Fifteen minutes of early retirement fame

[springnr]

I was not trying to be mean, just what popped into my head upon scanning the article.

I guess every family where the woman stays at home to raise the children. The old normal, traditional family model, is retired. Not FI necessarily but RE, works for me.

 

[REWahoo]

... I am sure there will be whispered utterances of "kept man" and other such things.

If I had retired while my wife continued to work I would have worn the "kept man" label as a badge of honor - even purchased "KPTMAN" vanity plates for my car!

 

[NW-Bound]

Almost everyone today gets some sugar from Uncle...
Ha

Some more than others.

As for me, in 2012, I paid no Federal income tax on a roughly $100K income due to various tax breaks, deductions, etc... No Fed income tax as in "$0". Does that count as "sugar"?

Alas, that "tax free" status did not persist till 2013. My income dropped, yet I had to pay some taxes due to status changes such as youngest son no longer claimable as dependent, no college tuition credit, etc...

So, work is passé. Nobody works anymore.

No, no can do! Somebody has to work to stock up the supermarkets where I get my food, fill the underground gas tank so I can refill my gas-guzzling RV. And most importantly, somebody has to work at these corps whose shares I am holding for dividends.

I am just glad that I do not have to work anymore. I have worked from 19 till 55, and it's time for someone else to do it.

 

[HawkeyeNFO]

Look at all the haters commenting below the story. Proving again that the people here are clearly in the minority. The sheeple likely never get it.

 

[daylatedollarshort]

These fluff pieces never really give enough numbers, details or assurance of fact checking to find out if the guy is realistically retired for life or is just saying he is.

Most posters here are seem to be pretty realistic if not overly cautious about what it takes financially to ER, but I see a lot of posters on other forums say they will never have to work again with <$500K at 30 or 40 and very little SS to look forward to. Good luck with that amount and any serious, long term illness or car accident that might occur over the next 60 years.

 

[NW-Bound]

As I searched the Web for RV travel blogs, I found interesting stories from people who lived very frugally in RVs while boondocking in National Forests or state campgrounds. Many were older people living on a meager SS, but some were early retirees who either took this lifestyle by choice or necessity. There was a forum where two typical budgets were shown: one at $500/month and another at $1000/month. It may not be the lifestyle that most people pick, but some are doing it.

About financial backup for illness, many of these people go without any insurance and rely on indigent healthcare programs for catastrophic illness. Now with ACA, that worry is gone.

By the way, the guy in the quoted article said that he had a 7-figure networth or portfolio, so he's not the same as the van and RV dwellers I described above.

 

[haha]

As I searched the Web for RV travel blogs, I found interesting stories from people who lived very frugally in RVs while boondocking in National Forests or state campgrounds. Many were older people living on a meager SS, but some were early retirees who either took this lifestyle by choice or necessity. There was a forum where two typical budgets were shown: one at $500/month and another at $1000/month. It may not be the lifestyle that most people pick, but some are doing it.

Sounds like an excellent life, for a squirrel. Also a whole lot better than some public housing full of bedbugs, for people who just have very little money. I suppose these people have constrained lives, but they are in charge.

Ha

 

[thefinancebuff]

I don't really get that idea that a working spouse means you aren't retired. I work. My husband is retired. Is it only ER that doesn't count? (Hubby is 62). He's filling the role of SAHD... not to mention gardener, contractor/handyman, personal assistant... (Our kids are school age.) But he's retired and would be doing those things (except the PA) if I was retired also.

Is it the SAHD thing that negates the term retired? In the article linked in the OP - the wife isn't working.

The wife isn't working now but will go back soon. The test is whether he relies on her income. Suppose the marriage ends tomorrow and they split the assets in half and contribute equally to child support. Does he have to go back to work to maintain his lifestyle? If yes he's retired. If no, he's not.

 

[maarc1976]

Hello. I am the person in the news story. One of your members referred me to this site.


Here are answers to some of your comments/questions. Powerplay is correct, my wife is not 100% aboard with the plan. I'd say closer to 90%. To make early retirement work requires very disciplined discretionary spending. She would like more flexibility to spend on wants rather than needs, but she has always been careful with her own spending. My wife worked for a corporate law firm in NYC for 4 years and her salary was more than double that of mine. She has not worked since 2010 and will only seek part-time legal work in the future. I think you can be a stay-at-home-dad and be retired at the same time.


We only need about 3-4% returns on our investments to cover basic living expenses and we can risk investing heavily in equities because of our ages (37 and 35). Two other items the article did not mention. One, I secured a pension from NYC that will kick in at age 57 along with free health care for life. That makes me feel more secure about no longer working. Second, a decent chunk of our retirement assets are in a 457 plan, which is just like a 401K except for one major difference; there is no penalty for withdrawing funds before age 59 and a half. With very little income and tax deductions/credits from two children, that 457 plan is like a big bank account as long as we do not withdraw too much in any calendar year. We are also slowly converting traditional IRA funds to Roth IRAs so that we will eventually have all our retirement assets in Roth IRAs.


