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Good tips!

Self employed carpenter 64 years old, I can't really afford to stop working completely but I don't work nearly as many hours as I did while married and raising four children. I don't go into panic mode anymore when there's little work about either. I like road trips, sailing, camping, motorcycling and would love to play music and learn another language. Cheers from Chicagoland

Perspective is everything.....People who retire with PLENTY of money regret working so long, but people who retire too soon regret not working longer.

Too late. I retired 4 years ago. Oh well.

Don’t let society fool you in believing that one’s “Golden years” is when one has passed an age when they are no longer able to move freely and with limited mobility, or at an advanced age when one’s energy level has drastically diminished. One’s REAL “Golden Years” is when one is in their “go go years” not “slow go years” or “no go years.” I’m 55 years old, and I believe I’m in my “Go go years.” Therefore, there are certain things in life that I am no longer willing to delay. I’m not considered wealthy by society’s definition of wealthy, but I believe I’m wealthy. I have no debt. House and cars are paid off. I live a simple life, and my wife and I are returning home from traveling for over a month in Europe. Although I’m not retired, but since a year ago I consider myself as semi-retired. I own my own small business, and on average I work between 27-32 hours a week. I plan to have the option to be fully retired by the end of the year 2028, and probably not with 1 million dollars either. Anywhere between 300-500k by 2028 and I’ll either fully retire, or just work less. I do love what I do for work, so I can see me possibly working less and having someone run most of my business.

I like your idea, but another way to approach life is to not wait until retirement to do all those things you talked about. We're in our 50's and really want to travel, but rather than wait until retirement, we're trying to do more of that now while our health is relatively good. And since we're empty nesters, we're spending more time on our hobbies now. We're still focused on our retirement savings, but we're also enjoying life now because you're right: we don't know how long we have. It's a good way to balance our lives.

We are aligned! We can’t wait to get to the point when we are retired. We are done trading time working for time living.

As a firefighter lieutenant/paramedic, I have over 3 years left until I can collect my pension. My wife still has 8 years left until she can collect from her state pension. I'm in countdown mode now.

I've been working hard towards FIRE so I can retire early, but I just started reading "die with zero" and now I'm rethinking what I've been doing, maybe I've been too hyperfocused on saving

Thanks for this thought-provoking video. I'm turning 62, my wife is turning 61, and both are still working and in a solid financial position. This topic is on my mind more and more. I'm a bit conflicted because we both enjoy our work and good health, but I don't know what the balance should be regarding retirement. Anyway, thanks again. I just wanted to share my thoughts. Melbourne Australia.

Is it Azul the financial advisor?

I went through a very similar process last year with selling our 7 year home in April and buying our Cabin in September. This past year included a lot of unexpected expenses for the new location at a higher than expected cost. I enjoyed your summary and thank you for sharing.

Great video. I think this topic gets easily overlooked/underestimated.

Great video, thank you! You two are a cute couple with great ideas, always. Our home we downsized to was 500 less feet and only a shell of a home for 87k but it had plumbing & electrical. Saved $230 a mo on homeowners and $130 on Property Tax. No more $80 water bills either. Closer to healthier food, grow some of our food so do weekly trading which saves another $100 or so. We love our new area, the home isn't as nice but it's okay. We spend more time outside, swimming in our own creek, and we enjoy our hens.

Not only I use cash 99% of the time, I also don't use $20 bills, only $10 bills.

