Hi guys

[nototheman]

My name is Kevin.

I'm 28. I'm not retired yet, but I'm sure I will be sooner rather than later. My timeline is 4-5 years with aggressive saving. My NW is about 250k. I don't have a lot of expenses beyond occasional travel, and I'm not materialistic (anti-consumerism in many ways). I just play guitar, read, and watch movies all day.

I'm ahead in that I have a supportive family that paid for my affordable degree, got a decently high paying job in engineering in a LCOL area, and have at least some financial sense. So at least I maxed out my company matched 401k and my individual Roth IRA contribution. My biggest regret, common I'm sure, is letting my excess savings sit in a low yield savings account getting eaten away by inflation instead of putting it into the market sooner.

So my story is probably familiar to many of you-- when I grew up I had a "crazy uncle" who lived in Malaysia for many years and I'd see on holidays. He'd bring back cool souvenirs from his travels. I could tell my other family members treated him a little like an outcast--- he opted out of our traditional society, after all. But to me there was always a strange appeal.

It only took me a few years in the labor market to really "get" why he chose this lifestyle. I'm burned out and disillusioned as hell. I feel like giving it all up and living in a cave. But I know I need to stay disciplined and maximize my advantage of youth... It just weighs so heavily on me the cognitive dissonance of trading in my current health and sanity for the uncertainty of so-called "greener pastures". Sometimes I have existential crisises and feel like the universe is conspiring against me to keep me working and miserable until the day I finally decide to quit, at which point the world will promptly burst into flames and all my efforts will be "wasted". Apologies if that sounds a little dramatic

Anyways, nice to meet you all. Looking forward to learning from your experiences. Cheers

 

[swakyaby]

Hi Kevin!
My brother retired from a city job as an engineer with the dept of water and power, about 5 years short of full retirement benefits. So he pays some for health care premiums for himself and his wife. What is your plan for health care?

 

[Al18]

Sounds like you need a better job, not retirement.

 

[38Chevy454]

Welcome to the forum. Several retired engineers on here, myself one of them. Not sure what you are doing now, but engineering offers a lot of options. Consider what you like doing and figure out what companies do that where you might fit in. Good start on savings, you know the math and power of compounding. The more you can save now, and leave invested, the more you end up with.

 

[nototheman]

I currently have a HDHP plan, and contribute the max to my HSA. My only medical expenses are a $25/mo prescription after insurance. Because the pills cost ~$3 to manufacture a months supply and are common, I expect I'll be able to buy them in whatever country I end up in for a lower cost out of pocket. This would be easy to add to a budget.

I would like a shoulder reconstruction surgery in the near term, but ironically the health insurance I pay for does not have a lot of practical utility because it would still be many times more expensive than getting it done elsewhere uninsured, while my working situation would not give me enough time to make a full recovery. So I planned on getting it done ASAP after retirement.

I will be getting my Italian citizenship soon (my dad is Italian). So I have options with nationalized EU healthcare.

Other than that, I have no dependents so if I have a heart attack and croak while I'm out and about I won't feel too guilty! My mindset would change for sure if I had wife & kids. Now I'm young and relatively healthy. Looking way out ahead, seeing the numbers for full hospice care in places like Mexico I think I will be able to budget for even that when/if the time comes

 

[Al18]

I glossed over the engineering education. The world needs more engineers, and less lawyers. There’s always an opportunity for a engineering position - look for a better job with better health insurance.

 

[nototheman]

I glossed over the engineering education. The world needs more engineers, and less lawyers. There’s always an opportunity for a engineering position - look for a better job with better health insurance.

It comes naturally, I've loved science since I was a kid, I'm an INTP

As for better job, hard to say if meeting the new boss will be same as the old boss.

But I will keep looking and make a change. I've turned one down because I didn't want a pay cut, never an easy call

 

[nototheman]

Welcome to the forum. Several retired engineers on here, myself one of them. Not sure what you are doing now, but engineering offers a lot of options. Consider what you like doing and figure out what companies do that where you might fit in. Good start on savings, you know the math and power of compounding. The more you can save now, and leave invested, the more you end up with.

I work steel, also in Ohio. Howdy, neighbor!

 

[MarieIG]

I would look for another job - with better health insurance, sooner rather than later. I would not put your life on hold until you retire.

You are an engineer, not a ditch digger, and there is no reason that you can't have the shoulder reconstruction while you are still working (with a limited time off for initial recovery) and somewhat modified duties for a time period.

