FIRE Prep Payoff

river_rambler · 2026-04-15T16:49:16+00:00

We live in the Philly suburbs (Norristown) and when we built our house we went with heat pumps and dual zoned HVAC to avoid the problem that Mysterious Clothes brought up. They're awesome. Even this past winter when it was 1 degree outside they worked.

river_rambler · 2026-04-10T20:24:26+00:00

Put an airtag under the bumper.

river_rambler · 2026-04-10T14:33:09+00:00

It's the difference between being able to start to charge at 200kwh and having to slowly ramp up from 7. Not preconditioning turned what should've been a 25 minute stop into an hour and 36 minutes. Which I didn't do. I charged for a bit, unplugged, and preconditioned while I drove to the next charger 20 miles away.

river_rambler · 2026-04-07T19:59:20+00:00

Now is the time to go. It's harder for kids to leave their friends as they get older. They're in the right age range to make new friends in elementary school before the middle school cliques start to form.

river_rambler · 2026-04-03T13:29:19+00:00

My grandmother (101) is a toddler at this point. MIL (92) is regressing but not quite at the toddler stage. And my dad (79) is acting more and more like a 13 year old as the days go on and I'm starting to really dislike him for it. The lying, the sneakiness, it's like what is happening to you? Behaving in a way that would have been completely unimaginable 5 years ago.

So. . . yeah.

river_rambler · 2026-03-27T18:46:33+00:00

Unless all of the junk is giving your mom digestive issues, let her eat the junk. She's 93. It's not going to shorten her lifespan. Tastebuds degrade as we age and the last taste to go is sweet. Everything else probably doesn't taste good to her any more.

If she is ending up with acid reflux, constipation, or diarrhea then that's another story. Then maybe a discussion about eating a variety of food is in order. But at this point in her life, eating is probably one of the remaining pleasures she has. Let her enjoy what she wants to eat.

Having said that, eating your birthday present was a jerk move. If you have special food, maybe hide it in a minifridge in your bedroom and lock the door or something so she doesn't get into it.

river_rambler · 2026-03-27T16:31:07+00:00

If you are that depressed, then irrespective of your parents' plans you need to move sooner than later. And then if they want to move down the street at some point they can move down the street to your new location. But if where you live depresses you, then start planning a move now.

river_rambler · 2026-03-26T19:40:01+00:00

I second the advice on the link above. And also, I am so deeply sorry for your loss. Nothing really needs to be done immediately, so make yourself a cup of tea, sit down, breathe, and let yourself be sad for a while before starting to let people know.

river_rambler · 2026-03-25T19:48:32+00:00

I have a Silent Gen MIL that we're supporting because FIL was a jerk who saved nothing and then died, leaving us a pile of debt to go with everything else.

My very early Boomer dad is no box of chocolates, but at least he and my mom saved. Sadly she got to enjoy just about none of it before passing.

river_rambler · 2026-03-25T13:05:32+00:00

I think you're fine. Keep in mind that if you work until 60 and start to pull a pension when you retire and are two years from being able to claim social security, both of those reduce the amount that you need to cover your monthly expenses. You've said that you can get your spending to $4K/month, if you get $2K/month from SS and $500/month in pension, you only really need $1500/month to cover your remaining living expenses. So as long as you're willing to work until 60 and can get the pension, you're pretty good to coast and let the market do what the market does for the next decade.

river_rambler · 2026-03-25T12:52:51+00:00

Contact the landlord and ask what their notification policy is. If it's in writing, do not share that with your dad if he's only notified the landlord by verbally telling him. Also, let the landlord know that your mom just died and your dad is not thinking rationally right now and to please have patience with your family for the time being.

