Would you remain mustachian if you suddenly acquired great wealth?

[WynnDuffy73]

Going from a mustachian lifestyle to buying a BMW and $500k+ house just feels weird and almost wasteful to me.

I’m interested in how other mustachians would react to this. Would you or could you suddenly shift into spend mode like that?  Or would you keep it chill like Mr. Money Mustache?

[MrThatsDifferent]

I would do everything exactly the same and I’m not a regular mustachian person. What I’ve learned from MMM is simply, I don’t need all of this stuff I barely use and I certainly don’t need money and stuff to fuel my ego. All that matters now are security, freedom and having as many experiences as possible. Great wealth would only accelerate my plans. I’d FIRE immediately, keep my investment plan, and get on with my life after FIRE plan. That’s it. Actually, the one difference I might make would be the no buying homes. If I had extra cash, I might buy some homes in places around the world as bases of operation, which I could Airbnb when not staying there. Doubt it, but that would be as extravagant as I’d get.

[FIREstache]

I don't consider myself a mustachian because that's just a term used on this website, and I've always been frugal and had a high savings rate before I ever read the first thing about it on the interwebs or here at MMM.

But if I suddenly had a windfall of $1M or more, I don't think I would change much for my personal spending, although I would certainly crank up my charity spending.

[Kris]

I wouldn’t say we are hardcore mustachian. But I have definitely understood over the years that mindless consumption does not make me happy. Quite the opposite, in fact.

I think if we had a $1M windfall, our daily lives wouldn’t necessarily change much. But we’re FI and don’t need it, and our condo is paid off. I think we would likely sell our modest condo and buy something slightly nicer in a nearby neighborhood (spending about $100k of the $1M).

The rest of the money would probably be invested.

[ender]

I suspect the main impact would be accelerating goals we have anyways.

As an example, we'd like to live on an acreage someday - in our current location, those are expensive, so we'd likely use some of that money to purchase one.

[Dancin'Dog]

If it isn't enough to retire on you shouldn't change course.  Just invest it as usual.


If it is enough to retire on then you have some math to do & decisions to make.  :)

[nick663]

It depends. 
-If it was just an amount that pushed us to our FI number it wouldn't change much. 
-If it was multiples of our FI number I think we would adjust somewhat to spend more in the areas we enjoy.  This wouldn't mean a new house of BMW in the driveway, although a garage addition would be built and some toys added.

I don't consider myself much of a "hardcore mustachian" though so take that for what it's worth. 

[Roland of Gilead]

I would live like we currently live unless I acquired change the world level of money, then I would hire Elon to build me a Starship.  Not a big one, maybe an economy model.

[SwordGuy]

We were a year and a half away from FIRE when I inherited enough to double our net worth.   

We carried on as before.   Our only extravagance was buying a neat house to restore and flip for cost.  But we worked an extra year to offset the cost because that's how we roll.   (Turns out we'll make just under $8k on it.)

We'll be buying some inexpensive properties, fixing them up, and donating them for various charitable purposes.   Just depends upon the stock market returns.

[MonkeyJenga]

Yes. I wouldn't spend more on stuff. I don't want more stuff, the planet doesn't need more stuff, and I can get almost everything I need for free or cheap secondhand. I wouldn't run out and buy a big house, since that's a hassle and wasteful. I wouldn't even spend more on vacations in the short-term, as my current no-fly goal is also environmental, not financial.

I would:

* Save some % to guard against future rent hikes and end of life care.
* Donate a LOT more.
* Ok, probably buy some stuff. Primarily a decent bike, ideally from a reputable secondhand source. Maybe a fancy shoe fitting.
* Spend a little more on concerts and shows, treat my friends. Nothing crazy though. Some of my favorite activities are free anyway.

[Moustachienne]

DH and I are kind of in this situation. After working out a very comfortable but not fancy retirement income based on our nest egg and (age reduced) government pensions, we very unexpectedly inherited in the high six figures range.  We've already received about a third with the rest coming after some property is sold.  It's not so much that it really changes our lives but at the same time it sort of does.  We felt we had plenty to live fun and responsible lives on and now we have...more.  We don't really want to eat out more, take fancier vacations, buy a fancier car.  Neither do we want to leave a giant inheritance.  (We don't have kids but even it we did we wouldn't want that.)  So we have been talking about how to increase our philanthropy goals and how best to set that up.  Helping family is also a question and there are plenty of forum threads on the pitfalls in that!  There's a chance to do some very focussed good though.

