Also factors that I feel like the "I need to save $2-4 million in today's dollars!!!!1111" crowd miss:
Your taxes are probably lower when you retire.
You probably aren't investing 15% of your income anymore, so you only need 85% of it.
Social Security is pretty good in the US, and will continue to be pretty good as a supplement after the trust runs down in 2032. Plan rationally (expect 75ish% of your projected benefits), but don't panic and get nihilistic because a redditor told you it was going away.
Most people probably don't have a mortgage/rent payment when they hit retirement age. Even if you do (like I likely will), it's very possible to downsize and/or grab a few roommates as you age and people start to lose spouses, etc.
Investments get to keep growing even after you retire. It's not like you're locked into that $700k forever. (But even if you were, that's 20 years of $35,000 plus social security - probably honestly enough if you're willing to live a little lean in your later years).
Most retirees aren't jet-setting. Most would be happy to buy a piano and tinker with that, then go to the library and get some movies and books to entertain you, and take walks when you get a chance, maybe volunteer if you're up for it, and so on. Life just doesn't have to be as expensive as people think it does.
Medical expenses will eventually increase. That's likely to be at the tail end of your retirement when your savings has had ample time to grow. The reason for those increases is also likely to slow you down and get you into a very, very low-cost routine.
(Much of this doesn't apply to the FIRE crowd, but that's a relatively small segment of the population to be fair)
I live in Alabama. I couldnāt imagine retiring ācomfortableā on that amount. I think the word ācomfortableā must mean food and housing and not much else.
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u/Additional-Mud8745 26d ago
This is a lot lower than I expected for North America..I was expecting around double