r/financialindependence

I’m 42M, no kids, no debt, paid-off condo living in HCOL area. My business has not been doing so well this year because of the economy and I am stressed out and burnt out. So, I will be closing it down by December. I want to take a 2 year sabbatical to improve my health and do some traveling. 12 years of doing my business has taken a toll on me and never really got to travel because of the time constraints.

Current portfolio: $764K: $560K in VTI, $204K cash. I plan to invest $150K of the $204K cash into VXUS or QQQM and leave the rest in cash or bonds.

Paid off condo worth around ~$630K.

I have another $210K in an HYSA. I will be using some of this money for the two year sabbatical.

My annual expenses are about $35K/year but plan to spend about $70K/year during the sabbatical because of traveling. Once the two year sabbatical is over, I already have plans to start a different business that is more meaningful and doesn’t carry all the stress.

Some of my friends tell me it’s a bad idea to go on a 2 year sabbatical because a recession is looming around the corner. But I really feel like I need this for the sake of my physical and mental health. I would like to do some traveling while I’m still young too.

I’m open to advices. Thank you.

I’ve been digging into 72(t) SEPP withdrawals (a method to access pre-tax funds before 59.5) and one thing that stands out is how rigid withdrawals can be and how you have to get the math correct or face substantial penalties. 

That said, there's a “partial escape hatch” that I don't see discussed very often. The IRS allows a one-time switch from the amortization (or annuitization) method to the RMD method during your SEPP schedule.

Here’s a simplified example:

You start a 72(t) at age 45. You isolate $1.5M of your pre-tax accounts into a separate IRA, use a 5% interest rate, and set up a fixed amortization schedule. That produces an annual fixed withdrawal of $86,733.

Everything is fine until age 50, when your parent passes away. You inherit an IRA subject to the 10-year rule but where you’re also required to take RMDs. It’s sad that Mom or Dad passed, and it also throws a wrench in your income and tax planning. 

However, because of the one-time method switch rule, you could move from the amortization method to the RMD method for your SEPP. That would reduce your 72(t) withdrawal to ~$41,000 in that year, and you could then draw additional income from the inherited IRA as needed.

Another cautionary example I’ve heard financial advisors bring up is someone who retires early and then later decides to go back to work. That’s a more benign version of the same idea: your income needs can change after you’ve already locked in a 72(t).

It’s not a “get out of jail free” card, and it only works once (and in one direction), but it does add some flexibility in a system that otherwise has very little.

 

I grew up fairly rich but my dad lost it all when I was in my teens. Now through being prudent and relatively frugal, I find my self at 52 on the cusp of fire. My dad is 79 (mom passed), and he still works part time. Since he lost his money, he's been supported by his part time job but also very generous monthly stipends from me and my 2 siblings. (they're both rich and truthfully give him more than I do ).

I am not as wealthy as my siblings but obviously pretty good as i can retire early, but my dad is always asking about my financial business and I brush him off. He's 79 and still spends money wildly (he has my siblings buy him business class tickets when he visits, he still shops alot even though everything he buys is the same version of something he already has amongst other things).
Its been 30+ years since we started supporting him, and he still has not savings today. I can't understand how he hasn't planned ahead all these years and expects us to support him til he dies, and his job won't last too much longer. I think he actually looks down on me alittle because he thinks I don't have as much money as my siblings, but I don't tell him anything because I know he'll ask for more money if he knew how much I do have.

Has anyone dealt with this, and what would you do in my situation?

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As mentioned in my last post, I'm posting this mostly for myself, but hopefully it will provide some encouragement to others. You may notice my last post was net worth and this one is invested. I'll touch on that later in the post.

Income

• 2013-2020: <$28k - This was the most I ever made in a year, most years were lower
• May 2021: $85k - Starting salary out of college
• 2022: $100k
• 2023: $105k
• 2024: $112.5k
• 2025: $119.5k
• 2026: $126.5k
  • 2021-2026 is all with the same company. Increases in income are due to raises.