So yes, we will remain as mustachian as we were before, by our own measure, with the extra mustachian challenge of being good stewards of the surplus.  Honestly, I think many frugal livers will have this same fun challenge, inheritance or not.  If you live below your means at a level you enjoy, you'll have a surplus.

[WynnDuffy73]

If it isn't enough to retire on you shouldn't change course.  Just invest it as usual.


If it is enough to retire on then you have some math to do & decisions to make.  :)

This would be enough to retire on but I definitely don’t think I would do that immediately.  I want to see what work feels like when i literally don’t need to be doing it for the money.  On the other hand when you are already in your 40’s it seems foolish to be spending your days at a Megacorp sitting in a cubicle when you don’t need to be doing it anymore for the money.

[PowerStache]

I did acquire a barely 7 figure sum about 18 months ago.  I went back to work the next day.  Very tough to not run around work saying " I won the lottery!"  We invested, and planned.  I retired 3 months ago.  We track our spending and it did not change.  The money did make me feel much more comfortable with my decision to quit my job.  :)

[singpolyma]

This happened to us.  A stock windfall that was expected to get us *close* to FI has done well and already pushed us past it half way through.

But the whole point of frugality is that it makes you happier and better and the world better -- you don't need to live an inflated lifestyle or compete with others to win.  So why increase our spending?  We'll retire sooner than expected, but that's really just luck making up for the years we wasted before starting to think about FI.

We're not frugal because we "have" to be, but because we want to be, because it's better.  I expect our spending to continue to go down.

[Dancin'Dog]

If it isn't enough to retire on you shouldn't change course.  Just invest it as usual.


If it is enough to retire on then you have some math to do & decisions to make.  :)

This would be enough to retire on but I definitely don’t think I would do that immediately.  I want to see what work feels like when i literally don’t need to be doing it for the money.  On the other hand when you are already in your 40’s it seems foolish to be spending your days at a Megacorp sitting in a cubicle when you don’t need to be doing it anymore for the money.

Whether you decide to keep working, try another occupation, or retire are all options that you have now.  Take as long as you need to decide what's right for you.  You can pick one, or try them all.  Freedom is a wonderful thing.  There's no wrong choice. 


Enjoy,
 

[Zikoris]

I wouldn't change much since most of the things one could spend money on would be serious downgrades - like, replacing my delicious home-cooked meals and baking with yucky restaurant food would suuuuuck big time. And a lot of stuff would be outright against my beliefs to buy, as a vegan minimalist environmentalist. I don't see myself ever getting a drivers license, so any sort of car is out.

I suppose I could see buying a larger piece of land to build my eventual cabin on. I would still want the cabin to be the same size (400 square feet is perfect for us), but having it surrounded by a nice thick forest might be nice.

[happy]

More or less yes, I like how I live. I want for nothing At age 60, though, the main change might be to pay contractors to do some of the maintenance on my large block of land - I'm getting slower..

[never give up]

I would go from several years away from FIRE to comfortably FIREd in one fell swoop. None of my expenses would change as I don’t want more stuff and I’m currently in a self imposed flying ban. I may look to move to a similar sized home but somewhere where I could go carless.

I would instantly quit work and rejoice at my WR being 2%ish. That security would be great. I’d also buy some new pyjamas as my current ones are riddled with holes and threadbare in places but I have set myself a Mustachian challenge to nurse them through to Christmas. Putting them on and taking them off requires laser precision not to rip them further. They are at the point of being outrageously inappropriate. Who am I trying to kid, I probably wouldn’t buy the new pyjamas as the challenge is too much fun!

So yes I would remain frugal if I acquired more wealth as my impact on the environment should be more important than any consumer desires.

[former player]

I'm long and comfortably FIREd and neither need nor want to spend more than I already do on myself.  In particular, I'm (fairly gently) trying to ratchet down my environmental footprint and being restrained with personal spending automatically goes along with that.


But I do have a couple of expensive projects for the neighbourhood that I could spend serious money on if I had it to spare - I'd buy a derelict site on the coast to prevent it from being overdeveloped with holiday homes, and I'd buy a BnB in the village and turn it into a youth hostel.  The first would run into several millions and the second into most of a million.

[Monocle Money Mouth]

If I suddenly had great wealth, I would upgrade a few things in my life.

I would retire once I had everything figured out with health insurance.

I would replace my ICE car with an electric car.

