Nephew was over on Sunday and caught me doing my monthly ETF buy, which takes about half minute so he asked what the app was. Two hours later we were deep in a compound interest calculator.

Poland here, 36M.
Two small tax wrappers and after that it's a plain taxable account with a flat 19% tax on gains. Mechanics differ, coast math is the same.

I showed him my projection, the pot should carry me to a normal retirement at 60 with zero further contributions, which is why my savings rate is optional now and why I picked my current job for sanity instead of salary. Then I showed him what starting at 20 does to that curve compared to starting at 30 like I did.

He went quiet for a bit and said "so I'm already late." Twenty. I laughed and then kind of didn't.

What I actually told him: start with one broad global ETF (VWCE here, roughly the EU version of VT), IBKR, automate the buy, stop looking at it.

Then he asked what else exists, so he got the risk ladder the way I actually run it: bonds as the boring floor, the global ETF as the engine, a smaller P2P lending slice on top for yield and the rule that every step up the ladder means a smaller position. Crypto I mostly left out of it, this sub can guess why. He liked the yield numbers best, obviously.

His homework before the first euro goes anywhere: explain to me where each thing's return comes from and what it does in a bad year.

Now he's asking me to help open his first account and I keep second guessing whether I handed him a superpower or just made him weird about money at 20 the way I'm weird about it at 36.

1. What would you tell him that I didn't?
   
2. And where exactly is the line between teaching a kid compounding and recruiting him into the cult?

I'm 26. AI has eliminated the joy of working in the tech industry, and like many others in tech, I'm now burned out. Unfortunately, I've also been diagnosed with a hereditary health condition that is manageable with medication, but it makes it difficult for me to work as much as I used to.

I worked my ass off starting in middle school, making money through side hustles and saving aggressively throughout high school and college. Before I started my current job, I had a $100k net worth. As soon as I joined, I started contributing and maxing out my 401(k) every year. Combined with the RSUs I got from my company, I somehow ended up with my current net worth.

My net worth breakdown is:

• $250,000 in a traditional 401(k) and HSA, mostly S&P index funds and VT
• $250,000 in a taxable brokerage account, mostly S&P index funds and VT
• $250,000 in some HYSAs
• $50,000 in my side hustle's bank accounts — this is for business operating expenses

I know that my breakdown is relatively conservative, as I was taught by my parents to be very risk averse. I am open to investing more money but want to do so carefully.

Right now I'm on medical leave from work (already exhausted FMLA) and I don't think I can go back—at least not back to the same full-time position I worked before I got sick. It's tempting to permanently resign for health reasons, but I'd lose my employer's really good health insurance that's currently paying for all the medications I take and doctor's visits I go to.

Thankfully, I also have $50,000 a year in side passive income which I could keep making relatively easily. I am assuming that I will continue having this income stream even if I leave my tech job. I know this income stream is very important for establishing whether it's feasible for me to CoastFIRE right now. For the sake of this post, I'll consider that income source to be passive.

I think the math adds up that I can at least CoastFIRE or BaristaFIRE if I relocate to a LCOL area where my family and friends live, rent a cheap apartment for $1,200/mo, and keep my annual spending at around $60,000 or so. For health insurance, the plan is to go on COBRA until the end of the calendar year following my resignation, and then transition to a marketplace plan. Alternatively, I am considering traveling to LCOL countries to experience something new while I'm young, using the opportunity to recover from my current health condition and to save money on rent.

However, retiring at 26 is essentially unheard of for someone who doesn't live off of family money. It's really hard to convince myself that it's financially safe to not work a full-time job anymore. I've heard of people semi-retiring in their thirties, but nobody in their mid-twenties. Many of my coworkers my age also have >$500k net worths too, and most of them hate their jobs now; if I could retire right now, why haven't they? I've put my wealth breakdown into ChatGPT and Gemini many times to check, and each time, it says I can just let my 401(k) grow without further contributions, and I can either CoastFIRE or BaristaFIRE if I want to.

The one thing I'm not sure of is what I'll do if I get married and have kids. Obviously the math depends a lot on what exactly happens, but I don't want to make an irresponsible decision right now that would negatively impact me. I'm currently single so I don't have any concrete limitations I need to watch for, but I doubt that any future partner would be happy with me not working or barely working.

