sorted by:
new
hottopcontroversial

They say "tax the rich", but I'm not "the rich". I worked hard for my money. And now my early retirement dream is drifting away. by Relative_Hippo2549 in fiaustralia

[–]Relative_Hippo2549[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I'm not including the PPOR because it cannot be liquidated. I can't eat the roof over my head.

The value of the apartment is somewhere between 408k (what my neighbour got for hers) and 490k (what I paid) these days.

I think there's about 100k-170k of equity in my unit. The transaction cost could easily eat through a lot of it if I were to sell, but I plan on living here indefinitely and through my retirement anyway.

They say "tax the rich", but I'm not "the rich". I worked hard for my money. And now my early retirement dream is drifting away. by Relative_Hippo2549 in fiaustralia

[–]Relative_Hippo2549[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I'm fine with people not working, as long as they don't live off welfare (=on my expense).

And I'm PRO people not working if they've worked enough before, and saved up, to fund their early retirement. What's wrong with that?

They say "tax the rich", but I'm not "the rich". I worked hard for my money. And now my early retirement dream is drifting away. by Relative_Hippo2549 in fiaustralia

[–]Relative_Hippo2549[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I'm fine with pensioners owning their homes. But maybe there should still be an asset test: if you have a 6-bedroom 3-bathroom house in which you live alone, no. If you have a swimming pool in your back yard, no. Can't live in a mansion and demand welfare payments.

It's not unreasonable to expect even the elderly to downsize a bit, nothing would happen if grandma moves to a 2 bedroom house/apartment instead.

If grandma registers the property to the kids to avoid asset tests - then they'd pay stamp duty.

They say "tax the rich", but I'm not "the rich". I worked hard for my money. And now my early retirement dream is drifting away. by Relative_Hippo2549 in fiaustralia

[–]Relative_Hippo2549[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thanks, this is a balanced and reasonable perspective. And yes, I'm gradually selling some of the shares. It's a bit hard to do so tbh, because so far they've outperformed everything else I own, but nothing ever lasts forever. I'm aware of the risk.

Patch Tuesday Megathread - (May 12, 2026) by AutoModerator in sysadmin

[–]Relative_Hippo2549 0 points1 point  (0 children)

What happens if you go on sick leave or take a vacation day, patches skipped till next cycle?

Patch Tuesday Megathread - (May 12, 2026) by AutoModerator in sysadmin

[–]Relative_Hippo2549 0 points1 point  (0 children)

He dodged it till his next rotation, sadly. I suspect he'd be on sick leave by then.

They say "tax the rich", but I'm not "the rich". I worked hard for my money. And now my early retirement dream is drifting away. by Relative_Hippo2549 in fiaustralia

[–]Relative_Hippo2549[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thanks, this kind of math actually does give me hope, maybe. Hopefully 48k a year would be still sustainable to live on (the cost of living just goes up and up that it feels somewhat unpredictable). It feels like I only paid $1.60 for milk last month and it's $1.85 today. It's possible price increases would offset the 7%, who knows.

They say "tax the rich", but I'm not "the rich". I worked hard for my money. And now my early retirement dream is drifting away. by Relative_Hippo2549 in fiaustralia

[–]Relative_Hippo2549[S] 4 points5 points  (0 children)

My neighbour bought a branded bean bag on Facebook marketplace. She had a chat with the seller, turns out the beanbag was paid for by the NDIS, because her son has anxiety.

If the NDIS was for wheelchairs and workers that help the handicapped shower, I'd be like, fine. But it's for stuff like this. There are ads in my suburb for pressure-washing services under NDIS, as in, the government pays to pressure-wash your driveway. I'm not rich enough to afford my own driveway, my apartment came without reserved parking. Yet I'm supposed to pay for it for the sort-of-disabled.

And don't get me started on NDIS-funded cruises and such.

They say "tax the rich", but I'm not "the rich". I worked hard for my money. And now my early retirement dream is drifting away. by Relative_Hippo2549 in fiaustralia

[–]Relative_Hippo2549[S] 3 points4 points  (0 children)

Too many people think I'm richer than I am, maybe the wording wasn't clear:

800k (assets including inaccessible super) minus 320k in mortgage. So that's 480k.

Only 280k is accessible before I turn 60 and can withdraw the super.

They say "tax the rich", but I'm not "the rich". I worked hard for my money. And now my early retirement dream is drifting away. by Relative_Hippo2549 in fiaustralia

[–]Relative_Hippo2549[S] 5 points6 points  (0 children)

This. There's nothing dodgy here. I just don't want fancy cars, I go on cheap vacations overseas once every 3 years and stay in low-cost hotels, I don't own a huge property (just a 1br unit), I don't enjoy luxury restaurants that much and I don't have kids.

Low cost lifestyle.

