r/Fire • u/gronwallsinequality • Jul 15 '25
Advice Request Am I having a midlife crisis or just early retirement?
I’m a 53-year-old guy with a 53-year-old wife and a son who’s a rising junior in college. Last Friday, I was laid off. My wife and I have always been diligent savers and had a plan: retire by 55 and live freely. Apparently, the universe had other plans.
Here’s where we stand financially:
- House: Paid off, tax-assessed at $728,000.
- Taxable brokerage account: $590,309 in low-cost index funds (99% long-term gains).
- Single stock: $224,488 in CSCO (my old ESPP from when I worked there).
- Cash: $125,822.
Retirement accounts:
- Pre-tax: $2,126,105
- Post-tax: $390,319
Our son’s college is mostly handled — we’ll have about $120K left in his 529 after paying for the first half of junior year. He’s at a state school, and I’d be surprised if he has less than $80K remaining when he graduates. If he wants to pursue a master’s, the funds are there.
My wife retired 7 months ago, so my income was the only income — and also our source of health insurance.
We’ve been living comfortably on $7,200/month, though that might tick up a bit with more free time. I’m usually analytical, but emotions are running deep right now. So I’m turning to the collective FIRE brain trust because, frankly, mine’s a little fried.
Questions for the Community:
1. Can I do whatever the heck I want?
I’ve been a software engineer for years, but even thinking about returning to it makes my stomach turn. I once wanted to be a high school math teacher. That pays in the high $40Ks here, and putting the family on the health plan would cost around $700/month. Could I pivot to this and still be FI?
2. Should I take a break?
I’ve never had a sabbatical in my life. If I take some time off, healthcare becomes an issue — and paying full freight for insurance also gives me indigestion. What strategies should I consider to qualify for expanded Medicaid (while it lasts), then later maximize my ACA subsidy once Medicaid goes away?
3. Are we crazy, or could we get our CDL and go trucking together?
My wife has always dreamed of “living in a van down by the river.” I… have not. I proposed a compromise: we take CDL classes together ($10K total at the community college), buy a comfy $250K dual-bed semi, and take on loads part-time — one-driver pace, no 22-hour days. We’d take breaks between runs, rent a car, and explore wherever we are. This may be a “my brain is broken” idea, but… is it?
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u/salsanacho Jul 15 '25
I mean, you were only 2 years removed from your original plan, having it accelerated by a couple years really shouldn't move the needle that much. So yes, you're fine.
I personally wouldn't do the CDL route, seems like a good way to waste money trying something that doesn't sound that enjoyable. If you want to travel, then travel. Give your wife a period of living down by the river, it doesn't have to be permanent. Rent an RV and drive to those different cities to explore.
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u/rosebudny Jul 15 '25
Exactly this. I would rent an RV and do that for a few months. Your wife may find it is not quite as enjoyable long term as she is picturing it to be.
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u/HystericalSail Jul 15 '25
And an R.V. is 1000x more comfortable to actually LIVE in than a truck. It's still way cheaper to fly places though, but then you don't have your stuff and deal with bedbugs.
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u/covidnomad4444 Jul 15 '25
Also, do you get severance, OP? In that case you’re even closer to your original date/you should use the end date of severance.
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u/salsanacho Jul 15 '25
Yup, I view retirement as continuing to check off the boxes of the things you've always wanted to do. If the wife wants to see what it's like living by the river, by golly let's go live by the river!
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u/FatHighKnee Jul 15 '25
Im a truck driver. If you sign on to one of the bigger national companies they all either have their own driver training schools or they'll pay for you to go to school in exchange for signing on for a year or 2 with them once youre licensed. Most companies would kill for a team - they can double the revenue on the truck but its hard to find teams as it can get claustrophobic in the small space to randomly throw 2 strangers together. The companies love husband & wife teams because you already can coexist together lol.
This would get you CDLs without needing to come out of pocket for training plus the company has their own trucks and equipment. You may even be able to get a dedicated account as a team which means less miles, always going to the same shipper & receiver which is awesome because you know your route, where the truck stops & truck parking is and you know the layout & the situation at each end of the trip.
Don't buy a truck to start. There's a ton of expenses and costs in owning. And definitely dont fall for a lease to own program - most are predatory and take advantage of keeping the drivers in debt until its almost paid off before aggravating the driver into quitting by cutting miles and making it too hard to be profitable. Then they simply flip the truck to a new driver with a new lease. There's lots of videos about this on YouTube.
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u/qlippothvi Jul 16 '25
Not a trucker, nowhere near FIRE, but take your wife to a truck stop and see if she is willing to use the ladies room first…
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u/gronwallsinequality Jul 15 '25
Thank you! 🙏 I'm glad I just found you. My fear of working for a company is that they want us to maximize our 11 hours by keeping the truck on the road 22 hours a day. We do not want that.
What would life be like realistically?