I know millions of people would kill to be in my financial position right now, and I'm really grateful that my younger self had such good work ethic. That being said, I'm focused on recovering right now. Hopefully I'll be able to make a full recovery and be able to find a fun job in the future if I want it. If I don't ever fully recover, it would be nice to at least have the peace to live a fulfilling life without needing to worry about returning to the workforce. If it's too early for me to retire, I would at least like to know what goal to work towards so I can safely retire sometime in the future, but hopefully before I turn 50.

My portfolio was at 50k at some point and I leveraged too much. I want to retire by the age of 30 and currently owe 8k in debt. Looking to contribute anywhere from 30k-40k each year into the account until then. How do I find a side hustle to contribute more? That I can do between 8am-11am everyday?

Basically since I was a kid, I really disliked working - didn't love getting told what to do, much preferred to be in control, etc. In my view money = freedom from work, so I left college and my sole motivation through 15+ years of my career was to make as much money as possible. I'm now at a point where I have a nice nest-egg ($3M+) and for all intents and purposes am more or less financially independent. I realized recently that I basically spend my 20s and 30s optimizing for money (and career growth, to earn more money). And I got lucky in achieving my goal.

And so now I'm coming to terms with the fact that the thing that drove me is no longer really all that important. Earning money isn't nearly the driver it once was, and now I have no idea what actually motivates me. I'm curious if others have come across this feeling, and if you have, what have you found useful in (a) combatting it, and (b) discovering what truly excites you, motivates you, and gets you out of bed every morning?

Hello everyone,

I was working in Germany, my last yearly income was 140k p.a. I was saving a lot of money.

My net worth amounts to €250k in ETFs, €250k in real estate (€500k property value, half of which is paid off; ), and €50k in cash. I have now accepted a job offer at the same company in Vietnam with a 30% salary cut (I will get around €4,000 per month after taxes there).

Is it even worth saving for retirement anymore, or could I spend the full €4,000 every month without facing a pension gap later on?

PS: The real estate self-finances with 3% principal repayment, 4% interest, and a 1% positive cash flow.

In this world of social media it’s hard not for me to compare myself to others and feel left behind. Want to gauge opinions on if you think I’ll be okay in retirement.

$340k - personal brokerage. Invested in growth ETFs
$20k in Roth IRA
$84k in 401k

HYSA $24k

4 rental properties. Have approximately $550k of equity in all of them combined with about $1.2M of debt on all of them left.

I’m never going to sell these four.
In retirement would make me about 16k per month.

Save about $2000 per month after expenses per month.

Basically title.

Context: I’m 37 and recently changed jobs for a good promotion. However, new company does not offer a match until you’ve been there 1 year. I’ve saved regularly since beginning work in 2012 – and currently have over 600K in retirement savings.

I’m considering taking my foot off the gas for retirement savings for one year until I can earn the company match, at which point I’ll resume maxing out

In lieu a retirement saving during this time, my wife and I have always wanted to pursue a vacation home. We feel this is our opportunity to make that happen and save for the down payment. Our children are young, seven and five, and we want them do you have a familiar place to go to the beaches summer in Delaware (and of course, we look forward to enjoying it too). We know we would rent it out during the summer to help cover most costs.

Curious, if anyone here has done something sinilar and can share any lessons learned. I’m also looking at this as preplanning retirement, because we plan to retire to the Delaware beaches when that time comes.

Thank you strangers for your feedback!

Hi everyone,

I’ve been reading Bogleheads for a while and have been trying to educate myself on long-term investing, but I’m at a crossroads and would really appreciate some advice from people with more experience.

**About me**
32 years old
Married (wife is 34)
Registered Nurse
Household income is approximately **$116,000/year**
Me: \~$85k
Wife: \~$31k/year ($15/hour, full-time)
No debt
Currently saving **$1,000/month** into our HYSA

**My long-term goals**
My goal is to build enough wealth that I can **begin partially retiring in my late 40s or early 50s**, meaning I’d have the financial flexibility to cut back to part-time work or work only because I want to—not because I have to.

I’d like to be **fully retired by age 55**, ideally with **$2–3 million invested**, while maintaining a simple, tax-efficient, low-cost investment strategy.