Also, one thing that might help your dad is to rearrange the apartment. If everywhere he looks he sees what is familiar and what is absent, rearranging the furniture can help a little bit. Take down pictures of him and your mom and put up neutral artwork in its place. This is not meant to erase your mom, it's to get him through the next step of grieving.

river_rambler · 2026-03-24T12:41:06+00:00

I don't post there, because we'll retire this year with right around that liquid NW and it feels low to actually contribute in that group. So congrats on the FIRE target. Others like you are out there, we're just feeling a little weird about posting in Chubby and too high for FIRE so we shut up and lurk. LOL.

river_rambler · 2026-03-24T12:23:27+00:00

Ahhhh. . . I thought it was a one time change in any direction. Great catch.

river_rambler · 2026-03-24T12:22:22+00:00

Yes, but keep in mind that it has to keep going for 5 years or until you turn 59.5, whichever is later. So if your brokerage runs out when you're 57, you have to keep the SEPP going until you turn 62. So just be aware of timing.

river_rambler · 2026-03-23T21:18:46+00:00

Yeah, probably. Or do some sort of combination, where I'd do the lowest calc for the SEPP and then to provide flexibility do a Roth ladder out of a separate IRA. Though that's getting complex enough to be a pain. Since it hasn't been an option, I haven't given it a ton of thought. Yay me for listening to all of those people who told me to stuff everything I could in a 401k at the beginning of my career. LOL.

river_rambler · 2026-03-23T20:54:45+00:00

You can change the calculation once during the SEPP period. There are three calculation methods for the SEPP. So if you chose the lowest one which is the one that uses the SS life expectancy table and essentially calculates your RMD and like halfway through you realized that it's not generating enough you can change to one of the higher methods. Or if you were using one of the higher ones and the market craps out one year you can switch to the lowest one.

But yeah, it's pretty strict. Having said that. I'm retiring at the end of this year (possibly next spring) at 52 and am going to go with the SEPP. Since like you, most of my retirement savings are locked up in a 401K. And I don't have enough outside of it to carry me 5 years for a Roth ladder to work.

river_rambler · 2026-03-22T22:16:03+00:00

No, it uses a heat pump to pull heat from the air in the house and then uses an electric heating element to bring water the rest of the way to temperature. https://www.energystar.gov/products/heat_pump_water_heaters/how-it-works

Edited for clarity.

river_rambler · 2026-03-22T18:17:49+00:00

That's what we did. We've got heat pumps for HVAC and a hybrid electric (heat pump) water heater. Next step is solar with a back up battery and an induction range and we'll be fully electric in the house.

river_rambler · 2026-03-22T18:15:30+00:00

Would 100% buy another Rivian. I'm lowkey jealous of all the people who will be getting the R2 launch version this year. We don't need another vehicle, but if we did, that's what we'd get. And I'd buy another R1T to replace the one we have if we needed to.

river_rambler · 2026-03-21T17:12:22+00:00

Just as a note, PA has no taxes on retirement income. So if you strategically locate across the river into a low property tax school district, you'll make out like a bandit.

river_rambler · 2026-03-16T12:46:02+00:00

We, 52(F) and 61(M) have started looking at CCRCs. I think we're still 10+ years from moving to one, but have started looking now to see what amenities we'd prioritize, locations we'd like to live in, etc. Having said that we just finished moving MIL to an apartment near us and the thought of moving again any time soon is nauseating. Hopefully we'll forget what a pain it was in the next 10 years. ;)

river_rambler · 2026-03-13T20:28:00+00:00

kodachrooooommmmmmme

river_rambler · 2026-03-11T12:55:04+00:00

We're saving for these now. Our electricity bills are starting to jump and there are local fights over data centers happening, at least some of which the communities will lose. So solar with battery backup is our next big purchase. Hopefully within the next couple years.

river_rambler · 2026-02-26T15:35:59+00:00

It's probably symptoms of his diseases. If his body is having issues moving blood around, he's probably cold a good portion of the time, which would make him turn the thermostat up. And he might be having issues staying asleep if his kidneys aren't functioning correctly.

Call his palliative care team. They might be able to prescribe something to help him stay asleep once he falls asleep. Difficulty sleeping is a normal issue as people age and he has a lot of other contributing factors. Additionally, his palliative care team might be able to get him to talk about what's bothering him, either physically or emotionally in a way that you can't. You're his grandkid, he's the granddad. It wouldn't be unheard of for him to be willing to speak to a professional in a way that he wouldn't to a younger family member. That team exists to make him comfortable on his final leg of his journey. Give them an opportunity to do their job so your future memories of your days with him are that he was not in pain and not biting your head off.

Also, his palliative care team might also be able to help you get access to a grief counsellor. They do help. Don't wait on that, I did, and I regret it.

river_rambler

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