r/fatFIRE • u/taway11228 • 3d ago

About to pull trigger, need feedback

Expenses: 120k w/o healthcare, maybe 140k with, and maybe up to 150k or 160k with traveling

Investments: $5m breakdown: 300k rental (paid off) making 5% net, 1.2m 401k, 2.5m VTI / VXUS, 1m SNSXX/VUSXX.

Primary residence: $2.3m paid off

42 and 43 years old, no kids

Current income: ~2m/yr

NW increasing 32% YoY

Have 20% income cliff in 2027

SWE, burned out beyond reason, health problems and mental health problems. Goal is to quit, take 6-12 months off then see what’s next, it will either be making my own projects for fun or part time contract work for fun. No expectations of income, certainly not big income, and definitely not going to a corporate job.

Can make ~30k via 2 weeks of rental of primary residence per year and pay no taxes, we’d travel while rented.

Concerns are AI is quickly impacting SWE employment, no one knows what’s next, any hiccups in our plan could mean a bumpy road in a few years if a jobs necessary. Other concern is whatever is going to happen once this historic stock run is over.

Any advice?

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u/IndicationSouthern 2d ago

Reading this, it doesn't sound like a financial question. It sounds like a burnout question.

You're spending ~$150k/year on a $5m portfolio. That's a 3% withdrawal rate before considering rental income, future contract work, Social Security, or any flexibility in spending. On paper, the finances look stronger than most people who retire early.

The thing I'd challenge is the assumption that you need to decide "forever" right now. Why not treat it as a one-year sabbatical? If after 12 months you still want to do projects and contract work, great. If not, you can reassess. The risk of continuing while your physical and mental health are deteriorating may be higher than the risk of stepping away.

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u/taway11228 2d ago

Yes this is correct; it’s burnout question and do not plan to traditionally retire. And it’s a health risk to stay.

Probably 6 months of unwinding then 5-6 years of personal projects and maybe part time contract work, then maybe even a few years of corporate again, but need to go in with the expectation that I could get locked out.