FI!!! That's...AMAZING! I am literally blown away. The last two months of growth have done a significant amount of work to get me there.
-
Congrats!
Thanks to last quarter upswing, my % has also increased, but I am still within the same bracket (now 38.3%). Hopefully I will be able to jump into the next range during 2024.
This is the track for full FI w/o pensions (that looks much better!)
-
Edited my vote. As of yesterday, I'm at almost 79% FI, based on current expenses (although I just realized I never included taxes in those since my taxes are taken out of my income without me ever seeing that money.)
However, I'm at only 57% of target RE number. The difference being slightly lower expenses (with taxes this time) but the need to buy a home without a mortgage upon retirement.
-
Happy new year everyone - and good job! I thought it might be interesting to visualize it in terms of "withdrawl rate over time" (since that sort of eliminates an assumption about "how do you define FI?"). So this version shows my history of spending, investment balances, and withdrawl rate. MORE DATA!
(https://i.imgur.com/EpbHXdn.png)
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Congrats to all....here's my progress tracker:
All dates are as of June 30 other than the final one as noted below:
2015: 17.3%
2016: 25.9%
2017: 30.7%
2018: 31.1%
2019: 47.1%
2020: 51.4%
2021: 72.7%
2022: 67.1%
2023: 79.7% (June 30)
2023: 84.9% (Dec 31)
Kinda similar to @pasadenafr , I am trying to balance either a home downsize and purchase or a mortgage payoff into my planning, so my targets and/or balances could get disrupted a bit by that. But for now, I'm sticking with the plan and hoping that the real estate market here in the midwest will look different in 6 months than it does right now.
-
Goal 2021: 10%
Goal 2022: 18%; Stretch goal 20%
Goal 2023: 24%; Stretch goal 28%
Goal 2023: 35%; Stretch goal 38%
*First % is without a mortgage payment, second % is with current mortgage payment (~12 years remaining at 1.75%)*
**4% withdrawal rate**
SEP 2021: 8.02%; 4.78%
OCT 2021: 8.19%; 4.88%
NOV 2021: 8.44%; 5.03%
DEC 2021: 8.38%; 4.99%
JAN 2022: 10.01%; 6.00%
FEB 2022: 10.27%; 6.12%
MAR 2022: 11.14%; 6.63%
APR 2022: 11.93%; 7.10%
MAY 2022: 11.30%; 6.73%
JUN 2022: 11.94%; 6.94%
SEP 2022: 12.39%; 7.37%
OCT 2022: 11.49%; 6.84%
NOV 2022: 12.46%; 7.42%
DEC 2022: 13.73%; 8.17%
JAN 2023: 14.03%; 8.35%
FEB 2023: 15.73%; 9.36%
MAR 2023: 15.51%; 9.23%
APR 2023: 16.86%; 10.03%
MAY 2023: 17.77%; 10.58%
JUN 2023: 18.06%; 10.74%
JUL 2023: 20.17%; 12.01%
AUG 2023: 21.49%; 12.79%
SEP 2023: 21.36%; 12.71%
OCT 2023: 20.79%; 12.37%
NOV 2023: 20.88%; 12.43%
DEC 2023: 22.97%; 13.67%
JAN 2024: 25.16%; 14.98%
What a great finish to the year! I reached my goal with some room to spare, and even began to close in on my stretch goal. I am happy with the way the year played out, as I become over 11% closer to being Financially Independent! Congratulations to everyone who reached there goals, and also those who continued the journey toward their goals!
This next year is hard to predict financially, as I will be moving this spring and beginning a new job. If expense can remain low with the move (and new mortgage), I may be able to reach my goal for the year. Future years will have continual salary increases which will accelerate my savings!
