Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
No I could not. simply because I would not want to live the way they do.
Nope don't want to build my own house. don't want to live in a tiny house, don't want to pick up apples off the ground. don't want to get hand me down furniture for my house.
No I could not. simply because I would not want to live the way they do.
Nope don't want to build my own house. don't want to live in a tiny house, don't want to pick up apples off the ground. don't want to get hand me down furniture for my house.
LOL, I get you, that life is not for everyone. Everyone has to find their own path, and I honestly think as with almost anything in life, it's about the age old philosophical "Golden Mean." I personally don't understand how someone is happy leasing the newest and best cars, buying a house with an enormous mortgage for their income, maybe even buying furniture and appliances with credit, and being strapped to afford a single emergency not because they're living in poverty but simply because they want to have more stuff, bigger stuff, and more luxurious stuff than they can actually truly afford. That sounds unbelievably stressful to me.
I had a few years where money was lean, even though I had great investments (not paying out at the time), and I lived in a small townhouse I had completely free and clear and we kept our monthly expenses really low, I even had another condo I owned free and clear, a cheap one, that I rented out and made about $600/month after all expenses (management, HOA dues, property taxes factored in). While I was still a bit stressed about money, I felt so much better that at least I was living on a much lower monthly expense basis, no cable TV, no excess expenses that I couldn't avoid (things like my own health insurance, car insurance, home owners insurance, HOA dues, and property taxes were unavoidable but we tried to save money on food by shopping at Grocery Outlet a lot, amazingly good deals on often literally the same items as at bigger stores but they expire in 2 months instead of 10 months). I can't imagine how much more stressed out I would have been if instead of taking the money I had to buy my modest townhouse outright, I had used it as a downpayment for a larger, nicer home. It would have been a nightmare!
Then again, I also can't understand how someone is happy living like they're destitute when they could afford to live a nicer life, they just value not working at all so much that they are intent on saving every penny. There are a lot of stupidly expensive things you can avoid, like cable TV is honestly kind of a rip off given that you can get so much entertainment from a $11/month Netflix subscription and your Amazon Prime account combined, you really wouldn't be hurting for great entertainment by any means and it would cost you $20/month instead of $75-100/month. But I'm not a "live off the land" kind of person, I'm a convenience kind of person, and I am highly specialized with only a desire to be *great* at my chosen career, no desire to be a jack of all trades. I think jack of all trades = mediocre pay, best-at-one-thing = extremely highly paid. It just doesn't make good sense to me, and since I don't enjoy doing home maintenance or cooking or anything like that, I'd rather just not...
I got started thinking about retirement later than I should, like most people. I got my act together though and I'm on my way to an "earlier" retirement at around 56. I don't do the 50% savings rate, but it's still pretty high (for me) at about 27%. At this rate, by 56 I'll have a pension paying about 50k a year, and hopefully 1.3 million in retirement accounts and a few hundred thousand in brokerage. Next year I'll be moving into my rental property that I had been renting out for the past 9 years. I'll be able to pay it off within 2 years so I should be able to accelerate my savings rate. I'll still wait till 56 though to maintain the pension.
The video was educational. I'm sure what they do not everyone can do, but that's why most people don't retire early. I do some of those things, but not all. We recently got a dining table for free, I've also built some furniture. Our young daughters are wearing hand me down clothes since they grow so quickly. I do some DIY and save money, but I also am willing to pay because my time is also worth something especially if I want to be able to spend time with family.
It's funny that some of our family think we're poor because of the things we do. When we've done events, we've been asked "Are you sure? Do you have the money for it?" They're the ones that are living paycheck to paycheck and I've got 6 figures in my savings account. I just smile and say, it's no big deal.
Part of not living too far away from your job is about the way you set up your life. Pete actually selected the city and job where he lives based on cost of living and the fact that he could bike to work. Granted, not everyone can do that, but more people could.
A big part of it is renting too. Renting allows you to move with your job.
