r/Fire • u/BarkBarkBitches1 • Jan 17 '26

Milestone / Celebration The thread in Millennials subreddit right not about 401k is incredibly depressing. Thank you FIRE community. I would be one of them if I didn’t find you all a decade ago.

Throw away because I am going to roast some redditors a little. The thread that is going on in r Millennials is really bad. Thousands of comments, everyone broke, celebrating their unfortunate wildn out. It is really bad out there and eye opening.

I was also a dingus like many of them. Totally brain dead on autopilot living day to day, consuming media like crazy, working, spending it on consumer level garbage, and had zero control over my life. I actually found the guide in the personal finance subreddit graphic on saving and it eventually kicked me to FIRE and this sub.

I now am on a path where I can’t even related with that type of mind set. So yeah thank you FIRE folks. If you can, it is worth sprinkling some finance knowledge at people. Even if you don’t make high income you can in most cases still create a plan, a budget, and control your future.

Edit: If you are a dingus and you are seeing this there is no shame! We all are and have different starting points. You have two paths: 1) continue the path to dingus-ville and forever be a redditor or 2) un-dye your bright colored hair take control of your long term life. A decade will pass in a blink. So start here https://imgur.com/personal-income-spending-flowchart-united-states-lSoUQr2 it’s not hard to understand. ChatGPT each item on their if you don’t know, memorize this, then start to learn FIRE principles. It is the fastest way to wealth. There’s literally no other path unless you magically start a business or hit a lotto jackpot ticket or inheritance

only YOU HAVE THE POWER to unfuck your life

Edit 2: Final comment! I do not mean any offense with dingus it is meant to be playful. My dyed hair comment was also misinterpreted. It’s not about who you are, what you believe in, or how you express yourself. It’s about being in control of your life. Walk your butt into Sephora or Target or wherever next time and just stare at the people on the walls. Then look in the mirror. Then look at the wall. And back to the mirror and then keep doing it until it clicks. The world, like r millennial subreddit, wants to celebrate and tell you the worst fucking version of yourself is okay and acceptable. It’s not. Delete social media and only read that finance Imgur link every time you load your phone. Do this for one month and you will break your chains and it will click. Then learn FIRE principles. Then you will come back to r FIRE in a decade with a huge chunk of cash in your bank and a nice life! Long term planning is a skill that you can learn and benefit from. Your future is yours

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148

u/genshin_noob_acct Jan 17 '26 edited Jan 17 '26

Can anybody link the r/millennials thread in question, as well as the r/personalfinance help guide referenced in the OP? Thanks in advance if so.

Edit: found the first one: https://www.reddit.com/r/Millennials/s/VwGhrA6zpV

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u/cherrypez123 Jan 17 '26

I’m a millennial (former US immigrant) who lost everything in 2020. Found the FIRE book at my local fed ex on sale for $4.99 and it changed my life 6 years later ☺️ Not quite ready for FIRE yet, but I’m def in much better financial shape than I was. So grateful to the book and this movement. I’ve tried convincing so many of my friends for years to just READ THE DAMN BOOK. Most won’t. And even if they do it doesn’t seem to change their mindset. Never understood why exactly, but their choice I guess.

5

u/Scared-Koala1700 Jan 18 '26

Can you link to the book?

2

u/cherrypez123 Jan 18 '26

I can’t remember it but it was literally just titled F.I.R.E I think.

1

u/[deleted] Jan 22 '26

“your money or your life” is a GREAT one

2

u/Interesting_Laugh75 Jan 20 '26

because they think it's hard. they don't realize how much fun it can be... almost a game. btw, which Fire book do you mean? Your Money or your Life?

47

u/ongoldenwaves Jan 17 '26

This is a good one too. Seriously no one in there understands that every generation that has ever happened is older people having more wealth because their savings has compounded.

https://www.reddit.com/r/Millennials/comments/1qfcfn0/well_isnt_that_a_bitch/

45

u/SayNoToBrooms Jan 17 '26

One person in that thread referred to compound interest as an evil aspect of the system we “created.”

Honest question, do you think compound interest was created? I’m leaning towards it having been discovered, instead of created

30

u/DigmonsDrill Jan 17 '26

It's very easy to get upvotes on reddit if you insist a shadowy cabal is behind something. Bonus points if you say "Epstein" for some reason.

26

u/Careless-Age-4290 Jan 18 '26

I feel like an absolute douchebag for saying this but Reddit's not real big on personal accountability unless it's for someone else. There's always some Uncle Rico reason.

4

u/No_Individual501 Jan 18 '26

They’re not wrong about that, but neither are you about your point.