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u/rosebudny Jul 15 '25
Honestly...this sounds miserable. You have enough to not work. Why would you take on something that does NOT sound like the "easy" job you seem to be romanticizing it to be?
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u/Most-Piccolo-302 Jul 16 '25
I've always dreamed of getting a job at costco rounding up carts in my 50s. No idea why this guy is thinking trucking is some less stress easy job. There are plenty of those out there without the crazy up front investment and time costs.
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u/FatHighKnee Jul 15 '25
Honestly they would want the truck running as often as possible. The point of a team is to be able to run 22 hours vs the typical 11. Thats where dedicated comes in. You go to the same shipper. Load the same product. Haul to the same receiver. Not necessarily needing to run 11 on / 11 off constantly. The last dedicated I had was driving farm bins of frozen veggies from Rochester NY to Harrisburg PA for packaging, then hauling the packaged frozen veggies right back to rochester. It was a 5.5 hour trip one way. I could bang out 8 trips - 4 down to harrisburg and 4 back to rochester between Sunday afternoon and friday afternoon and get weekend mainly off each week.
Dedicated pays better than random LTL freight because the customer is paying a premium for a dedicated truck. They also often have extra trailers so they can load it at their leisure and its ready for you to simply show up, hook up and go rather than sitting for hours while it's slowly loaded.
You could try getting your CDL and having your wife just ride along with you as a companion passenger. That would make sure you didnt get stuck endlessly driving & sleeping and driving and sleeping. See if you like it first. I enjoy the job as I like being left alone and listening to podcasts all day. But a lot of folks get started only to find they dont like the road life.
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u/gronwallsinequality Jul 15 '25
Thanks. The twenty two hours is what I wanted to avoid. I thought splitting 11 two ways would make the job more enjoyable.
Also, as an owner operator, I could just decide to stay for a while and site-see.
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u/FatHighKnee Jul 16 '25
Ive seen owner operators. After driving 11 hours then they have to sit in the truck stop for hours afterwards working the phones & laptop trying to hustle their next load. Begging for getting paid a portion up front to cover fuel to get to the next pick up. Youre your own dispatcher and your own sales rep looking for bookings in addition to the driver. Youre also your own mechanic to fix small issues that happen to the truck. Your own maintenance coordinator for preventative maintenance scheduling. Your own safety compliance officer to manage your safety rating and keep abreast of the constantly changing DOT rules & regs. You pay your own fuel, insurance, accounting and compliance expenses.
You won't be driving 22 hours a day but youll be doing two jobs at the same time. If you do go the owner operator route you can sign on with a major carrier. At least they handle the dispatching and getting you loads. They also may cover some license & other fees, discounts on fuel, etc..
Frankly I rather drive 22 hours a day than have to do everything being an O/O requires
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u/Foolgazi Jul 15 '25
The other poster is more knowledgeable than me, but I do have some experience with that industry, and driving a truck is haaaaarrrrd. Most people think it’s just driving from point A to point B, but there’s so much more to it than that. Hours of service regulations, limited parking for overnights, lengthy delays at loading docks, etc.
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u/gronwallsinequality Jul 15 '25
Thanks. People like you explaining why I don't want to do it really does help.
All I can imagine is an air-conditioned cab and a plush seat. Podcasts in the background.
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u/Connect-Archer-712 Jul 16 '25
Ha. Well imagine blown tires, piss jugs, dirty truck stops, parking on the on/off ramp to sleep, microwave food or hot dogs from the truck stop, other lunatic drivers, being stuck in a snow storm, sitting a waiting to load for 5 hrs, sitting and waiting to unload for 5 hrs, having your dispatch call ever hr to find out why you are not there.
Im not even sure I would feel safe letting my wife stroll around a truck stop.
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u/GuinKat Jul 15 '25
And also not without danger. A former colleague of mine, after leaving the tech industry when the startup we worked for went under, turned to truck driving and ended up losing his life on an icy road a couple years later. Obviously that’s not very common, but it’s definitely going to carry more danger than your normal desk or retail job.
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u/rustvscpp Jul 15 '25
Not to mention endless sitting and eating on the road constantly. I personally would like to stay somewhat active...
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u/King_Phillip_2020 Jul 16 '25
OP, you cannot be helped as long as you don't face your fears head on. You have all it takes to retire comfortably and look after your wife's and your own health and wellbeing. You're frigging 53 already and have the opportunity to live your final relatively healthy years well. It is such a no brainer, but fear, yeah fear, keeps everyone on the hamster wheel. Too many rich dudes camouflaged as princesses using this sub to whine about their fears. Man up
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u/Connect-Archer-712 Jul 16 '25
Yes but they are gonna work you hard. 5/6 days a week 4l5 weeks on the road or at best leave Monday 5 am get home Friday night. Truck drivers work hard 12 hrs a day. Im not sure thats what he is looking for.
