u/Reasonable_Box2568

For years I have spent hours every day thinking about money and FIRE related topics and I know there is way more in life that I need to focus on. I check my net worth in the empower app several times a day. I think about optimization and asset allocation almost daily. I think about my expenses and budget almost daily. I project out future spending and calculate possible retirement dates almost daily. I check my bank accounts several times a day and try to pay off credit cards almost immediately after the statement shows a balance even though I only need to pay it off monthly to avoid paying interest. I watch finance related YouTube videos 10+ hours a week. I still make time for a few hobbies and my 9-5 office job but It’s getting to the point where I spend more time and energy on money/FIRE than anything else. Besides the obvious - therapy - what are some strategies others are using to limit the amount of time they spend thinking about money?

Numbers -
DINK mid 30s with 2.3m liquid and 2.73m total NW
Goal retirement age - early to mid 50s.

Almost all liquid nw is in low cost broad market ETFs such as VTI/VXUS/SCHD etc

Would 2 mil liquid (50% in brokerage and 50% in retirement accounts) plus a paid off home be enough for your household to retire early (before age 59.5)? I know there are many factors in play here - just trying to get a general idea of how the Fire community feels about this level of wealth.

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Comfortably coastfire with spouse still working and able to fund 100% of our lifestyle. I was laid off earlier this year and I’m finally starting to ramp up my job search. I’m interviewing for corporate jobs even though I couldn’t stand my 12 years in corporate America and we don’t need the extra money to accomplish our long term goals. However, since we are not financially independent yet, I still feel myself drawn to corporate jobs for the prospect of getting to FIRE sooner even if it’s not the best thing for my mental health. I feel very conflicted because the numbers say I can go get a barista job or something menial but then again I’m only in my mid 30s and could achieve chubbyFire if I keep going at corporate for another 5-10 years. This also puts less pressure on my spouse if they decide to take a step back from their high stress job at some point. First world problems… I know. I just don’t feel a strong desire to do either option… whether it’s coasting or continuing with corporate work. I can’t decide what the best option is so I go with the one that pays more for now. I guess if I can’t find another corporate job after a year then that will make the decision easier. I don’t really know what I’m trying to say.. it’s just a strange place to be…. Especially without kids relying on our income.

Numbers:
2.08mil saved for retirement
200k for emergency fund and house repairs
2.7mil total NW including home equity

If the median household gross income is ~85k do you think it’s fair to say that 85k/.04 would be enough for most American households to retire regardless of age? I know there are many factors to consider such as social security, pensions, taxes in retirement vs during working years, household size, age, cost of living variances. However, if you had to pick a portfolio value that would be enough for “most” Americans to retire and live a modest but comfortable life (obviously subjective) what would that amount be and why?

Anyone have success stories of deciding to go from full Fire to a more leanFIRE? I hit my leanFIRE goal for barebones expenses and very little discretionary spending. I was laid off earlier this year and I am concerned about being able to find another six figure corporate gig as I’m not getting many interviews after applying to hundreds of roles. I think coast or baristafire is more likely for me given my age and the fact that my spouse is still working but I’m still curious to hear from others if they were glad they retired before hitting their full Fire goal.

Numbers:
Age- mid 30s no kids living in HCOL
Liquid NW: 2.27m
Total NW: 2.71m
leanFire expenses: 80k post tax
Ideal spend: 120k post tax
HH income: 400k before layoff - now ~240k

*** I know the market has been on a tear so I’m sure some people reached their goal eventually even if they started off lean

This might be too extreme of an example but it’s incredible to me how powerful compounding can be when you accumulate a large some of money at an early age. this is my main reason for front loading investing and coasting… knowing that time and the market can do much more heavy lifting than my savings at a certain point. Let’s look at an example of two high earning households who have both saved well for more than a decade.

Household 1 - age 35 planning to retire at age 65. Has accumulated 2 mil in investments after working in tech/corporate for over a decade and saving/investing 50% of pay.

Household 2 - age 35 also planning to retire at age 65. Has accumulated 1mil in investments and has saved 25% of pay for over a decade.

Household 1 stops saving/investing today and could have 12mil in 30 years with 6% real returns

Household 2 would have to continue saving/investing to the tune of $6000 a month to also end with 12 mil in 30 years assuming 6% real returns. 6000 a month for 30 years gets them to the same point as household 1!!! That’s incredible to me. Yes, the starting size of the portfolio for household 1 is double the size but they don’t have to save another dime over the course of 30 years. 72k a year for 30 years gets HH 2 to the same number. Iv understood the power of compounding for 20 years but this type of example never ceases to amaze me.