We must have enough $ to retire, too late now. Sorry this is so long, it might offer ideas Income: $1730 combined Social Security at ages 62 & 70. Expenses $1650 a month. A wonderful life here in Northern Calif living on 9 acres in a 990 foot cabin w/ large fenced backyard. Year round creek. Free endless spring water, no homeowners ins, tiny health costs. Expenses- $90 Prop Tax, $300 Transport, $25 Garbage, $100 Power, $100 Wifi/Cell, $140 Giving, $15 CZcams, $100 Misc, $700 Groceries, $45 Clothes, $25 Bicycles, $15 Retiree Health Pkg. *Savings: $35k Cash in the hidden safe. IRA: $85k* *Low income Perks*- $10 off Garbage, $25 monthly Food Stamps, Medicaid for one month a yr to cover the cost of his teeth cleaning. I was born with eye disabilities, eyes give out. See to walk enough but no focus. Hubby has issues breathing on a BPAP at night. His Social Security is $1030, mine is $700 a mo. Worked 10 yrs at a job which provided my retiree health plan. They suddenly wanted reports completed. With weak eyes already, I couldn't focus to write/type. Had to be picked up from work 2x due not able to drive. *How do we get by?* Ride Specialized E-Bikes most places about 6.5 months a year. E-Car occasionally. I don't have a license so drive rarely. Gas pick up Food Forraging- We gather enough blackberries in the creeks to last us eating 1/3 cup berries, 2x a week, for about half the yr. Tap maple trees, cook the sap over a bon-fire to make Free Maple Syrup. Use it as Xmas gifts & trade it at the produce swap. Free manure = huge compost piles for growing our food & our hens feast 90% off of it along with free ranging in our large fenced backyard. We supplement their food with hen scratch which is just $10 a month but we trade their eggs out so it's a wash. *We Grow this produce in abundance & free* Potatoes, garlic, peppers, green beans (pole beans) onions. Spend very ittle $ to grow these items- Kale, Artichoke, Watermelon, Apples, Grapes, mint, rosemary, cilantro & pumpkins. At the weekly Produce swap, We trade this produce, free range eggs, maple syrup. Last week we left with a bag of red beets, bag of turnips, small homemade loaf of sourdough bread & a bag of arugula. Doesn't seem like much but when you "eat out" 2x a week, and supply most of your needs, it's all we need. If we want to save more $ all we need to do is buy less supplements. We also spend $ on others, gifts and such that is not that necessary *Weekly free food/ very discounted* Tuesdays- We volunteer at the Town's Weekly Organic Meal for 3.5 hrs. Volunteers receive a free meal on site+ one to take home Sundays- Free meal after church. We supply the meal every 6 weeks. Cost is $22. Averages out to $1.83 each for lunch (We buy 3 Costco chickens to slice,, bring 2 crockpots of garlic mashed potatoes and 2 crockpots of green beans. We grow these free. In the snowy winter, the Town's Warming Shelter opens. We volunteer from 7pm until 8am- 13 hr shifts The cooks leave us a dinner they've prepared at 6pm & free breakfast. Shift is long so we only do it 1x a week, sometimes 2x. What happens after he dies? He's older. I will get his $1030 per month Social Security. IRA is in my name. Everything we have is brand new, or close to new, 2020 Chevy Bolt E-Car, 2024 E-Bikes, new roof, new ac/heat, home was newly remodeled, everything new inside, did it ourselves so nothing will break down in our lifetime, that's the goal. Gas pick up is 10 yrs old but used just 1x a wk for 20 minutes in snowy winter. I can stay home for 8 weeks in snowy winter if needed, I can most of our food during this time anyhow. Being former construction, hubby built an outdoor shower/bath & outdoor kitchen used well over half the yr to preserve the indoors. We are christians so really love our church family and it's fun to volunteer, we feel blessed being able to do that. We also really like our neighbors. We feel good since we eat healthy and cycle a great deal, usually about 1 hr a day, and we turn off the motor for half of that to ensure actual exercise is gained. We host days where we can food with friends, go to the river, friends come over for dinne/vice versa & bible study

I went from a 5107sf house (worth 1.5 million) to a 125sf AirB&B room. It was due to a divorce. I had to get two extra extra large warehouses to put all my things in. And that's where I am right now, living in one small bedroom. I'm hoping to sell or give away all my junk and move into a small condo.

Thank you for these wonderful tips. They are very helpful. My husband and I are planning our future retirement. Our daughter is grown and had moved out. We look forward to moving near Disney and are extremely excited. But every time we go there to see how we feel, I would miss our home dearly and missed being near our daughter. Sometimes, we are nonchalantly saying, "Let's sell our house." But after hearing your emotional Rollercoaster, it really helps us to organize and prepare for how we will feel in the future.

Great tips. We have been saving all our shipping boxes for the past 1.5years to not buy any. We are thinking of the pods like you are referring too… will have to figure that to not let the costs bloat! Thanks for sharing.

I like the calm pace of your podcast.

Velocity banking is the answer

We are doing the same to retire early. This advice is spot on! We are downsizing our home square footage and all other related expenses (property tax, heating costs, electricity costs). The value of our home will be a lateral move for us, but we will be feet away from a lake with year round lake views. Overall, we are projecting to saving $1,800 a month just in utilities and property tax. This move is cutting 7 years off our retirement horizon!

Congratulations on your retirement and your trip across the country! We are years behind you but trying to catch up. 😊. We can’t wait to see your journey as it unfolds.

Thanks! I feel better knowing that its at least possible to retire with a little less than a million dollars in my portfolio.

Good video. Thanks to the presenters for sharing. The concept of including the present value of pension and other entitlement payments to net worth is interesting as it explains how my parents and grandparents were able to retire comfortably with little liquid net worth. When you add the PV of pensions and entitlements, I realize that their net worth is within the general median net worth data points presented. Pensions, however, are mostly gone in the states and social security's long-term sustainability is in question to say the least. That means that my generation and those that follow will have to rely upon an adequate pool of investable liquid assets to fund their own retirements.