I just joined the site and it appears to be very informative. I've enjoyed reading your comments. Thanks.

 

[springnr]

Paul Harvey... Page 2
And now you know -- the rest of the story.
____________________
Hi Marc, welcome and thanks for fleshing out the article. Were not nosy much, ;>) inquisitive maybe.

 

[Shawn]

We are often told how difficult it is to be a stay-at-home parent. In fact, there are articles in legitimate publications claiming that stay-at-home parents work 94-hour weeks equivalent to over $100K/yr in the paid labor force (and you can't put something on the internet that isn't totally true). Some argue that these parents - mostly women - should be paid for their sacrifices.

The man in the article (and now the man here!) made a decision to become a SAHD because he believes this is better than remaining in the workforce (admittedly, his wife shares in the parental responsibilities). He can correct me if I'm wrong, but presumably he considers this new role as a SAHD to be a fortunate opportunity. The CBS article considers him to be a non-working retiree.

So if the SAHD is retired because he does not work, does this mean that SAHM's are retired because they do not work?

Excellent article. It takes a lot of effort and financial diligence (and a supportive spouse), but I believe many fathers would like the opportunity to be retired SAHD's. Of course, people often create their own opportunities.

 

[Bestwifeever]

Hello. I am the person in the news story. One of your members referred me to this site.


Here are answers to some of your comments/questions. Powerplay is correct, my wife is not 100% aboard with the plan. I'd say closer to 90%. To make early retirement work requires very disciplined discretionary spending. She would like more flexibility to spend on wants rather than needs, but she has always been careful with her own spending. My wife worked for a corporate law firm in NYC for 4 years and her salary was more than double that of mine. She has not worked since 2010 and will only seek part-time legal work in the future. I think you can be a stay-at-home-dad and be retired at the same time.


We only need about 3-4% returns on our investments to cover basic living expenses and we can risk investing heavily in equities because of our ages (37 and 35). Two other items the article did not mention. One, I secured a pension from NYC that will kick in at age 57 along with free health care for life. That makes me feel more secure about no longer working. Second, a decent chunk of our retirement assets are in a 457 plan, which is just like a 401K except for one major difference; there is no penalty for withdrawing funds before age 59 and a half. With very little income and tax deductions/credits from two children, that 457 plan is like a big bank account as long as we do not withdraw too much in any calendar year. We are also slowly converting traditional IRA funds to Roth IRAs so that we will eventually have all our retirement assets in Roth IRAs.


I just joined the site and it appears to be very informative. I've enjoyed reading your comments. Thanks.

So nice of you to post here, Marc. You probably have some good insights to offer so I hope you stick around!

 

[Maenad]

I really didn't care for the snide "his wife has to do without flowers or jewelry" b.s.

DH has given me 1 pair of earrings in the 20 years we've been dating/engaged/married. (We split the cost of our engagement and wedding rings.) Instead, he gives me many other gestures of love and affection every day, that mean a lot more than the obligatory didn't-know-what-to-get-you-so-I-asked-the-nice-lady-at-Jared's.

Here's a hint, CBS morons: some women prefer fiscal responsibility to bling. Having 12x annual expenses currently saved means more to me than diamonds.

 

[Walt34]

Here's a hint, CBS morons: some women prefer fiscal responsibility to bling.

DW is like that. Last time I spent money on roses, a long time ago, she made it clear that while she appreciated the thought there were better uses for $35.

 

[LOL!]

Hello. I am the person in the news story. One of your members referred me to this site.

Here's a discussion of the CBS video on you that appeared in March:
Bogleheads • View topic - retired at 37?

And we really know that your daughter's middle name comes from what happened the night of that Jimmy Buffett concert that you and your wife went to.

 

[eytonxav]

My DW was a SAHM for over 20 years of my peak earning years. I never considered her to be retired during that time, as taking care of 2 kids and running the household is no cake walk vs retired life.

 

[FUEGO]

As an individual, I think it depends on how close you are cutting it once you lose the benefits provided by the spouse. E.g., if I lose health insurance provided by the wife, can I still FIRE when I increase the health care budget by 200-300% to account for higher premiums and greater out-of-pocket maximum?

Hypothetically, if my WR had to increase above 3.5% I would not say I was FI without my wife. But this is a tricky game to play because many expenses are infrequent/unpredictable but costly and need to be amortized to a yearly rate for SWR calculations.

I know what you mean. We have extra money in the retirement budget to cover dental expenses (we won't have dental insurance any longer) and minimal HI premiums (ACA subsidies will pick up most of the tab). If you can't afford the cost of your family's HI and dental care and are reliant on a job to provide those for you, then you're not FI per the definition I go by.

As for lumpy expenses, I amortize those and include them in a yearly budget to make sure we are actually "FI enough". That's most housing and cars.

 

[Sarah in SC]

If I had retired while my wife continued to work I would have worn the "kept man" label as a badge of honor - even purchased "KPTMAN" vanity plates for my car!

A great birthday idea for DH!

And thanks for joining, Marc, glad to have you here!