The first million takes the longest to achieve

[TheWizard]

30, 4
Details... NW, not investments but we don't own a house we live in right now, so what's the difference, really. The first milestone would have been hit by 25 were it not for the big D. The second milestone was basically this month, so, yeah the first was the hardest!

The Big D, ah yes. Happened to me also.
It knocked me down from a bit over $1M jointly to around half of that.
But I made it all back and more, working a bit longer perhaps.

And now it's mine...all mine... *evil laugh*

 

[Rocky mtn high]

That 1st million was a big deal for me. Now they just keep coming

 

[dmpi]

The more millions you rack up the smaller your expenses become in a relative sense. It grows pretty fast if you got a few million under your belt. My ultimate goal is to qualify for Schwab Private Wealth Services in which you need ten million. Not there yet... but working on it.

 

[aja8888]

I LOST my first million in 1992 when I ended up in a very expensive California divorce and job loss (both at the same time).

I restarted in Texas in an apartment with rented furniture and two teenage daughters (14 & 16 years old) to raise by myself. A court ordered sale of our two California houses netted me $40K after fees, moving, and the divorce attorneys' costs. Paid off the two mortgages on those homes too.

Shortly thereafter (1995) when I turned 52 years old, I met the love of my life who was nearly as broke as I was with three grown children. We were married in 1996. She was a District Manager for a Real estate company and I landed a decent engineering job. We used what was left of the $40K on a 2,000 sq. ft. Texas house and combined our belongings which were a mix of mostly old or used furniture.

We combined our mixed families and soon after three grandchildren (by her children) and made a wonderful family unit out of the group! For the next 27 years we had a great blended family and had lots of holidays and time together. That alone, was worth another couple of million.

Somehow, along the way to 2023, we put two children and one grandchild through college, debt free, ended up with two paid off houses, and generated enough savings to be able to retire and will be able to leave a very nice inheritance for those in the family who will need it.

Millions, yes, but no particular event dates. I lost the love of my life to COPD in December 2022. Money doesn't mean a whole lot to me these days, but it is still nice to have enough.

 

[luckydude]

First three million (HHNW):

13 years - 2004 EOY $1 million
3 years - 2007 EOY $2 million
5 years - 2012 EOY $3 million

After that, HHNW grew exponentially thanks for inheritance and investment returns:

2013 EOY $9 million (big jump due to inheritance)
2015 EOY $12 million (I retired and DW kept working; DW finally made it into senior management in MegaCorp and hit paydirt)
2019 EOY $21 million (big jump due to massive appreciation in RE holdings + DW's MegaCorp comps; we also plowed more money into RE)
2021 EOY $29 million (another big jump due to Covid-fueled appreciations in RE and equities)
2022 EOY $27 million (declines due to RE and equity market correction)

Haven't bothered with tracking HHNW since end of 2022.

 

[Onda]

Investable assets (not counting real estate) datapoints that I remember:

Age 18 Refugee comming to USA with 20 bucks
Age 32 150k
Age 40 1M
Age 47 3M Feeling FI
Age 52 5M+
Age 56 9M+
Age 57 8M+ RE while DW continues working
Age 59 12M+ Those Mag 7 RSUs are paying off

 

[street]

Some great success stories!!

aja8888, as you illustrated life can always change things in a hurry. I thank you for sharing your story and how we all need to keep on, when thing might be going as well as planned. Thanks

luckydude and Onda >>> very impressive!!! Thanks

 

[SloHan]

Hit the first million in 2016 after about 27 years of investing. The second million was 5 years later in 2021. That mark did not last long after negative 2022 returns, but had more than recovered by end of year 2023.

 

[athena53]

Hit $1 million in 2005 at age 52, so 30 years out of college. Slowed down by living in a HCOL area with a spendthrift first husband who was unemployed the last 5 years of the marriage.

$2 million in 2012, so 7 years.

$3 million in 2017, even with retirement in 2014.

Still working on $4 million. I came darn close in late 2021 and then everything crashed.
I think I'm also getting a little more liberal in spending/giving 10 years into retirement.

