• The TUGBBS forums are completely free and open to the public and exist as the absolute best place for owners to get help and advice about their timeshares for more than 30 years!

    Join Tens of Thousands of other Owners just like you here to get any and all Timeshare questions answered 24 hours a day!
  • TUG started 30 years ago in October 1993 as a group of regular Timeshare owners just like you!

    Read about our 30th anniversary: Happy 30th Birthday TUG!
  • TUG has a YouTube Channel to produce weekly short informative videos on popular Timeshare topics!

    Free memberships for every 50 subscribers!

    Visit TUG on Youtube!
  • TUG has now saved timeshare owners more than $21,000,000 dollars just by finding us in time to rescind a new Timeshare purchase! A truly incredible milestone!

    Read more here: TUG saves owners more than $21 Million dollars
  • Sign up to get the TUG Newsletter for free!

    60,000+ subscribing owners! A weekly recap of the best Timeshare resort reviews and the most popular topics discussed by owners!
  • Our official "end my sales presentation early" T-shirts are available again! Also come with the option for a free membership extension with purchase to offset the cost!

    All T-shirt options here!
  • A few of the most common links here on the forums for newbies and guests!

How to Retire in Your 30s With $1 Million in the Bank

RNCollins

TUG Lifetime Member
Joined
Jan 2, 2016
Messages
3,329
Reaction score
1,200
Points
399
Location
Borscht Belt
Resorts Owned
Tradewinds, Divi, Quarter House, Casa Ybel
How to Retire in Your 30s With $1 Million in the Bank
https://www.nytimes.com/2018/09/01/style/fire-financial-independence-retire-early.html

By Steven Kurutz / The New York Times / September 1, 2018

“Carl Jensen experienced what he calls “the awakening” sometime around 2012.

He was a software engineer in a suburb of Denver, writing code for a medical device. The job was high-pressure: He had to document every step for the Food and Drug Administration, and a coding error could lead to harm or death for patients.

Mr. Jensen was making about $110,000 a year and had benefits, but the stress hardly seemed worth it. He couldn’t unwind with his family after work; he spent days huddled over the toilet. He lost 10 pounds.

After one especially brutal workday, Mr. Jensen Googled “How do I retire early?” and his eyes were opened. He talked to his wife and came up with a plan: They saved a sizable portion of their income over the next five years and drastically reduced expenses, until their net worth was around $1.2 million.

On Tuesday, March 10, 2017, Mr. Jensen called his boss and gave notice after 15 years at the company. He wasn’t quitting, exactly. He had retired. He was 43.

Hacking Your Way to Retirement
Although Mr. Jensen’s story may seem exceptional, a more modest version of the stockbroker who makes a killing on Wall Street and sails off to the Caribbean, he is part of a growing movement of young professionals who are intently focused on quitting their jobs forever.

Millennials especially have embraced this so-called FIRE movement — the acronym stands for financial independence, retire early — seeing it as a way out of soul-sucking, time-stealing work and an economy fueled by consumerism.

Followers of FIRE tend to be male and work in the tech industry, left-brained engineer-types who geek out on calculating compound interest over 40 years, or the return on investment (R.O.I.) on low-fee index funds versus real estate rentals....”

1205B24E-4459-4E77-9A87-0DDC60492562.jpeg

Photo: SecretEntourage.com
 

MOXJO7282

Tug Review Crew
TUG Member
Joined
Jun 6, 2005
Messages
5,524
Reaction score
1,300
Points
599
He better have a way to continue to make more money because $1.2M net worth doesn't mean $1.2M in cash, even that wouldn't last the rest of a 43 yrs life unless he goes off the grid to live in the forest and doesn't have a concern with healthcare. He has alot more living to do.

I hope to retire in 5 years after what will be 30 years in Corp America and we've been very smart with our money and have more than the $1.2m which they say should be enough if you retire at 65 or so but I'm still very concerned about the future of healthcare and how much that will cost considering my wife has lupus and RA.
 

am1

TUG Member
Joined
Dec 3, 2009
Messages
8,081
Reaction score
1,531
Points
448
That's great for them but 40k a year is not much. Things can get expensive in a hurry. Inflation can wipe out ones savings. Advancement in technology as well.

I hoped for the same but after retiring work harder then ever but I enjoy it.
 

