35 with debt and 3 young kids; is FIRE Possible?

[aida2003]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Blue Collar Guy Ill answer your first question "Is fire possible?" Yes sure it is , Im going to come off hard on you. But here it goes, I think YOU should get a second job. You can deliver pizzas at night for 500 a month.

Way too harsh, I'd say. When would he rest? ...unless I missed something in your articulation of your thoughts here. I see OP's point though that his DW could do something during the day like a part-time gig while the kids are at school, but again it would be tough on the family. Who would cook, grocery shop, or clean the house? Juggle, juggle, all I can say.

PS. OP has vanished? Hope not delivering pizzas now.

[Blue Collar Guy]

Quote:

Originally Posted by aida2003 Way too harsh, I'd say. When would he rest? ...unless I missed something in your articulation of your thoughts here. I see OP's point though that his DW could do something during the day like a part-time gig while the kids are at school, but again it would be tough on the family. Who would cook, grocery shop, or clean the house? Juggle, juggle, all I can say. PS. OP has vanished? Hope not delivering pizzas now.

Yes, I agree I was harsh, the guy makes a buck and a quarter a year , and his idea is to make / force his wife out of the house, to make a few bucks, he said 500 a month. How about he "man up" and either get a side job in his field which would produce more $ per hour then her working. If he cant get a side job due to no work or restrictions, then pizza man, you come to my house Im good for a $5 with every pie delivery. If the bride said "hon I want to get out of this house a few days a week , thats a different story. I didnt get that from his post.

[rodi]

At 35 I had a rough idea that I wanted to retire at 55. For me it was pre-marriage and kids (I was a late bloomer)... but setting a plan was good. Now I'm 55 and retired 3 years ago at age 52... Despite having added a husband and 2 kids to the mix. Here are my thoughts.

Set goals for savings... but don't forget to live life now... Enjoy your kids. Don't be so tight on saving that you don't allow for opportunities with the kids.

Your college savings are probably light. I've got a junior and freshman in HS... college funding is very much on my radar. You don't just need to consider tuition - you also have books, dorms, spending money, etc... Here in CA the "all in" cost for a UC school is close to 32k. Only about $15k of that is tuition. Check the websites of the universities - they should all have some estimated budgets.

Roth is a great option... Make sure you include your wife in the roth contributions so you can both have accounts.

FUEGO - a regular poster here retired young with young children - he's a good example of someone living a very full life with kids under roof, on the cheap. He uses travel hacks to provide international trips each year. He takes advantage of free/cheap programs through the schools and parks, etc.

Have you talked to your wife about all this? Is she on the same page about going back to work? Have you considered what you'll do for school breaks, summers, and after school? Summer day camps can get pricey. Winter break - who stays home? Same with spring break? Depending on her skill set - can she get a job with the school district... that's what one SIL did - gave her summers off and school breaks off... it worked for them.

[imoldernu]

Won't go into making suggestions, but wanted to check in because your planning sounds so much like where I was , back in 1975... when I was your age.. Adjusted for inflation, my salary was somewhat less than yours is today, but everything else was so close that it was deja vu... SAHM wife, four sons, and resources acquired by ourselves.
Major difference was I wasn't smart enough at the time to do the long range planning. It wasn't until a cancer scare in1989, at age 53, that it became real.

A health scare led to a crash course in long range planning, and an assessment of the decision to go back to work, or to take a chance on retiring, with the idea that a return to full or part time work might be necessary.

A relatively detailed review of what we did to become relatively safe in our retirement... (now, 28 years) is spelled out in this extended thread which I've tweaked over the short five years I've been posting here on ER.

http://www.early-retirement.org/foru...ent-62251.html

The reason I'm not suggesting this as a plan for anyone, is because we're all different, and deal with our dreams and goals in a different fashion. What I liked about your post was this:

Quote:

I love my job, but want to do other things in life.

Though I don't often talk about that, it was the driving force that made us bite the bullet, and leave the workforce. The past 28 years have been magnificent and fulfilling, albeit without many of the trappings of wealth... travel, and an extravagant lifestyle. We learned where to go, what to do, and how to spend, to maintain an affordable level of financial management, so that we feel relatively safe as we enter our final years.

No advice ... just a little bit of information about how one couple handled the big question of 'when can we retire?'.

Best wishes, and congratulations on looking ahead at your early age. Not necessary to become compulsive about planning, but a bonus to smooth the psyche, and build an outlook that will guide future success.

[97guns]

A skimpy 5k bank account would be my concern