Assets

• $190,434 - 401k
• $51,482 - Roth IRA
• $7,106 - HYSA
• $8,133 - Crypto
• $286 - Cash

Liabilities

• $3,192 - Student loans @ 2.75%
• $1,397 - Credit card (paid off in full every month)

Invested (End of year)

• 2021: $15,600
• 2022: $64,172
  • I pulled this number from my spreadsheet. I don't know why it's larger than the number in my last post.
• 2023: $128,952
• 2024: $187,162
• 2025: $245,561
• 2026 (today): $251,995

What's new since 2023?

I've experienced some major life milestones in the last few years. My partner and I got married and had a wonderful wedding with all of our friends and family. The wedding cost ~$35k, which was more than originally planned ($20k 😅), but it was a wonderful day and we'd do it again in a heartbeat. We were very fortunate that our parents pitched in ($9k), so our actual costs were lower. We would do a few things differently if we had the chance to do it again, but we have no regrets.

In addition to getting married, we also purchased our first home! We weren't quite financially ready to buy, but a townhouse became available in our favorite neighborhood, and we felt the need to jump on it. We raided the wedding fund to cover the down payment and closing costs ($18k). The total cost of the house was $375k, and we are aggressively paying it down, with an extra $1000/mo payment to the principal. Our interest rate is 6.375%.

To clear up any confusion about us pulling wedding fund money: yes, we bought the house before we the wedding. However, prior to all of this we were married in a courthouse. The wedding was more of a celebration than a ceremony.

Between the wedding and the house, it's felt like a ton of money has been flying out the window, but I'm happy to see my number is still inching up.

For additional clarity, I say "my number", because my partner and I have separate finances. They are financially responsible and on pace for an early retirement as well, but we've found it so much simpler to manage things individually. I know this can be a controversial topic, but it's worked for us in the several years we've been together.

Why not include the house in your assets?

Earlier in the post I mentioned that my old post covers my net worth while this one is just my invested assets. The main reason for that is I didn't have a house when I made that post and now I do. I don't want to include the value of my house because it's not something I can live off of. I think that's pretty common in the FIRE community.

In addition, the house is one of our few joint assets, so I find it easier to leave it off.

What's next?

With both the house and the wedding, I've been feeling financially strained. My goal for 2026 is to get back on track. I plan to beef up my emergency fund to $15k and continue maxing my 401k and Roth. If I have anything left over, I'd like to start investing in a taxable account. It's always interesting to me how I was able to save so much when I started this job in 2021 and now I'm making $40k more and still saving roughly the same amount. Lifestyle inflation is real.

As far as my career, I'm happy with where I am. I like the people I work with, and I feel like I'm valued and respected. I've received a raise every year I've been there, so that's a nice bonus. Maybe I could make more at another company, but my current job offers a ton of benefits I wouldn't be able to get elsewhere (mainly the very flexible PTO policy).

For things outside of work, there are plenty of house projects I'm excited to tackle! We've been saving money each month into a "house maintenance" bucket and a "house fun" bucket. I'll let you all decide which one I'm looking forward to more.

My partner and I also have several trips planned, as well as a few solo trips of my own, so I have plenty to keep my busy during the "boring middle".

That's pretty much it. Again, I wanted to post this mainly for myself, but I'm happy to answer any questions.

I know the conventional wisdom on here is that Roth 401k rarely makes sense vs. traditional, but I think my situation might be an exception — would love to hear pushback or confirmation.

My situation:

- Planning to retire in ~10 years, well before 59½ (early retirement / FIRE)

- I have a 401k that allows both traditional and Roth contributions

- I have an existing Roth IRA at Fidelity (5-year clock already running)

- My current gap: I don't have enough in my taxable brokerage to bridge the ~5 years between early retirement and when my Roth conversion ladder becomes accessible

My understanding of the mechanics:

When I quit, I can roll my Roth 401k directly into my existing Roth IRA. The rolled-over *contributions* (basis) would be immediately accessible — no waiting period, no penalty — because they're treated as Roth IRA contributions post-rollover. Only the *earnings* would be locked until 59½ or a qualified distribution.