I would completely gut my house, build a new garage, fix all the handy man hack job stuff from the previous owners, put in super efficient appliances and home systems, and use timeless durable materials that will never need to be touched again other than to be cleaned. I don't want a McMansion made of woodchips and glue, vinyl, and peal and stick stone. I just want all the sketchy stuff fixed in my little 3 bedroom ranch.

I would probably do some bucket list trips like going to Tasmania and New Zealand.

After that though, I would continue with my life as usual. I like figuring out how to get the most bang for my buck. I would continue to shop at Wal-Mart, check clearance racks, and DIY anything I can. Just throwing around cash indiscriminately wouldn't be any fun :D

[Tuskalusa]

Other than paying off the house and replacing our old car with a “less old” (but probably still used) car, I dint think much would change for us in day-to-day life. The big change would be that we could rest easier knowing that we have a huge cushion to support whatever choices we make next. That would be pretty awesome.

[Parizade]

I don't consider myself a mustachian because that's just a term used on this website, and I've always been frugal and had a high savings rate before I ever read the first thing about it on the interwebs or here at MMM.

But if I suddenly had a windfall of $1M or more, I don't think I would change much for my personal spending, although I would certainly crank up my charity spending.

+1 on both paragraphs. I honestly don't know what a "mustachian" is anymore so I would hesitate to identify as one; the more time I spend on the forum the foggier the term becomes.

I also wouldn't see much point in changing up my life, I'm pretty happy with the life I have built for myself but definitely see the need around me for useful charity.
 

[CowboyAndIndian]

Last year we were traveling on the NJTP and saw a big sign saying the Mega Millions lottery was $600 million or some other ridiculous number. That got my family talking about what we would do if we won it (don't know how we can win it since we do not buy tickets).

This is what I thought I would do after keeping a few million as a rainy day fund.

• Give to my Alma maters(Three, one for my bachelors, two Masters). New building or library or scholarships for students
• Early childhood education both in the US and India
• Early childhood food, sponsor meals at schools

Basically, I would do what I could do to make the largest impact on the largest number of people!

Help people like this couple did
https://theindianscene.com/our-future/first-person-after-abandonment-and-loss-searching-for-peace/?fbclid=IwAR1VPxVXNt-befIQ6P-SPewVOnN3zBa9Q5zMirq1jl2LaxYVTI_CLT4Wfig

[Cassie]

We are retired but would travel more.

[StarBright]

I often think I'm an outlier on this board in that I actually like luxury stuff so I'll answer in case anyone else is out there feeling alone in mustache-ville:

We wouldn't become mindless consumers, but 7 figures would put us well above our FIRE number and DH is a SWAMI-type. I'd quit my job ASAP and would definitely add targeted spending in areas that make us happy which tend to be luxury (meals w/ wine pairings, season tickets for opera, theater and orchestra, a sailboat, massages and spa treatments, etc).

We wouldn't spend more than we had.  We'd keep our house and cars. I don't imagine that we'd even bother with extensive house renovations other than what is necessary to keep our old place in good shape. But there are things we really enjoy that we do not spend money on now and I know that we would definitely spend money on them if we had an extra million bucks pop into our lives.

[kanga1622]

No reason to go nuts. I’m sure we’d retire if we came into great sums of money. And quickly hire/complete the several house fix projects that are on the list. Having spent the grand total of $3000 on home projects, our life wouldn’t otherwise change.

Our car and home suit us well. We’ve put too much time into our home to walk away. I certainly don’t want a bigger home to clean. We might ease up a bit on the grocery/eating out budget or take weekend road trips with the kids but being frugal is too ingrained to throw out the window. We might add back in the sports season tickets we gave up after we had kids.

I would be too worried with a fancy home or car that something would happen to it. I’d rather know that there is enough in the bank to cover our future than spend it on “toys” now.

[A Fella from Stella]

I'm not very mustachian, but as we find more success we are talking about (A) becoming a 1 car family when the family van conks out, and (B) moving into a smaller place in a big city, and becoming a no-car family, when the kids are out of the house.

[pbkmaine]

I would pay off the debt of a nonprofit I care greatly about, fully fund college for the seven grandchildren, pay off the mortgages of the three children, and take everyone somewhere on vacation once a year. The rest of my life is already the way I like it.

[Steeze]

If I were already FI/RE and received an extra 1MM?  I would decrease my WR to say 3% and increase spending on services to free up even more time and heal my body.