-
Oct 2017 - 4%
May 2018 - 5%
Dec 2018 - 6%
July 2019 - 7%
Nov 2019 - 8%
Aug 2020 - 9%
July 2021 - 10%
Oct 2021 - 11%
Apr 2022 - 12%
Nov 2022 - 13%
Dec 2022 - 14%
June 2023 - 15%
July 2023 - 16%
Oct 2023 - 17%
Nov 2023 - 18%
Jan 2024 - 19%
So close to 20%, hopefully in the next two or three months
-
Goal 2021: 10%
Goal 2022: 18%; Stretch goal 20%
Goal 2023: 24%; Stretch goal 28%
Goal 2023: 35%; Stretch goal 38%
*First % is without a mortgage payment, second % is with current mortgage payment (~12 years remaining at 1.75%)*
**4% withdrawal rate**
SEP 2021: 8.02%; 4.78%
SEP 2022: 12.39%; 7.37%
OCT 2022: 11.49%; 6.84%
NOV 2022: 12.46%; 7.42%
DEC 2022: 13.73%; 8.17%
JAN 2023: 14.03%; 8.35%
FEB 2023: 15.73%; 9.36%
MAR 2023: 15.51%; 9.23%
APR 2023: 16.86%; 10.03%
MAY 2023: 17.77%; 10.58%
JUN 2023: 18.06%; 10.74%
JUL 2023: 20.17%; 12.01%
AUG 2023: 21.49%; 12.79%
SEP 2023: 21.36%; 12.71%
OCT 2023: 20.79%; 12.37%
NOV 2023: 20.88%; 12.43%
DEC 2023: 22.97%; 13.67%
JAN 2024: 25.16%; 14.98%
FEB 2024: 26.05%; 15.51%
Happy with the progress this month, I will be pushing hard to reach my goal again this year!
-
Happy to report I've moved up a bracket and am north of 60% of the way to FI.
Here's to hoping that marking it on this internet forum doesn't jinx me and move me back down to the lower bracket any time...
-
Oct 2017 - 4%
May 2018 - 5%
Dec 2018 - 6%
July 2019 - 7%
Nov 2019 - 8%
Aug 2020 - 9%
July 2021 - 10%
Oct 2021 - 11%
Apr 2022 - 12%
Nov 2022 - 13%
Dec 2022 - 14%
June 2023 - 15%
July 2023 - 16%
Oct 2023 - 17%
Nov 2023 - 18%
Jan 2024 - 19%
Mar 2024 - 20%
Just touched 20%, so I’m moving up a rung on the poll
-
Oct 2017 - 4%
May 2018 - 5%
Dec 2018 - 6%
July 2019 - 7%
Nov 2019 - 8%
Aug 2020 - 9%
July 2021 - 10%
Oct 2021 - 11%
Apr 2022 - 12%
Nov 2022 - 13%
Dec 2022 - 14%
June 2023 - 15%
July 2023 - 16%
Oct 2023 - 17%
Nov 2023 - 18%
Jan 2024 - 19%
Mar 2024 - 20%
Just touched 20%, so I’m moving up a rung on the poll
Yeah!!! You are making solid progress!
-
Oct 2017 - 4%
May 2018 - 5%
Dec 2018 - 6%
July 2019 - 7%
Nov 2019 - 8%
Aug 2020 - 9%
July 2021 - 10%
Oct 2021 - 11%
Apr 2022 - 12%
Nov 2022 - 13%
Dec 2022 - 14%
June 2023 - 15%
July 2023 - 16%
Oct 2023 - 17%
Nov 2023 - 18%
Jan 2024 - 19%
Mar 2024 - 20%
Just touched 20%, so I’m moving up a rung on the poll
Yeah!!! You are making solid progress!
Well, the market is making good progress at least. It’s crazy to be moving up this quickly when Jan and Feb are my lowest earning months of the year by far. I’m hoping to get another 3% by the end of the year if markets stay flat, so it’ll be interesting to see where I end up
-
Edited my vote. As of yesterday, I'm at almost 79% FI, based on current expenses (although I just realized I never included taxes in those since my taxes are taken out of my income without me ever seeing that money.)
However, I'm at only 57% of target RE number. The difference being slightly lower expenses (with taxes this time) but the need to buy a home without a mortgage upon retirement.
Some nice progress. I'm now sitting at 84.5% FI (based on my current expenses as a renter in HCOL), and 61.5% RE (based on projected retirement expenses as a homeowner in my home country (HCOL area relative to said country, but still lower COL than Seattle), and including enough money to buy the home in question with no mortgage).
