Share your FIRE Milestones - 2013- 2020

[2017ish]

...

It's gonna be savory. I wonder, will the next ~2 years be the shortest or longest of my life?

Agree with Huston55--if you enjoy your work, it'll go fast. DW gave her informal notice 2 years ago in Feb/March (mine was Sept or so of '15), and the time has flown so far.

Congrats on the change in planning status!

 

[Huston55]

Hit 3.2MM net worth this year and I am ready to pull the plug, now @60 ...... just have to convince DW

Congrats!

Just find her soft spot (well, you know what I mean)

For my DW, it was letting her choose the FIRE location, from several we'd narrowed it down to.

 

[Koogie]

Crested ever so slightly over the 2MM portfolio mark at closing on the 30th.
Will see if the market sustains that. Still, it was a nice feeling when I ran the numbers yesterday and saw it and we celebrated a little at dinner.

 

[nash031]

Two-comma club invested assets for the first time... woot! Made it before 40!

 

[pletal]

Keep on trucking

This month crossed over the 6M mark. Includes ira's sep's muni's and CD's. Look like we are getting 3.2% return all around. Just turning 52 DW is 58. Not including properties. Not holding much in the stock market so the market doesn't affect me.

Thought I was going to retire in 2011. Life threw a large curve ball. Still going to the rat race for awhile. Took off 8 weeks in 2016

Don't ask me why: Billy Joel

 

[Dash man]

Share your FIRE Milestones

Four years ago today I gave my three month notice. DW finally joined me the middle of last year. Net worth has tripled since my last day of work. I'm 57 pounds lighter and need less blood pressure meds than four years ago. First grand child is on the way, so an exciting year is ahead. Life is good!

 

[dvalley]

400k NW now after reaching 300k towards the beginning of the year. Next stop 500k! Still a long way to go but will be happy to cross 500k and hopefully the 2nd 500k will be a little easier to reach 1mm.

Congrats! Nice work.

Two-comma club invested assets for the first time... woot! Made it before 40!

You guys did it congrats!

I crossed 500k in 2016, hoping for 600k this year so still several years from the two comma club.

 

[dvalley]

This month crossed over the 6M mark. Includes ira's sep's muni's and CD's. Look like we are getting 3.2% return all around. Just turning 52 DW is 58. Not including properties. Not holding much in the stock market so the market doesn't affect me.

Thought I was going to retire in 2011. Life threw a large curve ball. Still going to the rat race for awhile. Took off 8 weeks in 2016

Don't ask me why: Billy Joel

Yeah 4% SWR only gives you $240k per year you'd better stay in the workforce for another decade or more to be on the safe side

Congrats!

 

[RobLJ]

Hit 2.2 million net worth Friday; 10 years ago Quicken says it was 656k.
10 years of accumulation and compounding can accomplish a lot, for those of you in your mid 30s to mid 40s (I was 48 then).
Semi-retired for 18 months and think I convinced DW to hang it up in 2-3 years.

 

[enginerd]

NW hit $2M today. It's been almost 4 years (to the week) since I crossed the $1M mark and 8 years since hitting $500k. Hopefully we can keep this going and my NW doubles 2 more times in the next 8 years.

 

[JohnT]

Retirement accounts now over $2.7M. I won't touch them for at least 10 years, so have been analyzing Roth conversions. Not convinced it will help me much given my current tax bracket, but it's a good problem to have I suppose.

 

[Finance Dave]

We reached our magic number in Oct. last year...but DW was concerned about health care costs until Medicare since we are 55/59 and ACA is expensive...so we added $60k to the magic number to cover premiums until Medicare age. Just topped that number this week, so we are planning her exit from large corporation...probably May. I am "rehired", only work 2-3 days a week as a home inspector...and my licenses will allow me to do this through late 2018, then I'm fully retired.

We have 8 vacations planned this year...starting with 2 weeks in Hawaii in February.

 

[NameRedacted]

I'm posting this from a hotel room.

I tendered my resignation on Jan 3rd. It went better than I thought it would and my boss accepted it with good grace but asked me not to tell anyone which I thought was a bit strange.

I thought long and hard about how much notice to give. My initial plan was 2-3 weeks but eventually I decide on one month.

