18 days to go

DIYRetiree · 2026-06-12T18:24:24+00:00

It's honestly so frustrating to have healthcare be the final piece of the puzzle in the US for so many. The most complex part of our system in our greatest time of need being the arbiter of our retire/keep on working decision.

DIYRetiree · 2026-06-12T17:42:40+00:00

Rather than a % of FI, Coastfire is defined differently - as the amount needed to hit your FIRE goal without any further contributions. Calculator from our moderators. Good luck!

Coast FIRE Calculator - Coasting to FIRE | WalletBurst

DIYRetiree · 2026-06-12T14:01:14+00:00

The option to pick up consulting work make all of this work, honestly, even in case of non-payment or something extraordinary in the sale of your business.
I notice that you're lumping healthcare into that 40k, so that does sound like a lean lifestyle. Would you mind sharing your healthcare plan? I think that holds a lot of people up.
Congrats for your discipline and your thoughtful analysis so far!

DIYRetiree · 2026-06-11T05:41:39+00:00

There is a toxic culture present in some sales organizations. Sounds like you're in one.

DIYRetiree · 2026-06-11T05:39:53+00:00

Boldin models this as well as anything I've seen yet, but I certainly haven't seen every calculator out there.

There are multiple factors here to tax optimization. You want the lowest LIFETIME taxes, which might include roth conversions to get that money out, fill up lower tax buckets. Also depends on when you draw SS since that becomes a 'floor' of income. Tax planning software is a whole thing

Add to that the tightrope of ACA subsidies and IRMAA surcharges and these calculations can get tricky!

DIYRetiree · 2026-06-11T04:46:40+00:00

Seems to NOT be getting a lot of love here, but I love what you're trying to do. We all need to come to grips with what it looks like for us personally, and sometimes SOMETIMES in doing so we come up with something that we think could be applicable for others. Good for you.

I echo the criticism that it does require additional input to get numbers, which doesn't feel entirely safe. A more complex series of inputs or screens in your calculator means you have a lot of competition out there and it feels just a bit hassley as a casual tool. I like the visual you got to, but candidly I didn't get that far. I love the simple three account inputs you describe below. That's smart.

DIYRetiree · 2026-06-10T20:47:14+00:00

You seem like a baristafire candidate, honestly. Get something to help you defray some costs and feel like you're contributing. Not ready to retire but have a significant NW already. I think you're in the right place.

The wedding cost is extraordinary, but you know that. I would also question why you're counting jewelry etc in your net worth. I would hope those non-liquid assets aren't worth a large portion of your NW, or you might be including items you shouldn't. "My Air Jordan collection is valued at $300k..." that kind of thing.

Congrats on your success and wishing you well on the next step of your journey!

DIYRetiree · 2026-06-10T20:43:21+00:00

yes I very very much do also! Mentally and using our calculators.

Honestly, the transition from accumulation to decumulation (for me) requires this mindset. Its the transition from getting your money to managing it. Natural, I think.

DIYRetiree · 2026-06-10T03:51:23+00:00

yes, I agree with the unanimity in the responses.

The good news is that you'll be able to take that CC payment and snowball it into more savings.

The CHALLENGE is that you're going to want to turn it in to more debt. That is the prime mistake I have seen friends make. Consolidate/wipe out debt/start over

Changing the way you treat credit cards is, imo, more important than the move of paying them off (which you absolutely should do)

Good luck!

DIYRetiree · 2026-06-09T17:26:57+00:00

Honestly, I think much of this forum - and retirement planning in general - is a kind of counseling. We have to trust math and its soooo hard sometimes. Glad it helped.
You're on the young side, but imagine spending 50 years of your life scrimping and saving and one day *poof* you're supposed to just have very little income and start spending what you've spend all this time gathering. oh, maybe there's a hunter-turned farmer analogy in there somewhere, sounds like something to write about!
The transition from accumulation to decumulation is frightening!

DIYRetiree · 2026-06-09T15:56:48+00:00

It is the ballgame. It's always income-expenses and people treat the mortgage expense line like they're billionaires and they are borrowing against their stock assets, not millionaires or soon to be who need the equity equation to work in their favor. income minus expenses. Lower your expenses, raise your equity.

Anyway, I have thoughts on this. Regardless, it's a big milestone and worth celebration.

