Running Away Together in T Minus 50 months ...

[RachaelandtheGoose]

Hi Everyone! I'm Rachael. DH and I have been pursuing FI for about 2 years. 4 years to go. we've been following the big name FI bloggers for a while, but are finding that the hype is getting a bit stale. I've been scoping out these forums for a while and really find the real conversations with real retirees much more refreshing and useful.

DH and I will be celebrating our 10 year anniversary this year. The day after we were married, life threw a curve ball at us in the form of a chronic health condition (on my part) that basically made life miserable until I found an effective treatment last year. Trying to pay off our house was one of the positive things I could focus on during the worst years, and after that we sort of naturally fell into the FI journey. It's been a lifesaver for us to have something positive to focus on as a team and to come to believe that someday there will be more than what we call the "corporate spider dance." LOL! (Think the nervous male black widow spider mating dance).

He's a grown up Eagle Scout who loves to camp and canoe. I'm a homebody who loves to play piano, cook and write. I'm obsessed with old houses. We both love dogs, especially basset hounds. No plans for kids.

Current NW (including house): $775K
Approximate projected NW by target date: $1.2m to 1.3m

We are currently using all our vacation days to scout for appealing, affordable small towns in the midwest where we could put down new roots.

Whether life and the markets give us our expected number at the expected time, by May 2022 (coincidentally DH's 40th birthday), we're committed to taking a year off from work and figuring out what life has to offer us. If it's just sleeping in and taking lots of hikes, we're kind of OK with that at this point.

Would love to talk to other who have or plan to retire in their early 40s, and anyone making it work with a 3.5-4% SWR. Or anyone else who wants to say hi!

 

[Ready]

Welcome to the forum Rachael! Feel free to ask any questions you may have to the group. Good luck on your four year goal and life adventure! There are many like minded people here who can share similar success stories.

 

[VanWinkle]

Welcome and congrats on the upcoming FIRE.

http://www.early-retirement.org/for...re-asking-can-i-retire-69999.html#post1399715

This is a good link to start thinking of the things needed to complete the journey.

Best wishes for you,

VW

 

[brucethebroker]

Welcome.
Check out the thread today on "Affordable and safe historic towns" (Midwest version) for LCOL ideas.

 

[MBAustin]

Welcome, Rachael!

A couple who are longtime friends took a year off in their mid-40s to travel. They both ended up going back to w*rk but with lots of long breaks to travel in between gigs (mostly contract work of different kinds).

Very glad to hear that your health is more stable and you are looking forward to a new phase of life. We're happy to be part of your planning and look forward to your contributions!

 

[Dtail]

Welcome Rachael
Great to hear you have effective treatment. Life is short.
I hope the markets treat you well and you can continue your goals.

 

[ExFlyBoy5]

Welcome to the forum Rachael! I agree on your assessment of the many, MANY FI blogs. When folks decide that they may want to be FIREd or even "just" FI, there is LOTS of good information out there. Nonetheless, once you understand the basics, many of the blogs just become "noisy"...not only to mention the large number of bloggers who are regurgitating the same info over and over to increase page views. Don't get me wrong, I am not faulting them, but at some point it gets to be "too much" for some folks...like me.

At any rate...welcome and enjoy the "Real" conversations here!

 

[bloom2708]

Do you both like 4 seasons of weather? Most places in the midwest will have long-ish winters.

To live the most simple life in FI, I think you have to be in a "nice weather most of the year" place, NV, UT, CA, AZ, NM, TX you get the idea.

Snowblowers, shovels, winter coats, boots, skis, winter clothing, driving on ice covered roads.

Check out a spot like Anthem, AZ. NW corner of Phoenix. New River is also nearby.

300+ nice sunny days. Hot in the summer, but I would trade snow and its offshoots mentioned above for hot.

I call it the "FI Trap". You follow all the blogs, do all the right things (or most) and it still takes real time. Then you have family considerations, kids in school, health insurance.

It only works for me if I can get somewhere where we can be outside most of the year. Hiking, biking, walking, running, swimming, doing "free" things and just enjoying being outside.