-
@pasadenafr , That's awesome progress!
-
Did not expect to move up a bracket so soon. From past history, especially recent history, it may not stick.
Chickens have come home to roost; dropped back into a lower category. This may change again as at year end I'm going to re-do my estimated FIRE spending number. It's been a few years. Hello, inflation.
And another wild swing in the other direction!
It is outrageous that just a year ago I was two brackets below the current one, and when I first posted (about 2 years ago), I was 3 brackets below. Moving the needle almost 25% in 2 years continues to blow my mind, and is quite hopeful for my to-be-decided FIRE date.
01/01/98 0.0%
03/31/11 5.0%
08/31/11 4.8%
12/31/11 5.0%
10/31/15 10.0%
12/31/15 9.9%
03/31/16 10.2%
03/31/19 20.6%
08/31/20 30.6%
06/30/21 40.5%
11/30/21 50.7%
04/30/22 48.7% joined this thread
07/31/22 50.1%
08/31/22 48.8%
11/30/22 51.9%
12/31/22 49.3%
01/31/23 53.0%
06/30/23 60.2%
09/30/23 58.1%
11/30/23 64.1%
02/29/24 72.6%
-
Goal 2021: 10%
Goal 2022: 18%; Stretch goal 20%
Goal 2023: 24%; Stretch goal 28%
Goal 2023: 35%; Stretch goal 38%
*First % is without a mortgage payment, second % is with current mortgage payment (~12 years remaining at 1.75%)*
**4% withdrawal rate**
SEP 2021: 8.02%; 4.78%
SEP 2022: 12.39%; 7.37%
OCT 2022: 11.49%; 6.84%
NOV 2022: 12.46%; 7.42%
DEC 2022: 13.73%; 8.17%
JAN 2023: 14.03%; 8.35%
FEB 2023: 15.73%; 9.36%
MAR 2023: 15.51%; 9.23%
APR 2023: 16.86%; 10.03%
MAY 2023: 17.77%; 10.58%
JUN 2023: 18.06%; 10.74%
JUL 2023: 20.17%; 12.01%
AUG 2023: 21.49%; 12.79%
SEP 2023: 21.36%; 12.71%
OCT 2023: 20.79%; 12.37%
NOV 2023: 20.88%; 12.43%
DEC 2023: 22.97%; 13.67%
JAN 2024: 25.16%; 14.98%
FEB 2024: 26.05%; 15.51%
MAR 2024: 28.30%; 16.85%
Another month with great progress! If the markets continue, it is possible that I will reach the next bracket by April!!
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I started this race thread some years ago.
Did everyone mark their place in the polling?
https://forum.mrmoneymustache.com/throw-down-the-gauntlet/race-to-100-fi!/
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I started this race thread some years ago.
Did everyone mark their place in the polling?
https://forum.mrmoneymustache.com/throw-down-the-gauntlet/race-to-100-fi!/
Yep! And changed it as my NW changes.
-
I started this race thread some years ago.
Did everyone mark their place in the polling?
https://forum.mrmoneymustache.com/throw-down-the-gauntlet/race-to-100-fi!/
Yes, and I update it about twice a year
-
I started this race thread some years ago.
Did everyone mark their place in the polling?
https://forum.mrmoneymustache.com/throw-down-the-gauntlet/race-to-100-fi!/
Oops. Meant to post this in a different thread!
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@pasadenafr , That's awesome progress!
Right? I'm front-loading my 401(k) and getting the full match, plus quarterly bonus, so the beginning of the year is usually nice to my numbers. Not to mention a seriously good stock market last month!
Edit: I didn't realize I needed to update my vote :)
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Congrats to all....here's my progress tracker:
All dates are as of June 30 other than the final one as noted below:
2015: 17.3%
2016: 25.9%
2017: 30.7%
2018: 31.1%
2019: 47.1%
2020: 51.4%
2021: 72.7%
2022: 67.1%
2023: 79.7% (June 30)
2023: 84.9% (Dec 31)
Kinda similar to @pasadenafr , I am trying to balance either a home downsize and purchase or a mortgage payoff into my planning, so my targets and/or balances could get disrupted a bit by that. But for now, I'm sticking with the plan and hoping that the real estate market here in the midwest will look different in 6 months than it does right now.
