Glad to be here

[camefromnothing]

Hello All,

I came across this site a few weeks ago and have been lurking a lot since then. I'm 54, married and have 2 boys. 3 years ago (At 51) I quit my job of 24 years and decided not to go back, at least for now.

I came to US in late 1980, married in 1983. My wife and I started our life together with $700 that we received as a wedding gift. Our networth right now is close to $2m most of which are invested in mutual funds. MOrtgage is $300K and estimated equity is $400k. Estimated CC debts about $7k.

My wife is now considering to join me in retirement soon. If someone thinks we are not out of the woods yet, please let me know, so i can tell my wife.

 

[bssc]

Hello and welcome.

The big question is, what are your expenses. I am concerned that your high CC balance indicates high spending. I could like off $2 million but I know others who could not. Still, having that $2 mil means you are good savers so congratulations on doing so well.

 

[camefromnothing]

Ballpark estimate of our yearly expenses is about $80k + $20k estimated income tax liabilities on IRA/401K withdrawals.

The main reason for that current CC balance was the Cruise we took this summer. We plan to make it disappear in a few months.

 

[kumquat]

If your estimated expenses are accurate, most of us would think you're a bit shy of your goal. The consensus (but not the entire crew)would suggest you need ~25 * annual expenses (100K) to safely check out. That amount is invested income producing money, not NW. Most of us do not include value of our houses since they produce expenses but no income.

Look for threads on SWR (Safe Withdrawl Rates) to determine if you're ready (money wise). Even if you're not there yet, you're not far away, congrats.

 

[camefromnothing]

kumquat,

Thanks! I will check out the SWR thread. I'm just glad to know that we are at least within striking distance of our goal to be FI after over 20 years of saving for our retirement.