 

[Gumby]

Life is long and you are only 28 years old. You don't have to keep on doing what you are currently doing if you don't find it fulfilling. I was an engineer. When I was 30, I chucked it all and went to law school, then spent 27 years as a lawyer.

 

[pacergal]

Welcome to the forum!

Agree with many others, perhaps another job would be more fulfilling to you.
28 is quite young to be considering "retirement". Putting a plan in place and having all the financials, yes. Actually pulling the plug, not sure you are there yet.

Keep posting, ask questions. Some folks feel comfortable putting their financial out and let forum members review it.

There are some questions in the "Early Retirement FAQ's forum:
Some Important Questions to Answer Before Asking - Can I Retire?

Review those to see where you are.

Best of Luck to you on your retirement goal--keep us posted!

 

[Tetto]

I was an engineer. When I was 30, I chucked it all and went to law school, then spent 27 years as a lawyer.

I'm always in awe of people who switch careers/disciplines like this! My friend who was an aerospace undergrad, Masters mechanical engineering left aero and went to medical school. He is now a trauma doctor at Duke university hospital. Incredible drive

 

[Gumby]

A former USNA classmate and roommate of mine became a Navy submarine officer, as I did. We both left the Navy after our 5 year commitment was up. While I went to work as an engineer at a commercial nuclear power plant, he went to Harvard Business School, then got a job at one of the big investment banks. After a bit, he started his own hedge fund, quickly made a ton of money, and retired in his late 30s. In retirement, he became a master glass blower. After September 11th, he decided that he needed to get back into the world. So he went to Cornell Medical School. Now he is a trauma surgeon in one of the big NYC hospitals. He's probably the smartest guy I know.

 

[REWahoo]

I was an engineer. When I was 30, I chucked it all and went to law school, then spent 27 years as a lawyer.

I've been around the forum long enough to know your work history but never seen it stated so concisely. This made me realize I had a parallel although far less impressive work background: I was a military pilot. When I was 31 I chucked it all and entered a "management training" program, then spent 27 years in middle and senior business management positions.

 

[rodi]

Welcome to the forum. Another retired engineer here.. didn't retire as young as you plan to (was 52), but now have a very comfortable life that fits my introvert nature.

Some thoughts:

- my husband and sons are dual Italian citizens. It varies from province to province, but the 'free healthcare' is sometimes just for people who have paid into the SSN system. But if you are a citizen resident or legal resident you can get low cost insurance worst case. My older son has a goal of working/living over there and has been researching it.

- Consider a career change/downsizing. If you can get some work from home gigs, or part time gigs that might help ease the pressure. And still allow you to continue to build your nest egg. With the ACA, if your income is lower, so is the cost of your insurance. (Insurance is one of the big ticket expenses that needs to be considered.)

We had a member here who was both a lawyer and an engineer... He retired at age 33. His wife continued to work a few more years, then also retired. He made sure he had his spending under control, paid off house, etc. He supplements his income by blogging, but has definitely left the traditional work force. But he retired with significantly more than you have. (over a $1M IIRC).

You need to fully understand your budget in retirement (still owe taxes on investment income, have to pay 100% of healthcare premiums, but can save money cooking/eating at home, etc.)

You need to make sure you've paid in enough quarters to SS to qualify for SS income at age 62-70. It would be foolish to retire before 10 years of SS qualified income paid in. Same with medicare paid in.

You need to identify how much you need to support your lifestyle - it can be a super frugal lifestyle - but if you don't have enough saved, you're going to run out. Look at firecalc and other calculators. For someone as young as you the 4% rule is probably too aggressive since you likely have decades more than the 30 year horizon that is assumed with the 4% rule. A withdrawal rate of 3% would be very safe. With your current $250k, that would mean you could safely withdraw $7500/year. If you can double the nest egg, that would mean 15k/year. So frugality AND building the nest egg are your key.

That said - the more you divert to savings, the less you are actually spending... so aggressive saving can help reduce your budget. When we got serious about retiring early we maxed not just 401k, but also ESPP, taxable accounts, extra payments to the mortgage... We tightened our belts to do this, and learned we were pretty happy even without the extra money to spend... The reduced budget definitely helped since it meant we didn't need as large of a nest egg.

I wish you luck in your goal... but stay flexible and be willing to change your goal if life tosses you a curve.

 

[Koolau]

I think I'd look for a new assignment within your company. I did that (effectively making my own assignment) and it w*rked out very well. By changing assignments, you keep your seniority in the company and maximize benefits.