Looking to retire by 31

[RetiredGypsy]

We could start a co op for extremely extreme early retirement. I hear Florida swampland and Nevada desert is still really cheap.

 

[haha]

We could start a co op for extremely extreme early retirement. I hear Florida swampland and Nevada desert is still really cheap.

I want an exclusive franchise to deliver bug repellant/bottled water.

Ha

 

[Marquette]

Where's the camera?

 

[laurence]

My father bought 8 acres from a hippie co-op in east county San Diego. They lived on about the same level of income. Hay Bale construction stuccoed with mud, outhouses, community water spigot, holy cows (they were of some eastern philosophy) for milk, etc. They made organic nutri-bars on the side for some income and decided to move to Texas where their little business would be cheaper to run.

 

[RetiredGypsy]

I want an exclusive franchise to deliver bug repellant/bottled water.

Ha

I think I'm going to cut that $400 a month down to $200 by eating the bugs instead of buying groceries. Mmmmmm, protein.

 

[mews]

I think I'm going to cut that $400 a month down to $200 by eating the bugs instead of buying groceries. Mmmmmm, protein.
======

Dip them in chocolate and add bacon bits - Yummy!

ta,
mews

 

[shoe]

MattyMcmatt what are your plans regarding health care? You may be young and healthy now but so were all of us at one time. Now not all of us are.

 

[Ultimate Cheapskate]

it is possible to get 10% return, however, it is not possible to live on 12k for the rest of your life. you need to buy a house, car, life insurrance, child's education.

to me, i need 30k pretax to live if i retire.

Well, that's all debatable, isn't it?

- House? ---- Probably a good move for most, but maybe not for everyone.
- Car? ---- Depends on where/how you live. (See this book: "Living Well Without a Car" by Chris Balish)
-Life Insurance? --- Depends on your family situation, doesn't it?
-Child's education? --- The Dollar Store sells birth control, don't you know?


Stay Cheap!
-Jeff Yeager

 

[RetiredGypsy]

-Child's education? --- The Dollar Store sells birth control, don't you know?


Stay Cheap!
-Jeff Yeager

They have them free at many places too.

There was a blog a couple years ago by a woman who was going back to college who was getting by on less than $12,000 a year. She seems to do okay, as long as nothing unexpected ever came up.

 

[Westernskies]

MattyMcmatt what are your plans regarding health care? You may be young and healthy now but so were all of us at one time. Now not all of us are.

If he tells them he is living on $700/month, he will probably get treated for free...If not he can claim to be an illegal alien, in which case they will definitely treat him for free.

 

[Rich_by_the_Bay]

If he tells them he is living on $700/month, he will probably get treated for free...If not he can claim to be an illegal alien, in which case they will definitely treat him for free.

Ever seen the inpatient wards or ER in a municipal public hospital which is mostly Medicaid oriented?

OP might want to include health insurance in his planning. Believe me.

 

[Martha]

If he tells them he is living on $700/month, he will probably get treated for free...If not he can claim to be an illegal alien, in which case they will definitely treat him for free.

No, that is not true. They will try to collect the money from him. They don't just look at a person's income, they look at assets, when the attorneys for the hospital work on collecting unpaid bills.

 

[Westernskies]

No, that is not true. They will try to collect the money from him. They don't just look at a person's income, they look at assets, when the attorneys for the hospital work on collecting unpaid bills.

Anyone motivated enough to live on $700/month would most likely have everything sheltered in a trust. They could probably attach the $700/month proceeds. Might be interesting trying to track him down, if he had no phone, no permanent address, and no credit cards (not on a $700/month budget) If they bothered to take him to court, he could get a public defender, plead poverty and end up with a lifetime repayment plan of around $18.75...

 

[FIREd]

Well Matt is from Canada. If Canada is anything like Europe when it comes to healthcare (and I am not that familiar with the Canadian system), then he could qualify to receive premium-free healthcare if his income remains below a certain minimum. Plus he would no doubt qualify for a number of other government aids on such a low income.