 

[LateToFIRE]

Unfortunately, I don't have perfect info on my progression. Also, I tracked NW more closely than securities portfolio, so real estate has also played a big factor. I think I hit the $1M NW mark just before I turned 40. At age 50, NW was $2.5M, but this was just after the 2008 crisis, so was actually a depressed figure, as had hit $3M sooner in my mid 40's. From here things kinda took off with both stocks and r.e. Next couple years, added $1M per year. In recent history as approached 60, pace has slowed to about a million about every 3 years. Hard to generalize as it's been very lumpy, but I ain't complaining. NW is currently approaching $10M. Recently FIRE'd, early 60's, now making big adjustments to securities and r.e. holdings, which will mean some really big tax bills, so expect NW growth will slow as I write those jumbo tax checks and start to draw on portfolio, and also due to inflation and where we are in the market cycle. I will be delayed in hitting $10M NW, but will get there eventually, not so much as a goal, as just, that's what the base case projections show.

P.S. My conservative forecast in retirement is that portfolio (and NW) should continue growing about $1M every 4 years, as will be conservatively throwing off about $500K average in annual earnings vs total spending budget of ~$250K (including taxes). Much depends on how aggressively we spend as budget contains about 50% discretionary. Not looking to die rich, but on the other hand I think our spending will actually come down over time as we become more sedentary.

P.S. Worth adding that much as I'm a numbers guy and all these numbers are pretty accurate, it is just hard for it to seem remotely real to me. In my head, I am still a poor scrappy schub barely scrapping by who has got to keep working for the man to put food on the table. Adjustment to the FIRE'd life is just gonna take awhile.

 

[LateToFIRE]

Unfortunately, I don't have perfect info on my progression. Also, I tracked NW more closely than securities portfolio, so real estate has also played a big factor. I think I hit the $1M NW mark just before I turned 40. At age 50, NW was $2.5M, but this was just after the 2008 crisis, so was actually a depressed figure, as had hit $3M sooner in my mid 40's. From here things kinda took off with both stocks and r.e. Next couple years, added $1M per year. In recent history as approached 60, pace has slowed to about a million about every 3 years. Hard to generalize as it's been very lumpy, but I ain't complaining. NW is currently approaching $10M. Recently FIRE'd, early 60's, now making big adjustments to securities and r.e. holdings, which will mean some really big tax bills, so expect NW growth will slow as I write those jumbo tax checks and start to draw on portfolio, and also due to inflation and where we are in the market cycle. I will be delayed in hitting $10M NW, but will get there eventually, not so much as a goal, as just, that's what the base case projections show.

P.S. My conservative forecast in retirement is that portfolio (and NW) should continue growing about $1M every 4 years, as will be conservatively throwing off about $500K average in annual earnings vs total spending budget of ~$250K (including taxes). Much depends on how aggressively we spend as budget contains about 50% discretionary. Not looking to die rich, but on the other hand I think our spending will actually come down over time as we become more sedentary.

P.S. Worth adding that much as I'm a numbers guy and all these numbers are pretty accurate, it is just hard for it to seem remotely real to me. In my head, I am still a poor scrappy schub barely scrapping by who has got to keep working for the man to put food on the table. Adjustment to the FIRE'd life is just gonna take awhile.

Correction:
Double-checked my numbers, and much as I'd like to claim I was a millionaire before 40, it looks like did not hit my first $1M NW until early 40's, though somehow hit ~$3M in my mid-40's. I think owing to a combo of home runs on stock market rebound from 2001 recession, strong earned-income (and commensurate savings), huge impact of RSU's, and very strong r.e. appreciation.

So, basically, that first million took 20 long years to acquire, really more like 10 years if I only count years after paid off student loans and started saving/investing. But right after that first mil, everything took off like a rocket ship. Would note that I went back, pulled all my earnings from the SS website, and inflation-adjusted each year. What's interesting is that on an inflation-adjusted basis, my mid-40's were by far my very best earning years and the investments I made in that timeframe clearly set me up to be where I am today.

 

[ShokWaveRider]

Our 4th seems to be taking forever. But there and then we are starting to draw down now, and we do not gamble/invest in the Casino Market.

 

[LateToFIRE]

^^^
Further to the above, what's kinda interesting is that on a % growth basis, my NW growth has definitely slowed over time. Seems like those aggressive early gains are hard to replicate, though now the much larger base of NW sort of sustains its own momentum without too much effort. I think some of the factors in this trend were that early on, savings from earnings and investment growth simply had a much bigger impact - law of small numbers.

