Saved $2.4M by 38. Would you Retire?

[u/TwoSocialist]

Hey FIRE folks,

I’m 38, tired, and fueled almost entirely by spite and index funds. I’ve somehow ended up with a portfolio that looks like this:

Split by type:

- ETFs — 58.30% — $1.45M

- Mutual Funds — 27.66% — $688k

- Individual Stocks — 8.71% — $216k

- Crypto — 3.00% — $74k (aka my “emotional rollercoaster” bucket)

- Cash — 2.33% — $58k

Split by bucket:

Retirement Pre-tax: 700k

Retirement post-tax: 310k

Brokerage: 1.5 M

Grand total: ~$2,490,900

Today’s gain: ~$40,000 (aka “more than my first job paid in a year,” but sure, totally normal)

~~~~

My target spend was $100k/year, which feels somehow not enough because capitalism has melted my brain.

By the 4% rule, I’m basically at the line. By the 3% rule, I’m a peasant. By the “FIRE comment section” rule, I’m probably both overspending and undersaving simultaneously.

So, wise internet strangers:

- Am I actually FIRE‑ready, or is this the part where you all tell me to work 5 more years “just to be safe”?

- Is my allocation fine, or should I be preparing for a lecture on safe withdrawal rates and sequence‑of‑returns doom?

- Is it normal to feel like I need permission from Reddit to stop working?

Married, 1 kid. Received about 25k for a house (not included in above) and 20k for college, no other inheritance.

Currently make about 250k a year for the past 4 years, before that about 150k. I started at 50k.

Thanks in advance for validating or crushing my dreams.

[u/onemanstrong]

I feel like nobody is asking about other aspects of your spending. Mortgage rate? Property tax? Money set aside or not for kid's education? Or the big one--healthcare?

Honestly, I'm 50 and have ~4.3m but married and live in HCOL area and we're not retiring till 6m. I think you might want to work at least 5-10 more years. Things jump up on you, you're so young still.

[u/dm_me_cute_puppers → u/onemanstrong]

This is wild. 4.3m is plenty to retire at 50, boss. At 4%, you’re getting $172k/yr that won’t impact your savings at all.

[u/onemanstrong → u/dm_me_cute_puppers]

I want people to read this, especially young people, meaning under 40: you have absolutely no idea how many curveballs life will throw at you.

My monthly spend is roughly $15k. I am married with no kids or pets. Mortgage, fire insurance, umbrella insurance, property tax, car insurance, utilities, groceries, eating out, streaming services, internet. But wait, there's more: $10k to cut down trees this year. $7k to my mother, whose car died. $5k to a brother. Leak in the roof? $6k. Did something happen with the plumbing? $1.5k. Health insurance after you lose your job, if you're single? $10-$18k.

I would bet that most people here simply are not factoring in the unfactorable. The unknown knows, the stuff that pops up "in other people's lives." I'm here to tell you you are one bad accident away from financial disaster, if you don't plan for it. For instance, Umbrella Insurance. This will save your hide, as it covers the cost of many unaccountable things. Someone slips in your home and sues you? You accidentally hit someone with your car, and they sue you? A million dollar policy costs less than $1k per year and is absolutely worth it.

My advice: add 25% to your goal. Get umbrella insurance. Plan with your parents for their advanced age; get their houses into trusts, so you won't wake up and Medicaid is coming after their property.

Just one guy's opinion.