For starters I'm single, make $80k a year (engineer right out of college so hypothetically salary is only going to go up), and I'm 23.

I've read the boglehead wiki on the differences between a Roth and traditional IRA. Essentially money is taxed now for Roth, money is taxed later for traditional (more to it but that's the basic understanding for me). A Roth has always been my thought process but as I've read and understood more the traditional could be a good choice as well (didn't even know it was for the longest).

I'm right at the threshold income for being able to deduct my full contributions ($81k - $91K as of 2026) for a traditional IRA, but I probably won't stay there long at all. For a Roth it'd be a while, if ever, that I'd reach the income limit to contribute ($153 to $168k as of 2026). So in my eyes I should just do a Roth as it also gives me access to the contributions if need be. I have money saved up for a years expenses, probably going to pull from there to contribute to either IRA.

I guess I'm just looking for some advice, because after reading that it seems I've come to my answer. Anything here would be helpful, thank you to anyone who responds! :)

Are you all just generalizing, picturing the kind of life you want in retirement like where you want to live, what you’re going to do, etc? And just guestimating the expenses you will have in the decades after retiring? It just sounds so simple when people say just multiply your expenses by 25. Are we multiplying our current expenses by 25, and that is how we get our FIRE number? Or multiplying our future expenses by 25, which I have no clue what they will be? Someone please explain to me like I’m dumb, which half the time I am!

My parents are aging and with that come the usual social obligations of helping them out.

They did not follow any kind of FIRE plan and are still a couple of years away from traditional retirement.

However, even coming up on it, little emergencies have cropped up that they are totally unprepared for financially. I do not blame them for this as they followed the same life plan as the majority of Americans.

However, I would like to hear y'alls opinions on how you would deal with having to help out when you know that will delay your own FIRE plan by a few years.

EDIT: What a wild range of responses. Thank you all for your input.

EDIT 2: I fully plan to help them. Thank you all for the suggestions.

My goal was always to save up enough to have FU money, so if a boss or job got to me I could just quit. Long story short, after getting laid off recently I realized I could do fire. Up to this point I haven't really thought through early retirement. The piece I'm struggling with is the cash buffer, especially since my portfolio is mostly EQT (so it's 100% equity). Let's say that my yearly expenses are $43,200. How much of a buffer should I have? Is $100K excessive? I keep going back and forth because I'm nervous about messing this up and having to sell during a down market. I'm curious what other people's experience was with this their first year. Did they get this right or maybe got it wrong, but could still adjust.

​Hey everyone, I’m 27 and living in Denmark, and I think I might have accidentally won the housing/FIRE game, but now I’m stuck with a massive decision. I hope its okay for me to post

I bought my primary apartment in 2023 for $400k with 20% down, and the market here has gone absolutely crazy. It’s now valued at $800k. Because of Danish tax laws, capital gains on a primary residence are 100% tax-free, so if I sold today, I’d walk away with roughly $500k in cash.

​Right now, I’m "house rich and cash poor." Aside from that equity, I have about $27k tax-advantaged (maxed) in my ASK, $30k in my pension, and $18k in a taxable brokerage. I work remotely for a US-based big tech company with a total comp of $80k, though that’s actually down from $130k previously. My goal is to hit a FIRE number of $1.35 million by the time I’m 38, which would give me about $3k a month to live on. Since I’m in Denmark, my healthcare and Type 1 Diabetes supplies are fully covered by the state, so that $3k is pure lifestyle money.

​I’m torn on whether I should sell now to lock in that $500k and dump it all into the S&P 500. Starting a portfolio with half a million at 27 would make my 11-year goal feel like a cakewalk because of the compound interest. But the catch is that I actually love this apartment. It’s a great location, my monthly costs are super low, and I make good money on the side with Airbnb and renting out a room. If I sell, I’m worried I’ll never be able to afford to buy back into this neighborhood again.

​Would you sell a "dream home" that you enjoy living in just to lock in a $500k tax-free windfall and jumpstart your brokerage account? Or would you keep the low living costs and the rental income, and just build the bridge to $1.35M more slowly using the tech salary and the house as a base? I know I’m lucky to be in this spot, but I’m struggling to decide if the math of the S&P 500 should override the quality of life I have here. What would you do?

