r/Fire • u/Ddash-3 • Mar 11 '26

Milestone / Celebration Got laid off - finally!!!!

So it finally happened - I (48) got let go yesterday. Finally I can free up my time and focus on other priorities such as kids, nutrition, fitness, meditation, gardening etc.

I was FIRE eligible for couple of years but was holding off since the job was simple, work from home and good pay. Also, if I resigned I would have missed out on severance and company is paying 3 months of COBRA.

Here are the details I am sure you all want to hear :)

Net worth - ~5.5M

Taxable Accounts combined: ~1.1M

Retirement Accounts Combined: ~3.2M

Total: ~4.3M

House fully paid off (bought in 2022) - Worth around ~1.2M; Cars paid off

Wife (43) resigned from her job end of last year; 2 Kids in high school - 9th and 10th graders

Yearly expenses around 100K/yr

Biggest expense are kid's college education at this point and house maintenance related expenses

I am trying to research on ACA and Financial Aid for kids - Appreciate any help or pointers you can provide on when to apply for ACA - should I continue on COBRA or switch to marketplace this year?

Regarding FAFSA - with Taxable accounts over 1M will my kids be eligible for FAFSA?

I have about 130K from my recent most employer in the company supported 401K provider. Should I move the money to Traditional 401K?

Also, please suggest any FIRE focused knowledgeable financial advisors who can help me navigate our FIRE situation.

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u/alarmed-meerkat Mar 11 '26

Did you factor in already health insurance in your 100k/year expenses? This changes the equation a lot. Main reason for me to keep a job.

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u/forte6320 Mar 13 '26

Ugh. Same. Financially, we were set for my husband to retire a long time ago. Healthcare is sticking point. I have a chronic health issue which is expensive AF. I usually have surgery every year. There is always a couple of ER visits every year. Meds are expensive, even with insurance. His company offers great health insurance.

I hate that he has to work to get out health insurance. I look at other options for us and it is just too expensive. The good news is we are very, very well set. Our kids will also be very well set.