I would go to the dentist more often, and get PT for my shoulder and knee. I would go to a massage therapist, chiropractor, and acupuncture once a month each. I would hire a personal trainer to correct my form at the gym. I would hire a bi-weekly cleaning service and eat out more. I would get laundry pick up and drop off. Take piano lessons. Travel to see my friends and family more regularly.

Being that I am NOT FI .... I would buy shares as usual and move up my FI date from 2030 to 2022. I would also advocate having a couple children ASAP.

Since I’m not going to receive 1MM... I’m going to go to work tomorrow like a good sheep.

[oldtoyota]

I find this such an interesting question.

A person I know has had massive success in business. She was wondering about buying a fancy car yet also worried what others would think.

A fancy car would not be my own desire, but I would make some upgrades.

Business class travel on long distance flights.
Hiring more people to help with business / domestic tasks.

Those two things would make a difference to me, and one would allow me to employ others (which means money for them, too).

[Cranky]

I don't think I'm "Mustachian" in the first place, however you define that.

If I somehow came into a bonus $1 million, I would consolidate the two chunks of my family, by buying two houses elsewhere and moving us up there in the next couple of years. Otherwise, I honestly want for nothing.

[rocketpj]

Not sure, I'm basically RE now but just started a new, somewhat meaningful job as a support worker in a homeless shelter.  The only adjustment I've made is that I am only a 'casual' staff person, so I can take and reject shifts when I choose.

I suppose a sudden influx of wealth would change a couple of things - maybe scrap the old car a bit earlier and get that electric I've been thinking about for 5 years (we have about $15k in incentives around here for that sort of thing, if the car can get to the scrap yard under its own power).  Maybe not though, as I'm also a firm believer in the 'drive it until it falls apart under you' model of vehicle ownership.

I guess I'd pay off my mortgage just for the freedom inherent in such a move.  I could now but it would mean liquidating other RE and the long term view says not to.

[John Galt incarnate!]

I’m interested in how other mustachians would react to this. Would you or could you suddenly shift into spend mode like that?  Or would you keep it chill like Mr. Money Mustache?

I'm not an unbending Mu$tachian  who  adheres  to every Mu$tachian precept.

If I acquired great wealth it wouldn't change my life much because as a FIREee I have enough $, no debt, and own  everything I want including my dream home.

I wouldn't  go on a buying spree because   I already have too much  stuff.

I'd definitely give $ to relatives and maybe endow a college scholarship for low-income students.

[Villanelle]

It depends on the amount, but it sounds like you are talking between $2m and $10m.  For those numbers, I'd likely continue driving a fairly modest car, and doing other fairly frugal things.  Our travel budget would increase, and when we stop living where the military tells us to, we'd consider a location we love but have mostly written off due to cost.  My husband might want to move to a nicer rental than what we have now. 

So I guess it would be a mixed bag.  Some increases, some thing staying the same. 

[Dancin'Dog]

It's interesting to hear what folks think they would do.  It seems most are fairly satisfied with their lives.  Nobody's mentioned extravagant boats, cars, planes, fancy homes, or even 2nd homes.  Actually, I've heard quite a few acts of generosity.  It seems most of you are more mustachian than you give yourselves credit for. 


"Aquired great wealth" is a little vague.  $1M isn't the same as $10M, but I still get the feeling few would go out on a manic shopping spree regargless. 


 

[Travis]

Our FIRE number is between $1.4-$1.6 million.  If we suddenly had another $1 million to play with, I think we'd be less choosy at the grocery store and not quite so attentive towards airline mile hacking - and buy a slightly bigger house than the hypothetical one we have our eye on.  I can't think of any "stuff" we're foregoing that we'd want to buy.  We're happy with our automobile choices and cringe at the idea of buying a house so big you have hire somebody else to clean it.

[MrThatsDifferent]

If I were already FI/RE and received an extra 1MM?  I would decrease my WR to say 3% and increase spending on services to free up even more time and heal my body.

I would go to the dentist more often, and get PT for my shoulder and knee. I would go to a massage therapist, chiropractor, and acupuncture once a month each. I would hire a personal trainer to correct my form at the gym. I would hire a bi-weekly cleaning service and eat out more. I would get laundry pick up and drop off. Take piano lessons. Travel to see my friends and family more regularly.

Being that I am NOT FI .... I would buy shares as usual and move up my FI date from 2030 to 2022. I would also advocate having a couple children ASAP.

Since I’m not going to receive 1MM... I’m going to go to work tomorrow like a good sheep.