Update for me as of March 31: 94.2%
Feels good to have a 9-handle, but need to keep in mind this number will likely get impacted negatively by the home downsize / mortgage elimination in the next year. We will see where things go! But its been a great first quarter! Wishing everyone success in their journeys!!
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Congrats to all....here's my progress tracker:
All dates are as of June 30 other than the final one as noted below:
2015: 17.3%
2016: 25.9%
2017: 30.7%
2018: 31.1%
2019: 47.1%
2020: 51.4%
2021: 72.7%
2022: 67.1%
2023: 79.7% (June 30)
2023: 84.9% (Dec 31)
Kinda similar to @pasadenafr , I am trying to balance either a home downsize and purchase or a mortgage payoff into my planning, so my targets and/or balances could get disrupted a bit by that. But for now, I'm sticking with the plan and hoping that the real estate market here in the midwest will look different in 6 months than it does right now.
Update for me as of March 31: 94.2%
Feels good to have a 9-handle, but need to keep in mind this number will likely get impacted negatively by the home downsize / mortgage elimination in the next year. We will see where things go! But its been a great first quarter! Wishing everyone success in their journeys!!
Sure looks like you’re on track to hit 100%+ in no time! Thats an incredible pace you’ve set! I’ve just gone from 0-20% in that exact same timeframe, and I also will get hit hard by a change in housing expenses sometime before actually considering retirement.
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Congrats to all....here's my progress tracker:
All dates are as of June 30 other than the final one as noted below:
2015: 17.3%
2016: 25.9%
2017: 30.7%
2018: 31.1%
2019: 47.1%
2020: 51.4%
2021: 72.7%
2022: 67.1%
2023: 79.7% (June 30)
2023: 84.9% (Dec 31)
Kinda similar to @pasadenafr , I am trying to balance either a home downsize and purchase or a mortgage payoff into my planning, so my targets and/or balances could get disrupted a bit by that. But for now, I'm sticking with the plan and hoping that the real estate market here in the midwest will look different in 6 months than it does right now.
Update for me as of March 31: 94.2%
Feels good to have a 9-handle, but need to keep in mind this number will likely get impacted negatively by the home downsize / mortgage elimination in the next year. We will see where things go! But its been a great first quarter! Wishing everyone success in their journeys!!
Sure looks like you’re on track to hit 100%+ in no time! Thats an incredible pace you’ve set! I’ve just gone from 0-20% in that exact same timeframe, and I also will get hit hard by a change in housing expenses sometime before actually considering retirement.
Thank you kindly! I feel like getting to somewhere in the 40-50% range is the uphill climb, but once you do that, the downhill becomes much easier (and more enjoyable)! Housing market is definitely a big variable hanging over those of us who had planned to downsize as part of their FIRE plan. Thank you again, and wishing you the best!
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Thanks to last quarter upswing, my % has also increased, but I am still within the same bracket (now 38.3%). Hopefully I will be able to jump into the next range during 2024.
This is the track for full FI w/o pensions (that looks much better!)
Yay, the market has now carried me above the 40% mark: 41.6%
My baseline figures with pension is now at 93%.
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Edited my vote. As of yesterday, I'm at almost 79% FI, based on current expenses (although I just realized I never included taxes in those since my taxes are taken out of my income without me ever seeing that money.)
However, I'm at only 57% of target RE number. The difference being slightly lower expenses (with taxes this time) but the need to buy a home without a mortgage upon retirement.
Some nice progress. I'm now sitting at 84.5% FI (based on my current expenses as a renter in HCOL), and 61.5% RE (based on projected retirement expenses as a homeowner in my home country (HCOL area relative to said country, but still lower COL than Seattle), and including enough money to buy the home in question with no mortgage).
