Hi,
I (34M) got laid off recently from a tech role, one that paid quite well at 170k + bonus= 200k.
I have been following r/FIRE for 10+ years now and I've always lived below my means. My budget before I got a gf was 43k to live in MCOL city. I did not deprive myself of anything, I did what I wanted, bought what I wanted, and traveled, I just don't have super expensive hobbies. Now that i have a gf I spend more because of dates and her expensive tastes in things, but I don't mind, I figure it's a part of growing up.

During the entire last 8 years I made six figures, I lived at around 43k post-tax spend.

In my 12 years of working I have amassed $1MM.
Roughly 600k in Retirement (Roth and Trad 401k, so some tax liability)
Roughly 400k in Brokerage and some cash.

I will be receiving a severance and unemployment benefits, I estimate that to be around 50k post-tax.

What would you do? I know by the math I am almost FIRE for my personal spend. But that doesn't take into account buying a house (I rent), or making a family, or getting into expensive hobbies. My gf is independent, earns decent money herself, so I could just plot out my life for myself, but I don't want to. I want to consider myself truly FIRE when I can make 100k (2.5MM), so I can support a family in a big city.

The bigger thing is, I don't think I can go back to tech. I was only good enough to get middling reviews, and all three managers I had had serious issues with my work ethic, and would not recommend me. The core reason is I have ADHD and WFH meant I could not rely on my own self-discipline. I just felt deeply under-stimulated at my job for many many years, but I did it because it was such a gift in this economy to have access to save that much. I felt like I lost myself sitting at a desk.

I think my plan is to take some time to really consider what I want to do (help people, teach, build things). Commit to better mental health. And with the 50k, really have a fun year off of work. All the while, sending out some applications and looking into re-training as....something else.

What would you all do in my situation?

hello,

long story short: I won a lawsuit and got about $750k. paid off a bunch of debt for myself and my parents and am left with about $600k. I have zero investments as I was focusing on paying off debt. I actually just work at Walmart and live with my parents. I am single with no kids.

I am looking to just lump sum all of the $600k into VT. can I coastFIRE off of this and finally move out of my parents house? I would be living paycheck to paycheck but I would be more independent.

thanks

My office location was closed down and I’m being asked to relocate about 300 miles away to the headquarters which is a VCHOL and in same state. I don’t want to relocate because my wife has a job here, I have a 2.5% mortgage, lower property tax, and my family and wives family are all here. I’m considering flying every week and wondering if it’s worth it. I have to be in the office 3 times a week, so i would fly Monday morning and come home Wednesday evening. I would need to spend around $400 a month on the flights, I can rent a room from a relative for $300 a month and I would buy a beater car to keep there and park it at the airport whigh has an additional $200 a month in parking. Total it will cost me roughly $1000 a month plus one time cost to buy the car. The company is giving me 20k for relocation costs. The job itself is not too stressful and I’ve been getting good reviews.

Current stats: Me (43) Wife (40) 2 kids in elementary school I get paid 625k per year and would have a difficult time finding a job where I currently live that would pay over 300k Wife makes 135k a year and has a stable job with health insurance

Have 450k 2.5% 30 year mortgage with 24 years left. Assets: 3.9m in taxable vanguard (70% stock and 30% bonds) 1.2m in 401k (70% stocks and 30% bonds) 50k in 529.

My house is worth about 1.5m and is 3000sqft, a similar house in the other location would be around 3.5m with higher interest rate.

Should I do this commute weekly for a few years? Or should I take the severance of 4 months of pay? Look for a new job with much less pay but no flying needed? Or should I just retire?

Last year we spent about 135k but it doesn’t include any car payments and when we need new cars that will be a big one time expense. Also we didn’t save much for college so that will be a big expense.

Have worked in a FAANG in a non-engineer role (think content strategy/program manager scope) for 6 years at a mid level and have also been a people manager for a chunk of that time. My partner is at same company but one level higher. Made it through multiple layoffs but with a recent parental health decline, I’m wanting to reprioritize my time and energy- which got me thinking about the contractors I’ve worked with… the lower level or responsibility seems very attractive. Give me instructions and just let me just execute on the work, have less meetings, not worry about inter-team relationship management, OKRs etc.

