I suspect you're mostly venting and having a wistful mid career crisis, as even a small amount of effort of research into this topic will lead you into a wealth

I suspect you're mostly venting and having a wistful mid career crisis, as even a small amount of effort of research into this topic will lead you into a wealth of readily available resources on how to achieve "FIRE" (financial independence retire early), mixed with a dash of geographic arbitrage. For a very basic beginner intro, you can start here: https://www.mrmoneymustache.com/2012/01/13/the-shockingly-simple-math-behind-early-retirement/ https://www.mrmoneymustache.com/2012/01/13/the-shockingly-si... ... In a nutshell, at one extreme (I do not recommend this, you will not succeed if you pursue this type of hyper frugality) if you can save 90% of your income, you'll be able to retire in about 3 years (assuming you start with 0 net worth, no major debts, etc.). All other retirement plans are just variations on speed and relative acceptable frugality.