New month! I'm now sitting at:
- 86.3% FI based on current expenses (renting, HCOL area in the US)
- 62.8% RE based on retirement expenses + a new paid-off home (H/MCOL area back home)
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Congrats to all....here's my progress tracker:
All dates are as of June 30 other than the final one as noted below:
2015: 17.3%
2016: 25.9%
2017: 30.7%
2018: 31.1%
2019: 47.1%
2020: 51.4%
2021: 72.7%
2022: 67.1%
2023: 79.7% (June 30)
2023: 84.9% (Dec 31)
Kinda similar to @pasadenafr , I am trying to balance either a home downsize and purchase or a mortgage payoff into my planning, so my targets and/or balances could get disrupted a bit by that. But for now, I'm sticking with the plan and hoping that the real estate market here in the midwest will look different in 6 months than it does right now.
Update for me as of March 31: 94.2%
Feels good to have a 9-handle, but need to keep in mind this number will likely get impacted negatively by the home downsize / mortgage elimination in the next year. We will see where things go! But its been a great first quarter! Wishing everyone success in their journeys!!
Sure looks like you’re on track to hit 100%+ in no time! Thats an incredible pace you’ve set! I’ve just gone from 0-20% in that exact same timeframe, and I also will get hit hard by a change in housing expenses sometime before actually considering retirement.
Thank you kindly! I feel like getting to somewhere in the 40-50% range is the uphill climb, but once you do that, the downhill becomes much easier (and more enjoyable)! Housing market is definitely a big variable hanging over those of us who had planned to downsize as part of their FIRE plan. Thank you again, and wishing you the best!
I know we are talking % and not $ in this thread, but this seems relevant, related sentiment:
mustachianism-around-the-web/$300k-is-halfway-to-$1m (https://forum.mrmoneymustache.com/mustachianism-around-the-web/$300k-is-halfway-to-$1m/)
Edit to fix link
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Goal 2021: 10%
Goal 2022: 18%; Stretch goal 20%
Goal 2023: 24%; Stretch goal 28%
Goal 2023: 35%; Stretch goal 38%
*First % is without a mortgage payment, second % is with current mortgage payment (~12 years remaining at 1.75%)*
**4% withdrawal rate**
SEP 2021: 8.02%; 4.78%
SEP 2022: 12.39%; 7.37%
OCT 2022: 11.49%; 6.84%
NOV 2022: 12.46%; 7.42%
DEC 2022: 13.73%; 8.17%
JAN 2023: 14.03%; 8.35%
FEB 2023: 15.73%; 9.36%
MAR 2023: 15.51%; 9.23%
APR 2023: 16.86%; 10.03%
MAY 2023: 17.77%; 10.58%
JUN 2023: 18.06%; 10.74%
JUL 2023: 20.17%; 12.01%
AUG 2023: 21.49%; 12.79%
SEP 2023: 21.36%; 12.71%
OCT 2023: 20.79%; 12.37%
NOV 2023: 20.88%; 12.43%
DEC 2023: 22.97%; 13.67%
JAN 2024: 25.16%; 14.98%
FEB 2024: 26.05%; 15.51%
MAR 2024: 28.30%; 16.85%
APR 2024: 29.87%; 17.78%
So close to making it to the next bracket, as long as the markets stay steady, I will be there next month!
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I'm really not sure how to answer this poll anymore. If I go strictly by the 4% rule we're at ~52%. If I use a debt offset instead of needing to cover payments with the 4% the numbers bring us closer to ~70%. But also, my spouse plans to work longer, so what is the target for just me to retire? Simulations with cFIREsim indicate we may already be at 95% for that scenario. So anywhere between 50% and 100% seem like valid answers...
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I'm really not sure how to answer this poll anymore. If I go strictly by the 4% rule we're at ~52%. If I use a debt offset instead of needing to cover payments with the 4% the numbers bring us closer to ~70%. But also, my spouse plans to work longer, so what is the target for just me to retire? Simulations with cFIREsim indicate we may already be at 95% for that scenario. So anywhere between 50% and 100% seem like valid answers...
Fair questions! Here's my take:
If your spouse loses their ability to work, can you stay retired? From your description, it doesn't sound like you could afford to. If you're a gambler and willing to take the chance, you're at 95%, provided you're also willing to gamble your spouse won't get all pissy about you lounging around the house while they have to work.
I'm definitely not that type of gambler, so I would not consider myself at 95%.