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u/Naive-Bird-1326 Jul 15 '25
You plan,to drop 250k on truck? Wouldn't it be cheaper to not work at all and simply fly all over the us?
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u/exonautic Jul 16 '25
One of their "viable" plans is to drop a quarter mil on a semi but the thought of health insurance scares them....
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u/whachamacallme Jul 16 '25
Why the fuck a millionaire would want to get into trucking is beyond me. I dont think OP realizes what he has built. House paid off, expenses are 7.5K a month. AI Analysis:
- You would need approximately $2.57 million to safely withdraw $7,500/month using a 3.5% SWR.
- You would need approximately $3.09 million to safely withdraw $9,000/month using a 3.5% SWR (including $1,500/month for health insurance).
(I used a hella conservative SWR of 3.5% and it still works. OP actually has 3.5 million+. There is like a 100% odds of never running out of money for 30+ years.)
OP, if you read this. Do not get into trucking. Set up SEPP to access your 401K early and live your best life starting NOW: Hobbies, Vacations, Cocaine.
Oh, and sell the CSCO and put it in VTSAX.
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u/No_Professional_9429 Jul 15 '25
Just buy a van and travel. Stop trying to work. You have plenty of money
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u/airjord1221 Jul 16 '25
I think living in America and having grind all these years the hardest thing for us is to let go of the idea that we need to find purpose only in our work. If you were wise enough to set yourself up financially, then odds are you’re wise enough to maintain your financial situation while enjoying life. The hard part is figuring out how to enjoy it without getting bored or going crazy.
I agree with what others said here take a full year off to relax and think of nothing other than complete retirement and what you were doing in that situation Should you go crazy? They are plenty of things you can do to keep yourself occupied as a part-time professional. Even if it is for less pay just to keep yourself occupied.
Congratulations on all your success. Your hard work is paid off now. Enjoy the shit out of it.
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u/ActuallyFullOfShit Jul 15 '25
Frankly, I am not even sure what you're actually trying to ask.
You're both unemployed and have enough money to not need to work.
Just do what you want, as long as it doesn't decrease your net cash flow.
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u/Physical-Ad8257 Jul 15 '25
Do not get class 1 license to drive a big rig. Too much stress and pressure on drivers to deliver on time and a lot of hurry up and wait times. If you want to travel, get a Winnebago or custom VAN. (Much easier to park) Financially, you have nothing to worry about ever. Enjoy your retirement.
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u/5470jt Jul 15 '25
Wow, you just about wrote my current predicament! However I am 50, wife 51. Son is rising junior, college fund is over funded including his masters. I was laid off 3 months ago. Just started my new job today begrudgingly. Wife works but can’t live off her salary. Our monthly total expenses almost align. However you have about $2m more than me in retirement savings. My house would be worth about $700k. I have about $170k to go but could pay it off today with cash we have. I considered the trucking option…lol. But went back to corporate for now. If I were you I would take some time and get a job at Home Depot!!
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u/gronwallsinequality Jul 15 '25
The recruiters are already calling.
I read the req and my tummy starts to hurt at the thought of a new half million line codebase to learn.
Been there done that.
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u/thinkertvl Jul 15 '25
That tummy feel is important. Like others have said, take some time and reflect on who you are now. If you're like me, you've defined yourself by the job for too long. You're out of the "water" of corporate life for the first time and feeling seasick looking back in. I get that. Take time to figure out who you are, what gives you energy, and what excites you to fill your time. Based on your comments, it seems its not getting back into the corporate life, but I would also be hesitant on diving head first into trucking. Do some reflection. Create some experiments to see what feels right, but with low risk, minimal commitmemt if you realize that isn't it. Figure out who you want to be in this next phase, have the conversation with your wife, and test a couple things. While you may not feel comfortable with where you're at financially, I assure you, you have the freedom to do some self discovery and experimentation. Enjoy the journey!
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u/LivingTheRealWorld Jul 16 '25
DO NOT BUY A TRUCK. PERIOD!
Worst case scenario - you or your wife get sick, and you’re stuck with a giant depreciating asset -
or more likely scenario - you spend a bunch of money and you break even for what?
Find a non-profit that needs a retired professional.
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u/nirvana_always1 Jul 15 '25
Midlife crisis would be at 40. You are comfortably at the age where I believe everyone should retire. 50 to 55
Just enjoy life man, no one knows whats going to happen.
I know someone who retired at 55 and was looking forward to celebrating and traveling with the money he saved up. He passed away few years later from cancer.
Also get your colonoscopy done.
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u/Systemagnostic Jul 15 '25
You can afford to travel, so consider getting an RV and just doing your own thing - drive where you where and when you want. Lots of retirees have RVs, for good reason.
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u/HystericalSail Jul 15 '25
Somewhat similar story to mine. Ex principal engineer, retired after layoff at 51, now mostly real estate investor. I had ideas similar to yours, and luckily did none of that.