Passepartout

TUG Review Crew: Veteran
TUG Member
Joined
Feb 10, 2007
Messages
28,463
Reaction score
17,214
Points
1,299
Location
Twin Falls, Eye-Duh-Hoe
Someone 40 is looking at very likely 40 and should plan for 60 more years. That million dollars better be someplace besides a bank if it is to provide sufficient income for a couple for that many years. I'm afraid that a lack of 'qualified quarters' will leave their Social Security lacking in 25 years, Health insurance will take a very large bite for 25 years, and that 'life of leisurely retirement' ain't cheap unless one wants to do little more than tend the garden they will need to eat from and sit in a lawn chair doing crosswords.

Still, there is something to be said for saving aggressively while young, and living well below one's means in order to retire both earlier, and wealthier than those who wait until their 50's or later to get serious about saving for a better 'tomorrow'.

That leaves just the crap shoot of one's health as the great unknown about 'how long, and how enjoyable' one's retirement will be.

Jim
 

bbodb1

TUG Review Crew: Expert
TUG Member
Joined
Apr 9, 2016
Messages
4,305
Reaction score
3,824
Points
348
Location
High radiation belt of the Northern Hemisphere
Resorts Owned
RCI Weeks: LaCosta Beach Club, RCI Points: Oakmont Resort, Vacation Village at Parkway. Wyndham: CWA and La Belle Maison, and WorldMark.
As I am getting in the neighborhood of considering retirement, every consideration toward retirement has been bloodily beaten into remission by the costs and uncertainties associated with healthcare costs.
Nothing else is even close.
I feel like we have housing under control.
And (hopefully) our investments.
But healthcare is the great unknown.
 

am1

TUG Member
Joined
Dec 3, 2009
Messages
8,081
Reaction score
1,531
Points
448
As I am getting in the neighborhood of considering retirement, every consideration toward retirement has been bloodily beaten into remission by the costs and uncertainties associated with healthcare costs.
Nothing else is even close.
I feel like we have housing under control.
And (hopefully) our investments.
But healthcare is the great unknown.

You may be better off to move to a place where health care is reasonable.
 

Brett

Guest
Joined
Jun 6, 2005
Messages
9,257
Reaction score
4,897
Points
598
Location
Coastal Virginia
retiring in your 30s is nice but you would probably need more than a million and like others have mentioned health care costs could be a problem
 

PigsDad

TUG Member
Joined
Nov 1, 2006
Messages
10,072
Reaction score
7,077
Points
898
Location
Colorado and SW Florida
Resorts Owned
HGVC Elite: SeaWorld, Surf Club, Charter Club, Valdoro
I guess if they want to basically live not much above the poverty line for the rest of their lives, they might be able to retire on such a small amount in their 30's or 40's, but who would want to live that way? The big unknown of health care expenses as I get older, which rise much faster than general inflation, would cause me more stress than any job, IMO. I guess by their standards I could have retired in my late 30's, but I want to have fun in my retirement, not worry about pinching pennies for the rest of my life. I guess it takes all types...

Kurt
 

BJRSanDiego

TUG Review Crew: Expert
TUG Member
Joined
Jan 8, 2012
Messages
3,439
Reaction score
1,913
Points
398
Location
San Diego
Resorts Owned
Sands of Kahana, Desert Springs I, DSV2, Shadow Ridge Enclaves Dlx
Interesting article stressing the importance of living below your means, and saving a lot while still working. Those two things are really important. The author should have teased his audience though with a follow-on article of "how much can I afford to spend in retirement without running out."

The "4% rule" is a good starting point. No two financial advisors will give you the same answer of whether it should be 4% or something less or more based upon measurable or predictable factors and a good crystal ball. But if you grossly overspend the 4%, especially early into retirement you are more likely to run out of $ early. I've read that one mistake that new retirees sometimes make is to take an extravagant around-the-world vacation, do a major remodel of their house or buy an expensive motor home. That $100K that you pull out of the retirement account will never be going back. If you aren't familiar with the 4% rule, google it.