I know the FIRE community typically looks at their primary home as a cost and a lifestyle choice but it’s still an asset that I am starting to think of as something that could fund end of life care. If we sell our paid off home in our late 70s or early 80s for $1mil in today’s dollars, could this be enough to fund end of life/nursing home care for most people ? Assume average social security on top of this. I know it’s difficult to predict life expectancy, but if someone is too old to take care of their home and has no kids or people they want to inherit said home, would it make sense to think of this asset as a fund for end of life care?

Spouse and I have been disciplined savers for over a decade working in tech/corporate roles and last year we hit CoastFire for a comfortable mid 50s retirement assuming conservative 3.5% real returns (we have 17x expenses saved for retirement plus a large emergency fund). I was laid off earlier this year and my spouse still makes enough for us to live our ideal life and we also decided we don’t want kids (for health reasons more than financial). I have mixed feelings about saying this, but I’m somewhat unmotivated to jump back into corporate work. I feel guilty, like I should be grinding and pushing for the next job to FIRE sooner, but I can’t help but look at our financial cushion and think that we already won the game so to speak. And now with no kids in the picture, my lack of income only impacts myself and to a lesser degree my spouse. I should add, my spouse enjoys their job and is safe for now but is in a volatile company with yearly layoffs.

Has anyone else been through this season of life? How did you break through and get motivated to push for FIRE at a younger age?
Or did you downshift at this stage and coast to retirement?

I am in a fortunate but unfortunate situation after losing my job earlier this year. My household has enough to feel very comfortable financially (CoastFire) and take time off from work but not enough to retire and live our desired lifestyle in our HCOL home town. It would take a lot to destroy our finances because we saved/invested 30-50% of our income from age 25-35 but it’s too early to call it quits. I’m struggling with motivation after layoff and need this community to slap me around a little. My spouse and I also found out we are unable to have kids so maybe this is killing my motivation as well - our finances now only impact our lives and no one will be relying on us in the future.

Current numbers:

2.66m - total HH NW

2.22 - liquid/invested NW (45% taxable brokerage, 20% Roth, 35% traditional)

Current annual spend - 120k after taxes

Annual spend in early retirement adding Healthcare ~ 145k. Will drop back to 120k once mortgage is paid off

Debt - 360k - lower rate mortgage

HH income (2026) - 400k
Future HH income ~ 245k (if only 1
Spouse works)

Investments are all broad index funds - VTI, VXUS, SCHD, QQQ etc. we keep a large-ish cash position of ~250k which includes the emergency fund and dry powder for “buying the dip opportunities”

We don’t have enough to retire for at least 5+ years (market dependent) but I can’t get motivated to work a corporate gig again and I feel guilty and like I should be grinding like the rest of my friends/family living in our HCOL area.
Sorry for using Reddit as therapy… maybe others are in a similar situation with so many tech layoffs over the past few years

*** brag post - not much value to obtain here. Nw has gone up 33% in 1 year to 2.66m (2.21m
Liquid). Basic broad market etf investing and high savings rate. Not highly concentrated in any single sector and keep a low rate mortgage. Currently have 45% of liquid portfolio in brokerage and rest in retirement accounts. Crazy to think if the next year repeats itself then I could be right at my FIRE #. At the same time if the market goes down then I could be as much as a decade away. Cheers to the weekend and stay thirsty

Is the best time to coast once you already hit barebones expenses leanFire? I know this is subjective but I couldn’t imagine hitting 300k in my late 20s and then calling it a day and looking for lower paying work to cover expenses for 30+ years.

My household is comfortably at CoastFire in our mid 30s for a mid 50s retirement and we just hit leanFire (80-85k barebones expenses in HCOL. Goal spend of 120k after taxes in retirement) but coasting at our level even feels a bit risky given that we are at the mercy of the market over the next couple decades. When have others actually felt comfortable coasting?

I have 20+ years left on my low rate mortgage that requires a ~565k portfolio to support the monthly principal+interest payment using the 4% SWR. Currently I owe ~360k on the mortgage. If I pay off the mortgage then my SWR no longer requires 565k of portfolio to support this expense. My portfolio only drops by 360k but I gain 200k+ in portfolio usage for other expenses…

I’m not actually planning on paying off a 3% mortgage anytime soon but it is interesting to think about the positive impacts to SWR. Has anyone considered prepaying for this reason? Lowering MAGI for ACA subsidies might be one additional benefit.