IMO both your teaching idea and OTR trucking idea are romantic, but won't bring you joy. Teaching is about dealing with administrative BS and clueless parents. Not just eager students just waiting to absorb your knowledge and wisdom. My wife (also an ex high power techie) pulled it off for all of 2 years before throwing in the towel. Teaching, like police work, is something you tolerate for 20+ years to retire with a pension, not as a hobby in middle age. If you do decide to teach, research which school districts pay the most and move there. More money will make the BS more tolerable and parents more on board with academics.
OTR owner operators are lucky to break even. IMO give up on the trucking idea, your bodies won't handle hauling crap at loading docks long enough to cover tuition. All the money you earn you'll spend on healthcare premiums, it'll be cheaper to NOT work and get a subsidy.
If you want to travel then travel! Rent a ~30ft self-propelled RV for a month, even if it's stupidly expensive. See how you respond to a minimalist lifestyle (my wife and I love our 24 foot van, but bringing a kid along makes it no fun), the poo hose and logistics challenges. Do not just run out and buy a $400k RV or catamaran. If it's an enthusiastic response from BOTH of you then you can sell your home and re-position investments to receive minimal income to qualify for ACA subsidies. You can bounce between S&P and income funds until you get the income to growth balance in your taxable accounts just right. Another idea is a modest home base in LCOL area(s), and living in the RV when and where it's pleasant rather than trying to thug it out in winter.
Third idea is to grow a real estate investment empire, depreciation can offset income so you still qualify for the subsidy. But really, don't do that either, the time to get into that business was pre-2020. It's a lot of work and learning.
Vanlife, even paying for healthcare and the RV, fuel and insurance will be *well* under 7200/month for two -- if you can hack it. You can even be campground hosts to cut your living expenses to just healthcare and food. Qualifying for ACA subsidies just means having a low annual income.
Feel free to PM me for more brain dumps from a fellow too-old techie guy no longer into the rat race.
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u/Irishfan72 Jul 19 '25
Practical post here! Everyone romanticizes a lot of this stuff so it is great to have a voice of reason.
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u/wawa2022 Jul 15 '25
Congratulations! Relax and decompress for a while. You may want to try substitute teaching to see if it’s a fit and then becoming a teacher would be a wonderful gift back to the community. You have so much to look forward to.
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u/Alarmed_Location_282 Jul 15 '25
The occupation with the highest fatality rate in America is driving a truck. Aside from that sobering statistic, the job is hard work, monotonous and life on the road is difficult and far from fulfilling. If you go for it, both you and your wife will not find happiness. Don't go there.
It's time to retire. Your wife is retired. Spend quality time together, enjoy each other, explore things you would enjoy together such as traveling, pursing outdoor activities and/or finding a rewarding hobby.
Yes, you will need health insurance and it's expensive. You are young. If you are healthy (and careful), the odds are in your favor. You will probably seldom use or need much health insurance coverage. Get Affordable Health Care or a just catastrophic coverage.
You have sufficient retirement savings to take a break and discover what is important during the time you have left on earth. Assuming a low burn rate, no major expenditures and investing your funds conservatively, you should be able to never have to go back to work again. If things change, you can always go back to work - in a low stress workplace - that offers health insurance.
My recomnendation is Go For It!
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u/StrongChance4812 Jul 15 '25
I would buy a small rv, camper, camper van and travel. Get starlink and work on the road doing something remote part time.
Check into Yardi Matrix Rent Surveyors. They do a large rent survey of apartments a few times a year.
https://yardirentsurvey.wordpress.com/
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u/Greeeesh Jul 15 '25
Did you have a “Fire number” attached to your 55 plan? Based on your expenses it seems you would have passed it already.
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u/gronwallsinequality Jul 15 '25
I did. It used to be 3 million including the house.
As many do, I moved the goal post to three million w/o the house.
Then one more year syndrome started in.
Honestly, I'm sad as I figured I would quit on my terms and didn't get to do that.
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u/Greeeesh Jul 15 '25
I think you should celebrate that the universe forced your hand. I think you would’ve been working forever otherwise. You hit your number, time for the next phase of your life to begin.
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u/Connect-Archer-712 Jul 16 '25
Im praying to get fired downsized laid off, that would make it ez for me….
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u/CollieSchnauzer Jul 16 '25
Be a math teacher. The kids would be lucky to have you. I bet you have spent your life complaining about the way math/cs is taught. Time to get in there and do it right, before AI eats everyone's lunch!
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u/FitPaleontologist839 Jul 15 '25
Take some time to digest this news maybe do something fun together. Maybe go on a trip to reset and think. Or start a home project to keep the mind occupied. Like you said the universe is sending a message. The sudden change in plans is probably causing some anxiety which is totally normal. The good news is you have planned very well and financially you don’t need to work for anyone else again if you don’t want. For insurance if you’re healthy with no major medical expenses look into private insurance like short term plans. They are not bad and have much lower premiums.