Whereas, now it's just harder to move the needle because the NW figure is larger - if I add another $1M today the impact is somewhat muted compared to 15 years ago. Also, in more recent years, on an inflation-adjusted basis, I have quite simply been earning less, but with a more expensive lifestyle, so savings as a % of NW have slowed considerably.

But, I think the larger asset base has kinda saved me from my lifestyle inflation and reduced earnings/savings by taking on a life of its own in terms of growth. In short, earnings from assets substantially exceeds anything I could save from earned income at this point. Hope some of that made sense.

 

[Onda]

Correction:
I think owing to a combo of home runs on stock market rebound from 2001 recession, strong earned-income (and commensurate savings), huge impact of RSU's, and very strong r.e. appreciation.

I would not count real estate one lives in. I count it more like a liability, which requires income to be sustained.

 

[ShokWaveRider]

I would not count real estate one lives in. I count it more like a liability, which requires income to be sustained.

I disagree, in our area we cannot rent a home 50% of the size of ours for what it costs to run ours a month all in! Maybe getting a rental 30% of the size we could. One has to live somewhere; we are not prepared to move across the tracks just to save on accommodation.

 

[LateToFIRE]

I would not count real estate one lives in. I count it more like a liability, which requires income to be sustained.

Oh boy, here we go again. Please no debates on definition of NW. The definition is quite clear. You do whatever you want. I have valuable real estate that will be sold off over the next couple years. You better believe I'm counting it. And my primary home has at least $500K home equity which should grow to over $1M during my retirement. I'm counting it.

 

[Onda]

I disagree, in our area we cannot rent a home 50% of the size of ours for what it costs to run ours a month all in! Maybe getting a rental 30% of the size we could.

Look if you own and plan to stay in 3M house versus somebody who owns 1M house you better have much bigger nest egg to pay taxes, heat, maintain that house.

So to me it was always a liability in FIRE planning.

 

[LateToFIRE]

Look if you own and plan to stay in 3M house versus somebody who owns 1M house you better have much bigger nest egg to pay taxes, heat, maintain that house.

So to me it was always a liability in FIRE planning.

Let's not confuse FIRE planning with how to calc net worth.

 

[Onda]

Let's not confuse FIRE planning with how to calc net worth.

So to you first 1M includes equity in you home. To me it never did.

 

[ShokWaveRider]

Look if you own and plan to stay in 3M house versus somebody who owns 1M house you better have much bigger nest egg to pay taxes, heat, maintain that house.

So to me it was always a liability in FIRE planning.

Maybe, but if one does have the means, why lower one's standard of living. Our home only costs us 8% of our income in our MCOL/HCOL beach town, and that is all in. Taxes, Utilities, Maintenance, ALL IN! We are not about to change anything. If one cannot spend 10% of one's income to live where they want in a home they want and like, what else are we going to spend it on in our dotage. We have always been proponents of LBYM, and we still do.

 

[LateToFIRE]

So to you first 1M includes equity in you home. To me it never did.

I have literally made millions on real estate buying/selling. I'm including it. You do you. I'll do me. And don't worry, my portfolio is more than sufficient to support my housing in retirement.

 

[pjigar]

Hitting first million felt like forever: over 14 years if not more. The next million was in a little over 5 years. Last million was in 2 years.

PS: These are nominal numbers and I always tell my friends: Nominal numbers are deceiving. After accounting for inflation:
First million was 12 years, second million was under 4 years, and last million was 3 years.

 

[street]

I don't use my home or ranch in any equation for wealth but that is me. I really don't think there is a right way or wrong way. When gauging and measuring one's financial numbers use what you feel is the right way for you.

 

[Onda]

I don't use my home or ranch in any equation for wealth but that is me. I really don't think there is a right way or wrong way. When gauging and measuring one's financial numbers use what you feel is the right way for you.

+1

 

[socca]

Unfortunately, I don't have perfect info on my progression. ...

I went looking for old personal financial records (hardcopy or digital) and couldn't find anything before 2008. It's like financially I didn't exist before 2008 . A couple of years ago I threw out old tax returns dating back into the '90s. Minimalism is great until you become curious about ancient history.

My best guess is that I reached 7 figures in the late '90s after about 12 years of work as a software / systems engineer. This is with aggressive saving from day 1 and no marriage or kids.