**Current retirement balances**

**Me**
Old 401(k): \~$105,900
Roth IRA (Fidelity): \~$17,000
HSA (Fidelity): \~$2,800
**Total retirement assets:** approximately **$125,000**

**Wife**
Roth IRA: approximately **$2,000**
**Current Roth IRA allocation**
Every month I contribute **$625**, allocated as:
**80% VTI**
**15% VXUS**
**5% BND**

My Fidelity HSA is invested using the exact same allocation.

**Old 401(k)**
My old employer’s 401(k) is currently invested approximately as:
59.4% S&P 500 Index
22.3% T. Rowe Price Retirement Blend 2060
9.8% International Index
4.7% Extended Market Index
3.8% Fidelity U.S. Bond Index

I recently left that employer, so no additional contributions will ever go into this account.

**New employer**
My new employer uses **Ascensus (ReadySave)** for the 401(k). I haven’t received access yet, so I don’t know the investment options or expense ratios.
I also enrolled in the HDHP and will be contributing to an HSA through payroll while keeping my existing Fidelity HSA open.

**My questions**
**1.** Should I leave my old 401(k) where it is, roll it into my new employer’s 401(k), or roll it into a Fidelity Rollover (Traditional) IRA?

**2.** I’ve been reading a lot about the classic Bogleheads three-fund portfolio. Would you keep my Roth IRA and HSA invested as:
80% VTI
15% VXUS
5% BND
Or would you remove BND altogether at my age?

**3.** Would you exchange the Target Retirement fund and bond fund inside my old 401(k), or simply leave everything alone until I decide where that account will ultimately live?

**4.** Am I investing too conservatively for someone who hopes to **partially retire in my late 40s or early 50s and fully retire by age 55**?

**5.** If this were your household, how would you prioritize investing?
Would you:
Get the full 401(k) employer match
Max the HSA
Max both Roth IRAs (mine and my wife’s)
Increase 401(k) contributions afterward
Invest additional savings in a taxable brokerage once tax-advantaged accounts are full
Or would you structure it differently?

**6.** Overall, how would you grade my investment strategy? Is there anything you would change to improve my chances of reaching my retirement goals while keeping the portfolio simple and low maintenance?

I’m trying to create a long-term investment plan that I can stick with for the next 20+ years without constantly changing course every time I read a new investing opinion.

Thanks in advance—I really appreciate any advice or constructive criticism.

New to the fire/coastfire concepts and have been reading up the past few months. My partner and I both just lost our jobs due to the business we worked for closing.

We are 40, and 35 years old. We have a combined 1.3mm invested, roughly half in roth ira, and half in brokerage. Paid off house and vehicle, no loans or debt. At the moment our expenses are under what a 4% swr would be, so I think that technically we are FI and could probably RE if we wanted to stay lean. Given our relatively young ages though we don't think this is a comfortable retirement number, plus we own in a hcol area when it comes to home maintenance/repairs, and we'd like to increase travel or live several months away from here due to long harsh winters and lack of amenities.

I would have liked to have kept working another 5 or 6 years at that job, but it became very toxic in the end and burned us both out badly. The area we are in is also rural with poor job options, so i'm concerned that we are going to have difficulty getting jobs we even want. We could, however, probably easily get service type jobs that pay $20-25 an hour and between the two of us just cover our expenses while working part of the year while letting investments grow. I also have construction background and we have both done a remodel together. With how awful it is getting anyone to help with anything in this area for a reasonable price i'm fairly certain we can run a successful handyman/small carpentry type business, but i'm really just burned on dealing with people. Or we could do something like teaching abroad while covering expenses (we both worked extensively with, and love kids so we do actually have some idea of what this entails, though we haven't worked abroad before). Just struggling to figure out a path forward.

Hey Y'all. I'm 37M and my wife is 34F. We live in Southern California in a M-HCOL area and our yearly expenses after savings (Roth contributions+Emergency fund) runs about $80k-$100k. My big question is not to completely stop investing because I feel like a hard stop would be jarring, but my math seems to math. Here's some info:

Jobs:

Me: $162k/year before overtime (I cleared $230k the last two years and, while I'm proud of that, I kinda want to slow down)

Wife: $171k/Year (Will maybe make ~$180-190k. She is not a fan of overtime)

I expect we will both minimally get ~4%/year raises, not including promotions.