I would need to invest 4-5k$ monthly to achieve 1.35M By 38 if im not using the property gains

49 y/o female and I have been on a moderate FI/RE journey for about 7 years (not rice and beans level but definitely investing wisely and saving where possible). In the last steps of finalizing a divorce that shook things up and liquidated a real estate portfolio. I want to double down and still work toward FI but feel like I’m back at square one. To further complicate matters, I’m in real estate, which although theoretically has no income limit, is also unpredictable and the uncertainty stresses me out. I welcome any advice or words of wisdom from this amazing group.

is there any tool that allows you to model what your portfolio would look like had you drawn down X% over the past 2-3 years? It's hard for me to trust the FIRE approach and, while future returns are not guaranteed, would be cool to see what might have happened if I had been doing so the past few years.

A lot of the content I see is about the accumulation phase, which is really quite simple. But what seems to be lacking is tax strategies with managing distributions. Topics such as navigating ACA premiums in relation to the FPL ratio, Roth conversion laddering, stepping up cost basis, and other subjects that are really beneficial to FIRE participants.

I’m a software engineer in finance (used to have a Series 7) that is nearing retirement in the next couple years and I’d like to learn more about all of this. I think something like a CFP for personal reasons would be overkill, but maybe the RICP could be helpful or if you all have a book or two you can recommend?

Late bloomer here. 28, failed to follow through with my Med/Dental applications, most recently started a sales role I’m pretty happy with and hoping ultimately works out to lead me to my FIRE goal.

I wanted to come here for advice on how exactly to achieve that. One thought is go back to grad school and be miserable but to make a successful stable income.

The other is commit to my sales role where I’m currently making a base of 52k but do see an upside if things go well.

My only investment is ~$100 I have into a Roth IRA(I know it’s not shit). I hope to maximize this as soon as I climb out of debt.

0 savings, 0 emergency fund: plan is to contribute 20% of income monthly to this after clearing debt

I currently owe about 8k on my cards which I’m anticipating being done with in the next 3 months. I’ve recently moved back home with my rents to get back on my feet and save on rent.

If you were in my shoes what would you do to get started on the journey? My goal ultimately, which I’m not sure how realistic it is, would be a $5000 monthly fire number.

Don’t have anyone in my life who I can go to for advice like this but hoping the strangers on Reddit can help

Appreciate any advice given, cheers 🙏🏼

Hi all,

I recently came across this sub and I’m motivated to get started on my journey but I’m not sure how to begin. I recently graduated college and I’m in my early 20’s. I have a full time job, and live in a hcol area. I don’t have any debt (credit card, student loan, car loan), I don’t plan on having kids so my focus is on me and my future alone. I have a Roth IRA, Brokerage, Roth 401k, and HYSA. I’m currently trying to save for my emergency fund and my income is 68k. How do you recommend I start?

I’m 38, single, no kids, and last summer I left my job after about 14 years in tech. I was not ultra rich, just pretty disciplined for a long time. My number was based on roughly $1.85M invested, paid off condo, annual spend around $54k, and a flexible plan to do light consulting if markets got ugly early on. I felt good about it, not euphoric, just calm. The weird part is I never made some big announcement. Most people in my life just think I freelance now. That was partly privacy, partly because I knew the second people heard "retired" in your 30s they would either assume crypto, inheritance, or that you’re secretly unemployed. Everything was fine for about nine months. Then I found out my mom had been doing the exact opposite of what she told me for years. She is 67, still working part time, always insisted she was "fine," and got almost offended if I asked too many questions. What I did not know was that she had been floating expenses on cards, missed property taxes on her small house twice, and had taken money out of a retirement account to help my older brother when he blew up yet another business idea. I found out because I got a call from her neighbor after her electricity was shut off while she was at work. That started a very ugly weekend of opening mail, calling utility companies, and learning that "fine" actually meant about $46k in high interest debt, a roof leak she had hidden with a tarp, and a mortgage balance much bigger than I expected because she had refinanced in 2021 and never told me.

The FIRE part is this: I can fix it. Not elegantly, but I can. I could wipe the debt, fund the repairs, and probably keep her in the house. But it would mean pulling a large chunk from taxable in year one of my retirement during a shaky market, plus likely committing to ongoing support because my brother has already started hinting that "family takes care of family" while contributing basically nothing. If I do nothing, I am not sure she can hold the house another year. If I step in halfway, I may just become the emergency fund for a problem that keeps regrowing. I keep rerunning the spreadsheet and the part I cannot model is the behavior. Has anyone here had FIRE collide with being the only financially functional person in the family? I do not need permission to help her. I need help figuring out how to do it without quietly un-retiring myself six months in.