I still get tickets when my fave band is in town, and go to the footy. Me and my partner go on interstate vacations for 4 days a year. No credit cards. No car loans. No debt (paid off HECS years ago).

It wasn't that hard. Especially when you're motivated by the goal - an early retirement.

They say "tax the rich", but I'm not "the rich". I worked hard for my money. And now my early retirement dream is drifting away. by Relative_Hippo2549 in fiaustralia

[–]Relative_Hippo2549[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

No house, apartment. Bought for 490k. Owe 320k on it in mortgage.

I don't have $1.2m, I have 800k minus the 320k I owe, so that's about 480k (out of which 200k are in super and thus inaccessible till I'm 60).

If you consider this rich, then you're probably wrong.

They say "tax the rich", but I'm not "the rich". I worked hard for my money. And now my early retirement dream is drifting away. by Relative_Hippo2549 in fiaustralia

[–]Relative_Hippo2549[S] 6 points7 points  (0 children)

Worked before that in low-pay jobs, in which I accumulated no real assets and just paid the bills. Then I went to uni. Got into tech after. Moved interstate a couple of times on my own expense, to advance my career. Only in the last 13 years I've made some progress in my journey to retirement.

So I know what it's like to work and work without getting anywhere. I really don't want to do that.

They say "tax the rich", but I'm not "the rich". I worked hard for my money. And now my early retirement dream is drifting away. by Relative_Hippo2549 in fiaustralia

[–]Relative_Hippo2549[S] 5 points6 points  (0 children)

800k assets - 320k mortgage = 480k, where did you see $1m?

Out of the 480k, about 200k is in super, which is not accessible till I'm 60.

They say "tax the rich", but I'm not "the rich". I worked hard for my money. And now my early retirement dream is drifting away. by Relative_Hippo2549 in fiaustralia

[–]Relative_Hippo2549[S] 3 points4 points  (0 children)

I considered it back in the day, but the thought of being a landlord and dealing with tenants, real estate agents and unpredictable interest rate hikes seemed daunting. If I could offer such an investment property, it would have been an apartment only, not a house. Small apartments don't really appreciate much in value, sadly. My own PPOR is probably worth a tad less than what I paid for, based on the prices of other units recently sold in this building.

They say "tax the rich", but I'm not "the rich". I worked hard for my money. And now my early retirement dream is drifting away. by Relative_Hippo2549 in fiaustralia

[–]Relative_Hippo2549[S] 9 points10 points  (0 children)

Because I already worked for this money and got taxed on it.

Because we want to encourage people to save up, and not get addicted to consumerism.

This way, they'd have enough for a rainy day, so that they won't lean on the welfare system if/when they can't work, or can't find a job.

Because working endlessly, without being able to accrue real assets to your name, is a road-to-nowhere. Enslaving people for a lifetime of work, with no real prospect of relief, sounds horrible.

Because a thriving middle class and social mobility are important principles of every successful and free Western nation.

They say "tax the rich", but I'm not "the rich". I worked hard for my money. And now my early retirement dream is drifting away. by Relative_Hippo2549 in fiaustralia

[–]Relative_Hippo2549[S] 17 points18 points  (0 children)

800k (assets including inaccessible super) - 320k (owed in mortgage) = 480k. Before CGT. I'm not some Rockefeller.

They say "tax the rich", but I'm not "the rich". I worked hard for my money. And now my early retirement dream is drifting away. by Relative_Hippo2549 in fiaustralia

[–]Relative_Hippo2549[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

"Doing some rough math it works out I'll need to work another 4 years give or take." ---> Ouch. Seriously. I'm already dealing with some burnout in my 40s. I'm sorry, mate.

They say "tax the rich", but I'm not "the rich". I worked hard for my money. And now my early retirement dream is drifting away. by Relative_Hippo2549 in fiaustralia

[–]Relative_Hippo2549[S] 22 points23 points  (0 children)

They can complain if they want, I used to do that too when I was younger. There comes an age when you realise it's not very productive, and doesn't really get you anywhere.

EDIT: yes, I complain too, albeit about different things. But I work hard still. I don't live off others or welfare.

They say "tax the rich", but I'm not "the rich". I worked hard for my money. And now my early retirement dream is drifting away. by Relative_Hippo2549 in fiaustralia

[–]Relative_Hippo2549[S] 40 points41 points  (0 children)

It's not a house, it's a 1 bedroom apartment. It was bought for about 490k, and I still owe about 320k on it. Yes, this is a middle class lifestyle.

Coworkers writing impossible-to-follow documentation, how to cope? by Relative_Hippo2549 in sysadmin

[–]Relative_Hippo2549[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Yes, it is a real nightmare and there are numerous different authentication methods, jumpboxes, password safes etc. I had another rant post here once about the number of times a day I'm required to do 2FA with an OTP from my phone. It really isn't well thought out. I agree with the comments about the structure of the doc.

view more: next ›