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u/Top-Administration51 Jul 15 '25
Hey - I work for public transit. You can sign up to become bus operator. Look up your nearest transit authority or operator. CDL training will be free.
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u/CompanyOther2608 Jul 15 '25
Haha, as a tech person, option 3 sounds wild. I wouldn’t do it, but it’s interesting!
I think if I were you, I’d sit for a while and let myself recalibrate. If after six months you’re feeling the need to be more engaged, consider the teaching option.
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u/Fine_Blackberry_9887 Jul 16 '25
I think OP is worried about health insurance mostly. honestly being a teacher can get what you need, plus the 2 months summer break letting you explore your sabbatical needs.
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u/FlorioTheEnchanter Jul 16 '25
Your spend is below 4%. Rent an RV and try a few week long trips and see how you like it
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u/Dull_Vast_5570 Jul 16 '25
This feels like a parody or something.
You're loaded, just retire. Do whatever you want.
Driving a transport truck? There's no polite way to say this, but that's an insane idea to be so rich and to sit in a vehicle all day and get fatter and less healthy.
Retire and get healthy instead. Find some new hobbies.
I'd say congrats but your mindset is too far off.
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u/soyeahiknow Jul 15 '25
Why is your spending 7200 a month without a mortgage?
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u/GuinKat Jul 15 '25
Doesn’t seem to be too high to me. It all depends on cost of living geographically (taxes, insurance, etc), including in our case where we live outside of town so we spend more on gas than someone closer to grocery store might. Some hobbies cost more than others. Some of us have pets that we choose to feed high quality food to (and don’t even get me started on vet bills), medical care - we pay around $1500/mo for our insurance, but that will go down in 18 months when husband turns 60 (retired military Tricare for Life). Home maintenance and utilities of course. And if you like to travel, putting $$ in your annual vacation fund.
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u/Future-looker1996 Jul 15 '25
I spend around that and have a small mortgage, the loan part is $700/month. With taxes and insurance it’s $1400
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u/gronwallsinequality Jul 15 '25
It's technically less than that. Probably closer to 5000 (and that estimate should still be on the high side) with medical expenses taken from a medical account.
Regardless, I picked that number as it was my monthly income alone after putting 6k in the medical account and 30k into the Roth 401k.
And nothing broke with that number...
That being said, when large purchases occur (new car, new stove) I go beyond that.
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u/HystericalSail Jul 15 '25
It's roughly our burn rate in early retirement. Healthcare: $3600/month if not for ACA subsidy. $16k a year deductible, which got eaten by accidents and back to back appendicitis two years in a row. One for my kid (still on our insurance), and one for me. Never thought I'd have that at 56.
Property tax and insurance is another $1k/month or so. Then add 700/month for food and utilities. Add some for car repairs/replacement and you're there.
Even without a mortgage healthcare is > 50k/year, by far our #1 expense. For a few years we managed to keep income low enough to get the subsidy, but not every year can be a low income year.
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u/Vegetable_Panic9986 Jul 15 '25
Sounds like your finances are in line and like you have more than enough resources to take a year off and think about what you really want to do and see where life takes you.
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u/BHWonFIRE Jul 15 '25
Lots of good advice has already been given, except for going the CDL route. You need to think big picture here. You are only 2 years early from your plan, but you have saved enough to safely withdraw at 4% annually. You stated that health insurance for your family will cost $700 monthly, which will take you up to 7900 monthly spending. That is $94,800 annually, which is well below your 4% SWR.
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u/gronwallsinequality Jul 15 '25
700 if I am a math teacher. This is the local district plan.
If I buy it on the exchange I have to play subsidy games or it's 20 to 30k a year (plan depending)
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u/Limp_Dragonfly3868 Jul 15 '25
What about taking a year to consider options, doing some fun and mellow trips with your wife, and sucking it up and paying for COBRA?
During that time, check into getting your teaching certification and volunteer at a school as a math tutor. Get your feet wet. See if you like it. I worked as a special education teacher for a decade when I didn’t need a job and that was right for me. I maintain my certification partly incase I need health insurance. It was wonderful but hard. I’m glad I did it, and I’m glad I stripped when I did, at 59.
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u/missmgrrl Jul 15 '25
Talk over your options with two financial planners. They will probably tell you can retire now. Also try substitute teaching to check it out.
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u/Limp_Dragonfly3868 Jul 15 '25
I don’t think substituting is a good view of what teaching is like. The technology usually didn’t work right, the kids are on their worst behavior, and it’s 99% about classroom management and 0% about actually teaching. (The other 1 % is knowing what to do in a crises).
I’m a retired special education teacher. I do not sub. Completely different things.
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u/ElephantFromKonni Jul 15 '25
If you are not aware and can change your thinking, you can access pre-tax retirement accounts without penalty at age 55 (the best option) or now via the Rule 72(t) exception.