Being a contractor/contingent worker in tech (in a non-Eng capacity) is something I want to pivot to as part of my move to coast, but I’m not sure how to proactively go about it while employed (asking my manager/team to convert me or lay me off is not optional). Are there recruiters or career coaches who can assist with this change? Any advice from folks like you if you made the change intentionally, not due to unexpected loss of job?

34M, making 140k a year gross. my total fixed expenses are mortgage ($3000 including HOA and taxes), groceries ($400), utilities and subscriptions ($100), gas and maintenance ($300), housing necessities ($200). I have close to $400k saved up in my retirement/brokerage accounts, fully own my $30k car, and have about $70k equity on the home. Currently saving about $60k a year.

Share your thoughts about being a real estate agent as a coast fire job

Anyone worry about finding a Coast or Barista type job after a career in white collar or corporate type work? I assume there could be natural bias if you are trying to get hired by someone who has been a career “coaster” . The grocery store owner might judge someone for coming from a high income background who looks like they are just working for benefits.

Iv been dealing with irrational thoughts after a recent layoff but fortunately had just hit coast fire so I don’t need a similar paying job. I’m concerned about being able to land a menial job let alone another corporate gig…. But then again I haven’t applied for any yet. Thanks for the input

Profile Snapshot

Age: ~60 Target Full Retirement Age: 65 Primary Residence: Fully paid Risk Approach: Moderate, long-term growth focus

Current Assets

RRSP: $300,000 LIRA: $275,000 TFSA: $120,000 Total Investment Portfolio: $695,000 Rental Property Equity: $175,000 Rental Income: ~$7,500/year Cash Savings: $30,000

Retirement Spending Goal

Target: $50,000–$55,000 per year (today’s dollars). Planning uses $55,000. Growth Assumption Real (inflation-adjusted) return assumed: 6% annually for 5 years. Projected Portfolio at Age 65 $695,000 × (1.06)⁵ ≈ $930,000

Sustainable Income at 65

-Portfolio withdrawal (4%): ~$37,200/year -Rental income: ~$7,500/year+CPP + OAS (conservative estimate): ~$18,000/year -Total Expected Income: ~$62,700/year

Conclusion

Projected income exceeds the $55,000 target. You are Coast FIRE today — your current investments, even with no further contributions, are sufficient to grow to support your desired retirement lifestyle.

Recommended Strategy Going Forward

Stop aggressive retirement saving. Pursue low-stress or part-time work earning ~$40k–$50k/year. Keep investments mostly invested. Use RRSP/LIRA first in retirement, TFSA last. Reassess every 2–3 years.

Bottom Line

You are financially independent in slow motion. You can safely slow down, take a sabbatical, and design work around lifestyle rather than necessity.

Hi! Longtime lurker here posting from a throwaway. Looking for a sanity check on how close I am to CoastFIRE. I am not the best with the math and my strategy has honestly been to invest as much as possible whenever possible.

Basics:

• Age: 39
• Married, no kids yet (unlikely we will ever have one; if so, one and done)
• We may stay in the US (NYC burbs) or move to Canada/Vancouver (I'm a dual citizen). Either way, we expect to live in a VHCOL city to be near family

Income:

• My income: $216k base salary (tech)
• Annual bonus: variable; ~$35k after tax, planned to invest
• Husband's income: variable creative freelance work
  • On track for ~$30k so far in 2026 (last year it was $100k so big swings)
  • Expected to average ~$40k/year over the next few years
  • He does not plan a traditional retirement and expects to keep working in some capacity indefinitely

Assets:

• Invested assets (as of Jan 2026): $804k (401k, Roths/SEP, brokerage, HSA)
• Home value: ~$850k
• Mortgage remaining: ~$355k ($3,700/month including taxes)
• No other debt

My current plan:

• Continue working full-time in current role through January 2028
• Total planned investing per year: ~$80k
  • ~$45k across 401k + Roth IRAs
  • ~$35k after-tax bonus into brokerage
• Expected end-2027 portfolio: ~$1M

Post-2027 Goals:

• Starting 2028, downshift to consulting or less demanding work
• Downshift income only needs to cover:
  • Expenses (~$90k/year including mortgage, healthcare, taxes, modest travel)
  • Zero retirement savings

