Quote:
Originally Posted by photoguy
As an individual, I think it depends on how close you are cutting it once you lose the benefits provided by the spouse. E.g., if I lose health insurance provided by the wife, can I still FIRE when I increase the health care budget by 200-300% to account for higher premiums and greater out-of-pocket maximum?
Hypothetically, if my WR had to increase above 3.5% I would not say I was FI without my wife. But this is a tricky game to play because many expenses are infrequent/unpredictable but costly and need to be amortized to a yearly rate for SWR calculations.
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I know what you mean. We have extra money in the retirement budget to cover dental expenses (we won't have dental insurance any longer) and minimal HI premiums (ACA subsidies will pick up most of the tab). If you can't afford the cost of your family's HI and dental care and are reliant on a job to provide those for you, then you're not FI per the definition I go by.
As for lumpy expenses, I amortize those and include them in a yearly budget to make sure we are actually "FI enough". That's most housing and cars.
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Retired in 2013 at age 33. Keeping busy reading, blogging, relaxing, gaming, and enjoying the outdoors with my wife and 3 kids (8, 13, and 15).
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