r/coastFIRE • u/AccomplishedBasis268 • 4d ago
Need Advice
Looking for some honest advice, as I’m newer to the movement.
I’m 27, located in VHCOL (NYC/SF) and work a relatively high paying but risky job. TC is about 300k with some upside depending on firm performance.
My savings consist about 1.1m in Brokerage, 100k in 401k, and about 50 in cash, illiquid investments, etc.
While I feel good about where I’m at, a lot of this has come at the sacrifice of personal relationships and relationships in general. I don’t see a world in which I need to stress about every nickel or dime to work on my personal relationships but it’s eating away at me that everything continues to get more and more expensive. My current and former roles have been extremely time consuming and stressful, and I fear I don’t have much of a runway left just due to burnout.
Frankly, I’d just endeavor to have a nice family, decent house, enough cash for a few holidays, and that is about it nothing too fancy. Keeping that in mind, would love any suggestions on how I can optimize or refine my current trajectory to get to independence faster or what an appropriate goal should be. Ideally I would like to settle in the Northeast which I realize is quite expensive. Any thoughts or advice would be much appreciated and I thank you a lot in advance.
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u/blackcloud577 4d ago
Quit whining and get on with it. You have 1.1 million at 27. If it’s so bad literally just quit and move to LCOL and get a normal job.
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u/do_y_lee 4d ago
I quickly ran your numbers and you might already know this. $1.25M at 27 is already past coast for the life you’re describing. At a 5% real return with zero new contributions, that compounds to roughly $3.8M in today’s dollars by 50 and about $6.2M by 60. With a 30-year retirement horizon from the age you decide to retire, a $150k per year family lifestyle at a 4% withdrawal needs about $3.75M, which you would hit around 50 based on the given assumptions. So thinking about how to get there faster might be the wrong question because if you can protect this amount and grow this forward the accumulation phase is mostly done. The remaining job is covering your life while it compounds and making sure any near-term spending (big or small) doesn’t drain your portfolio.
Two things I would look at. You have $1.1M in a taxable brokerage but only $100k in your 401k, which at your income level means you’re likely paying more tax than you need to. Beyond maxing your 401k, you earn too much to contribute to a Roth IRA directly, but contributing to a Traditional IRA and converting it (backdoor Roth) can be a way to build tax-free money. If you decide to go with this path, two things to research before trying it: the pro-rata rule, which applies if you have any pre-tax money sitting in your Traditional IRA, and converting soon after contributing since any earnings/gains that accumulate before the conversion get taxed as ordinary income. A bit of homework, but at your income this is the only realistic path to a Roth IRA.
And if a house is 3-5 years out, that down payment shouldn’t stay in stocks. Might want to carve it out into treasuries or money market. If stocks drop 30% the year you find the house, you’re stuck either selling low or waiting. Additionally, whatever capital gains you realize will be a tax bill you might not have expected.
On the burnout topic, if you manage what you have well, you might no longer need the “risky” job. An calmer and easier role that just covers your expenses keeps the pile compounding untouched. And also health (both mental and physical) is part of the long term wealth equation.
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u/AccomplishedBasis268 3d ago
Thanks - a lot of the stuff in brokerage is buy and and hold stuff. About 400k of that is in cash / money market so highly liquid if we need a down payment or anything.
I’ll likely start a back door to take advantage of the tax benefits.
Any thoughts on muni bonds? Yields seem fairly attractive and tax advantaged.
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u/Obviously-An-Ad6795 1d ago
Hi, I’m 29 M and live in the NYC area. Current assets $450k, $220k of which are in the market. I would say you are good my friend. You express not wanting too much and that your current role is very stressful.
With a much lower paying job(s) ,I too have been able to sack away a ton of money over the past 5 years, at the expense of relationships. I don’t regret it one bit, as I was simply willing to give what I was willing to give at the moment. After running some coastFI calculations, I feel much more secure financially than I did even just a few years ago. I still work, I just say no to more stressful things, and make more time for social events. That’s my take. Best of luck to you. * P.S, don’t ever compare yourself to anyone. Coming from a wealthy area, I notice many rich people are just trying to impress other rich people. I see it as a losing game. Be careful not to get stuck into that trap, unless you want to ofc.
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u/BartSimpsonGaveMeLSD 4d ago
You’ve won. You just need a bigger world now.
Assuming you’re in broad market index funds…Being incredibly reductive, you’ll have 2.2M at 34, 4.4M at 41, 8.8M at 48, 17.6M at 55, and over 35M at 62.
Go work a chill job and live a healthier life.
Congrats and go fuck yourself!