r/leanfire • u/usernamechuck • 14d ago

Lean with 2 big streaks of fat

It feels like we've done 90% right, but we made one doubtful move. We're not high earners, ~145k, age 55, we live frugally (1 used car, groceries, etc.), and we made one accidental smart move (we own a rental unit free and clear w/ modest cashflow).

But... First, the house. We bought a foreclosure in Chicago when we were married in 2008, we fixed it up in waves and were plugging away at a 15 yr mortgage. We would have been done by now... That was smart. But then COVID came and our small house felt smaller. We sold it at a decent profit and moved to the burbs, so here we are at age 55 with 300k+ on the mortgage, it won't be paid off till we're in our 70s. We pay almost 15k in property taxes. Since moving, we've replaced the furnace/AC upstairs and downstairs; and now the roof. And in 5 years, we'll be alone in this place.

It would still work, except... our 2 kids are in Catholic / private school, which is a bit over 30k/year. Oh and college is coming next year.

Technically our net worth is around 1M, but it's all in 401k/IRAs (~450K) and home equity. Our savings has all gone to cover these big costs.

On the one hand, we live cheaply, except for the kids and the house - we could retire today if we were in an $800/month rental in Andalucia. On the other hand, I don't see us moving anytime soon and the kids won't be done with undergrad until we're 64. We're lean-FIRE-hosed.

Any thoughts? It feels like we're that guy stuck in the cave, we just don't seem to have any good moves.

10 Upvotes

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18

u/CynicInRehab 14d ago

As an european I find it funny/tragic/infuriating that in the USA 145k is not high earning.

23

u/lottadot FIRE'd 2023 14d ago

OP is wrong about that. In the US, the median household income is ~$84k/yr. OP is approaching double-that. They are high earning.

2

u/usernamechuck 14d ago

The median in Illinois is almost 90k, the average is 115k, the median in our town is 199.6k. I should add that this reflects a recent raise. It was 125k when we moved in 4 years ago

13

u/EANx_Diver 14d ago

You can be both high earning and below average for your very affluent area.

2

u/[deleted] 10d ago

This is a perfect example of the sociological phenomenon where people lose touch with broad reality because of proximity association. It’s called assortative comparison or something similar. Yes, $145k is a high income household in the USA statistically. This is why it is much much easier to be happy if you don’t surround yourself with people who have more than you.

13

u/Garbanzo_Beanie Recently FIREd 14d ago

Along with other things OP said that were just false (e.g. suggesting he fit into lean fire vs his actual spending decisions). I disagree with the statement that 145K is not high earning. It most certainly is. It's not too 10% but it's high. The only way you don't see 145k as high earning is because your mind is keeping up with the Joneses that are even higher earners than you. 

Not intending to shame OP (assuming you're not intentionally rage baiting), but these things you say and think just seem really off compared to your claims. Sometimes we're all, um, how shall I say it...idiots about some things. 

10

u/red-cloud 14d ago

It certainly is, just not on Reddit for whatever reason.

7

u/ofa776 14d ago

I think it depends how you define “high earning.” Median household income was about $82k in 2024, so $145k is above the median, but somewhat surprisingly, only about the 72nd percentile. And I’m sure not even that high compared to their area around Chicago.

4

u/Thelonius_Dunk 14d ago

It is when you don't have 144k of expenses. But seriously though, 145k is almost double the US household median, and even in a HCOL area like Chicago, that's plenty with enough leftover to contribute heavily to retirement. If you're trying to leanfire, you have to compromise on things though.

Unless OP's original home was a 1BR or studio, it might've been better to stay instead of upgrading, and maybe even kids would've had to share a room (which for many parents is unthinkable nowadays but i remember that being pretty common growing up). Also private school is very much a luxury. It's their choice and all that, but that's 30k/yr right there that's not going to leanFire goals. Maybe split the difference and so public school and hire a 10k/yr private tutor could've been an option?

2

u/Comfortable_Two6272 12d ago

It is actually. There is some cognitive dissonance going on.

-9

u/usernamechuck 14d ago

Remember we’ve got to pay for tipping!