Retiring early with kids is impossible October 07, 2019 | Registered: 9 years ago Posts: 3,712 |
Re: Retiring early with kids is impossible October 07, 2019 | Registered: 19 years ago Posts: 9,199 |
Quote
It was only after our son was born in early 2017 that I felt a renewed sense of purpose. Before my boy, I felt my purpose was to help educate as many readers as possible about personal finance in order to one day be free. After my boy was born, my purpose has expanded to keeping Financial Samurai running long enough to teach him about operating an online business out of fear he may have a tough time getting ahead. In addition, I now need to live long enough until he finds someone who loves him as much as I love my wife.
Re: Retiring early with kids is impossible October 07, 2019 | Registered: 9 years ago Posts: 3,712 |
Quote
bell_flower
Wow, this guy is setting himself to be vilified with his budget and how he's barely making it on $200k per year. Yeah, he's living in San Francisco and I get it that food is more expensive there but $2200 a month for food for three people? What on Earth are they eating? Stop with the food delivery services and learn to cook for yourself, particularly because he is retired and the Moo doesn't work. $600 a month for entertainment and internet games per month? And of course he's defending his $2000 per month preschool for his Wunderkid? Geez, if you aren't tied to a particular area, and he's not, he could move. He wants to move to Hawaii, which would be cheaper. yeah, cry me a river over these hardships.
Re: Retiring early with kids is impossible October 08, 2019 | Registered: 13 years ago Posts: 12,434 |
Re: Retiring early with kids is impossible October 08, 2019 | Registered: 15 years ago Posts: 497 |
Re: Retiring early with kids is impossible October 09, 2019 | Registered: 13 years ago Posts: 12,434 |
Re: Retiring early with kids is impossible October 10, 2019 | Registered: 12 years ago Posts: 221 |
Re: Retiring early with kids is impossible October 10, 2019 | Registered: 9 years ago Posts: 3,712 |
Quote
deegee
I retired 11 years ago at age 45 and about a year later I joined an early retirement forum. The subject of kids arises from time to time, and it can sometimes become contentious. There is, however, a significant share of early retirees who have no kids. Personally, I don't know how anyone who has kids can retire early, but that's just me. I know I would never, ever have been able to retire early if I had kids.
What is the age of "early retirement?" This question arises there from time to time, too. There are various degrees, IMHO. Before age 65 is one degree, because that is Medicare age. Before age 62 is another, because that is the earliest one can collect Social Security. Before age 59.5 is still another, because that is when someone can withdraw from an IRA (although there are exceptions to that rule). Still another is before age 55 because someone who leaves an employer at 55 can begin taking withdrawals from his 401k.
With the Affordable Care Act's insurance exchanges introduced in 2014, individual health insurance is a much lesser obstacle to retiring than before. I have surely discovered that after I retired in late 2008.
Re: Retiring early with kids is impossible October 10, 2019 | Registered: 9 years ago Posts: 3,712 |
Re: Retiring early with kids is impossible October 10, 2019 | Registered: 9 years ago Posts: 3,712 |
Quote
yurble
I think you can retire early with kids - if you earn above average and you are thrifty. After daycare and diapers, so much of childhood costs, aside from the enormous quantities of food they consume as teens, is discretionary spending. (College is maybe the one difficult semi-mandatory expense.) The same is true for many adult expenses; very few of them are not subject to flexibility. If you live your whole life like you make 30k, but actually make 100k, you can retire early.
Re: Retiring early with kids is impossible October 10, 2019 | Registered: 18 years ago Posts: 9,976 |
Quote
yurble
I think you can retire early with kids - if you earn above average and you are thrifty. After daycare and diapers, so much of childhood costs, aside from the enormous quantities of food they consume as teens, is discretionary spending. (College is maybe the one difficult semi-mandatory expense.) The same is true for many adult expenses; very few of them are not subject to flexibility. If you live your whole life like you make 30k, but actually make 100k, you can retire early.
Re: Retiring early with kids is impossible October 11, 2019 | Registered: 13 years ago Posts: 12,434 |
Quote
Cambion
Quote
yurble
I think you can retire early with kids - if you earn above average and you are thrifty. After daycare and diapers, so much of childhood costs, aside from the enormous quantities of food they consume as teens, is discretionary spending. (College is maybe the one difficult semi-mandatory expense.) The same is true for many adult expenses; very few of them are not subject to flexibility. If you live your whole life like you make 30k, but actually make 100k, you can retire early.
Honestly, how many parents do that? Most of them are fucking awful at money management and will do the precise opposite: live like they make 100K when they only make 30K, max out craptons of credit cards, wreck their credit, and then wonder why they're so poor all the time. If most parents were savvy about finances, they likely wouldn't be parents because they'd realize what a massive expense kids are.
Re: Retiring early with kids is impossible October 11, 2019 | Registered: 11 years ago Posts: 3,576 |
Quote
yurble
Not most people, for sure. And that lack of thrift applies to people without kids as well as people with them, although breeders are probably the worst for spending beyond their means. I fully admit my parents are a lot more thrifty than I am, and probably lived on about 50% of their income. I, on the other hand, live on about 70-80% of my income, because I have some indulgences as well as some thrift.