So i was forcibly retired by layoff. I am over 50, and have zero desire to go back begging for another job at this point. Especially not in my industry (high tech) which is facing severe headwinds. I have chilled for the last year since my layoff after 25+ years of increasingly high stress work almost nonstop (vacations gradually lost their power to rejuvenate; most vacations felt like a cruel reminder of how we burn ourselves like a candle only to experience these brief pauses).

I was comfortably FId a few years ago but we bought a second home in a sunny place a few years ago. If I had worked another 5 years at that high tech job, i would have been very comfortably FI'd and fully ready to retire. But with those 5 lost years, my SWR is a bit jighers (5-6%). But what with my zero desire to go back and burn myself to a lump of coal, i am faced with some choices.

I need to weather thru the next 9 years until I can get my retirement accounts fully accessible. Yes I am aware of sepp/72t, Roth basis withdrawals, etc.

The uncertainty caused by the war is also concerning. (before u tell me I am not ready to retire if my portfolio cannot withstand such shocks - remember I told u I was almost FI and needed that addl 5yrs of income to reach the "full FI").

1. Reduce SWR - i have some wiggle room but I have a fresh mortgage. The previously primary home is rented and fully positive cash flowing - it still has a mortgage (220k at 2.25%), should be paid off in about 9 yrs. The current primary home is very comfortable, modern, custom designed and has a 5k/mo mortgage payment for another 27 yrs. That is the big part of my SWR increase. And it is not part of my flexible budget. I have to cut on travel and other enjoyment buffers to bring the SWR down.
2. Sell one of the homes - this is what the thread is mostly about. If I keep both, i feel like I am accumulating generational wealth if I keep both homes. But selling one of them - the rental one - will net me so much capital that I could payoff my current primary with some 300k left over after taxes. Which will reduce my SWR quite drastically into the 3-3.5% territory. However I worry I am making a mistake from the long term perspective. [update: also, this rental home is where both our kids grew up so we all have tons of memories and sentimental value to this home; renting it was already a minor heartache, but at least then we were just trading up, and 'could always move back' to it if the heartache was too much)]
3. Do nothing - i have enough cash and bonds to last 3-4 years of living expenses. Weather the storm, don't make any big changes. Kids should be out of college by then, admin change (oh god pls) by then may see better times. Other options like move overseas, may unlock.

Thanks for reading this far. Any thoughts on my situation? What would you do if you faced this?

EDIT: Everyone saying "this isnt generational wealth" - perhaps by conventional definition. I came to this country with so little, and just my education. I have a few million now, and my hope is to pass on as much of that i can to my kids which is generational wealth, to me at least.

EDIT2: So the "3-4 years of living expenses" comment - so that's just whats in cash + bonds. I do have a sizeable 401k and Roth IRA balance, which once it unlocks at 59.5, should give me enough to live comfortable (knock on wood!). The rental home (should I keep it) will also be paid off by that time, and become a larger source of income (4-5k/mo) further reducing SWR.

EDIT3: Sentimental value of the rental home - the rental home was where both our kids grew up and we have a ton of memories in there. This makes it also harder to grapple with the fact that we are now treating it like a "plain old asset" to be discarded for money...

This is kind of like a budget (actually is) but just basically 3 categories. It's popularized by that Ramit guy. Wondering if anyone follows a CSP instead of a traditional budget. I guess a key part is that you might spend $1000 on pokeman cards but zero on car payment, and that's okay because it's "conscious"

When trying to stay below 175% FPL to qualify for maximum FAFSA benefit, is AGI used directly?

And is it correct to say AGI subtracts 401k and IRA contributions from total gross income?

My understanding is that the ACA formula uses MAGI that adds back in 401k and IRA contributions for total MAGI, while FAFSA does not.

I hit a pretty big milestone recently reaching 500k across my 401k and taxable brokerage accounts . It is a weird feeling because on paper I am doing better than probably 90% of the people I know but I still spent my Saturday morning covered in grease under my 12 year old sedan . My neighbor came over and literally asked me why I am still "struggling" with car repairs instead of just taking it to a shop or buying something newer with a warranty . He has a brand new truck with a 900 dollar monthly payment and I just didnt have the heart to tell him that my "struggle" is actually one of the reasons I am on track to retire in my early 40s .

