Earlier this year I broke the 1M mark which I'm super proud of (I'm 45 and in the military). That number will regress a bit here shortly though as it is time for a new (to me) car that I've been saving for specifically.
In 2020 My brother passed away and since then I've realized I need to stop being so miserly. FIRE is still the goal (FI, maybe not RE) but I realized a lot about my approach that made sense before doesn't necessarily now. it's about balance, and I wasn't balanced – I saved EVERYTHING. which is good because it got me the most of the way to where I am now. But I needed to back off a bit and enjoy what I have, so I started treating myself.
One of the things I did was buy an old beater pick up truck and I've been slowly putting it back together. it runs, its half way registered (don't ask, its a complicated answer) and I use it to take things to the dump and move heavy items. it's useful, but the $3000 I spent on it and the $10k I spent restoring it (poorly lol) are decidedly not FIRE behaviors. We also took vacations, renovated the bathroom, and are adding solar. All about $140k we didn't have to spend but improves our situation and personal comfort dramatically.
I am not at all sorry that we've made these purchases. My portfolio is still increasing every month and I'm still projecting a $2M to $3M balance by the time I'm ready to retire. but I can't stress enough how important it is to spend time with your loved ones and spend *some* of the money you have on you and yours.
I hope all you fine folk out there are choosing to do that to some degree this holiday season and here's to a great new year.
Don't forget to balance your saving with *some* spending on you and yours.
byu/Jean_le_Jedi_Gris infinancialindependence
Posted by Jean_le_Jedi_Gris
3 Comments
Good for you. When the time comes to shift from saving to spending, sounds like you’ll be able to make the adjustment.
One million at 45 is officer level. When you RE as an officer, the benefits are so significant that it can easily equal an extra 1m of your savings. The GI bill and TRICARE take a lot of the unknown out of the equation.
Congrats and thank you for your service. I would rather my tax money go to your benefits than to countries across the world, especially those whose governments like to chant extreme anti-American slogans.
Call me crazy but I think a million dollars is too much to spend on a car /s
I’ve only ever bought new cars. They have have had new tech and totally worth it. I drive it for more than three years. I’m not even sure it was a bad financial decision. Very happy with my decisions.