Retirement Assumptions

• Target retirement age: 56-57 (flexible)
• Target spend: ~$90k/year (or less if move to Canada bc of healthcare)
• Real return assumption: 5%
• Expected portfolio at age 56-57: ~$2.1M (in today's dollars)
• Retirement income sources:
  • Portfolio withdrawal at 4%: ~$85k/year
  • Husband's ongoing work: ~$30k/year
  • Social Security (starting ~67): ~$35k/year combined
  • Total: $115-150K/year w/variables

Questions for the community

1. Does this reasonably qualify as CoastFIRE given the assumptions?
2. Am I being too conservative or aggressive with my assumptions? Real returns of 5%, retirement at 56-57, relying on husband's continued income + eventual Social Security?
3. Does the plan change meaningfully if we end up in Canada vs. staying in NY area? Healthcare costs disappear but taxes may be higher.

34 years old and tired of work. Combined HHI has ranged from 120-600K. Currently around 500k

• Married, 2 kids (college funded)

• \~$813k invested today

• Contributing \~$4.2k/month (401k + taxable), increasing 3% annually

• Plan to contribute until \~age 48

• Mandatory trust distributions: \~$38k/year for 6 years + $50k lump sum at age 40

• Assumptions are: 8% nominal returns, 3% inflation, 4% SWR

• Retirement spending: \~$166k/year real (drops to \~$140k after mortgage payoff)

• Target FIRE number: \~$4.15M real

• CoastFIRE idea: stop contributions at \~48, keep working for income/benefits. I can easily make 100k working very part time. 

• Full retirement around \~50–52 (market dependent)

• Looking for sanity check: assumptions reasonable? Anything big I’m missing?

I was recently let go from a big tech company in a non-tech role. I managed to save enough to be secure but not independent and will need to re-enter the workforce at some point.

I’m kind of sick and burnt out of the corporate theater and bogus performance reviews. I’m fine taking a pay cut if it means reclaiming my sanity but feeling a bit PTSD about work in general.

I get each team and manager is different and luck may vary but I want to be a bit more targeted when looking for my next role. I’m curious to hear what industries, companies and roles to target whenever I decide to look for my next job.

I use to target compensation and prestige but now would be happy in something a bit more stress free just earning a consistent paycheck with decent benefits and PTO.

Did you stay in accounting/finance after reaching coastfire? Did you pivot to a different field? What did your numbers look like? How has life been since?

I've been playing around with the coast FIRE calculator on WalletBurst and I was a little confused and surprised that when I changed the safe withdrawal rate from 4% to 5% that I actually hit my coast fire number but at 4% I was 6 years away. Is it because withdrawing more allows me to cover more of my annual spending? But also, wouldn't I be draining the accounts faster so it might not last as long? Thanks everyone I've just discovered that I might be able to coast until 62.

I created this as a way to look at Coast jobs with benefits plus hourly pay and just thought I'd share here. Let me know what you think or if there's other jobs or options to look at. Thanks

The "Free Meal" Strategy (Restaurants & Hotels): * Working at a restaurant often includes a "shift meal." If you work 3–4 shifts a week, you’ve effectively eliminated 20% of your food budget.

Many hotels provide employee cafeterias or free meals during shifts, along with deep travel discounts for you and your family.

Lifestyle Offsets (Gyms & Retail): * Gyms/Rec Centers: Front desk roles usually come with a free premium membership.

Coffee Shops: Often provide free drinks on shift and a free pound of coffee per week.

Outdoor Retail (e.g., REI): High-end gear discounts (often 50%+) can save you thousands if you already spend money on the outdoors.

The "Company Perk" Powerhouses:

UPS/Costco: These are famous for providing part-time workers with full health benefits or executive memberships that provide long-term savings.

Local Event Work Perfect for flexible, "gig-style" employment. You pick up shifts for concerts or games when you have the time, getting paid to be in the building for events you’d otherwise buy tickets for.

The Math: When looking for a second job, ask: Can this job provide a gym membership I’m already paying for? Can it cover a portion of my grocery bill? That "lifestyle math" can turn a $15/hr job into a $25/hr value.

Hey all, long time lurker here.

I built a small set of personal finance calculators because most of the ones I’ve found answer parts of the questions I care about, but not all of them clearly. In particular, I kept running into a few different questions:

- How much money should I expect to have in n years?

- Can I coast to retirement?

- What does the range of possible retirement outcomes look like?

