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I am a serious practitioner of the FIRE (Financially Independent, Retire Early) philosophy. Over the years, I have accumulated assets in a very conservative po

I am a serious practitioner of the FIRE (Financially Independent, Retire Early) philosophy. Over the years, I have accumulated assets in a very conservative portfolio. This portfolio has reached a point where it has consistently generated over 150% of my base salary for more than 5 years.

pmiller2 6y ago
Sounds like you are already FI. Have you RE yet? Do you intend to?
nunodonato 6y ago
do you mean monthly? that's impressive. care to share any tips?
three_legs 6y ago
That sounds like really great returns. Where did you start?
sandeshbhusal 6y ago
Tell us more please. :P
- tachibana 6y ago
  You give me too much credit -- it's a really boring approach. My portfolio used to be about 50/50 in fixed income securities and real estate. I got lucky with the real estate, and I got out because I didn't think my luck would last forever. Now my portfolio is made up entirely of fixed income securities and blue-chip stocks that pay dividends. The dividends and interest payments are laddered such that I recieve at least 2 payments a month. I didn't choose securities based on payout dates, so the amount does fluctuate from month-to-month. However, the portfolio generates enough monthly income that the "leanest" month is greater than my paycheck's monthly gross income. Being a software engineer myself, I don't qualify for the Roth accounts so most of my investments are done in a standard taxable account. I don't buy any particular funds -- just a variety of boring bonds and stocks. I did try the RE (retire early) part a while back. It lasted about 6 months before I got too bored out of my mind. I still continue to work because of the mental stimulation and the social connections.
  - twox2 6y ago
    How long did it take you to amass a portfolio like this? Seems like it would take decades unless you have a very high salary.
    - tachibana 6y ago
      It's a function of percentage income saved, not amount earned. The formula is (income / investment rate / percent income saved). If my investment rate is 4%, I need to save 25 years worth of salary. Saving 50% of my salary looks like I would need 50 years on the surface. However, my portfolio generates income from day 1, so it's actually a lot faster than it seems. Just for reference, I was living on less than $750/month until I got married. The companies I worked at had plenty of free food. I didn't need a gym membership because the handyman work I did on my investment properties was more than enough. Until we had kids, my spouse and I were still able to survive on less than $1,000/month. We are based in the south SF Bay Area. We had 100% income replacement by our mid-30s.
      - twox2 6y ago
        Thanks for that additional context!
      - hey_mickie 6y ago
        I really appreciate the details! Out of curiosity, how did you manage to only spend $750 a month to pay for housing, utilities, phone (you mentioned food was free) in south SF Bay Area?
        tachibana 6y ago
        Digging through my old bank statements: - $500/month for rent and utilities by splitting 1 bedroom apartment with roommate) - $30/month for my cell phone plan - $100-150/month for a car 15-year old beater at the time. Mostly gas and minor maintenance - $70/month in spending money
ch1zzle 6y ago
Just curious, what kind of conservative portfolios are you investing in? I was recently trying to get my wife and I invested in something similar, but didn't find many products. We are very risk adverse and recently (after maxing out 401ks) have been "hoarding" saved money in our bank, which doesn't help much.
- tachibana 6y ago
  The key thing for me was to constantly and continually invest. I'm sure you've heard the saying to "maximize time in market; don't time the market." I buy a mix of bonds and stocks that pay dividends. I'll skip reading the financial news from time to time and buy shares in low-cost funds when I'm busy or just feeling lazy.
zavierrodriguez 6y ago
Yes please share. As a new active investor, I've been trying to come up with a strategy that could provide that.
mbielski 6y ago
I'm doing roughly the same thing, but just starting out. The focus is on real estate and business ownership. How long did it take you to get to the RE point?
- tachibana 6y ago
  I reached 100% income replacement for myself in my late 20s. Then I got married and had kids. My spouse and I reached 100% income replacement in our mid-30s. Glad to see a fellow practitioner. Best wishes on your journey!
  - pc86 6y ago
    As someone in their mid 30's who just got below 1 year's salary in debt, I envy your position!
Fumtumi 6y ago
Easy when your base salary is super low :D If not, gz to making your dream.
deleted 6y ago
[deleted]

pmiller2 6y ago

Sounds like you are already FI. Have you RE yet? Do you intend to?