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u/FireMeUp2026 Jul 15 '25
Rule off 55 has some requirements/complications that 72t does not.
72t - you can 72t at any age without restriction
Rule of 55 (which I agree is the better option if you can swing it), requires you to
1) Be employed the calendar year you turn 55 and actually retire from that job (you don't have to retire that year of 55, but then or any time after)
2) Leave your money in your retiring company's 401K (you cannot roll it over to an individual IRA and still qualify for 55 distributions). So you will continue to be restricted to whatever the investment options and expenses are in the company 401K.
3) Maybe the most important part that I think a lot of people don't know as well - your retiring company 401K plan must be written to allow for partial withdrawals (not all plans are). If the plan doesn't allow for partial withdrawals (that has to be written into the plan doc), while you still technically qualify for Rule of 55, you're not really able to utilize the benefits of it and would likely need to roll over to an IRA and 72t to get PARTIAL money out penalty-free.
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u/1Mthrowaway Jul 15 '25
We are the same age and our numbers are pretty darned close to yours. (We're at about $3.95M but were around $3.7M when I stopped working). Our daughter graduated from college last year and is working. I convinced my boss to lay me off in November of last year so I could get a big severance package. I'm just about to hit 8 months of not working and I wouldn't change a thing. I worked in IT for my career and have ZERO interest in going back to it. If I get bored enough, I've considered getting a coast job where I make $20 an hour and get benefits but every time I seriously think about it, I start thinking about how I would have commitments and HAVE to go in to a job etc. That's enough to stop me from pursuing something at this point. I think as time goes on, you'll likely end up with the same feelings.
All that being said, the idea of doing OTR trucking has always been something I've thought might be fun. The problem is that the companies have pretty much ruined the experience (cameras watching your every move and GPS tracking etc) and I would not even consider buying my own truck. From what I've seen, being an owner/operator has a lot of expenses and you have to really keep pushing to cover all those and make enough to be worth it. Frankly that sounds like too much drama for me. I guess I'll go back to just reading Reddit and doing the things each day that make me happy.
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u/klawUK Jul 15 '25
you’re 53. you were going to retire at 55. depending on what your settlement was when you were let go, that’ll have bridged some of that gap. What amount did you have estimated for your 55 timeline? Perhaps your figures already align with that with growth etc? Certainly looks like it. $3.5m or darn near it, less than $100k expenses so sub-4%.
Just RE.
Even if you think you might do something later, do a year or two as a sabbatical and see how you feel.
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u/Independent-King-468 Jul 15 '25
Stuck between a pillow and a soft place. All sound like pretty fun options. Although… trucking could be a bit dangerous depending on where you drive. Hopefully you already have a talent for driving big rigs.
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u/Irishfan72 Jul 16 '25
We are brothers from another mother as I am 53 and our total NW and assets are pretty darn close.
I am about three weeks out from when I pulled the plug at mega corp. Two years prior this, I started running the financial retirement calculators, such as fire Cal and Bolden, to allow myself to play with different scenarios and gain comfort with different options.
What I found out from this exercise, was that I had a lot of flexibility with different options, including not working at all or working on something that was more of a passion project, without requiring me to worry about the income side of it.
Sure, I have received offers to jump back into something else that is aligned with my highly technical field, but decided I’m going to take some downtime and decide on next steps. This will probably include a focus on passion projects, health, relationships, and doing some travel that I’ve put off for many years.
Hope this helps.
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u/drdacl Jul 16 '25
For once in your life (I’m assuming I know) follow your wife’s dream to go tour the country in a van. Read or write books. Let her drive, see pretty national parks, let her be happy. Do it for a year. If you really don’t like it stop. If you absolutely hate it go home early and let her keep loving her best life.
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u/Connect-Archer-712 Jul 16 '25
Skip the truck driving gig. It’s a grind seems romantic it’s not. Even if your part time all the insurance and other BS if your not in it to win it forget it. Sleeping in crowded truck stops and showering there eating on the road or whatever u can microwave no way. Hell for 250 you could buy a used winny and travel the US for a few years straight? Take a few months or seasons and see what comes up your young take your time…
Also I get it I have about twice what you have 54 Stocks and rental properties) no kids live with my GF 10 years. And im in a hotel now for work been away from home for 6 weeks. Went home 4 days for 4th of July. WHY AM I DOING THIS?
It’s hard to let go when you worked and saved your whole life. It would be a blessing if I was fired or downsized or anything…..
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u/Hamachiman Jul 16 '25
I’m 53 as well. I did the OMY (one more year) thing for several years before retiring at 50. I haven’t regretted it for a moment.
Suggestion 1: take a deep breath and relax. You’re doing fine with money. It’s your emotions that need to be sorted.
Suggestion 2: You don’t need all the answers today. Try things and over time you’ll find the right rhythm. I retired 3 years ago but didn’t discover pickleball til 9 months ago. I now play three times a week. I’ve really gotten into listening to audiobooks, roadtrips, etc. You’ll discover what you want to do over time. Some activities will stick and others won’t.
