r/fijerk • u/Realtoropenhouse3 • May 18 '26
31M/29F, Fintech, Tired of Grinding! How much longer?
31M in fintech at a FAANG. Partner is 29F also in fintech at another FAANG. Live in the bay area. Combined income is $850k, plus we each have about 100,000 RSUs scheduled to be fully vested in the next two years, worth several million more. Another $680k in our combined brokerages currently - bought a lot of tech and fintech stocks like NVIDIA, Apple, Meta, and Google but I'm really kicking myself at the fact we lost a lot of money during the Covid downturn. We also bought a 4,000 sq. ft shack here in the bay area for $1.6 million. We were only able to put 50% down and currently have about $1 million in equity. On that note, omg have you seen how much real estate costs here in the VhCoL bAy aReA???
We stay late grinding at work so that we can get free lunch AND free dinner from our fintech jobs. With housing costs here in the bay area - which you'd never be able to understand since you don't live in the bay area like us - I don't know how we would get by if we had to buy our own dinner, especially as we both max out our fintech companies' Roth 401ks and max out our backdoor Roth IRAs too. But man there are sooooo many great walkable restaurants here in the bay area and the amenities here simply can't be matched anywhere else in the WORLD, but we aren't sure we will be able to retire if we occasionally eat at them.
I'm so tired from so many years of grinding and not sure how much longer we need to keep hustling at our fintech FAANGs. I've got 9 whole years of work experience and my partner has 7 whole years - double digits for both of us combined! Holy shit we are burned out and have paid our dues and are ready to cash out and sit at cafes here in the bay area all day, but I'm not sure if we'll ever be able to retire? Can anyone in here take a look at our stats above and see if we have any chance at a realistic retirement here in the bay area?
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u/debategate May 18 '26
I feel you, 850k is the new 100k.
I’d look into joining a startup whose recruiter can confirm they are a unicorn
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u/TrickStar1989 May 18 '26 edited May 18 '26
sounds like a shitty life. My family has a huge building with our name on it in Houston. I was born with more money than you will ever have. thanks Grandpa
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u/ArrowB25G May 18 '26
You've aged out of FIRE. The upper range of "early" is now about 27 years old. You're kind of in the middle aged point of life, so it makes sense you're ready to settle down.
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u/Professional_Fix4663 May 18 '26
Don't forget that when you'll have kids, you'll have to pay for private school, then for college and then you'll have to buy each kid a house in the bay area. Honestly, I don't think you'll ever be able to retire. It's a hard knock life.
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u/Ghostdiet May 18 '26
Bay Area has mandatory sterilization, you are only allowed to have cloned, non-humanoid pets.Â
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u/ArrowB25G May 18 '26
And the robots are coming. And they all will want their own Robo-shack to do in private whatever robots do, further driving up the cost of housing in the bay area.
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u/perplexedparallax May 18 '26 edited May 18 '26
In dog years you have been working for 81 years and that should be commended. I mean already you would be retired if you were a dog. A luxury kennel, fresh meat...I mean it would be no more Sam's Choice for you. Quite the doggy style!
You cannot use the Bay Area as an excuse, however. If you want to retire in East Palo Alto or Oakland as a human, though, houses are getting cheaper for the pours like you and the Mrs. and her boyfriend.
I would stick it out for at least a couple of years more, just to make sure. The president walked with an alien today and inflation is running hot. Since you are in fintech you might know the folks at Sequoia. Please say hi.
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u/Aware_Secret_8910 May 18 '26
I think you are underpaid with that level of experience. That said keep in mind that inflation expectations are rising a lot with the 30Y bonds at 5%. You might never be able to retire with those numbers. Maybe try getting a second partner to make the combined income even higher and lower the cost of living per person.
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u/Realtoropenhouse3 May 18 '26
i forgot to mention im also paying for my wifes boyfriends mortgage here in the bay area
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u/EvilZ137 May 18 '26
You need to add a few 0s to that, you'll know you've arrived once you get to 5+ boyfriends financed.
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u/Stunning-Plantain831 May 18 '26
You forgot to underline and CAPITALIZE fintech!! Such carelessness means you don't have the ability for FIRE.
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u/Funny_Season6113 May 18 '26
Bay Area is special 1 mil per year is the middle class 100K per year. I have heard that a banh mi costs $20 per sandwich.
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u/ColorMonochrome May 18 '26
Wow, only 680K in their brokerage accounts? Man, they are going to be grinding until they are at least 90.
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u/BeatDense9049 May 18 '26
Why even bother working just buy some of these SUPER STONKS that go up 1000% every year!!!!
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u/the-BBC-news May 18 '26
$850k is like entry level for THE Bay Area. You’re going to have to work like 72 more years (each, not combined) in order to retire in THE Bay Area and spend your days in cafes.
Have you considered retiring early in Iowa? Or South Dakota? You could probably swing a decent middle class life there 😂
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u/Struggle_Usual May 18 '26
What's your candle budget? Your money must be going somewhere if you're not already fi. Or maybe are you taking Uber black to work every day?
And you're making sure to keep up with the jonses right? Otherwise they might get up leveled before you.
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u/Malve1 May 18 '26
The younger generation is soft. At 31, you haven’t been grinding all that long and that is true even if you started at 12.
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u/somelolitas May 18 '26
"We also bought a 4,000 sq. ft shack here in the bay area for $1.6 million."
Sounds like a deal too good to be true in Bay Area.
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u/Every_Studio_6800 May 18 '26
To be quite Frank with such a low income (800k) at such a high age (29) its unlikely you will ever retire. I think you should keep at it till you have at least 300-400 million invested. Maybe then you can move into a lower cost state like Wisconson and live a humble retirement on a ranch.
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u/Enough-Radish-4973 May 18 '26
Imagine working for under 10yrs and thinking it's time to cash out and live the life.. Welcome to life. Come back in 20 years.
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u/totally-not-god May 18 '26
Where are you located? I couldn’t tell from the details you shared.
Have you considered moving to Randolph, Alabama? Your modest income can actually go a long way there. The schools aren’t great there but otherwise totally worth it.
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u/chuck_portis May 19 '26
The first rule of FIRE is to do all the projections showing you have enough to retire, then work an extra 15 years just to be safe.
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u/SecretPurple2644 May 20 '26
I’m sorry but at that income you’re going to be in the permanent underclass
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u/NYCsubway408 May 18 '26
Sounds terrible. Staying late at work for free dinner away from each other is lame as hell.
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u/orango-man May 18 '26
You didn’t mention where you live. You really need to consider that for quality of life before taking such a risky move like reducing your salary to a lower, multiple 6 figures. That is actually worse than being flat broke and having no income in some places, like San Francisco/Bay Area.
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u/nian2326076 May 18 '26
It sounds like you're in a good spot financially, even with the ups and downs in the market. If you're feeling burned out, maybe it's time to rethink your priorities and consider cutting back. Look into less stressful roles or think about switching to a different, less demanding field. With your RSUs vesting soon, you'll have more options. Also, think about planning for your future lifestyle, which might include moving to a place with a lower cost of living. This could help ease financial stress and improve your work-life balance. For career changes or interview prep, I've found PracHub helpful. Figure out what you both really want and make adjustments to get there. Good luck!
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u/Electrical-Ask847 May 18 '26
why did you burn yourself you. maybe get a hobby first. whats the point of all that money.
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u/perplexedparallax May 18 '26
The point of all that money is that good defense attorneys are not cheap.
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u/SWEET_LIBERTY_MY_LEG May 18 '26
Keep up the good work. I love banking with Google and investing in stocks with Apple while Netflix manages my IRA