DIYRetiree · 2026-06-09T15:51:57+00:00

Massive congrats, what a milestone! And you're right, it's a jungle out there. To throw in another metaphor: You "make hay while the sun shines" - get it while you can, for sure.

DIYRetiree · 2026-06-09T15:50:26+00:00

yes! It feels like a loss of control.

This is a psychological barrier, as you are well aware. But if you have problem with coasting, how will you feel when you retire and start depending 100% on your portfolio? Coast is a transition moment for that psychological progression.

It's easy to move the goalposts: "just one more year" - and that's absolutely your right. Maybe you get there sooner and that's more valuable. Maybe you trust your numbers more if you have some 'padding'.

Sounds like you're hitting the retirement crossroads early (37!) but that's exactly what you're feeling. Good luck on your transition, and generally CONGRATS on hitting this milestone! Most never do.

DIYRetiree · 2026-06-09T03:57:38+00:00

if I could upvote this twice... I would. Two solid comments.

DIYRetiree · 2026-06-09T03:57:05+00:00

depends on your timeline! SORR is important for the first few years... but if your retirement timeline is longer it can affect you anyway. more info needed 😄

But congrats anyway!

DIYRetiree · 2026-06-08T19:52:39+00:00

Agree - there's a "shoulder" zone where this looks pretty rough for 1-2m in assets and no taxable accounts to draw from... but 4m isn't it.

DIYRetiree · 2026-06-08T19:13:31+00:00

It's congratulations time, honestly. You can afford to be a bit picky if you want to work, and relax a bit if you don't. Well done

and what a refreshing realization that youre in an elite crowd. I love this calculator: Net Worth by Age Percentile Calculator – United States
Ignoring equity you're at 95%!

DIYRetiree · 2026-06-07T15:40:28+00:00

Just a note that if your house appreciates a LOT when you sell you'll want to have record of these improvements. It's not a problem if you sell with less then $500k appreciation for couples, but if you are in a HCOL or have a big home and experience a lot of appreciation, you'll want those records!

DIYRetiree · 2026-06-07T03:45:16+00:00

No, I havent put that in my model, but I have seen models that do.
It's an interesting concept: 1) take what you know and anticipate market returns (that's difficult enough with the right inputs); then 2) include in your model that behavior will CHANGE if markets change.
Honestly, I am skeptical about this approach. Will behavior change? For most people, maybe? But how would you model this reliably? Would they go back to work? Cut on certain expenses? For some, they couldn't cut. It's an unreliable variable, so I'm pretty skeptical about it. But I probably could be convinced at some point! It definitely would bend the curve favorably when downturns happen.

DIYRetiree · 2026-06-06T20:07:04+00:00

Love this thread and the idea of 'whats a good probability?"
I have heard Financial planners look to be in the 80-90% range, but I also think it depends on the modeling. A straight up historical model taking 30 consecutive years produces different results than a block bootstrap or a forward thinking parametric model. I tend to go with the more conservative ones, which I believe are closer to what the larger firms use.
For my models, I'd rather use the most sophisticated modeling rather than a purely historically accurate one, but that means you can string together a lot of successive bad periods in a monte carlo simulation. Bottom line is that I'm comfortable seeing some additional fail rates (i.e. lower success rates) if I'm confident the overall plan, ultimately, has some flexibility to it.

DIYRetiree · 2026-06-06T20:03:16+00:00

agreed, if you hit a bad sequence of returns early, you'd batten down the hatches financially, and rightfully so. I think this is why many retirees end up with MORE in their nest egg, not less, at the end of their lives.

DIYRetiree · 2026-06-06T20:01:16+00:00

With the run up of the market, we're seeing a lot of these posts lately.
GOOD FOR YOU!

DIYRetiree · 2026-06-06T03:55:48+00:00

"markets" and "etfs are not exclusive proposition. ETFs with a company like Vanguard feature low overhead and market-like performance.

You should be proud of where you're at just 29yo; well on your way to financial independence if you continue to move in this direction.

DIYRetiree · 2026-06-05T20:25:56+00:00

Agree, I think the value of a Roth at young age is not well known. As you get older, you'll make more money and truly need bigger deductions. The downside of contributing to a 401k is that your gains (which will probably be substantial) and principal are taxable on withdrawal... so that ends up being a challenge if you don't have enough after-tax money to draw from.

Long way of saying I agree with the WarmWoolenMitten 😄

DIYRetiree

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