My best friend had a $1 million retirement nest egg and he wanted to buy a $250K diesel-pusher motor home for traveling a month or two a year. I helped him understand that it was an awful lot to pull out of his retirement account and wasn't too good of an idea. He came to his senses and didn't buy the motorhome. Two months later he died of a brain aneurysm. His widow was glad that they hadn't bought the motorhome.
 

bogey21

TUG Member
Joined
Jun 8, 2005
Messages
9,455
Reaction score
4,662
Points
649
Location
Fort Worth, Texas
But healthcare is the great unknown.

Healthcare in retirement is a tough call. Medicare Advantage Plans are the least costly. Some actually have no monthly premiums depending where you live. The problem with them is that you are locked into the issuer's networks and rules. Traditional Medicare is no free lunch. In addition to your Plan B premium you really should buy a Supplemental Policy and a Prescription Drug Plan. The benefit of Traditional Medicare is that you can go to any Doctor or Hospital that takes Medicare anywhere in the country and don't have to fool with referrals. For some this is a tough call and is generally based on how well off one is financially...

George
 

WinniWoman

TUG Review Crew: Veteran
TUG Member
Joined
Jul 16, 2010
Messages
10,762
Reaction score
7,057
Points
749
Location
The Weirs, New Hampshire
Resorts Owned
Innseason Pollard Brook
For us the worst seems to be health care insurance and property and school taxes, as well as other insurances- like car and homeowners.
 

DaveNV

TUG Review Crew: Expert
TUG Member
Joined
Jun 1, 2006
Messages
22,003
Reaction score
29,217
Points
1,348
Location
Mesquite, Nevada
Resorts Owned
Free Agent
I have a friend who got a big settlement from Verizon a number of years ago. (He was a very long-term employee, sued them over some sort of labor discrimination issue, and he won. I'm not sure how much he received, but I heard it was a lot. They encouraged him to consider "early retirement." He took the money and ran.)

He'd always been frugal, to the point of being the poster boy for squeezing every drop of blood out of every rock he ever found. I've never seen anybody as cheap as he is. (But it's his life, not mine.) He had invested in a vacation condo in Mexico a number of years before, and would take his vacations there. At first he went there for a couple of weeks at a time, Then for a month. Then three months. And finally, he said, "I'm not coming back." His house here was put into a rental program through a real estate company. He sold everything else, and moved to Mexico permanently.

It's been more than ten years, and he's still there. He married a Mexican National a few years ago, so I assume he now has some sort of dual citizenship, and from all signs, he is very, very happy. He's still as tight-fisted as a man can be, but he lives comfortably on his investments. His house and other investments here have since been liquidated, and he's having great fun on the beach down there. He's just now about 50. I'm very proud of him.

Dave
 

Panina

TUG Review Crew: Elite
TUG Member
Joined
Jul 13, 2015
Messages
6,781
Reaction score
9,968
Points
499
Location
Florida
Resorts Owned
Hgvc Anderson, Blue Ride Village Resort
For us the worst seems to be health care insurance and property and school taxes, as well as other insurances- like car and homeowners.
I moved to a place with very low property taxes, unfortunately one is stuck with high insurance prices.
 

Panina

TUG Review Crew: Elite
TUG Member
Joined
Jul 13, 2015
Messages
6,781
Reaction score
9,968
Points
499
Location
Florida
Resorts Owned
Hgvc Anderson, Blue Ride Village Resort
My best friend had a $1 million retirement nest egg and he wanted to buy a $250K diesel-pusher motor home for traveling a month or two a year. I helped him understand that it was an awful lot to pull out of his retirement account and wasn't too good of an idea. He came to his senses and didn't buy the motorhome. Two months later he died of a brain aneurysm. His widow was glad that they hadn't bought the motorhome.
Saving is prudent but none of us know how long we will be here. Sometimes $1 is alot, sometimes $250,000 isn’t. What if he had the time of his life before he left with the motor home? No right answer but something to think about.
 

DaveNV

TUG Review Crew: Expert
TUG Member
Joined
Jun 1, 2006
Messages
22,003
Reaction score
29,217
Points
1,348
Location
Mesquite, Nevada
Resorts Owned
Free Agent
My best friend had a $1 million retirement nest egg and he wanted to buy a $250K diesel-pusher motor home for traveling a month or two a year. I helped him understand that it was an awful lot to pull out of his retirement account and wasn't too good of an idea. He came to his senses and didn't buy the motorhome. Two months later he died of a brain aneurysm. His widow was glad that they hadn't bought the motorhome.

