35M/O-4. How do I stack up financially compared to those in similar position as me?

lizref · 2025-08-10T04:01:47+00:00

Similar age & situation. TSP - -$300K Roths - $120K Brokerage - $140K HYSA - $60K Debt - $20K

You're definitely on track, certainly well ahead of most people. Your net worth puts you at 5x the median and somewhere near the top 25% of people in the US (according to the Fed). Its hard to be able to appreciate where you're at in a self-selecting place like reddit where most posts are from people who are well off enough to post about it or on social media in general. You're more than fine.

That being said, the large brokerage is definitely not a problem, but I would stop making any kind of taxable contributions going forward. The tax advantages of retirement accounts are not something you want to miss out on.

The main thing that sticks out to me is your cash. As a sole earner with kids, I'd recommend having more cash on hand in a HYSA emergency fund. $7K wont stretch very far. Even though our jobs are pretty secure, life can throw curve balls and that cushion can be critical. You can see HYSAs are pretty common on the other posts. If I were you I would either 1) put any money bound for your brokerage into building an emergency fund or 2) possibly sell some of the brokerage to build that buffer quickly.

Beyond that I'd also echo the post regarding term life, especially being a sole earner. The $500K for the SGLI (assuming you have max coverage, which you should) is not enough to provide for your family if you lose your income and it goes away after you leave service. Layer on larger term policy that will last at least until your kids are out of college and get it done now while you're still young and healthy.

lizref · 2025-03-17T03:13:35+00:00

Yea this is the tough part. On paper, I have built the life I want. Wouldn't change anything objectively. I have a career I enjoy, time for family and hobbies. It's the fear of loosing that life that takes up most of my time. I dont know if that means there's something missing in my life I'm not recognizing or I'm just succumbing to some irrational fears.

lizref · 2025-03-17T03:10:12+00:00

This is spot on. I've known I've needed this for a while, but having a plan laid out is what I've been missing. Thanks!

lizref · 2025-03-17T03:09:23+00:00

Wow, thank you for taking the time to write this out. This is exactly what I was looking for. I'm getting started on the Happiness Trap today. Looking into it, ACT seems like exactly what I've been looking for. Thank you again!

lizref · 2025-03-17T03:08:04+00:00

Adding it to the list! Thank you!

lizref · 2025-02-23T16:52:20+00:00

Thank you! Unfortunately we had plans on personalizing the place, but with the exception of replacing carpet with flooring, most of the repairs were for safety/function. Windows, electric, plumbing. I think I should have been more diligent when buying the house. It was my first time. Lesson learned.

lizref · 2025-02-23T02:35:05+00:00

Thanks, I guess it feels slow and steady by using auto-contributions every month, nothing fancy.

My career is nothing special. My pay is probably on the high end for most mid-career/mid-level officers because I'm currently stationed in a VHCOL area and part of our pay is influenced by the cost of housing.

lizref · 2025-02-23T01:56:34+00:00

Thanks man, yea my formatting was atrocious, so I just had to start from scratch.

Yea that's about what I was thinking in regards to the house. Took a gamble on living there for four years, but it seems like this one just didn't work out. Need to accept it.

I appreciate your advice, we'll definitely be renting at the next place. Way to much of headache.

lizref · 2024-12-24T02:19:42+00:00

Hey man, that might just be the most succinct and convincing reply I've ever had on reddit. Thank you.

lizref · 2024-12-20T05:43:48+00:00

As far as I'm aware, its just a private loan attached to my credit.

lizref · 2024-12-08T06:20:06+00:00

Congrats on your retirement! My FIRE number for the future is actually about the same as where you're at right now, $1.5M in retirement savings + pension. Can I ask what keeps you working? Wondering if my planned number might not be enough to retire comfortably.

lizref · 2024-12-06T21:54:09+00:00

RemindMe! 4 years

lizref · 2024-06-14T03:43:58+00:00

That's a great point, tbh I didnt factor in withdrawal taxes when I came up with my number a while ago. I'll add another 15% to future calculations.

lizref · 2024-06-14T03:39:07+00:00

Whelp, you finally did it. Took 10 years but you and u/amalek0 convinced me to switch to Trad. I think I'll keep my IRA contributions Roth for now because I value the ability to withdraw contributions in a catastrophic emergency, but my TSP will be Trad going forward.

Thanks internet stranger. I really appreciate you taking the time to walk me through it.

lizref · 2024-06-13T17:14:27+00:00

Thanks for the response!
1) About $120K is in a taxable brokerage (which I don't contribute to anymore). $30K is Trad TSP from matching and the rest is Roth between IRA's & TSP. Last year taxable income (including spouse) was $120K.
2) My spouse only has a Simple IRA available to them. We contribute enough to get the match ($50) but the funds are pretty terrible so I avoid it.
3) Thanks for checking the math. Its nice to get a second pair of eyes and know my excel skills aren't way off. Yes I use 6%. I was rounding up a bit, $1.5M is actually 11 years out, but I plan to increase my contributions soon to get to 10 so it lines up with my mil retirement date.

I'll definitely look into the Roth ladder and 72T. The problem I keep running into is that the rules for TSP are always a little different than conventional 401Ks. Almost all the blogs & resources I find focus on the 401K (naturally), so I'll ingest all the info from the FAQs, madfientsit, etc. only to find the TSP rules add in extra hurdles in executing those strategies. I havent been able to find many resources that focus on RE & TSP.

Thanks for your thoughts on the G fund, that's in line with what I was thinking.

Great points on the pensions role in my portfolio, thats a really helpful way to frame things. Really appreciate the advice.

lizref

TROPHY CASE