Cool! It’s good to make lots of bread when you’re retired. And you make it in a way that doesn’t look too messy. I may try it. It looks easy for hurt hands.

Personally I would just sell that stuff so I could remain clutter-free 😂 I started a business 12 years ago that required me to be on the road full time. So I had to fit everything I owned in a single vehicle. Then I sold and gave away everything that wouldn't fit. A few months later I got rid of more stuff so I'd have space in my vehicle. I've been living that way for the past decade and it's great. Getting rid of all that stuff makes you realize you don't need it. I have two boxes of photos, mementos, books, and important stuff. I have a carry-on suitcase with my clothes and toiletries. Everything else is business-related. I'm as free as a hobo: A hobo with a business, brokerage account and two IRAs. I can live anywhere I want. If I wake up tomorrow and decide to drive to Florida and stay for a month, I can leave the same day, no problem!

Very nice, I have subscribed to your channel. ✌🏻🫶🏻👍🏻

Hi from Mississippi! Good Luck on getting your message out. Hopefully a few comments will help you out. I find purchasing food in the apps will lower the cost.

Thank you showing me how to bake the most perfect French Bread ever. This is my signature bread now, thank you so much!

I'm 54 and have over 6.5 million with zero liabilities. I rent an apartment. 2 million of that is in an IRA that I can't touch until 59.5. I have mostly cash and bonds make around 200k a year. After taxes, it comes out to around 12k a month net. I definitely don't feel rich... I am retired.

That is an interesting perspective. I can see why you can consider it wealthy if living below means and have extra for whatever comes up.

Having everything you need is the other form of fabulous wealth.

Love the simplicity and brevity of you guys. Great Content. Love from India.

While having sufficient money to meet one’s basic needs and some or most of one’s wants can contribute to wealth, it doesn’t necessarily mean one is wealthy. Health, happiness, harmonious relationships and peace of mind is a form of wealth. It is a form of wealth which many people that are rich in money don’t have.

We love being debt free! We don’t care about our net worth, we only care about our cash & retirement assets. Cars and Homes are only worth what someone will pay for it minus the fees to sell it.

To me, the “Go go years” are the real Golden years. That is why although I love what I do for work which is run my own small business, and it is truly rewarding seeing the positive impact that it can have on young kids and families, there are other things that I like to enjoy in life, and I plan to have the option to be fully retired by or before 60. I will be 55 soon, don’t have any major 401k retirement plans or won’t be getting any pensions, but my wife and I live a fairly simple life, have no credit card debt, both cars are paid for, no mortgage as our small condo is paid for, and some cash saved. I believe that embracing a delayed gratification mindset has served me well in life, but I also believe there is different between delayed gratification, and over delaying gratification. Therefore, if I continue working towards my goals, and if I have at least 300k saved by the time I’m 59.5, I do plan to either retire if I choose to. Tomorrow is not guaranteed, and I figure that after 65 or so, I’ll probably be spending less money on leisure. Enjoying free time at 55 or 60, does not compare to enjoying free time at 70 or 75.

Retire in the Philippines. Live like a king on $2,000/mo budget.

Is the median net worth per single person or a married couple ? EX: $364,500 times 2 equals $729,000. Thanks.

HI, I am a single 72 year old man, NO DEBT at all, current yearly income in between $72,000.00 and $76,000.00, with a monthly living expense of about $3,000.00. I also have a financial portfolio of $1.5million and a no mortgage house worth currently of about $475,000.00. So where do I stand with My life?

We retired two years ago with no debt. Feels really good!

Thanks for the suggestions! Other Suggestions: fence/mail box repairs, Septic Inspections (if applic.)

You CAN do this!! De-cluttering is a HUGE endeavor! Keep us updated on the progress of the sale.

Meredith Whitney describes it as the Maginot Line. Those on one side have wealth, those on the other do not. Currently about $70k of income. Those peeps are suffering.

Thank you

That's an interesting perspective on "wealthy." Surprisingly (to me), my income is more than when I was working. I don't consider myself wealthy but I own my own home outright (bought 28 years ago for cash) have a small car payment below market rates that has a year until paid off, one credit card that gets paid off in full each month and invest 3/4ths of my retirement income each month. Any bill that hits the mailbox gets paid the same day it comes in. I look at my vintage motorcycle collection as an asset that grows in value over time. I retired 18 years ago at 54 1/2. Some people just can't handle money. The "pros" say that percentage is 65%, How sad. Watch and grow your money while living below your means is sage advice.

We were minimalist before there was a word for it ! Retired 6 years now , also downsized . If its only been 2 weeks for you it just gets better and better ! Congratulations !

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Totally agree with you clutter is no good and we feel so much lighter without and the home is easy to clean and we become better organised if we want to find a needle and thread we can go and put our hands on it and not have to search for it 😊

She sounds like Pam from The Office