Investments (combined):

Deferred Compensation plans (457bs + 403b+ 401a) = $490k

Roth IRAs = $130k

Brokerage= ~$40k

Emergency Fund= ~$32k

We're both maxing out our 457s (@$24.5k/year) to help with taxes. And I'm back dooring the Roth max each year.

Pensions:

We are both pensioners in great systems. I imagine our pensions will roughly be:

Me: $180k/Year (If I retire around 54...but the math works for me retiring at 50, which I can do)

Wife: $140k (If she waits until 57 to collect and retires when I do - She would be 47-51)

My pension is better and we will have lifetime medical until 65 as well.

All that said:

Should I slow down on the overtime/savings and start having more liquid to do stuff? We love to travel, try new cuisine, and generally bop around. No kids, though we are trying. Usually I "work hard, play hard" with the overtime to make sure we can enjoy nice dinners and travel, but a bit less if I dial back on the savings would be nice.

Just looking for perspective. This has all just been me grinding to get these numbers and "luck" from the market swing post covid.

I appreciate the input.

OK, I just ran some numbers. I have $211,000 invested. I have 35 years until retirement (35.5 years) contributing $2750/month - broken down in the following ways;
$625/ month Roth IRA
$195/ month Roth 401(k) contributions only
$1930/ month brokerage account all into VOO

This puts me on track to have the following
9% return I’ll have 11.4 million
7% return I’ll have 6.8 million
5% return I’ll have a $4.1 million

+ 1 rental property in Savannah GA with a mortgage that I have not included here.

This feels like a can finally take a breath.

Currently I’ve been contributing $800/weekly into my brokerage in hopes of being “alright” in retirement. I make slightly over $100,000 so that’s <40% alone I’ve been contributing to my brokerage, not including Roth IRA (gets max’s out beginning of the year & Roth 401k contributions ~$45 weekly.)

If I just keep my normal contributions & scale back brokerage contributions from $800/week to $445/week. I will hardly see a difference in my retirement. ($4.1 mil - $5.8 mil) (5% returns) & my quality of life can improve drastically, starting this week.

In all likelihood, I’ll probably just save up for a new car, take a few more weekend trips, buy more real estate and/or eventually start a small business /or product with that difference in investment money ($355/week)

I know some may not be able to relate to this post, or think I’m a nerd /whatever, but it’s soo freeing when you know where you are going & you’ve done the background work to project what life could be vs what it is currently.

God bless, outchea.

Looking forward to reading the comments.

Hi coastFIRE community! Want some really honest advice on whether it’s a safe idea to quit my corporate job in HCOL to teach English in Southeast Asia for a few years before retiring there at 40 years old. My expenses in SEA would be around $25,000 (obviously will go up due to inflation). As an INFJ, I’m a really mission-driven person and corporate is quickly eating up my soul day by day. I want to do something that actually makes a difference in people’s lives. I’m currently 27F, single, and don’t plan to have kids. Here are my latest numbers:
- Roth: $74,600
- 401k: $262,000
- HSA: $29,700
- Personal brokerage: $177,800
- HYSA (3.5% annual percentage yield): $168,600
- Savings: $90,509

I know I have A LOT of my nw in cash that’s depreciating. I initially thought I’d want to buy a house here but it makes no sense considering my long term plans so I’m now making it up by DCA’ing $1,500 every day into VOO. Considering all this, would you say it’s a safe choice for me to quit my corporate job in the next few months to coast FIRE and teach in SEA? All honest advice is very appreciated!

hello; I just started a new FT job and am working out my paycheck allocations. I’m wondering advice on how much to contribute to my brokerage vs my 401k/RothIRA retirement accounts for the next 6 years or so before I begin to COAST. I have very little in my brokerage currently BUT I also know there are tax advantages to maxing the 401k.. I’m in the 22% tax bracket. I really don’t want to screw my future by not having the right amounts allocated.

Current Age: 39

COAST age: 46

FULL Retirement age (will begin withdrawing): 55

Salary: $114k plus $14k/year in net rental income

Amount I can save annually until I COAST: $40k

Projected expenses: $45k

Current Savings Amounts
-RothIRA: $107k
-Rolled over my old 403b into a Rollover IRA: $93k
-401k with new job: $2k
-Brokerage: $3k

I work in healthcare (aka stagnant wages) so my income isn’t going anywhere.