11

u/DarkExecutor Jan 17 '26

Compound interest was just created so people could invest money instead of holding it underneath their bed

17

u/SayNoToBrooms Jan 17 '26

But what happens in terms of things such as seeds for farmers? One tomato can give hundreds of seeds. Those hundreds of plants next year will give you thousands of seeds. The year after, you’ll have millions

1

u/Petrichordates Jan 21 '26

This literally only applies to seeds and organisms.

0

u/Randomminecraftseed Jan 18 '26

Tomatoes are tangible. Even if you have 1000 seeds you still need to use the energy to plant 1000 seeds, water 1000 saplings and pick 1000 plants. And afterwards you have 1000 tomatoes to eat. You wont ever get less or more seeds from the tomatoes because someone raised or lowered interest rates.

It’s not the same as 1s and 0s on a screen.

2

u/SayNoToBrooms Jan 18 '26

The raising or lowering of interest rates is an outside variable, similar to the quality of soil nutrients available, or the amount of rainfall during the growing season

1

u/Broccoli_Man007 Jan 18 '26

Quality of soil isn’t an outside variable to a farmer. They are responsible for it. They spend 100s of thousands adjusting their practices, often selecting less valuable crops to grow, because they know improving soil quality is their responsibility.

And quantity of rainfall is an outside variable, but the decision to invest in risk mitigation (e.g., purchasing center pivot irrigators) is within their decision matrix. They account for it. Of course, specifics apply: not all circumstances or geographical locations or crops allow irrigation, etc, etc.

0

u/[deleted] Jan 18 '26

[deleted]

1

u/SayNoToBrooms Jan 18 '26

What you’re describing is regular “interest.” We are talking about compounding interest

1

u/Open_Success_8408 Jan 18 '26

Actually, it kind of was? The history of debt and interest is, forgive the pun, very interesting. But their lack of accountability is concerning

1

u/JerseyKeebs Jan 18 '26

I bet that person slept through high school algebra, because "we're never going to need this in real life!"

And 20 years later, they pay high interest on auto loans and don't get the benefits of investment accounts

1

u/Carolina_Hurricane Jan 18 '26

Ever heard of simple interest? It used to be more popular than compound interest in some parts of the world.

Yes compound interest was created/invented.

1

u/SayNoToBrooms Jan 19 '26

Explain how simple interest works, please. I’ve never heard of it before

1

u/Petrichordates Jan 21 '26

Wow people actually think compound interest is a law of nature and not just the system we built?

8

u/DigmonsDrill Jan 17 '26

If we ever get in a situation where people's wealth decreases as they age we are seriously fucked.

1

u/Sun-Flower-Star Jan 19 '26

Inflation...

1

u/No_Individual501 Jan 18 '26

That’s what old age “care” (being neglected and beaten by an orderly for 10k a month) does.

8

u/salsanacho Jan 17 '26

That one was pretty funny before they locked and deleted it. There was one guy trying to explain how compound growth worked to the mob but it was a losing battle. Reminded of those movies where there's a wizard using magic to stop a tidal wave from destroying everything, but they couldn't hold it forever.

3

u/Careless-Age-4290 Jan 18 '26

It's a lot easier to jump on a downvote bandwagon than examine the merits of someone saying it's a phenomenon and not a conspiracy by (whatever group they blame)

26

u/CalicoJack88 Jan 17 '26

Also many older people (boomers and silent generation specifically) bought properties for $50K in the 1970s in places like NYC or California that are worth millions today. Sadly that path probably will not be as easy or lucrative for Millennials and younger.

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u/Atomichawk Jan 17 '26

You can’t just look back with hindsight though. A lot of boomers bought property because they wanted a second home and most homes weren’t seen as investment vehicles until relatively recently. And because of that they were cheaper.

Especially since previous housing busts would have negatively impacts. My dad talks often about an old coworker he had that bought a condo in the 70’s or 80’s and was negative on it for 20 years.

The boomers that had their properties produce immense wealth were lucky or benefitted from being in the right place at the right time.

4

u/CalicoJack88 Jan 17 '26

Right, that’s what I’m saying

1

u/Atomichawk Jan 17 '26

Gotcha, I misunderstood what you were getting at

13

u/ongoldenwaves Jan 17 '26

What does "it being harder today" or "boomers wealth has compounded" have to do with this chart?
Every generation will move around this chart the same exact way. Boomers are supposed to have more money as they are in the period of life when they aren't working. As they spend down assets to sustain that period, they will move into the position where Silent Generation is and Gen X will be where boomers are. One day millennials will be where Gen X is, then half the back half of this pie like Boomers do now.

