Huge Milestone - $5M!!

I asked AI the following:
What percent of households have a $1m portfolio, not including real estate?
12.5%
What percent of households have a $3m portfolio, not including real estate?
3%
What percent of households have a $5m portfolio, not including real estate?
2.6%

So, if you are in the top 3%, you should have plenty if you keep your spending in check.

Read this (article).

Why the ultra-rich are giving up on luxury assets​

Forget fine wine, great art and glitzy mansions. There are finer things in life​

A BOTTLE OF Château d’Yquem 2010 is a fine thing. Apricot, toasted almond, citrus zest, juicy lemon, white truffles: it is all there. Until recently, the cost of the world’s finest sweet wine rose steadily. By 2023 a given bottle from the producer went for 60% more than in the mid-2010s. At the time, all forms of opulence were becoming more expensive. Classic cars, aged whiskies and enormous mansions shot up in value. From 2015 to 2023 a “luxury-investment index” produced by Knight Frank, a property firm, rose by 70%.
 
Koolau said:
Congratulations on your "first $5 Mil."

Only suggestion is to pick a number that you would say (without hesitation) "We now have 'enough'". Otherwise, there will likely always be one more incentive or stock option or promotion that will keep you right where you are.

Of course, if you're digging your current assignment more than FIRE freedom - by all means enjoy the rest of your c@reer. Quit when you're no longer enjoying it.

Thanks for sharing your good news with us.
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JAM effect, just another million!!!
 
pletal said:
JAM effect, just another million!!!
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Eh, when my Quicken total has its leading digit incremented, it's still just JAM even after retirement, though I look forward to it. People who are LBYM, like most forum posters here, feel the same, I think. More money is nice to have, even though we have no immediate need for it. :)
 
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FD1000 said:
Read this (article).
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I read the above article. It referenced Thorstein Veblen, who coined the term "conspicuous consumption" in 1899. I have his book, and may want to read it again.
 
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Conspicuous Consumption Theory.
I'm sure there are many of the rich living among the rich in wealthiest areas that make it a point to display their wealth publicly so others know their status.
I know some wealthy people and not sure they want to display their wealth publicly, but do live and buy luxury, because they can and want those items. Not to show off but more enjoying and spending on what they want.
 
As a pilot, I preferred altitude to air speed. A physics major would say that I prefer potential energy to kinetic energy. You can exchange one for the other.

I also prefer more savings than more spending. Again, you can exchange one for the other.
 
Welcome to the $5 million club.

There was a movie that jokingly called $5 million the worst. The “broke rich”, or something along those lines.

You’ll find that at this level, you’re sort of between the ability to chuck it all and be done right now if you’re careful with spending and a few year from reaching a point where you can spend quite freely without the need to have a job.

Well done and good luck.
 
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NW-Bound said:
I read the above article. It referenced Thorstein Veblen, who coined the term "conspicuous consumption" in 1899. I have his book, and may want to read it again.
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I read it as well, and didn’t really understand how it related to keeping your spending in check. It was all about trading spending on luxurious things to spending on luxurious experiences. Definitely conspicuous consumption.
 
chemEguy said:
Good stuff right there.

Not wrong.
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"The weakest strong man at the circus" is indeed apt description. Such is what happens with moderate wealth, caught between an insecurity that burns for more, and a jadedness that would willingly accept even less.

Congratulations to the OP, of course! But after congratulations, come the big questions, the probing and the introspection. Now what?
 
Hope you enjoy your great job even more now. Having the pressure that you MUST be there taken off your shoulder can making working all that much more enjoyable. For me it was not $ that caused the timing of my retirement. It was when the job I enjoyed was no longer enjoyable (due to changes in management and relocation of my job). I probably could have retired sooner but saw no reason to when enjoying my job. The best was during the covid lockdown, no commute, do same job from comfort of my home, and knew I COULD retire if I wanted to. I decided to leave only when given an ultimatum to relocate.
 
I have watched over the years as several men keeled over, sitting behind a desk at work. Stretchers came running down the aisle and carried them away, dead. I vowed that would not happen to me. I retired 14 years ago, and never regretted it. Our nest egg continues to grow, much faster than we spend it. My self worth isn't tied to my net worth, and I really don't care if someone has more money than me. I know friends who retire and just can't figure out what to do with their time. That's never been a problem for me. À chacun son goût/ Jedem das Seine
 
Congratulations on a great milestone!

IMO, each first digit on the odometer of net worth (or portfolio if you like) is a huge milestone. Whether it be $50K, $1M, or $5M. On the road to FIRE, these milestones help to assure the FIREee that they are on the right path. And I believe that they provide encouragement and confidence to keep plodding along.
 
tfudtuckerpucker said:
My self worth isn't tied to my net worth,
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Equally important, my self worth wasn’t tied to my career. I didn’t define who I was by what I did. That is a very common problem among my fellow physicians. I loved being a doctor but it was just a job same as every other job. I had zero trouble walking away and not doing it anymore. Being a doctor is what I did; it was never who I was.
 
The happiness of a large pile at some point is replaced with the realization that you probably over saved.

I was paranoid and likely worked five years longer than I needed. Still retired at 57, but now I see having less years to do what I want.

Our portfolio is running away. We can’t spend what it earns without just buying stupid stuff. Scholarships will benefit, but there’s a little voice in the back of your head saying you lost five good years just for the sake of more money that you didn’t really need.
 
COcheesehead said:
The happiness of a large pile at some point is replaced with the realization that you probably over saved.

I was paranoid and likely worked five years longer than I needed. Still retired at 57, but now I see having less years to do what I want.

Our portfolio is running away. We can’t spend what it earns without just buying stupid stuff. Scholarships will benefit, but there’s a little voice in the back of your head saying you lost five good years just for the sake of more money that you didn’t really need.
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About sums it up!! Next step would be to plan for what you want to do with assets after we are gone. I'm very glad I over saved and is a better problem to have without the stress of that problem.
 
It is unfortunate that, for most of us, we cannot know if we have over saved until the near ends of our lives, and also the ends of the lives of our spouses and anyone else we support.

Market returns over the past 15 years have been good overall, and I think this is what has led some folks into thinking they have over saved. Few of the people on this board have experienced a very unfavorable sequence of returns since retiring. If we prepare for the worst case scenarios, and those scenarios do not occur, then it is inevitable that our portfolios will be much higher than expected.

None of us knew when we retired how our financial lives or market returns or inflation would play out. For me, having a portfolio that is likely larger than we need buys me more peace of mind - I would even say happiness - than anything else I could have bought with those funds. We have all the stuff we need or want and do not short change ourselves on experiences.

If our portfolio grows faster than we can spend it, I do not see this as a problem needing a solution. Nor do I regret the choices that lead to our likely being over funded.

A proverb tells us that money cannot buy happiness, but money can make being miserable a lot more comfortable. : )
 
Congratulations, brokrken! What a wonderful milestone. Don't forget to go big and celebrate (maybe someplace warm to escape the icebox....:)). As you've experienced portfolio will do the heavy lifting and you keep going till you no longer want to.
 
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