A couple of days after that he called me and asked if I'd be willing to fly to the office for a week (I work remotely) ostensibly to train my replacements. I agreed because 1) it'll be nice to say goodbye to some of my colleagues and 2) air miles.

A few days after that he called me and asked if I'd be willing to stay an extra month and offered to pay my annual bonus a little early as incentive. I agreed. He didn't really explain why the extra month was needed. It's not like what I do is hard and anyone with a few years experience in my field should be capable of picking it up in a week or two.

So now, as I mentioned earlier, I'm sitting in a hotel room experiencing some trepidation. I don't enjoy being the center of attention much and I now have to face a whole week of answering endless questions about why I'm leaving and what I'm planning to do. Being remote I was hoping to avoid all that.

At least he put out an official announcement that I'm leaving.

Additionally, I'm suffering a bit from buyer's remorse. The plan was just three more weeks but now I have to wait seven weeks. That may not sound like much but I feel a bit like a prisoner whose sentence has just been extended by one more month.

 

[Huston55]

I'm posting this from a hotel room.

I tendered my resignation on Jan 3rd. It went better than I thought it would and my boss accepted it with good grace but asked me not to tell anyone which I thought was a bit strange.

I thought long and hard about how much notice to give. My initial plan was 2-3 weeks but eventually I decide on one month.

A couple of days after that he called me and asked if I'd be willing to fly to the office for a week (I work remotely) ostensibly to train my replacements. I agreed because 1) it'll be nice to say goodbye to some of my colleagues and 2) air miles.

A few days after that he called me and asked if I'd be willing to stay an extra month and offered to pay my annual bonus a little early as incentive. I agreed. He didn't really explain why the extra month was needed. It's not like what I do is hard and anyone with a few years experience in my field should be capable of picking it up in a week or two.

So now, as I mentioned earlier, I'm sitting in a hotel room experiencing some trepidation. I don't enjoy being the center of attention much and I now have to face a whole week of answering endless questions about why I'm leaving and what I'm planning to do. Being remote I was hoping to avoid all that.

At least he put out an official announcement that I'm leaving.

Additionally, I'm suffering a bit from buyer's remorse. The plan was just three more weeks but now I have to wait seven weeks. That may not sound like much but I feel a bit like a prisoner whose sentence has just been extended by one more month.

Is there some benefit you qualify for if you stay the extra month? I expect not, or you'd already know about it but, just a thought.

This would be a great time, while you have the most leverage you might ever have, to think about any perks (relocation assistance, extended health insurance [which can be done as a part-time employee and/or using PTO to extend your employed status], a bonus bump, severance, etc.) and ask your boss if he'd consider them.

PS: Congrats on your FIRE!

 

[JohnnyBGoode]

I don't enjoy being the center of attention much and I now have to face a whole week of answering endless questions about why I'm leaving and what I'm planning to do. Being remote I was hoping to avoid all that.

Interesting - I am actually dreading that part as well. I like my w*rk colleagues well enough and consider many of them friends (or at least work-friends). But as soon as I give notice, all of a sudden it is like everyone knows my (financial) business. There is no way someone would leave a well paying high tech job voluntarily without another one to go to unless they didn't have to work any more. Which is of course is true but its not like I need the world to know about it. Not sure how to handle that part. Staying w*rking is not a good answer though...

 

[NameRedacted]

Well the idea is to retire not work part-time. Also what I do isn't conducive to part time work. In simple terms I fix things when they break. That's something else I'm looking forward to - not being on perma-call.

 

[NameRedacted]

Interesting - I am actually dreading that part as well. I like my w*rk colleagues well enough and consider many of them friends (or at least work-friends). But as soon as I give notice, all of a sudden it is like everyone knows my (financial) business. There is no way someone would leave a well paying high tech job voluntarily without another one to go to unless they didn't have to work any more. Which is of course is true but its not like I need the world to know about it. Not sure how to handle that part. Staying w*rking is not a good answer though...

So far everything has been good. Now if only people didn't seem so happy that I'm leaving...

 

[Johanson]

I'm posting this from a hotel room.