You should do all those health things still. Build them into your budget, you don’t get your body back. Cleaning service I live by, laundry service isn’t vital, and eating out more wonky increases bad weight management, so it’s good to do less of that. The rest, get on it!

[Krnten]

It happened to us.  We went from having a few hundred thousand NW to a few million overnight, thanks to stock options. I wish I could say we remained mustachian, but we didn’t. We upgraded housing and I left work for almost 2 years to SAH. A few years later, we’ve settled down somewhat, but I would be beyond embarrassed to post our spending here.  I love these forums and draw a lot of inspiration from them. But I don’t practice as much as I used to.

[jaysee]

Interesting question.

A lot of my life would stay the same. I don't just live frugally, I also live minimally, and enjoy the peace of mind and lack of worry and stress that owning very few things affords me.

I'd probably spend more money on:

* Upgrading my Apple gear every year instead of every 5 years
* Living in 5-star hotels instead of share houses
* Flying business class instead of economy
* Taking multi-month holidays to beautiful / exotic locations
* Occasionally renting a Tesla for the weekend

I can already afford a lot of that anyway, while working full-time. If I wait till 55 to retire I can probably afford a lot of it from my retirement income.

[Milizard]

I'd definitely upgrade some things. The extent depends on the size of the windfall.  I've recently come off a multi year austerity, and I've got to tell you that it's nice to spend again. It feels a little weird, but also a bit of relief. I do like getting a few new clothes, and going on vacation, and not feeling terrible about spending money unnecessarily.  I'd still probably keep my ultra cheap cell phone plan, because I don't feel like anything is lacking there at all. Still try to cook at home, as it's healthier.

So, I'd probably pursue a lifetime goal of designing and building my own house. I wouldn't mind a younger vehicle, as mine is a 2011. More better quality clothes for the kids. Quit my part-time job, as the early mornings are a drag for all of us, and it is interfering with summer learning opportunities for my kids. Lots more vacations.  My DH would continue working for a few years if it were only $1M. We don't trust ACA continuing as a reasonable option for us.

For Powerball levels, multiple houses and maybe a medium boat.  Start my own charity. Give to causes that I feel deserve it.

[EngagedToFIRE]

You can be balanced.  I make a ton of money and I went through the "BMW" phase.  I still have the big house (well over $1M) but it's not outrageous considering my income and savings rate (about 75%).  I drive a Nissan Leaf and we spend less on food than food stamps provides.  My point?  Spending money doesn't always make you happy.  Some things do.  Like my house.  Very happy.  Worth every penny.  It's the utmost in anti-mustachian, but I fucking love it and every single day I come home I just have a big smile on my face.  Worth every penny.  My fancy cars?  No.  Felt wasteful and stupid.  Going out to eat all the time?  Same.  I found that living much more simply (call it mustachian) and frugal wasn't really about retiring early, it was about trying not to use money to make you happy constantly throughout the day.  Yes, we have our big house, but our daily life is pretty darn frugal and we don't do that with retirement goals in mind, we do it because it's a really great way to live and our happiness has increased substantially because of it.

It's an interesting topic, because there is a HUGE difference in mindset between people who have the money and those that don't.  We all THINK we know what we would or wouldn't do.  I started my adult life broke as can be, and used to tell my friend how I'd never buy a fancy car even if I had the money.  Sounds like a lot of posts here.... Yet when I started being very successful, I was driving an $80,000 car.  My friend pointed that out...  It took me some time to get that out of my system.  You really don't know what you'll do and FOMO can seriously set in and mess with your head.

[SwordGuy]

It's an interesting topic, because there is a HUGE difference in mindset between people who have the money and those that don't.  We all THINK we know what we would or wouldn't do.  I started my adult life broke as can be, and used to tell my friend how I'd never buy a fancy car even if I had the money.  Sounds like a lot of posts here.... Yet when I started being very successful, I was driving an $80,000 car.  My friend pointed that out...  It took me some time to get that out of my system.  You really don't know what you'll do and FOMO can seriously set in and mess with your head.

Very fair points.   Then again, some of use have pointed out that we've ALREADY had that happen to us and so we know what we would do.   We've already done it. :)

[Cassie]

Shame on me I forgot about my adult kids:)). We would definitely share. We would also increase the money we give to charity. 