Sometimes that isn't all that uncommon. My Uncle had deferred pleasure all through his working life, preferring to be a workaholic who banked and/or invested every nickel. He finally retired. He and my Aunt sold their older house, bought a fancy new one, and a big motorhome to travel around the country. A few months later, he was hospitalized out of state for what turned out to be a severely advanced strain of leukemia. He died just a few weeks later. My Aunt was stranded four states from home with a motorhome she couldn't drive, and was now a widow. Her kids had to come rescue her. She lived about 20 more years, but was never happy after that. She felt she'd been robbed of her happiness, too.

As the saying goes, "Life is short. Eat dessert first."

Dave
 
Last edited:

BJRSanDiego

TUG Review Crew: Expert
TUG Member
Joined
Jan 8, 2012
Messages
3,439
Reaction score
1,913
Points
398
Location
San Diego
Resorts Owned
Sands of Kahana, Desert Springs I, DSV2, Shadow Ridge Enclaves Dlx
Saving is prudent but none of us know how long we will be here. Sometimes $1 is alot, sometimes $250,000 isn’t. What if he had the time of his life before he left with the motor home? No right answer but something to think about.
He was contemplating buying it in advance of traveling. So, even if he bought it, it would have sat in his driveway....sadly....until he passed. He was such a good friend. I miss him a lot. :bawl:
 

Panina

TUG Review Crew: Elite
TUG Member
Joined
Jul 13, 2015
Messages
6,781
Reaction score
9,968
Points
499
Location
Florida
Resorts Owned
Hgvc Anderson, Blue Ride Village Resort
He was contemplating buying it in advance of traveling. So, even if he bought it, it would have sat in his driveway....sadly....until he passed. He was such a good friend. I miss him a lot. :bawl:
So sorry for your loss. I understand. I lost my first husband unexpectedly from a brain aneurysm.
 

VacationForever

TUG Review Crew
TUG Member
Joined
Dec 5, 2010
Messages
16,199
Reaction score
10,611
Points
1,048
Location
Somewhere Out There
Healthcare in retirement is a tough call. Medicare Advantage Plans are the least costly. Some actually have no monthly premiums depending where you live. The problem with them is that you are locked into the issuer's networks and rules. Traditional Medicare is no free lunch. In addition to your Plan B premium you really should buy a Supplemental Policy and a Prescription Drug Plan. The benefit of Traditional Medicare is that you can go to any Doctor or Hospital that takes Medicare anywhere in the country and don't have to fool with referrals. For some this is a tough call and is generally based on how well off one is financially...

George
When people who want to retire early say healthcare costs is the unknown, they are mostly referring to years before they become eligible for Medicare. Medicare premiums and even with a supplemental insurance + drug plan are small potatoes when compared to how much health insurance cost in the US before they become eligible for Medicare.
 
Last edited:

BJRSanDiego

TUG Review Crew: Expert
TUG Member
Joined
Jan 8, 2012
Messages
3,439
Reaction score
1,913
Points
398
Location
San Diego
Resorts Owned
Sands of Kahana, Desert Springs I, DSV2, Shadow Ridge Enclaves Dlx
So sorry for your loss. I understand. I lost my first husband unexpectedly from a brain aneurysm.
Thank you for your kind thoughts. After he was taken to the hospital they operated on him to address the aneurysm. They stopped the bleeding but, sadly, it was too late. He was gone. His brain had no activity. So his wife did the only thing that law allows - - sedate him with opiates and deprive him of food and water. California has a new euthanasia law to avoid unnecessary and actually barbaric suffering. But it requires that the person be cognizant and be able to go through a series of three interviews. So, my poor friend did not have that humane option. He existed until his system slowly shut down.
 

breezez

TUG Member
Joined
Jul 1, 2015
Messages
1,020
Reaction score
693
Points
224
Location
Dover, FL
Resorts Owned
WorldMark 39K
Wyndham 406K
RCI Points 196K
Hyatt Pinon Pointe
Hyatt Coconut Plantation
I want to be able to retire at 56, my wife would be 62... I want to be able to go and do stuff before I’m too old to be able to do much stuff. I have done well saving and think from an expense standpoint I can survive ok. But my one concern is health care, It’s the one thing I have no idea how to budget for. My guess is maybe $1200 per month, but I have no idea.