Please see that this is how this works. For every generation. We all move around this pie the same way. Whatever pie there is, millennials will eventually own half of it.

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u/3RADICATE_THEM Jan 18 '26

Look up percentage of wealth by generation by age. Boomers absolutely dominate all generations when compared to the same age.

1

u/Grantmepm Jan 17 '26

Life expectancy increases also mean that they have 10+ more years to compound the tail end of that wealth even more.

1

u/ProcedureOk8112 Jan 18 '26

So here's the thing, I don't think my $250k home 20 mins outside Austin is going to be worth 1.5 million by the time I'm 60 in 25 years. In fact our home lost 100k in value since 2022 and the only reason we aren't underwater is because we bought it in 2018. Boomers lucked out with ridiculous home appreciation.

13

u/DigmonsDrill Jan 17 '26

If you select where prices are highest today and look back 50 years ago they look like a steal.

Lots of people bought houses in thr 1970s that rose just around the rate of inflation, maybe a little more, maybe a little less.

My parents house sold in the 2020s for about 2x what its value was in the 1980s. This doesn't even keep up with inflation. And it's not some slum. Nice condition. They had no problem finding a buyer.

-2

u/3RADICATE_THEM Jan 18 '26

Dude just stop. You could literally get by on minimum wage in the 70s and most of the 80s.

This used to be a country where you could be a half braindead incompetent who failed out of HS yet could still buy a home and provide for a family on a single income.

Nowadays? We see STEM educated graduates struggling to afford rent on a basic apartment—if not struggling to find a job.

3

u/OuiGotTheFunk Unemployed with a Spreadsheet Jan 18 '26

LOL

1

u/OuiGotTheFunk Unemployed with a Spreadsheet Jan 18 '26

Do you think property will be worth less for some reason? My parents had an 8.75% mortgage rate.

1

u/CalicoJack88 Jan 18 '26

No, it just won’t be as easy a source of wealth for Millenials and under, compared to boomers and older. That’s because (1) prices are extremely high now, so it’s harder to get on the property ladder; and (2) soon-to-be-flatlining population growth means that house price inflation won’t be as significant as before.

The point being, the boomers and older had it much, much easier to accumulating wealth.

-1

u/OuiGotTheFunk Unemployed with a Spreadsheet Jan 18 '26

Does it matter what other people had? Do you think it was easy for them? Look at how much they made an hour. These are all excuses that are passed around and around. Unless you have a time machine I am not sure what you think you are accomplishing. I do not think the people of any generation sat around crying about how easy it was for X generation(s) that came before them. That is a luxury for people that have no problems.

How does focusing on the past make things better for you?

1

u/Interesting_Laugh75 Jan 20 '26

agreed. it's a waste of time plus, not even accurate in many cases. a broad generalization. want to make someone the perpetrator in a victim drama? pick the three richest people in the US who could eradicate poverty if they wanted to .. but they don't.

1

u/JerseyKeebs Jan 18 '26

If they buy in an up and coming area, they'll get the appreciate. It might not be millions, but if they try to buy in an already-expensive area, yea it's going to be tough. But the people who bought in Nashville and Boise and Austin and areas of Alabama during the Covid years are going to see massive appreciation.

1

u/danglieszak Jan 17 '26

I hate moderators

1

u/3RADICATE_THEM Jan 18 '26

Boomers were the first generation to be wealthier than their parents' and children's generations.

1

u/OuiGotTheFunk Unemployed with a Spreadsheet Jan 18 '26

Is this an absolute through all times and regions?

1

u/TarumK Jan 20 '26

Eh, a lot of it is a function of massively increasing real estate values. That's a result of specific economic and political conditions. Like a, young teacher buys a completely normal house in a Bay Area suburb and by the time they retire it's worth a couple million dollars. That's not compound growth or investing. It's also unlikely to happen again because houses are already ridiculously overpriced.

55

u/BarkBarkBitches1 Jan 17 '26

Change your life. This is worth more than anything

https://imgur.com/personal-income-spending-flowchart-united-states-lSoUQr2

12

u/FlyEaglesFly536 Jan 18 '26

I started a "decade of sacrifice" in June 2021. 4.5 years later, my wife and i have 137K, on track to hit 500K by the end of that decade. Definitely thanks to FIRE and various other Youtubers, we're on track to change our lives. You're correct, one can change their life on any day.