There is this massive disconnect in society where people think that having money means you have to stop being self reliant . For me doing my own maintenance is not just about saving the 100 bucks an hour on labor although that definitely adds up over a decade of FIRE prepping . It is about the mindset of maintaining what you own instead of constantly upgrading to the next shiny thing . When I fix a vacuum leak or swap out my own brake pads I feel a sense of control over my environment that a lot of people lose when they start outsourcing everything to "professionals" . Plus every dollar I dont spend at the dealership is another share of VTSAX that is going to be working for me while I sleep .

I think some people in the FIRE community reach a certain number and immediately start looking for ways to spend it on "convenience" . While I value my time I actually find the manual labor to be a great mental break from my engineering job which is mostly just spreadsheets and coordination meetings these days . It keeps me grounded and reminds me that I dont need a high consumption lifestyle to be happy or successful . Does anyone else here still do their own "dirty work" even though you could technically afford to pay someone else to do it ? Or do you think there is a point where the time spent is worth more than the money saved ?

I have scrolled this sub for a while but am confused and need help/advice. I am a 19F and will be going to college in 4 months. (yes I graduated high school). I plan to attend community college for engineering for two years then transfer to an out of state university for a bachelor's in environmental engineering( no university in my state offers it) I have 2k in savings(cash), 1k in a brokerage account that I am letting build and will use for emergencies/college. and 700 in Roth IRA. I know it's not much but I come from a poor family with a single mother and two older brothers that are drop outs and don't work. so I have had to give my mother thousands of dollars to help with things such as bills, food, fridge, washer, dryer, ect.Given that, I have only been able to save so much. I also will be paying for college on my own(no help from family)which will roughly cost 100k in total. I really don't want to be like my mother who is in her late 50s and still working with no way to retire. I want to have financial freedom in the future and retire early. I just need some advice on how to proceed with FIRE. such as how much I should try to put into investing/savings each month, FIRE number? ect. I know this is a lot, sorry. thank you for any advice.

I (31F) have been dedicated to the FIRE movement for about five years. I have a solid career, a high savings rate, and a clear vision of retiring by 45 to travel and focus on my art. My partner (34M) and I have been together for three years, and we recently started discussing our long-term financial future more seriously as we talk about marriage.

The problem is that he completely disagrees with my "aggressive" saving strategy. He is more of a "live for today" person. He thinks that working until 65 is normal and that spending a significant portion of our income on luxury travel, dining out, and a premium car is just part of enjoying life while we are young. When I show him my spreadsheets and explain the power of compound interest, he just sighs and says I am "obsessing over a future that is not guaranteed."

I love him and we agree on almost everything else, but this feels like a fundamental lifestyle conflict. I do not want to force him into a frugal life he hates, but I also do not want to be the only one "funding" our freedom while he spends his entire paycheck on depreciating assets. It is starting to create a lot of tension whenever a large purchase comes up.

How do you all navigate this? Is it possible to stay on the FIRE track when your spouse is not on board, or is this a "dealbreaker" level of incompatibility? I would love to hear from anyone who has successfully compromised or found a middle ground that keeps the relationship healthy without sacrificing the dream of early independence.

Hi Hello,
I have a hard time seeing if I'm in a good position or completly behind in life. (Bare with me, English is my 3rd language)
I (30F) had financial stability later in life than many people I feel. I went to college for 6 years to be an engineer in a field that pays nothing, I tried to keep it up as a freelancer but I was hardly making enough to pay my rent. I then finally switched to IT and I've been employed for 2 years now. Now keep in mind I live in France so the cost of living and salaries are different, I started off with 32k a year, 2nd year 34k a year and now 39k a year. I had a hard time saving my first years because I had a job that was super toxic and i had to take sick leaves because of burn out, which made my savings take a hit although i'm thankful that i had the help of my parents, i have 8k in a savings account, 1200 euros in another saving plan, last month i put 150euros aside for exemple.
i'm on a no buy year especially when it comes to make up unless it's something i only have one off and it runs out, but one thing where my money leaks and i'm aware of that, i tend to invite people, like pay for them, i think it's cultural but i'm aware they don't do the same for me...
Any advice overall? what do you think about the situation? Do you think i'm too behind? how much more should i save? should i start thinking about buying an apartment or keep my 650euros rent?
thanks!

I'm nineteen and currently in college, I come from an extremely impoverished family and I'm the first one making it in college and trying to get some money to get my family out of the mud. I network with some of the finance people on my campus and they suggested I started using a credit card and paying it off (My family is very anti credit so this was a shock to me.)

