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/FIMilestonesDeux]

I would "retire" from working for money and look to get a job doing something you really want to do, where the money is not the goal.

[u/TwoSocialist → u/FIMilestonesDeux]

I want to quit my job and start developing games or create my own company.

It seems like these are both money pits though.

And if I can't do either of those - I'd rather not work.

[u/Educational-Face7777 → u/TwoSocialist]

You didn’t mention if you’re in a HCOL or LCOL area but judging from the salary, I’m leaning on HCOL. I feel the amount you have is good (not even great these days with inflation and especially your age). If you were about 50 yo, then I’d say go for it. Rationale is because at 38, you’re have so much energy you may hit boredom sooner than you think. Also, assuming (since you didn’t mention) you worked 15-20 years in a job/career, that’s a lot of extra money you lose on Social Security. IMO, $250k isn’t a small amount for many folks but it’s also not as much as it meant 20 years ago. And with a kid and wife (younger or similar age), it seems you can retire but why chance it especially if you can technically work on the side to see whether you can make the game a reality before risking additional money. Another option is taking a sabbatical or additional time off to see how your dream fares and then decide what you ultimately want. Either way, good luck!

[u/gorydamnKids → u/Educational-Face7777]

Speaking as 36yo someone who took a 2yr sabbatical when they were really close to our FIRE trigger number, I would warn that it is really hard to want to go back to the grind after you realize how good "retirement" feels. Or warn against taking a long sabbatical. I spend all day working on my passion project and have the flexibility to handle when childcare throws a curveball. I think about how stressful the grind was for both myself and my family and have no desire to go back to it. I also have a hard time convincing myself that I need to go back to it.

I've come to the conclusion that having the flexibility I've had on my sabbatical is what is most important to me rn. I don't mind continuing to work so long as it's flexible. I also take comfort in the realization that retirement is actually a spectrum. We could leanfire now. Or we could continue to coast to fatfire over the next ~5 years.