POLL - What is your $ amount to be FI according to FIREcalc?

[Aiming_4_55]

(emphasis added)

Although still subject to at least some of the variability of a "what is your number poll", it might be interesting to ask what is the minimum FIREcalc success rate that people feel is good enough to retire on?

Is 100% really necessary? I hope not.....

That's where I think I'm being overly conservative. I am shooting for 100% success from FireCalc and other calculators (ORP, Fido, CNN, Merrill, etc). In addition, I padded my current expense numbers (not bare bone expenses) by $10k, discounted SS and rental income. So, I'll probably work a few extra years for no reason just so I am more comfortable. I wish I could pull the plug with a lower success %, but I'm just not ready.

 

[justplainbll]

ADDING POLL

What is minimum $ amount required in your portfolio for you to score 100% success rate in FIREcalc, based on your predicted yearly expenses and the amount of time you need those funds to last.

The poll I suppose will assume you used the standard portfolio used by FIREcalc and all other variables being the standard ones. But if you used different variables then please post them in the comments what you changed along with the $ that you needed to reach 100% success rate.

Thanks for participating

Good poll. Gives a sense of what people feel their spending levels may be in retirement and a limited insight into how adequate one's own asset levels may be.
Would'a been nice to see the percentages for > 3 through > 10 million.

 

[donheff]

I'm on the "no actionable info" side of this discussion. Just looking at the numbers you can visualize a wide variety of pensions and expense levels scattered over the range with a disproportionate number of self funders toward the bottom. If you are trying to figure out what others view as the right "number" the AA/SWR threads provide much more insight. Still, it is interesting to see the range.

 

[Midpack]

I didn't know how to answer either. What I consider FI and what FIRECALC returns are wildly different. And in general, answers for the extremes of SIRE vs FIRE, retirement age, projected spending, AA, etc. would result in a variety of answers. Sorry...

That said, I still consider FIRECALC a great tool, among others.

 

[ERD50]

38B

- Is there a conversion factor for those of us outside Canada? Is that metric, Imperial, other?

-ERD50

 

[martyb]

I voted, but the amount I needed would have been much higher if I didn't have pensions that cover most of our needs.

I take size 12 in a tutu

Likewise....except for the tutu part.

 

[Meadbh]

- Is there a conversion factor for those of us outside Canada? Is that metric, Imperial, other?

-ERD50

You mean you don't have bras in the US? LOL!

 

[winger]

I don't remember. We are in the "live it" phase.

 

[fisherman]

Mens size 12. With kids still home it comes in handy!!!

 

[aaronc879]

I like the idea of a shoe size poll. Finally a poll where i'm on the high end. On net worth or $ needed for FI i'm near the lowest but I wear a men's size 16

 

[rescueme]

I wear a women's shoe size 8.5.

So do I (and I'm a guy ).

Sorry, but polls such as this are not worth much (many responses thus prove that point)....

Dollar amount means little. Now if you were to ask me what multiple of assets I have vs. my need (based on my forecast retirement budget), it's a different thing.

Any answer <1 is a problem; any answer => 1 means you have (as compared to your personal forecast plan) are OK...

 

[Brdofpray]

Likewise....except for the tutu part.

I don't wear tutus, but you should see me in spandex!

 

[Mulligan]

So do I (and I'm a guy ).

Sorry, but polls such as this are not worth much (many responses thus prove that point)....

Dollar amount means little. Now if you were to ask me what multiple of assets I have vs. my need (based on my forecast retirement budget), it's a different thing.

Any answer <1 is a problem; any answer => 1 means you have (as compared to your personal forecast plan) are OK...

I agree. I put less than $200,000 because I have a pension I live off of, and really dont need anything more ( as long as the checks keep coming anyways).

 

[martyb]

I don't wear tutus, but you should see me in spandex!

ummm....I'll pass!

 

[RioIndy]

Hey thanks for all the responses and votes so far.

There are or course a lot of variables that will change many people's answers, and no one's answer is going to be exactly suitable to another's situation of course but that's fine. As many have gathered, this is just for fun/curiosity sake, this is not used seriously in any way, simply a way to see trends and get some light perspective perhaps along with friendly discussion

For example, I can see that no one voted for $900,000 - $999,999. That is interesting as it suggests perhaps that if someone is that close to reaching that 7th figure, they will probably try to stick it out to claim that milestone for themselves.

For myself I voted for $700,000 - $799,999 but could have gone one below.

