3 ms·

A hell of a lot faster than that. If you can save 50% of your income (which is very easy to do for the vast majority of people in dev positions or those making

A hell of a lot faster than that. If you can save 50% of your income (which is very easy to do for the vast majority of people in dev positions or those making similar money), you can retire in your 50s. 40s if you're really aggressive and a little lucky.

infinite8s 8y ago
What kind of nest egg do you need to retire in your 40s, assuming you'll need to cover healthcare and probably live another 20-30 yrs.
- bdndndnndnd 8y ago
  What I gather from the FIRE ideas: It doesn't matter how old you are. If you have 25x yearly expenses, then you can retire and live off of investment returns. This assumes market trends don't deviate materially from past hundred years of historical data.
  - ericd 8y ago
    I tend to think that something more conservative is probably a better idea, even though it has the very real cost of needing one to work a bit longer. The Trinity study was based on a 30 year rundown IIRC, and was based on a period of US economic dominance.
  - mercutio2 8y ago
    The problem is that in the US, health care costs increase DRAMATICALLY as you age, without any clear upper bound. The ACA has improved the situation signficantly for people who qualify for ACA subsidies, but the subsidy cliff is really uncomfortable for people trying to make long term financial plans. In summary, 25x your yearly expenses when you’re 30 is no where near 25x your yearly expenses when you’re 50, even with zero lifestyle inflation.
sidlls 8y ago
The vast majority of people in dev positions earn much less than Bay Area wages. It is not relatively easy for them to save that much.
- ericd 8y ago
  You don't need bay area dev wages to save up that much. But if you want to do that, you also shouldn't be making large financial mistakes like buying new cars, houses that are too large for your needs, etc. And it really helps if you have an SO to split costs with, or roommates. I'm sure many people don't want to do that, but it's not all that hard if you're a developer making an above average salary elsewhere.
verinus 8y ago
You don't have family, do you?
- varjag 8y ago
  I think their idea is to retire in their 50s after living with roommates into their 40s.

infinite8s 8y ago

What kind of nest egg do you need to retire in your 40s, assuming you'll need to cover healthcare and probably live another 20-30 yrs.

bdndndnndnd 8y ago
What I gather from the FIRE ideas: It doesn't matter how old you are. If you have 25x yearly expenses, then you can retire and live off of investment returns. This assumes market trends don't deviate materially from past hundred years of historical data.
- ericd 8y ago
  I tend to think that something more conservative is probably a better idea, even though it has the very real cost of needing one to work a bit longer. The Trinity study was based on a 30 year rundown IIRC, and was based on a period of US economic dominance.
- mercutio2 8y ago
  The problem is that in the US, health care costs increase DRAMATICALLY as you age, without any clear upper bound. The ACA has improved the situation signficantly for people who qualify for ACA subsidies, but the subsidy cliff is really uncomfortable for people trying to make long term financial plans. In summary, 25x your yearly expenses when you’re 30 is no where near 25x your yearly expenses when you’re 50, even with zero lifestyle inflation.

sidlls 8y ago

The vast majority of people in dev positions earn much less than Bay Area wages. It is not relatively easy for them to save that much.

ericd 8y ago
You don't need bay area dev wages to save up that much. But if you want to do that, you also shouldn't be making large financial mistakes like buying new cars, houses that are too large for your needs, etc. And it really helps if you have an SO to split costs with, or roommates. I'm sure many people don't want to do that, but it's not all that hard if you're a developer making an above average salary elsewhere.

verinus 8y ago

You don't have family, do you?

varjag 8y ago
I think their idea is to retire in their 50s after living with roommates into their 40s.