This year I had more than just monetary goals. They were:
- Max my 401K ($18,000)
- Max a Roth IRA ($5,500)
- Overall invest $54,500 for a savings rate of 75%
- Have a net worth of $200,000
- Decrease my spending from $22,491.86 to $18,000
- Lose 28 lbs by eating low-carb/high-fat and have a normal BMI for the first time without starving myself
- Determine when I can retire based on my current salary and savings rate
And I’ve done it all! I maxed my 401K and Roth IRA by March of this year, which is crazy amazing. I’ve invested $65,000 in the market this year alone for an after-tax savings rate of 79%. Thanks to a crazy bull market my net worth is now $234,822. As you saw in my 2017 Spending post I’ve decreased my spending 18% year over year from $22,491.86 to $18,416. I’ve also lost 45 lbs – taking my weight from its highest of 182 lbs to 137 lbs by Christmas. So much success! I’m so so proud of myself. I knew I could increase by savings rate and decrease my spending further, but the weight loss and the ease of it was something I never expected.
Retirement Date
As for my latest retirement date: At the beginning of the year I calculated that I could retire on April 1, 2022 (Great April Fools!). Now based on my higher than expected salary (thank you target bonuses and stretch bonus!) and the resulting higher than expected savings I will be able to retire by February 1, 2021 when I’m still 31 assuming 7% market growth (It’s December 25, 2020 with 8%…). I knocked over a year off my time to retirement!!! That’s insane.
This timing assumes I don’t get a raise at all in the next 4 years, which is basically impossible based on my past trends 🙂 . My boss at my current job even told me during my first review that they’re determining a raise structure for the whole company and it will be more than 2% to account for inflation. I should be getting a raise at the end of the year and my time to retirement will keep shrinking.
Retirement Plan
This early 2021 retirement timing would also allow me to retire before my 10 year college reunion, which is obviously an arbitrary goal, but this timing would allow me to go to the reunion (I’m not sure my feelings on this and previously my partner was making me go, but has now backed off about that) and then spend a week or two with my partner’s family who live nearby in a town that is lovely in the summer. This would help me swallow the large flight cost since I would use it to enjoy more than a rushed weekend in my college town.
I could then return to Seattle – sell all my possessions and not pay an extra $200-300 for month-to-month rent or renew our lease (which would be up at the end of July) before going to my Mom’s house to unwind from a decade of work before traveling around Australia and New Zealand with my Mom for a month. It sounds like a pretty good plan 🙂 . We’ll see what happens.
Retirement Stretch Goal
In the train of all this optimism I’ve decided to set a stretch goal since the above doesn’t take into account any raises throughout the rest of my career. My stretch goal is to retire on October 2, 2020 when I’m 30 years old, 9 years into my working career. That is only 5 months before my current projection and I’m optimistic I could do it. That timing would allow me to only pay two months of month-to-month rent, get my quarterly target bonus, go hang with my family in Wyoming for my step-dad’s birthday and enjoy fall in Seattle before starting my new life. It would also be the best birthday present ever!!! I like the sound of that.
2018 Goals
As for next year my goals are to:
- Max my 401K ($18,500)
- Max a Roth IRA ($5,500)
- Overall invest $65,000
- Decrease my spending officially to $18,000
- Maintain my weight on keto
To 2018!
I only see $24,000 in 401k’s?? Where do you get $65,000?
What do you mean where do I get it? I saved the rest from my job and invested it in a taxable account after my 401K and Roth were full.
I understand now the Mike question, I will put the comment 3 years later but hope to clarify for the future:
$65,000 are the savings from salary (79% from the income) and split like: $23,500 in 401k and IRA (so almost $24,000 ) and the others in the taxable brokerage account.
Ah! Thank you for clarifying even years later – that’s dedication 🙂 .