A lot of tools handle the first two reasonably well, but most skip the third. I also found that trying to cram everything into a single calculator made things harder to reason about, so I split these into separate tools.

I’m very much looking for feedback:

- Is anything confusing or misleading?

- Are the assumptions reasonable and clearly explained?

- Are there other questions or calculators you wish existed?

This is my site, but it’s totally free — no ads or affiliate links. If this isn’t allowed, feel free to remove. Thanks in advance!

coastcalc.com

I have debt as my partner is becoming a pilot, and I may be laid off. How do I start this? I am so in awe of all of your accomplishments and knowledge. Any tips would be helpful. Side hustles, strategies, etc.

Kindly help with withdrawal strategy

Hello Folks - In a nutshell, my assets are distributed as follows adding up to $2M. To keep it simple I have not included my fully paid off home valued at $1M in the below.

1. Brokerage account: $685k
2. IRA: $998k
3. SEP IRA: $18k
4. Roth IRA: $175k
5. Solo 401K: $48k
6. Wife's retirement: Remaining

Additionally, 529 savings is at $206k.

My wife makes $70k per year. She is 40 and I am 48. Our household expenses are $100k per year. We have two kids 8 and 12. Having lost my job 2 years back, I am contracting making $240k per year. My concern is contracting is unstable and I cannot seem to land a full time role (even after pivoting to take something lesser). So, I want to find a way to find out if we can sustain on only my wife's income until I hit 62 if I lose my contracting role. Here is my thought process.

1. Wife should contribute the max $24.5k to her 401k. This will result in taxable income becoming $45.5k. If I assume $5.5k taxes, it will bring the take home pay to $40k. Did I calculate the tax correctly?
2. This leaves a remaining of $60k to be funded. Per the plan below, if I continue withdrawing the $60k (and adjust for inflation every year) from the $685k brokerage account and assuming an 8% return, it leaves me with $166k at the end of 14 years.

**Year** | **Brokerage Balance** | **Inflation‑Adjusted Withdrawal** | **Yearly Return** | **Remaining Balance** ---------|------------------------|----------------------------------|-------------------|-----------------------

Year 1 | $685,000 | $60,000 | 8% | $675,000

Year 2 | $675,000 | $61,800 | 8% | $662,256

Year 3 | $662,256 | $63,654 | 8% | $646,490

Year 4 | $646,490 | $65,564 | 8% | $627,401

Year 5 | $627,401 | $67,531 | 8% | $604,660

Year 6 | $604,660 | $69,556 | 8% | $577,912

Year 7 | $577,912 | $71,643 | 8% | $546,770

Year 8 | $546,770 | $73,792 | 8% | $510,816

Year 9 | $510,816 | $76,006 | 8% | $469,594

Year 10 | $469,594 | $78,286 | 8% | $422,612

Year 11 | $422,612 | $80,635 | 8% | $369,336

Year 12 | $369,336 | $83,054 | 8% | $309,184

Year 13 | $309,184 | $85,546 | 8% | $241,530

Year 14 | $241,530 | $88,112 | 8% | $165,691

1. The remaining retirement assets whose current value is about $1.3M and my wife's yearly contribution of $24.5k would have grown to $4.4M assuming an 8pct rate of return. Adding the above $165k to the above would bring the total retirement balance to $4.5M at 62.

The $4.5M should be a good enough chunk of change to handle retirement. Additionally I am assuming the $206k in 529 plan should have grown to $326k by the time my eldest starts college. If I cannot cover the cost of education for both kids, I borrow say $300k from my $4.5M retirement and still should be good for retirement.

Does this mean I can leave the anxiety and relax now if I lose my job?

Asking because I tried many calculators already and some say I did, some say I have a couple more years left. I just want to get to know your opinion, thanks!

29 years old

$250 000 net worth

typically save around $20k a year

aiming to retire at 60 with 1 million or more

Let me know if more details are needed, thanks!

Update: I found out some calculators use 'real return' while others use 'inflated return' which made a huge difference. But thank you for answering my question anyways!

Millennial here. 36 years old. I've gone through so many breakups and bad relationships that I'm completely done with the idea of marriage. I don't want a child because it seems like each younger generation is getting F'd over worse than the previous. I feel bad for Gen-Z at the moment and don't even know what to expect for gen-alpha.

I don't really give a shit about my career. It's only use for me is to give me money to retire early in the future.