Personally I HATE commuting, hence 8 miles is the farthest I've lived from a job. Been biking or walking since 2015.
you will quickly notice that they rented apartments near work, had roommates, and didn't even own a car. I believe MMM did similar, but he did a write up here: https://www.mrmoneymustache.com/2011...-in-ten-years/
I've never been a 'car guy' anyway, but the ability to easily get to work without a car does tend to change the way you look at a vehicle. Since it's not helping pay the rent, utilities, etc it suddenly begins to look like a really expensive grocery cart (we drive to the grocery store, I'm not MMM hardcore).
Quote:
Originally Posted by mysticaltyger
I'm not sure it's as easy as you make it out to be, but a lot of people just assume a 1/2 hour+ commute in an oversized gas guzzler is "normal".
+1. Around here people commute to an office job in a Jeep, sports car, or a 'bro dozer'.
you will quickly notice that they rented apartments near work, had roommates, and didn't even own a car. I believe MMM did similar, but he did a write up here: https://www.mrmoneymustache.com/2011...-in-ten-years/
I've never been a 'car guy' anyway, but the ability to easily get to work without a car does tend to change the way you look at a vehicle. Since it's not helping pay the rent, utilities, etc it suddenly begins to look like a really expensive grocery cart (we drive to the grocery store, I'm not MMM hardcore).
+1. Around here people commute to an office job in a Jeep, sports car, or a 'bro dozer'.
lol, for 25 years I've lived 47 miles from my work place.
Every thing is a choice though. I'm a city gal. I tried doing the suburban life ONCE when my kids where little. hated it with a passion and ended up on anti depressants. So I will never ever again live in a low cost of living area and hate when people say "move when you retire to a lcol". WTF!!
Now for me the trade off was worth it. I'm a large wage earner. My new boss is 31 and she's clocking in about 110K a year. so for her, commuting 40 minutes each way is worth it. she plans on working for 10 years (getting raises along the way) and then changing gears.
I wish though these articles would highlight more of the sacrifices one give up. Even with living in cities with great transportation. no I don;t want to wait an 30 minutes at the bus stop at 22 degrees during the winter months just to save a few bucks a year or ride my bike.
Could I work in Philly and bike to work? sure, and my salary would most likely be cut by 20-30K a year. nope, not worth it for me.
I have read MM a few times, lol usually they lose me when an "uber" fan talks about doing some thing to save a few bucks that is insane to me.
I am retiring a bit early (58) and I'm still healthy. but now I'm retiring like I want, I've got years of vacation memories at Disney, Europe and the jersey shore with my family that are worth more than anything and I'll have the house at the Beach. would I give that all up to have retired 10 years earlier? probably not.
Another thing is time. MM isn't talking about living that way for a few years, it's a life commitment. that's a bit harder for most people.
It occurs to me that one might choose to live a destitute lifestyle to save every penny and "retire" by 40. But, one would then have to continue living that lifestyle through retirement in order to make their savings last.
In short, it's not just a decision to scrimp and save in order to retire by 40, but, essentially a decision to live that way for a lifetime (and avoid kids, emergencies, health problems, transportation apart from work, etc).
In short, it's not just a decision to scrimp and save in order to retire by 40, but, essentially a decision to live that way for a lifetime (and avoid kids, emergencies, health problems, transportation apart from work, etc).
It's about deciding to be life poor, a life without much experiences. It's about emulating that Uncle who never eats out, never leaves the city, no hobbies that require money, wears the same clothes, refuses to go to social functions that require money.
It occurs to me that one might choose to live a destitute lifestyle to save every penny and "retire" by 40. But, one would then have to continue living that lifestyle through retirement in order to make their savings last.
In short, it's not just a decision to scrimp and save in order to retire by 40, but, essentially a decision to live that way for a lifetime (and avoid kids, emergencies, health problems, transportation apart from work, etc).
You can actually live pretty well on not too much money if you plan things out right.
First, pay off a decent home in a low cost area. Now pay off the car which you’re willing to drive 10-15 years...sorry, no more keeping up with the Joneses, but hey, they are slaving away for the bulk of their lives with 1-2 “free days” per week.
So yeah, the early retiree may seem to live on a pittance, but they can actually live pretty good on it.
No need to avoid kids (within reason...not 5+ kids). Time is money and you have a lot of it.
No need to not be prepared for emergencies or health problems.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