[Zikoris]

It's an interesting topic, because there is a HUGE difference in mindset between people who have the money and those that don't.  We all THINK we know what we would or wouldn't do.  I started my adult life broke as can be, and used to tell my friend how I'd never buy a fancy car even if I had the money.  Sounds like a lot of posts here.... Yet when I started being very successful, I was driving an $80,000 car.  My friend pointed that out...  It took me some time to get that out of my system.  You really don't know what you'll do and FOMO can seriously set in and mess with your head.

 I mean, for me I think I have some pretty solid reasoning behind thinking the core stuff would remain the same. Like, even if I wanted a fancy car, I'd have to first go through a multi-year process of getting a drivers license, which would be really difficult considering my eyesight isn't great and I hate being inside cars (I get queasy and other drivers make me nervous). Large houses are horrible for me because when I sleepwalk I get lost easily and can run into things, could theoretically break my neck going down stairs, and I also hate the aesthetic and housework. Oh, and corners and doorways creep me out big time after sundown, so unless the big house was literally one enormous room, that would be a serious daily problem. And restaurants are similar - any time I eat a restaurant meal here I'm disappointed, so we basically just quit doing that and are happier for it.

[FIREstache]

I started my adult life broke as can be, and used to tell my friend how I'd never buy a fancy car even if I had the money.  Sounds like a lot of posts here.... Yet when I started being very successful, I was driving an $80,000 car.

Same here, I also had a low paying job for a number of years.  Now I have $1.5M and no debt while living in a LCOL area, but my values haven't changed.  I could FIRE today, but I don't.  I'm still driving a 13 year old car and living in a modest home, rarely go out to eat, find my most joy in things that are low cost or free, such as biking.  I keep a high savings rate 70% to 80%.  The only thing I ever added to the "what are you lusting after" thread was an e-bike.  A recent inheritance didn't change anything as far as my personal spending, and I'm quite certain a few million $ wouldn't, either.

[Lmoot]

No. I am as frugal as I am, so that one day I don't have to be.

What I would do in this order:
- replace my 16 year old Honda (with Toyota or Honda crossover)
- quit working full time so that I can...
- ....buy and work on mid-century-70's/80's contemporary houses to sell or rent. Including purchasing a house of my own.
- go to school for fun and to pursue "pet careers" on a seasonal basis.
- I'd give away more money and resources
- I'd replace my entire wardrobe (which isn't much, but I can't stand half of the clothes I own, and have been slowly replacing them)
- while I don't want a lot of stuff, I want to replace my crap stuff, with quality stuff, without having to wait for sales.

I've been living most of my life, working for the future. I'm getting sick of it lol.

[MonkeyJenga]

It's an interesting topic, because there is a HUGE difference in mindset between people who have the money and those that don't.  We all THINK we know what we would or wouldn't do.  I started my adult life broke as can be, and used to tell my friend how I'd never buy a fancy car even if I had the money.  Sounds like a lot of posts here.... Yet when I started being very successful, I was driving an $80,000 car.  My friend pointed that out...  It took me some time to get that out of my system.  You really don't know what you'll do and FOMO can seriously set in and mess with your head.

Very fair points.   Then again, some of use have pointed out that we've ALREADY had that happen to us and so we know what we would do.   We've already done it. :)

Yeah, I haven't been handed a few million, but I have years of experience living among wealth and not wanting it. I grew up with wealthy, spendy parents and peers, and I never felt comfortable with it. I went hard in the other direction once I was on my own. My salary quadrupled in less than ten years, and my spending went down. I was given a large sum of money and didn't touch it.

I've lived on my own and was lonely, so I prefer roommates. I hate the stress of driving, cleaning a big house, etc. I'm already FIRE with a small buffer, and I'm still planning on donating big chunks of money, rather than spending more on myself.

So while I would spend a little more on some things, I'm confident I wouldn't blow a ton for the sake of having fancy things, and my core lifestyle would remain the same.

[oldladystache]

I was already comfortably retired when my dad passed away last year. He left me a CRUT (charitable remainder unitrust) that pays me 6% of its value every year, and the investments usually increase the value and the payments each year. At my death the remainder goes to his favorite charity. He also left me a significant amount of cash.

I added the cash to the CRUT so I now get an even larger quarterly payment from it, which I then donate. But I like having that income for life, in case I even get old and need expensive care. I plan to continue adding to it, since I don't have expensive tastes and I don't have anyone to leave it to.

I did fly first class to Hawaii last month though.

[catprog]

1/2)Buy my house/Get to the Fire value

3/4)Work on my author fund/ Buy the local Hackerspace a permanent home

[jim555]

I would get a winter and summer place and travel a lot more.  Also get new cars every three years.