Enjoying Early Retirement Travel in Switzerland – photo by Bob
{GCC – Since publication 6 years ago of the widely popular financial review for ‘The Bobs’ , people have inquired on social media, email, blog comments, and even in person, “Where are they now? Please tell us how it turned out!” Not wanting to let you all down, I asked (often) if they might share an update of what they have experienced and learned. Alas, they were much too busy enjoying retirement. Until now…}
Happy New Year GCC readers. Bob here from our now infamous financial review, Scared to Death of Early Retirement. I just had my 5-year retirement anniversary, so I thought we would give you and Jeremy has been pestering me for an update on how things have been going.
(GCC: The transition from “earning and saving” to retiring (early) and “spending” is daunting for many and terrifying for some. We analyze, examine, cross-examine, think, over think, and then analyze some more… So what happens when you ultimately pull the trigger? 3 years ago I provided some feedback* to Mr & Mrs NYC as they were going through these mental gymnastics. Now, let’s check in with them as they hit their 2-year and 3-year early retirement Anniversary, respectively, and see how they managed that transition and their Escape from New York. tldr: After reading their story, I’m super jealous. What a truly amazing and rewarding life!)
A few years ago, we were in our early 40’s, married with two cats, living in NYC, and working high-pressure jobs in careers where we achieved success but not much personal fulfillment. GCC performed a financial review for us and opened our eyes to an opportunity: if we sold our Manhattan condo and moved to a lower cost of living location, we could quit our jobs immediately and live off our savings — according to the math behind the 4% rule, at least.
Welcome back for the 2nd post in our series of Go Curry Cracker Reader Financial Reviews, where we dig deep into the finances and ambitions of a lucky anonymous reader. Together, we can overcome limiting beliefs, change the rules, and exceed our goals
This month we go to Manhattan where Mr and Mrs NYC have discovered that lifestyle inflation is one of the world’s most powerful forces, second only to compound interest.
We will also learn a little about the difference between owning real estate and investing in real estate, the high tax burden of NYC, and why the Backdoor Roth is not necessarily a great investment choice.
We exchanged many emails over the past several weeks, which inspired a lot of creative thinking on both sides. Let’s see how it turned out
Welcome to the First Official Go Curry Cracker Financial Review! In a series of new posts, I will review the financial situation of an anonymous reader, and provide actionable recommendations
The lucky winner of our Financial Review goes to reader Bob. We exchanged many emails over the holidays, and put together a great plan that will help Bob and his wife overcome their financial concerns, retire earlier, and save $1.5 million or more in taxes
Along the way we learn about RMDs, and the sweet deal that Federal employees have in terms of pension and health benefits
Hey Jeremy and Winnie
Love your site! My wife and I have been talking about ER for some time now but are scared to death of running out of money and are worried we haven’t saved enough. Your tax-free approach is a different take of which you don’t hear a lot of folks talking about. I just turned 57 and she is 54. Getting a little freaked out about retiring at this age. ;)