I am surprised at how many chose over $2,000,000!!! I am curious now if that due to a vary lavish lifestyle or is that the amount considering the expenses of an entire family?

 

[Mulligan]

Hey thanks for all the responses and votes so far.

There are or course a lot of variables that will change many people's answers, and no one's answer is going to be exactly suitable to another's situation of course but that's fine. As many have gathered, this is just for fun/curiosity sake, this is not used seriously in any way, simply a way to see trends and get some light perspective perhaps along with friendly discussion

For example, I can see that no one voted for $900,000 - $999,999. That is interesting as it suggests perhaps that if someone is that close to reaching that 7th figure, they will probably try to stick it out to claim that milestone for themselves.

For myself I voted for $700,000 - $799,999 but could have gone one below.

I am surprised at how many chose over $2,000,000!!! I am curious now if that due to a vary lavish lifestyle or is that the amount considering the expenses of an entire family?

I would have agreed with your last sentence until I started visiting this forum 5 years ago. I had some posters afew years ago inform me that my cola pension was an equivalent to about a 2,000,000 annuity at my age. I had never thought of it in that terminology, so yes you could have 2 mil in the bank and definitely could only have a modest lifestyle. When spreading it out over a lifetime and making it last, that maybe isnt as much money as it appears to us who do not have that type of asset level.

 

[Major Tom]

I'm not sure that I'm qualified to answer this as the question reads "What is your min $ amount to be FI according to FIREcalc?" and although I had a rough target figure in my head, my semi-retirement came about as a result of a layoff; it was forced upon me. I hadn't yet reached my target figure so I looked at the money I'd got, saw what income would still give me a 100% success rate in Firecalc, and started withdrawing less than that (my WR = 2.6%)

In other words, instead of saying "How much do I need to live", I looked at what I had and said to myself, "Hmmm.....is there a way I can live off this little?"

I voted anyway.

 

[lemming]

I didn't have whatI needed for 100% when I lost my job, but I do now
IF I include social security.

What's more interesting to me is if you go over the spending allowed the numbers drop drastically .

Anybody know when the 2008 numbers will show up? Do we have to wait 30 years?

 

[REWahoo]

Anybody know when the 2008 numbers will show up? Do we have to wait 30 years?

No, all you need to do is travel back in time a few years...to January 17, 2009:

FIRECalc now includes the 40+% decline in the equity and interest market from 12/07 through 12/08.

I am using the 12/08 data instead of the as-yet unavailable 1/09 data, but I didn't want to wait another month to get the impact of the 4th quarter 2008 into FIRECalc. So look for a minor correction in another month or so.

dory36

And then this on June 23, 2010:

I just wanted to let you know that the historical data for FireCalc has been updated to include actual results from 2009 and year-to-date values for 2010.

Andy

 

[Midpack]

I am surprised at how many chose over $2,000,000!!! I am curious now if that due to a vary lavish lifestyle or is that the amount considering the expenses of an entire family?

Many on the $2MM category are planning on a very low WR (withdrawal rate). While 4% is often considered the SAFE withdrawal rate for a 65 year old, many here are retiring much earlier. I think the average on this forum in a recent poll was closer to 55. That most likely requires a larger nest egg and a lower withdrawal rate, closer to 3%. And if you add a safety factor for an even more conservative approach, there are people here withdrawing down at 2% or less. That works out to $40K/year - not lavish IMO.

 

[meekie]

Over $2mm here, and between living in an expensive area, and wanting to retire in my 40's, 2 mil won't give me that lavish of a lifestyle. I would like to cut back on spending, but have been having problems with that. My beer fund is kinda high.

One thing that's kinda neat, I hadn't played with FireCalc in a while - if I retired today I actually do have a 1% chance of my money lasting 40 years! I didn't think I'd even get the 1%!

 

[Alan]

I mentally converted and figured what size pot of money I would need to match the pension and added that to what I have.

If I do that then it would be >$2M

 

[youbet]

If I do that then it would be >$2M

Alan, you're gona wind up in lotsa trouble with all that evil money! Wild women, fast horses, expensive booze........ Next thing you know you'll wake up drunk in the gutter, a floozy by your side and a bottle in your hand with a horse standing over you about to take a d......

Watch yourself.......

 

[Midpack]

One thing that's kinda neat, I hadn't played with FireCalc in a while - if I retired today I actually do have a 1% chance of my money lasting 40 years! I didn't think I'd even get the 1%!

I'd recommend you work another year or more...

 

[Koolau]

I wish I could pull the plug with a lower success %, but I'm just not ready.