As for the other two scenarios, it's just a numbers game. If it's faster to make a lump sum payment to pay off (or significantly pay down) the debt than it is to create an income stream to cover the debt payments, that's what you do. If not, not. In our case, it made sense to pay off the house promptly. Even the folks on the Don't Pay Off Your Mortgage thread agreed!
Note I said "income stream" with no mention of the 4% rule. There are lots of ways to provide income in retirement and a stock/bond portfolio is only one of them.
In our case, we got lucky and upped our investment game when property values were at a real low. So, we found that rental homes provided an income stream for a much lower investment cost than a stock and bond portfolio would require using the 4% rule. We invested (from memory) about $225k to get 4 properties (and fixed them up) that provided income the 4% rule would require $500,000 to provide. Property costs are much higher now, though rents have been going up also. Again, it's just a numbers game. Plus, not being a gambler, I liked having multiple income streams that aren't all on the exact same economic cycle.
But I digress. If you said you had to wait 5 years to qualify for a pension, I would say you don't get to include it in your calculations until you qualify. It only takes one greedy guy in a suit or one sociopathic manager to screw you over in your last year before you qualify. In that case, I would maintain two sets of numbers, one assuming I make it and one I don't. Whichever you feel is more likely is the one I would put in the poll. If that changes, you change the poll, too.
Same with your debt payoff vs income stream to make the payments. Pick the one you're planning to follow and adjust as necessary.
Hope that helps!
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I'm really not sure how to answer this poll anymore. If I go strictly by the 4% rule we're at ~52%. If I use a debt offset instead of needing to cover payments with the 4% the numbers bring us closer to ~70%. But also, my spouse plans to work longer, so what is the target for just me to retire? Simulations with cFIREsim indicate we may already be at 95% for that scenario. So anywhere between 50% and 100% seem like valid answers...
Fair questions! Here's my take:
If your spouse loses their ability to work, can you stay retired? From your description, it doesn't sound like you could afford to. If you're a gambler and willing to take the chance, you're at 95%, provided you're also willing to gamble your spouse won't get all pissy about you lounging around the house while they have to work.
I'm definitely not that type of gambler, so I would not consider myself at 95%.
One of the reasons we bought a more expensive house is because my spouse said they wanted to make the trade off of working more years. In the scenario my spouse works fewer than another nine years (my baseline for calculations) we could in theory downsize to gain FI. Or I could start working again.
As for the other two scenarios, it's just a numbers game. If it's faster to make a lump sum payment to pay off (or significantly pay down) the debt than it is to create an income stream to cover the debt payments, that's what you do. If not, not. In our case, it made sense to pay off the house promptly. Even the folks on the Don't Pay Off Your Mortgage thread agreed!
Note I said "income stream" with no mention of the 4% rule. There are lots of ways to provide income in retirement and a stock/bond portfolio is only one of them.
In our case, we got lucky and upped our investment game when property values were at a real low. So, we found that rental homes provided an income stream for a much lower investment cost than a stock and bond portfolio would require using the 4% rule. We invested (from memory) about $225k to get 4 properties (and fixed them up) that provided income the 4% rule would require $500,000 to provide. Property costs are much higher now, though rents have been going up also. Again, it's just a numbers game. Plus, not being a gambler, I liked having multiple income streams that aren't all on the exact same economic cycle.
But I digress. If you said you had to wait 5 years to qualify for a pension, I would say you don't get to include it in your calculations until you qualify. It only takes one greedy guy in a suit or one sociopathic manager to screw you over in your last year before you qualify. In that case, I would maintain two sets of numbers, one assuming I make it and one I don't. Whichever you feel is more likely is the one I would put in the poll. If that changes, you change the poll, too.
Same with your debt payoff vs income stream to make the payments. Pick the one you're planning to follow and adjust as necessary.
Hope that helps!
Thanks for the thoughts! I guess I wasn't super clear. The 52% and 70% numbers aren't different plans, they are just different calculation methods. The 52% assumes our mortgage will continue in perpetuity and the 70% assumes we only need enough to cover the non-mortgage expenses + current balance of mortgage. But the latter is very much a rule of thumb as there should be variance based on interest rate and such. In any case my plan is to not pay off the mortgage but I still have to account for it somehow. Refinancing in the future is also a possibility which would change the numbers too (favorably).