Most of the mid-west fails that test. Some love winter. Just some things to ponder.

 

[RachaelandtheGoose]

Do you both like 4 seasons of weather? Most places in the midwest will have long-ish winters.

To live the most simple life in FI, I think you have to be in a "nice weather most of the year" place, NV, UT, CA, AZ, NM, TX you get the idea.

Snowblowers, shovels, winter coats, boots, skis, winter clothing, driving on ice covered roads.

Check out a spot like Anthem, AZ. NW corner of Phoenix. New River is also nearby.

300+ nice sunny days. Hot in the summer, but I would trade snow and its offshoots mentioned above for hot.

I call it the "FI Trap". You follow all the blogs, do all the right things (or most) and it still takes real time. Then you have family considerations, kids in school, health insurance.

It only works for me if I can get somewhere where we can be outside most of the year. Hiking, biking, walking, running, swimming, doing "free" things and just enjoying being outside.

Most of the mid-west fails that test. Some love winter. Just some things to ponder.

LOL! No need to warn me about the midwest. DH and I have both lived here all our lives. While I agree the winters can be rough, we also do like the change of seasons, and of course not being too far away from the family we have here is a consideration, too. I don't think the snow would bug me much if I could just enjoy it and not drive in it at 6:00 in the morning. We might even consider going further north, but only if it was in an area with lots of natural beauty on offer (lakes, waterfalls, large national parks/forests, etc). Thanks for the well wishes and I'll check out Anthem, just in case.

 

[NW-Bound]

"Running Away Together in T Minus 50 months ..."

Reminds me of this song:

Steal Away

C'mon and hold me
Just like you told me
Then show me
What I want to know
Why don't we steal away
Why don't we steal away
Into the night​

 

[Bamaman]

The first thing thing I think about with ultra early retirement is the cost of healthcare. Future healthcare expenses on a 65 year old couple retiring is estimated at over $250k. Add 20 years of a couple funding 100% of their healthcare and who knows how much income just that one expense will take. Many people with a prior ailment may be essentially uninsurable.

My wife was essentially disabled at age 28 but retrained and worked another 20 years. She had to quit work at age 51 when her legs failed from spinal stenosis. After a hard legal fight, she got on disability and was eligible for Medicare two years later. And had I lost my job and our MegaCompany healthcare, I don't know where we would have made it financially since she was undesirable privately.

Is healthcare going to be an issue for you with prior health problems?

 

[pb4uski]

I suggest that you use Quicken Lifetime Planner to see if your plan makes sense.... and then use Quicken to monitor your progress.

 

[RachaelandtheGoose]

The first thing thing I think about with ultra early retirement is the cost of healthcare. Future healthcare expenses on a 65 year old couple retiring is estimated at over $250k. Add 20 years of a couple funding 100% of their healthcare and who knows how much income just that one expense will take. Many people with a prior ailment may be essentially uninsurable.

My wife was essentially disabled at age 28 but retrained and worked another 20 years. She had to quit work at age 51 when her legs failed from spinal stenosis. After a hard legal fight, she got on disability and was eligible for Medicare two years later. And had I lost my job and our MegaCompany healthcare, I don't know where we would have made it financially since she was undesirable privately.

Is healthcare going to be an issue for you with prior health problems?

Yep, I definitely worry most about health care. It's ironic. My health issues have given me the drive to retire early so I can stay home and rest when I need to, which isn't an option now. On the other hand, they're the most compelling reason to stay employed. Health care is the scariest part of retirement for everyone, and scarier for those who have experienced health scares.

I am very lucky in one aspect. What I'm dealing with has a big impact on my quality of life, but it isn't degenerative and I've never seen it listed among any of the pre-existing conditions that insurers tend look out for. But as we get closer to our target date and hone in on where we think we want to relocate to, you can bet I'll be doing heavy research on what my healthcare options are.

Even if we can't retire fully, we can take less stressful jobs, or work part time to help cover health care costs, or something of the kind, and we should be able to at least take that gap year off without significantly hurting our resumes. I'll take more freedom and flexibility in whatever form I can find it.