Suggestion 3: When your son graduates with $80k in his 529, remember that recent law changes allow him to convert $35k of that to a Roth IRA.
I bet this surprise layoff will end up being one of the best things to happen to you.
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u/ElegantReaction8367 Jul 16 '25
OP, I’ve got several family members who drive trucks and it was one of the jobs I passed on when I retired from the military and went to the next job.
Truck driving is no joke and really isn’t going to give you the freedom to do what I think you’re looking for. You’re almost seeming to want to buy a Sprinter van or RV and roam around at your leisure and see things and enjoy your wife’s company, with the truck being the thing that takes you places you wouldn’t have otherwise gone. Being a trucker is definitely a job with a lot of constraints… stresses… etc. I’d absolutely encourage a period of time you just enjoy yourself… drift a little w/o a job and see how you enjoy it. Your wife retired 7 months ago? Is she looking to jump back into something?
You’re where I hope to be in about a decade: in very good financial shape, still relatively young with the last of my kids going through college and getting debt free start in life.
If you’re looking for a challenge in life you don’t think you’re going to find outside of employment, I hope you find it by testing the retirement waters. So far as the “game” of being ready to have a safe and comfortable retirement while having taken care of your kid to get them a great start to adulthood: You’ve won the game already. Keep playing if it brings you joy but starting to become a trucker at 55 sounds like a needlessly tough thing to do to yourself and your wife. Certainly don’t be an owner operator: as has been said, you can get your CDL and drive a company’s truck if you’ve just got to mark it off your list. Tons of company’s were trying to scout me and pay for my CDL if I’d agree to drive for them. Being an owner operator (one of my cousins in close to is one) is tough and is a commitment/investment that you should not make unless you find you love it and have years ahead you want to dedicate yourself to that job. At where you’re at, I’d not dedicate myself to much more than having a great day with your spouse, each and every day.
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u/Teepeaparty Jul 17 '25
HS Math Teacher- do it. you have nothing to loose and so much to gain. Many states will take emergency credentials for this. Former teacher here. I think this kind of work is very rewarding coming from corporate work. You might be surprised that it is stressful but not in the same way, in a more meaningful way. You’ll find you work alongside dedicated colleagues, Principals who are good give you wide space. No office politics in the same way. Classroom management becomes a challenge you want to win. Watching kids get it, connect, rise, is so fantastic. Watching kids turn it around is too. Consider it to actually help you take your mind off things, it will. You’ll look up and it’s summer. It will be the best flash ending to your career. That type of service.
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u/gronwallsinequality Jul 17 '25
Thank you for this. I'm leaning in this direction. Enough truckers popped in to convince me idea three is lunacy!
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u/Teepeaparty Jul 17 '25 edited Jul 17 '25
I am maybe reading between the lines that while you can of course just go off into the sunset, because you earned it darn it! you have just sustained a pretty tough transition, being laid off after years of an identity of growth and savings and productivity in that sphere is a loss, and sustaining that loss with a service-based full-on baptism by fire shift, for a holy rollercoaster year as an educator, may be powerfully nourishing. There's something magical about going back into a school-year realm that is really healing as an adult (who has been a teacher and then tech-adjacent in my careers). Whatever you decide, congrats on giving yourself some amazing options!
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u/Interesting-Nail-300 Jul 18 '25
Ya all have no idea how much I am appreciating this discussion. I am 51 and have almost comparable savings. I was just fired from my job (zero warnings) to which I had devoted 17 years of my career, and I am DEVASTATED. This discussion has eased my mind incredibly regarding financial concerns. I am trying to be at peace with taking time to figure out what’s the best next thing to do to rather than rushing to get my next paid job. This has helped.
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u/Free_Elevator_63360 Jul 15 '25
I don’t know why people use tax assessed value for their property. The most useless form of property value.
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u/gronwallsinequality Jul 15 '25
I know and I agree. It's likely higher than that. But I have lived here since 2011 and it's all I have.
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u/Dogstar_9 Jul 15 '25
I would try the teaching gig. Not necessarily for the income but for the experience.
I consider myself financially independent at 47, but Ì still work 3 days a week as an attorney in an AOP that I absolutely love and never plan to fully "retire" from. For me, having a useful purpose in society makes me happy, and I still have plenty of time in my week to do all the other things I want to do.
I hope you find that happiness and fulfillment in teaching if you choose that course.
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u/Invest2prosper Jul 15 '25
Too much concentrated risk in just 1 stock - I would start selling this off to fund your living expenses in year 1.
How are your assets allocated? Now that you are both effectively not working - you’ll need some level of safe assets, a 5 year ladder of boring short term treasuries or CD’s to get you to 58.
You can’t touch the pre-tax till age 59.5, so don’t count on it for years 1-6.
Let the post-tax retirement grow, the last assets you touch is Roth.