I tendered my resignation on Jan 3rd. It went better than I thought it would and my boss accepted it with good grace but asked me not to tell anyone which I thought was a bit strange.

I thought long and hard about how much notice to give. My initial plan was 2-3 weeks but eventually I decide on one month.

A couple of days after that he called me and asked if I'd be willing to fly to the office for a week (I work remotely) ostensibly to train my replacements. I agreed because 1) it'll be nice to say goodbye to some of my colleagues and 2) air miles.

A few days after that he called me and asked if I'd be willing to stay an extra month and offered to pay my annual bonus a little early as incentive. I agreed. He didn't really explain why the extra month was needed. It's not like what I do is hard and anyone with a few years experience in my field should be capable of picking it up in a week or two.

So now, as I mentioned earlier, I'm sitting in a hotel room experiencing some trepidation. I don't enjoy being the center of attention much and I now have to face a whole week of answering endless questions about why I'm leaving and what I'm planning to do. Being remote I was hoping to avoid all that.

At least he put out an official announcement that I'm leaving.

Additionally, I'm suffering a bit from buyer's remorse. The plan was just three more weeks but now I have to wait seven weeks. That may not sound like much but I feel a bit like a prisoner whose sentence has just been extended by one more month.

Ha! A hotel room! That's usually where I am (120-140 nights/year). When I'm not, which is rare, I work remotely. I only laugh because I have been home now for more than a month with no work trips planned at all and I'm replying from my bedroom.

Anyhoo, regarding the extension, take it. It will be a blip in your memory. If you are going to be staying in a hotel this whole time, make sure you are collecting points on their loyalty program. If their loyalty program sucks, move and stay at a different hotel.

I'm sure I'll post this again on this forum but I suspect I will travel less when I'm retired not only because I travel so much now, but because I earn so many freebies traveling on my company's dime. That will go away when I finally pack it in.

 

[TNBound]

Just got home from my retirement party [emoji322]. It was a lot of fun and made things seem more real. I've honestly been having trouble wrapping my head around the fact that I'm actually retiring and everyone coming out to wish me well and getting to say good bye was a great send off. I feel blessed to have had my career, but am so ready for the next chapter.

 

[FIREmenow]

Hope this year is as good as the last!! Tracking well above planned!

Have to stay w&*king until 10/2018 to get healthcare package.

 

[ugeauxgirl]

Milestone- 2 mil!

We just crossed 2 mil (liquid- not total)- and my countdown timer is below 400 days! YAY! Can see light at the end of this tunnel!

 

[Bigdawg]

We just crossed 2 mil (liquid- not total)- and my countdown timer is below 400 days! YAY! Can see light at the end of this tunnel!

Out frickin standing! Good for you. Congrats!

 

[Huston55]

Hope this year is as good as the last!! Tracking well above planned!

Have to stay w&*king until 10/2018 to get healthcare package.

Congrats!

I'm curious, now that you're 'above the line', how you plan to go forward until Nov 2018. Will you maintain/change your AA? Will you sock away more 'reserve' $? How will you respond to a downturn?

I ask because we were in a similar situation ~10yrs ago (but with a longer horizon to FI), and addressed it as described in "Behavior #2" of the OP of this thread.

http://www.early-retirement.org/forums/f28/behavioral-finance-anne-tergesen-article-85075.html

 

[halcyon]

Crossed 250k in our investments on the same day the Dow crossed 20k. I'll take it!

 

[FIREmenow]

Congrats!

I'm curious, now that you're 'above the line', how you plan to go forward until Nov 2018. Will you maintain/change your AA? Will you sock away more 'reserve' $? How will you respond to a downturn?

I ask because we were in a similar situation ~10yrs ago (but with a longer horizon to FI), and addressed it as described in "Behavior #2" of the OP of this thread.

http://www.early-retirement.org/forums/f28/behavioral-finance-anne-tergesen-article-85075.html

Thanks for the insight!! We have decided to "stay the course". Keep AA the same. Saving most of our income just the same.

We both think that there may be some major pullbacks coming - but with the huge run-up recently, and our AA, even a MAJOR drop would only put us right back on the "plan" line. If it doesn't happen, all the better!

More of just feeling additional comfort at this point , rather than making any changes.