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Oct 2017 - 4%
May 2018 - 5%
Dec 2018 - 6%
July 2019 - 7%
Nov 2019 - 8%
Aug 2020 - 9%
July 2021 - 10%
Oct 2021 - 11%
Apr 2022 - 12%
Nov 2022 - 13%
Dec 2022 - 14%
June 2023 - 15%
July 2023 - 16%
Oct 2023 - 17%
Nov 2023 - 18%
Jan 2024 - 19%
Mar 2024 - 20%
Apr 2024 - 21%
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General question- when calculating your "% FI", how does inflation factor in to your calculation?
For example, my "% to FI" compares my liquid net-worth to an average of my "amount spent per year" for the past ~8 years. I know my expenses definitely don't increase with inflation, but I highly doubt my expenditures from 2016 are a real good earmark for how much I spend now, in 2024. If I put full historical inflation rates on all of my "amount spent per year" values before putting them into the average equation, my "% FI" number dips down about 8-9%.
Thoughts on this? What do you do?
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General question- when calculating your "% FI", how does inflation factor in to your calculation?
For example, my "% to FI" compares my liquid net-worth to an average of my "amount spent per year" for the past ~8 years. I know my expenses definitely don't increase with inflation, but I highly doubt my expenditures from 2016 are a real good earmark for how much I spend now, in 2024. If I put full historical inflation rates on all of my "amount spent per year" values before putting them into the average equation, my "% FI" number dips down about 8-9%.
Thoughts on this? What do you do?
My current FI number is based on expenses from 2022. I know that was a cheap year because I will still very Covid-cautious about activities and also living in the least expensive housing in a long time.
I plan to re-jigger things either at the end of this year, whenever I go part time or when I get to the current 90% mark. It's too early because I just went from co-habitating in 2023 to carrying the full rent on my own apartment in 2024.
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General question- when calculating your "% FI", how does inflation factor in to your calculation?
For example, my "% to FI" compares my liquid net-worth to an average of my "amount spent per year" for the past ~8 years. I know my expenses definitely don't increase with inflation, but I highly doubt my expenditures from 2016 are a real good earmark for how much I spend now, in 2024. If I put full historical inflation rates on all of my "amount spent per year" values before putting them into the average equation, my "% FI" number dips down about 8-9%.
Thoughts on this? What do you do?
I also plan to make some adjustment when I am above the 90% mark. For tracking purposes, I like to keep that amount the same, keeping my forward momentum! I don't foresee the "adjustment" adding more than an extra year of working/saving.
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I used to have a spreadsheet I used to project, based on current and planned contributions, when we would reach FI.
I was all bumfuzzled on how to handle the inflation issue and then I realized it was largely a non-issue.
The rent we charged would go up with inflation (though it would lag a year behind).
I used the historical average US market average return less the historical average US inflation. In other words, inflation was built in but I didn't need to look at what the inflated number would be, I just needed to look at what it was now.
Our costs wouldn't go up with inflation, they would actually go up less. Why? Fixed-rate mortages don't go up. Property taxes might, but they only do reevaluations every 7 or so years, and that's a long lag when it comes to FI calculations. Plus, they are a fairly small part of the mortgage payment. We don't buy lots of stuff that regular consumers do, either.
We had farm income. I estimated that over time the prices would go up with inflation as well.
My salary wouldn't keep up with inflation (sadly), but it was a short enough time frame that the slippage was easily correctable once a year when I updated the spreadsheet. All I needed to do was put in my new salary, my planned contributions in today's dollars, and my current (i.e., with inflation factored in) costs.
It was "close enough" to correct.
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I used to have a spreadsheet I used to project, based on current and planned contributions, when we would reach FI.
I was all bumfuzzled on how to handle the inflation issue and then I realized it was largely a non-issue.
...
It was "close enough" to correct.
Thanks for this insight, @SwordGuy ! This is exactly the perspective I was hoping for. I think I'll also re-evaluate around ~90% FI like others have mentioned, but won't let it add more than 1 extra year to my exit strategy from the workforce :)