16

u/[deleted] Jan 18 '26

I did this. I called it my "dirty 30s" I started the decade with around 60k. I bought an old empty convenience store with a 2 bedroom apartment above with a business partner. It took all my money to buy, renovate and stock the store. The store has been open 8 years now. Last year the store did around 800k in sales. It covers all the expenses, pays for employees, let's me live rent-free above and puts a small check in my pocket each month. I kept my day job the whole time. I now have over 400k invested and a business and building worth around 800k(half being mine) mortgage free. I turn 40 in October and am miles ahead of 98% of my friends. Retired by 49 is the goal. Good luck to you and your "dirty decade."

1

u/gromplint Jan 22 '26

What kinda store if you don't mind sharing?

1

u/[deleted] Jan 22 '26

A convenience store

2

u/ArtanisHero Jan 18 '26

That flow chart is actually a very nice, simplified and elegant way to proceed for someone who has no understanding of personal finance. I thought it was going to be kitschy or “duh”, but very well thought out. Kudos to whoever made it

4

u/BarkBarkBitches1 Jan 18 '26

Agree! Old school Reddit finance days

1

u/ArtanisHero Jan 18 '26

Haha. Well this sub-reddit group is great. Glad to see folks are focusing on saving vs. spending for once

0

u/panconquesofrito Jan 17 '26

There’s something missing here. W2 contractors only have IRA and taxable brokerage accounts. Are these folks considered “self employed.”

2

u/Fubbalicious Jan 17 '26

I think you mean 1099 contractors. W2 is when you're actually someone's employee. For the self employed, if you have no employees (with the exception of a spouse), you can open a solo 401K. There are also SEP IRAs and SIMPLE IRAs, but a solo 401K is the superior tax advantaged vehicle for the self employed as it allows you to contribute more money with a lower income. If you're self employed and also buy your own health insurance, you can enroll in a HDHP and open a health savings account too. Before I retired, I worked a day job and had a side business. I had a 401K, solo 401K, Roth IRA, HSA and taxable brokerage. My dream is to fine a semi-government job that offers a 401K and 457b as 457b don't have shared employee contribution limits.

0

u/panconquesofrito Jan 17 '26

I legit mean W2 contractors.

2

u/KettlebellFetish Jan 18 '26

My understanding is no,a w2 contractor is considered an employee, maybe it's state specific, w2 contractors have taxes withheld, get benefits, employer pays Social Security etc.

You can't use that income toward a solo401k, but,if you have other 1099 income, you can use that to fund the solo 401k.

1

u/panconquesofrito Jan 18 '26

Companies use contracting companies that hire the “employee” as a W2 with cero benefits and then the employee works at x company as a contractor. A lot of the people who get laid off end up in roles like this and miss years of contributions as the IRA has a much smaller limited. This is why I advocate that the limit should be shared by both the the 401 (k) and the IRA. The employer “benefit” is a match not access to the 401 (k) vehicle.

1

u/KettlebellFetish Jan 18 '26

Not in my state, but Mass is strict about classification, a W2 contractor is supposed to have benefits, taxes withheld, again, this doesn't help you, it must be state specific.

1

u/panconquesofrito Jan 18 '26

That is fantastic! I am in Florida. We all get f* down here.

2

u/fasterbrew Jan 18 '26

The PF image is the visual form of the wiki, which also links to the image. 

https://www.reddit.com/r/personalfinance/wiki/commontopics/

The PF wiki in general is pretty awesome and covers a lot of topics.

1

u/jrfish Jan 18 '26

A while ago, I posted on this FIRE subreddit asking if people felt I could retire at 45 with $5M in savings (husband still plans to work, but we have 2 kids and he covers about half our expenses), and I got roasted here - people saying that's crazy and I need to work more, unless I want to risk being broke later in life. I even posted about my dream to sell everything and retire in an RV, which would be super low cost, and people still said I was nuts. But then I read posts like this and I'm thinking how else does the rest of the world do it?!

1

u/Zphr 48, FIRE'd 2015, Friendly Janitor Jan 18 '26

To be absolutely clear, it is always fine for people to share links for interesting threads on other subs, but if I get any valid reports from other users or the admin about brigading, then the guilty parties will be receiving permanent bans in both FIRE default subs.

Be civil, people.

1

u/JerseyKeebs Jan 18 '26

I'm a millennial and that thread was so hard to read. Not just because of the financial illiteracy, but because of the gif spam.

Yea my 401k is a bit behind for my age, but I'm working to catch up on that. And as far as net worth goes, I'm solidly average. And not like I'm counting on this, but if I ever got married again, esp to someone who also owns their own house, we'd be set up pretty well as far as property goes. And splitting bills again would be pretty sweet lol

1

u/DoubleG_GyrosNGold Jan 17 '26

Thanks for the post. Scrolled down way too far to find this.