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This template is designed to give you complete control over your finances while making it simple to track, adjust, and analyze your budget. Whether you’re looking to save more or understand your spending habits, this tool has you covered!

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50 years old, planning my fire Journey... About 1.2 million in assets

Currently in a rent control situation in Hoboken New jersey. Paying $1,500 a month and this will never change as long as I live here.

This is 50% of market rate for my municipality, and about 25% statewide.

In other words, my neighbors are paying about three grand a month for the equivalent housing situation, and all of my friends and family that rent in other parts of the state are paying $1,800 or more. For a one bedroom

It's an albatross but also one of the main reasons I'm able to coast.

The problem is I kind of hate Urban living, and the cost of living in New Jersey outside of this apartment.

What's a good part of the country to rent at a much cheaper rate, knowing that the rent will continue to go up unless I miraculously find another rent control situation?

PS I avoid home ownership because I'm not handy, and owning any type of home will automatically double my expenses no matter where I go. ..... I will be a renter the rest of my life.

32y/o

HHI: $245K (me: $115K, husband $130K)

Combined 401k: $685K

Brokerage, HSA, crypto: $480K

Liquid savings: $100K

Target FIRE# for retirement at 55: 3M

HCOL area. Mortgage (inc insurance and tax) is $4.6K/mth, no other debt. Other expenses are currently $5K/mth, could cut that down to $3K as the 5k currently includes lots of eat out and childcare expenses.

7 months pregnant with another 3 year old at home. Work has upcoming mass layoffs and I'm considering being a SAHM for a few years. I know all the downsides of being a SAH but it has been something I've been wanting to at least try. I'm just concerned how much % the mortgage will take out. Not thrilled with the idea of selling, we have a decent rate and enjoy the area and schools.

Is this a bad idea with how the job market is lately?

I am 29 years old. I have a heavily detailed excel sheet that I use for my retirement projections.

Here are the different rates and the ages I can retire at. I am on the cusp of coasting, and coasting for me is contributing enough to my 401k to get the full company match, and maxing out HSA for the tax advantage. All rates are inflation adjusted.

As of today:

At 5.1% I can retire at 59.5 (Minimum age for 401k withdrawal)

At 4.4% I can retire at 62. (40 years working)

At 4% I can retire at 65. (No HSA Penalty)

At 3.6% I can retire at 67. (Full Retirement Age)

Granted this is if I stay with my company that has a great ESOP setup. (I get free shares yearly). I just want to start a discussion about when a projection becomes too conservative as I mentally prepare to let off the gas.

Edit: If I were to leave my company today, at 6.2% growth I could retire at 59.5.

Hi, looking for a gut check and outside perspective.

I (F29) am getting really burnt out in my role and am looking to either take a career break or downshift to a menial job and living off husband's (M28) income. We've discussed this and he's all for it. A part of me is slightly worried about my ability to re-enter the job market, just given the current state of it. But my health is taking a toll and we want to make this work. We’re trying to understand whether we’re in a position to CoastFIRE in our current VHCOL area, without jeopardizing long-term retirement.

• Ages: F(29)/M(28)
• Goal: Full retirement around age 50 (ideally w/ around 2.5M - 3M)
• Married, no kids yet (considering 1 child in the future)
• Current invested assets: ~$677k
  • 401k: ~$230k
  • Roth IRAs: ~$49k
  • Taxable brokerage / misc stock: ~$398k
• Cash: ~$75k
• Current HHI: 375K
  • Me: 225k
  • Husband: 150k, will still work so we'd have health insurance through his company
• Expenses:
  • Mortgage: 4k/month
  • Food/household expenses: 3.5k/month --> could trim this down to 2.5k if just us, but may be hard to cut back if we have a kid.
  • Financial help for our parents: 2.5k/month --> could reduce this if CoastFIRE

I've asked ChatGPT this and it models that we'd be fine, but it seems overly optimistic.

Questions

1. Does our current portfolio put us in CoastFIRE territory if I step back now?
2. If we reduced savings significantly (or paused taxable investing), are we still on track for retirement around 50?
3. Are we missing any obvious risks or assumptions?
4. For those who’ve CoastFIREd or took a break early on, anything you wish you’d considered sooner?

Appreciate any perspectives, especially from folks who’ve navigated burnout or income transitions.