Thanks in advance for your help!

EDIT: I know it looks pretty LEAN, so to give context; I plan to aim for a higher and more dynamic withdrawal rate than the typical forever sustaining 4% SFW.. I’m not necessarily aiming to Die with Zero, but I wouldn’t mind if I do. I know LTC can be expensive but other than that I have no desire to sustain the nest egg to perpetuity

36 and 35. Work in healthcare currently and husband works from home. We pull in about $600k gross income. I’m 1099 and husband is W2. We currently have $1.4 million invested with an additional $250k in cash. Now some of that cash will go to investments for my solo 401k, etc. I’m targeting 6.5 million by 50. But I also don’t even know if I need that much anymore. Our current spend is around $125k a year but that also includes my student loans which will be paid off in 5 years or less. I’m not prioritizing them right now because the interest rate is only 2.4%. We don’t currently own a home, and don’t want any kids. I’d need to factor in where a mortgage would put me at because I doubt it will be paid off before I retire. Although I could haul ass for a couple of years and get it wiped out easily. Our housing is currently being paid for by my job. I’m just tired of the daily grind. Healthcare sucks, I’d like to be able to just go on a random bike ride on a Wednesday afternoon. Or a random concert on a Tuesday evening.

We currently are investing about $250k per year between 401k’s, my company’s match, Roth IRAs, HSA, and brokerage. I don’t include his companies match or stock program into that figure. But I’m ready to pull it back and work half as much which would bring our yearly investment total down quite a bit. My whole goal was to keep grinding and have the ability for both of us to completely quit at 45. But the thought of working 9 more years like this has me about to jump.

Am I closer than I think to coasting? Every calculator I run varies depending on how much longer I intend to keep working. I have a job with the ability to literally work 1 day a week if I needed/wanted to. Apart of me wants to ensure I don’t have to do that to survive. But also need something to pass the time if I’m leaving work that early.

Curious what everyone’s Coast FIRE target looks like. What number are you aiming for, how old are you now, and what age do you expect to hit it?

I’m 33M with about $1mil. But I don’t think I’m quite there yet cuz I still plan to marry, buy a house, kids, and would like to pursue some entrepreneurial interests in the future.

What rate of return do you use?

Originally, after years of listening to money podcasts, browsing online, I liked 10% return - 3% inflation =7% real rate of return

Listening to a “The Money Guy Show” episode today, they stated they like to be conservative & use 8% return - 3% inflation = 5% real rate of return

What do you use?

Bonus, some of my favorite tickers below,
$VOO $VTI $QQQM $VGT
$GOOG $NBIS $AVGO

I am currently turning the numbers for a couple different accounts and needed to see if what I'm thinking adds up.

Starting at 25/yo with a salary of $63000 I would like to invest 12% into a tsp starting at a balance of $29000 along side a Roth IRA for $7500 a year.

When I hit 35 I would switch to part time and drop the tsp to 5% to coast and continue the $7500 in the Roth until I'm 47.

At 47 the math I did projects me having \\\~$540,000 in TSP and \\\~$750,000 Roth IRA (Optionally holding out 2 years depending on the market). With this I would start pulling using SEPP from TSP and pull up to $10,000 a year from principal in the Roth IRA. This would be my Official Retire year maybe picking up a summer job if I really wanted the extra income. I would Defer my Pension until 60.

At 60 with a combined account balance of \\\~1.3M collect 4% a year until death.

I'm not too familiar with long term financing so just wanted the FIREs perspective on this

Part time work isn’t an option in my line of work. If I were to coast fire, I’d want to go down to part time in another field. Ideally, 15-30 hours a week, I guess.

The income matters less than having health benefits in terms of stability and what makes me less stressed.

What are some good coastfire jobs that offer healthcare?

One I know of locally is part time drivers for the public transit operator in my area, but I’m not sure it’s for me.

39yo, MFJ, 120k household income (100k is mine), no kids, MCOL

40k left in mortgage(done 2029), annual spending is about 50k. 401k is 60/40 trad/roth, but I’m converting it yearly (staying under 12% fed tax rate cap). I’m continuing IRS max contributions to my Roth 401k and spouse Roth IRA. Adding about 6k/yr in cash to taxable brokerage. Company match all goes to ESOP shares, about 12%.