I would be interested in knowing for those of you that retired early and your pension/employer did not provide health care how are you going about your health care coverage / expenses, and just how expensive is it?
 

bluehende

TUG Review Crew: Veteran
TUG Member
Joined
Jun 6, 2005
Messages
4,507
Reaction score
3,967
Points
598
When people who want to retire early say healthcare costs is the unknown, they are mostly referring to years before they become eligible for Medicare. Medicare premiums and even with a supplemental insurance + drug plan are small potatoes when compared to how much health insurance costs in the US before they become eligible for Medicare.

I cannot wait until i am eligible for medicare. It will be the biggest raise I have ever had.
 

VacationForever

TUG Review Crew
TUG Member
Joined
Dec 5, 2010
Messages
16,199
Reaction score
10,611
Points
1,048
Location
Somewhere Out There
I want to be able to retire at 56, my wife would be 62... I want to be able to go and do stuff before I’m too old to be able to do much stuff. I have done well saving and think from an expense standpoint I can survive ok. But my one concern is health care, It’s the one thing I have no idea how to budget for. My guess is maybe $1200 per month, but I have no idea.

I would be interested in knowing for those of you that retired early and your pension/employer did not provide health care how are you going about your health care coverage / expenses, and just how expensive is it?
We retired 2.5 years ago - me at age 53. As you may know as you get older, the premiums go up. At 55, I pay $900 per month for a "Gold" plan from the private individual market, aka off-exchange plan. The insurance plans offered by ACA are extremely crappy where we live and none of my doctors, PCP inclusive, would take any of them. I have no choice but to find something that is off-exchange that costs more but provide better reimbursement rates. When I get to 64, at net present value, I expect it to go to around $1.5K per month. The main thing is to budget for it and add another $3K to $5K per year for deductible and co-pay. Yes, I plan for 20K a year in medical expenses for me. I cannot wait to get old and get on Medicare.

In the meantime, we are enjoying retirement. We exercise and golf regularly, and travel a lot - cruise, timeshare, land tour etc.
 

bluehende

TUG Review Crew: Veteran
TUG Member
Joined
Jun 6, 2005
Messages
4,507
Reaction score
3,967
Points
598
I want to be able to retire at 56, my wife would be 62... I want to be able to go and do stuff before I’m too old to be able to do much stuff. I have done well saving and think from an expense standpoint I can survive ok. But my one concern is health care, It’s the one thing I have no idea how to budget for. My guess is maybe $1200 per month, but I have no idea.

I would be interested in knowing for those of you that retired early and your pension/employer did not provide health care how are you going about your health care coverage / expenses, and just how expensive is it?

I know the policy I have which is subsidized by my old company costs about 1500 a month and has a fairly high deductible 2800. I also looked into Obama care and the unsubsidized rate was about 2200 a month with very good coverage. That was for 2 at 62
 

breezez

TUG Member
Joined
Jul 1, 2015
Messages
1,020
Reaction score
693
Points
224
Location
Dover, FL
Resorts Owned
WorldMark 39K
Wyndham 406K
RCI Points 196K
Hyatt Pinon Pointe
Hyatt Coconut Plantation
Thanks for the reply’s. So plan on 20K to be safe till Medicare kicks in. Is that for 2 people or 1? Hopefully 2.

Not to be political, but I sure hope they can work together to come up with a health care solution most Americans can be happy with and could be reasonably affordable for the average person.
 

VacationForever

TUG Review Crew
TUG Member
Joined
Dec 5, 2010
Messages
16,199
Reaction score
10,611
Points
1,048
Location
Somewhere Out There
Thanks for the reply’s. So plan on 20K to be safe till Medicare kicks in. Is that for 2 people or 1? Hopefully 2.

Not to be political, but I sure hope they can work together to come up with a health care solution most Americans can be happy with and could be reasonably affordable for the average person.
One person - just me. My husband is on Medicare.

If you are relatively healthy, you can look into Health Sharing. It is a much cheaper option but when I spoke with my doctors, they all told me to pay them directly and claim from Health Sharing directly. I am still chewing on it.
 
Top