nunodonato 6y ago

do you mean monthly? that's impressive. care to share any tips?

three_legs 6y ago

That sounds like really great returns. Where did you start?

sandeshbhusal 6y ago

Tell us more please. :P

tachibana 6y ago
You give me too much credit -- it's a really boring approach. My portfolio used to be about 50/50 in fixed income securities and real estate. I got lucky with the real estate, and I got out because I didn't think my luck would last forever. Now my portfolio is made up entirely of fixed income securities and blue-chip stocks that pay dividends. The dividends and interest payments are laddered such that I recieve at least 2 payments a month. I didn't choose securities based on payout dates, so the amount does fluctuate from month-to-month. However, the portfolio generates enough monthly income that the "leanest" month is greater than my paycheck's monthly gross income. Being a software engineer myself, I don't qualify for the Roth accounts so most of my investments are done in a standard taxable account. I don't buy any particular funds -- just a variety of boring bonds and stocks. I did try the RE (retire early) part a while back. It lasted about 6 months before I got too bored out of my mind. I still continue to work because of the mental stimulation and the social connections.
- twox2 6y ago
  How long did it take you to amass a portfolio like this? Seems like it would take decades unless you have a very high salary.
  - tachibana 6y ago
    It's a function of percentage income saved, not amount earned. The formula is (income / investment rate / percent income saved). If my investment rate is 4%, I need to save 25 years worth of salary. Saving 50% of my salary looks like I would need 50 years on the surface. However, my portfolio generates income from day 1, so it's actually a lot faster than it seems. Just for reference, I was living on less than $750/month until I got married. The companies I worked at had plenty of free food. I didn't need a gym membership because the handyman work I did on my investment properties was more than enough. Until we had kids, my spouse and I were still able to survive on less than $1,000/month. We are based in the south SF Bay Area. We had 100% income replacement by our mid-30s.
    - twox2 6y ago
      Thanks for that additional context!
    - hey_mickie 6y ago
      I really appreciate the details! Out of curiosity, how did you manage to only spend $750 a month to pay for housing, utilities, phone (you mentioned food was free) in south SF Bay Area?
      - tachibana 6y ago
        Digging through my old bank statements: - $500/month for rent and utilities by splitting 1 bedroom apartment with roommate) - $30/month for my cell phone plan - $100-150/month for a car 15-year old beater at the time. Mostly gas and minor maintenance - $70/month in spending money

ch1zzle 6y ago

Just curious, what kind of conservative portfolios are you investing in? I was recently trying to get my wife and I invested in something similar, but didn't find many products. We are very risk adverse and recently (after maxing out 401ks) have been "hoarding" saved money in our bank, which doesn't help much.

tachibana 6y ago
The key thing for me was to constantly and continually invest. I'm sure you've heard the saying to "maximize time in market; don't time the market." I buy a mix of bonds and stocks that pay dividends. I'll skip reading the financial news from time to time and buy shares in low-cost funds when I'm busy or just feeling lazy.

zavierrodriguez 6y ago

Yes please share. As a new active investor, I've been trying to come up with a strategy that could provide that.

mbielski 6y ago

I'm doing roughly the same thing, but just starting out. The focus is on real estate and business ownership. How long did it take you to get to the RE point?

tachibana 6y ago
I reached 100% income replacement for myself in my late 20s. Then I got married and had kids. My spouse and I reached 100% income replacement in our mid-30s. Glad to see a fellow practitioner. Best wishes on your journey!
- pc86 6y ago
  As someone in their mid 30's who just got below 1 year's salary in debt, I envy your position!

Fumtumi 6y ago

Easy when your base salary is super low :D If not, gz to making your dream.

deleted 6y ago

[deleted]