 

[Sarah in SC]

There's always Possum Living, don't forget! Where's that possum picture when I need it? Dolly Freed lived on what, $300 a year, wasn't it? And they had their own still!

 

[Westernskies]

There's always Possum Living, don't forget! Where's that possum picture when I need it? Dolly Freed lived on what, $300 a year, wasn't it? And they had their own still!

That looks like your marmot, on acid!

 

[Sarah in SC]

That possum used to be my avatar, which is why I loved the marmot and adopted it immediately when I saw him!
We use Possum Living to describe our periodic attempts to live on virtually no money, just for practice. It is fun, in a sick sort of way.

 

[haha]

I went down to put my garbage in the dumpster and there was a dead possum. No idea what happened to the poor little guy.

Ha

 

[Sarah in SC]

What are you eating, HA!
If a possum died eating your leftovers, you need to be worried!

We see lots of possums, foxes, wild turkeys, and deer out where we live--I love those little guys.

 

[FIREd]

I went down to put my garbage in the dumpster and there was a dead possum. No idea what happened to the poor little guy.

Ha

Well if like Matt you'd like to live on $700 a month, then finding a dead possum in your trash can might save you a trip to the supermarket and cut your grocery bill in half...

Possum Recipes
WARNING: animal lovers abstain...

Who would have known there were so many ways to fix possum?

 

[RetiredGypsy]

Most people don't know you actually need three people to cook opossum, one to cook and two to play dueling banjos.

 

[Westernskies]

Most people don't know you actually need three people to cook opossum, one to cook and two to play dueling banjos.

I thought the other two were to watch for oncoming traffic

 

[RetiredGypsy]

At least I know how to make cheap liquor to go with that opossum. You just take all the free jelly packets you can from Denny's and mix in a little yeast and voila! That's so much quicker than digging through the junk yard to build your own still.

 

[mattymcmatt]

Haha, there are some funny comments here!

Anyways, to answer some of them.

I can't figure out if this is serious, or if Matty is just having a laugh at everyone.

There is enough serious answers in here to make me question my most basic math skills though

As a comparison to Matty, I am 40 years old, have around $1.9M in assets ($1.4M in investments and $500k in fully paid for home), $0 in debt and I am looking at at least 8-10 more years of working before I can support a modest lifestyle with some travel and health care.

I am serious about this although your situation sounds like a story I read a few months ago about couples in Silicon Valley who had net worths of over $10 million but also felt they still needed to work 5-10 more years before they could "afford" to retire. Man, your situation and mine are just at opposite ends of the spectrum. It is true that as people get older their "needs" expand dramatically.

But I am from Canada so I don't need to worry about health care. I really don't think my plan would work if I was American. I don't know how expensive health care is from experience but from reading I've heard it is quite a big chunk out of a monthly budget.

Also, at this point in time, I don't think buying a house is a good investment. House prices in my city are way too high for me. I'd rather rent and invest the difference. I've never had a "need" to own a car as I've made sure to live within walking distance of work. And yes, I'm single right now. If I do have a family, obviously this plan will not work but I'm aware of that and willing to modify things if my situation changes.

Also, my goal in retiring early is to have my time. My time is more important to me than having stuff. I do enjoy enjoy computer programming but I don't want to have to do it for 40 hours a week. Having investments that cover my costs would allow me the option to just quit and do what interests me. Sounds like a pretty good situation to me. Plus, even if I do retire at 31, I will almost definitely do things in the future that bring me income. This would be more along the lines of starting a business rather than being an employee. So even if my withdrawal rate sounds high, I will be prepared to work for income if I need to. If I have to go back to work then so be it.

My inspirations for this are {moderator edit}a blogger and the Canadian author Derek Foster. Both of these guys retired in their early 30s without any inheritances or lottery winnings. I figure if they can do it, why can't I?

 

[Frugality_of_Apathy]

Good luck, I hope to retire extremely early as well. However, I wouldn't be depending on 10% returns consistently, or even 7% returns.