Is it just me or does it seem like most people get financial help from family? I’m sure this is unique to my HCOL bubble, but it seems like most in my circle of ~30 friends have received significant ~six figure help financially. Whether it’s help with a house down payment, college fully paid for, or just random 5 figure monetary gifts, it seems like everyone’s parents or grandparents would rather give money to their kids/grandkids than inflate their own lifestyle. Some of my friends have been set up so well that they don’t need to progress at work and could likely retire decades early. Has anyone else seen this or am I just looking at a small HCOL sample size? I know the data says 80% of millionaires are first gen, but in my location, most are born very well off and continue to receive more help as they age and have kids.

Iv had high cholesterol for years but it was slightly improved at my last annual checkup. I am a fairly active, non-smoker, metabolically healthy, normal weight male in my mid 30s. How concerned should I be with these cholesterol numbers? My Dr says we will re-test in 1 year before considering a statin (he said the same thing last year but my LDL and ApoB numbers have improved about 10%)

LDL - 151 (down from 187)
HDL - 70
Tryg - 49
Total cholesterol - 231
ApoB - 108 (down from 123)
Lp (a) - 130

Thanks for the input!

Iv had high cholesterol for years but it was slightly improved at my last annual checkup. I am a fairly active, non-smoker, metabolically healthy, normal weight male in my mid 30s. How concerned should I be with these cholesterol numbers? My Dr says we will re-test in 1 year before considering a statin (he said the same thing last year but my LDL and ApoB numbers have improved about 10%)

LDL - 151 (down from 187)
HDL - 70
Tryg - 49
Total cholesterol - 231
ApoB - 108 (down from 123)
Lp (a) - 130

Thanks for the input!

This can’t keep going up can it? In mid April we passed 2mil in liquid assets and just 45 days later we are at 2.18m. I made 16,000 my first year out of college. Our HH net worth didn’t hit 180k until we were several years into our careers. Now 180k is being made (on paper) in just 45 days and this is beyond my wildest dreams. I know this could all be wiped away next week, but knowing how little our contributions matter at this point is both frightening and exciting. We were originally planning on a mid 50s retirement in 18-20 years but now could possibly retire in under 10 years given that we are over half way to our goal.

Cheers all! Let’s try to enjoy this moment even if it doesn’t feel real.

**edit - we also keep about 250k in cash equivalents for emergencies and peace of mind..

I messed up. I spent more than a decade in a niche IT project mgmt/Business Analyst role for a Fortune 500 and I was recently laid off despite meeting or exceeding expectations every year. I have a degree in business from a mediocre school and minimal technical skills but I’m trying to deepen my understanding of AI. I don’t know where to go from here. My interview skills are rusty and I’m neurodivergent so I’m not the best at networking or building relationships. I don’t know if corporate work is my calling but I need to pay the bills. How have others navigated a potential career pivot after being in a long term niche role? Thanks for the advice.

Apologies for rambling. Laid off from my high paying corporate job of 10+ years and considering coasting because I can’t find anything comparable after several months of searching. Spouse still works (for now but could be laid off in the next couple years) and can cover all expenses plus maxing out retirement accounts. We have about 2.1 mil in retirement accounts, brokerage and cash but live in HCOL and spend 150k a year before taxes. Still owe 360k on the mortgage. We want to retire by mid 50s… about 19 years from now… and conservatively project our investments to cover 150k in expenses (about 120k spend after taxes) if they return 4% real over this time period. Feel very fortunate that we have the option to coast but very scared that I will be coasting too early when everyone else my age is hitting their peak earning years and moving up in lifestyle. We dont live a super luxurious life now, but we don’t want to regret coasting too early and pigeonholing ourselves into coast jobs for almost 2 decades. I guess we need to figure out how coasting will benefit our lives and find out if this is the right lifestyle for us. Another concern is that we still need to make decent money to support our HCOL spend so it’s not like we will be baristas or costco greeters… it’s likely at least one of us will still need a corporate job for the foreseeable future. Anyone else battling with the same uncertainty around coasting?

https://youtu.be/R0NmZtkTl\_4?si=FkUDZ3\_PYRFqhHGa

Agree, disagree?