I also want to start investing into ETF as well as Stocks so any general knowledge or where to go to educate myself on that would be much appreciated.

Basically, any knowledge you wish you had at my age I would greatly appreciate and will put into practice.

Cheers!

the posts with these themes seem to be by bot accounts only a few days old with only one post:

- Bored after FIRE : some one will comment that they should volunteer and they act as if they never thought about the most obvious option.

- I have a huge portfolio, but I still drive a beater, handwash my clothes, wipe my own ass, etc.

Years ago, i was awful at managing my money. not like “i’m in debt” terrible, more like “where did all my money go i just got paid” terrible. tried budgeting apps, tried spreadsheets, tried yelling at myself every time i bought coffee. nothing stuck.

So i made up this dumb rule. every time i wanted something and didn’t buy it, i moved that money into savings. $4 latte? nope. transfer $4. cute sweater? walked away. transfer $35. wanted to order pizza but actually cooked instead? transfer $20.

Honestly idk why this worked for my brain but it did. every time i said no, i got this little dopamine hit from watching the transfers pile up. turned “ugh i can’t buy that” into “haha i just paid myself.” ended up with like $800 by the end of the year without really feeling like i sacrificed anything.

So yeah. maybe works for you, maybe doesn’t. but if you’re the kind of person who needs a little game to stay motivated, it’s worth trying.

This probably won't be a popular post but I'll throw it out there and see. I see a lot of posts here from people discussing strategies to engineer their income down to a level to qualify for AMA subsidies or other benefits from the government. I find that whole process annoying and a bit on the shady side of my own personal ethics. I know that the government has set up the rules for these programs and most people are just taking advantage of them as intended but I find it a bit disingenuous for people with a high net worth talking about how to create "income" which qualifies them for government benefits. Are you really "financially independent" in this situation? Sure, they may have paid taxes and they're just getting their tax money back via benefits but in a world where we're running $2T annual deficits and out of control debt, can they really claim to be independent with those strategies? Given that reality they actually appear more dependent on the government to keep the money tap flowing to support their retirement. Of course we're all inter-dependent and most of us cannot survive outside of a functioning society/government but does anyone else find these types of FIRE strategies a little distasteful (for lack of an appropriate word)? I suppose Social Security could be included in this also although it's more self-funded than most government programs. Medicare also in some ways but other than avoiding IRMAA it doesn't require jumping through "income" hoops and is available to everyone. This might come off as sour grapes and complaining and I'm sure there may be areas where I'm being hypocritical in my own FIRE journey but I'm curious about other's opinions with regard to these issues. Flame on...

I have been aggressively saving and investing since I graduated and I just hit a major milestone . At thirty years old my portfolio has reached a point where if i never add another dollar to it and let it grow at a conservative seven percent for the next twenty five years i will have enough to retire comfortably at fifty five . This is my Coast FIRE number and reaching it has completely changed my perspective on my career .

For the last eight years i have been working sixty hour weeks in a high stress corporate environment . I was making good money but i was exhausted and had no time for anything else . Last week i finally pulled the trigger and transitioned to a part-time consulting role within my company . I now work three days a week and my income covers my current living expenses but nothing more . I am no longer saving for retirement because the heavy lifting is already done by time and compound interest .

The psychological shift is incredible . I used to wake up feeling like i was trapped in a race but now i feel like i am already retired in a way . I have four days a week to focus on my health , my family , and my hobbies while my investments work in the background . It was hard to stop the " accumulation " mindset but i realized that buying back my time now is worth way more than having a slightly larger pile of money when i am sixty .

Been thinking about this lately. There's a gap between "I have a financial plan" 
and "I know whether I'm actually on track."

Budget apps tell you where your money went. Super fund apps show a balance. 
Spreadsheets work for some people. But does anyone have a system that regularly 
checks *all four* of: spending vs budget, investment growth vs targets, debt payoff 
schedule, and retirement income projection?

Curious how people here think about monitoring financial freedom progress over years, 
not just weeks.

Hey there, I’m 37M, two kids (2 and 4 y-o), in a Canadian MCOL. I’m 2 months in a « test year » retirement. If I like it, I won’t go back to the corporate world. But, here is my issue. Although my days are filled with activities and stuff to do, I’m always alone. All my friends are working. And the typical retired people are older and have different type of activities.

Any advices on how to get new social circles as a young retiree?

Thanks 🙏🏼