My thinking:

If that's correct, then Roth 401k contributions effectively function as a tax-free, penalty-free bridge fund for early retirement — arguably better than a taxable brokerage for that purpose, since there's no tax drag during accumulation and the contributions are just as liquid after rollover.

So instead of diverting money to a taxable brokerage to build my bridge, I could lean harder into the Roth 401k and use the contribution basis as the bridge.

Questions:

1. Is my understanding of the rollover mechanics correct?

2. Does this specific use case (early retirement, using Roth 401k basis as a bridge) actually justify Roth 401k over traditional + taxable brokerage?

3. What am I missing or underweighting here?

For context, I'm not choosing Roth 401k purely for the tax-free growth argument — I understand that's the one that usually falls apart. This is specifically about liquidity timing in an early retirement scenario.

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25 years old with 250k net worth. my goal is to get to 500k by age 30. My income is 100k per year. Would it be realistic to semi retire with 500k and just working part time with 500k after 30?

So, here’s my situation in a nutshell.

M52 - been working for 26 years straight, without any gaps in pay check. In traditional engineering company for past 15 years, not big tech or anything fancy rocket ship, only get paid salary no stock. Keep getting 3% annual raises, no promotions. But job is interesting and flexible, and company is reasonably stable. Spouse also works with similar type employer.

Net worth is $6.1M:

Portfolio is $4M, of which $2.7M is in retirement accounts, $350k cash, $950k post tax brokerage.

Home value is $3.2M (modest 60 year old home in VHCOL). Still owe $1.1M at fixed 2.6% rate.

If we sell and GTFO from VHCOL in any HCOL or MCOL, we could have a fully paid off home and $5M in portfolio.

Or we could stay in VHCOL, keep working 8-10 years and pay it off and retire in VHCOL.

What would you do???

I usually put money into investments immediately every time I receive my paycheque, but the situation with the Iran war has been so crazy and world altering that I stopped putting money into the market. I don't know if I should DCA it or lump sum. Is there anyone else waiting out to see what happens?

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maybe this is just me..

but I always thought getting close to FI would feel more clear

instead it feels a bit… off? not about the numbers

more like

am I actually ready
what if I change my mind later
what if it just doesn’t feel how I expected

hard to explain honestly

curious if anyone else felt something similar before actually pulling the trigger

Current situation: 24 yo, getting married this summer. Our finances are pretty much already combined. NW ~150k, mostly in cash and equities. Goal is to be FI in 11ish years by age 35.

Currently on track to max my trad. 401k, Roth IRA, and HSA this year. From research and reading this sub, I thought even if you wanted to access funds before 59.5, the trad 401k was still probably best.

We had a free session with a financial advisor recently just for the heck of it. He suggested lowering 401k contributions to just get employer match and either switch to Roth 401k or taxable investments. The rationale being that 401k money is locked up and you have to pay income tax on it even if using early withdrawal methods (72t, Roth ladder). And he argues that tax rates are likely to go up (even if we were to go down in brackets). This point makes relative sense to me but everything I've read says max traditional 401k -> HSA -> Roth IRA -> taxable investments.

I definitely do want to contribute to taxable investments since the goal is aggresive. This year we are paying off student loans aggresively so are only investing a few hundred per month in taxable (and aren't budgeting to max my spouses roth IRA).

So in future years we likely could max my spouses Roth IRA as well and contribute more to taxable investments.

But what is the general consensus? Does it make sense to continue in traditional 401k or take some of that and put it into taxable accounts instead. TYIA

Also if this context helps, HHI is 140-150k

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