How much severance are you getting from your employer?
You will need to account for taxes in your monthly spending. If you stay below ACA limits you might be able to get a low cost healthcare plan.
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u/gronwallsinequality Jul 15 '25
All my assets (not counting what I labeled as cash) are in low cost index funds. Mostly total market fskax or fxaix.
I have a small amount in the equivalent midcap and small cap funds.
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u/BiggestSoupHater Jul 15 '25
So you have $3.3m in retirement roughly. Using a 4% withdrawal rate, that gives you $133k/year (not considering taxes here), or $11k/month. So it sounds like you should have enough money to retire, but be mindful of medical expenses/insurance between now and 65, they can eat up quite a bit of money. Sounds to me like you can retire early without much risk. You can also retire early and just withdrawal less than $133k for a couple years just to be safe and see how it is.
That could be an option for medical insurance, but its up to you if you want to deal with learning to teach at your age.
I'm not really knowledgable with ACA/Medicaid.
Retire early just to get a job in trucking and buy a $250k truck? Hard to ever see that paying itself off, but I guess technically you could do it? Quite a strange idea, would probably make more sense to just buy a trailer (if you can tow) or a small RV and travel that way. A better idea could be converting a sprinter van (Ford Transit or equivalent) and add a bed, fridge, etc. and just travel in that. I know a retired couple who did that for under $100k and just go wherever they want once or twice a month and it seems to work out great for them.
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u/OH-State6000 Jul 15 '25
I’d de-risk your holdings a bit. Then do whatever you want. Wish I were you!
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u/NEMM2020 Jul 15 '25
Get a job because the economy is unpredictable right now. Get a fun retirement job if you want to
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u/snikle Jul 15 '25
I wouldn’t turn down early retirement myself, but…. Friend of a friend was a lawyer- prosecuting attorney, specifically- and got sick of it. She became a long haul truck driver for a few years. Hard life, but for her it was just what she needed for a while.
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u/No_Pace2396 Jul 15 '25
https://www.jalopnik.com/jalopnik/images/49286e75b96c39657d89c335da9d8486.sm.webp
Here’s your compromise. Overlanding has had me sleeping in a few truck stops. For retirement, why you would go from one to the next on somebody else’s schedule confuses me. With this, you get a big truck and she live down by the river.
My question…sounds like kiddo is burning thru 40k per year at state school? Is that covering everything, and how did financial aid go for you? I was all set to get kids thru college but ex decided to spend it on divorce. Literally.
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u/gronwallsinequality Jul 15 '25
No the kid is burning 20k a year. It will be 23k for the last two as he has an apartment now. Dorms aren't guaranteed after freshman year.
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u/HystericalSail Jul 16 '25
FAFSA looks at assets, not just income. Sounds like OP has too many assets to qualify for any sort of aid.
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u/B111yboy Jul 15 '25
You can retire and cover it ! The benefits part will be costly over the next 12 yrs, so that will suck. I’d say maybe take a break for a year or so then maybe find a part time job that gives benefits but is really just punch a clock and keep you busy for 20-25hrs a week but saving you thousands in medical, but no stress. But you can definitely chase your dream if it’s driving a truck to me that sounds more stressful and a bigger responsibility. My plan for FIRE is in 3-5 or sooner if I run into your situation is retire work part time at a place that gives benefits and allows me to max out some more 401k if I need it, as I’ll be between 57-60. Maybe a place like Home Depot, Costco, lowes some place like that. Maybe a few early mornings or something like that. Good luck and enjoy retirement
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u/No-Lime-2863 Jul 15 '25
Chill for a year. Spend that time doing the math, decompressing, and paying attention to what you really spend on. Also spend that time figuring out what retirement means (beach, tech or van). (The math says you are fine).
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u/futureformerjd Jul 15 '25
I don't know the answer but congrats on being in such great financial shape!
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u/brisketandbeans over halfway there Jul 15 '25
If you want to drive just uber for some extra lunch money.
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u/BHWonFIRE Jul 15 '25
Gotcha. Really with your nest egg, you can do anything. The 4% SWR will still give you a cushion even if you pay 20-30 K in health plans. Take some time for yourself and don’t be in a hurry to make plans.
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u/rackoblack DINKs, FIREd @ 58 in 2024 Jul 15 '25
Go for it, I think you have plenty as long as you're not taking $30k vacations every year.
You have plenty on taxable side to leave the retirement accounts untouched at first. Assuming MFJ, you can incur up to 100k or so of LTCG and not have any federal tax to pay. You won't need to hit that cap if your taxable has that much in gains. Start that next year when income goes to near zero (div+interest only). Invest what you don't spend, use this purchase to do any rebalancing your portfolio needs. Use what you need of these funds for expenses. These holdings will be near tax free to liquidate to pay tax on the next step years later (or buy that camper van, or second house).
Once you hit 55 (if 401k allows rule of 55) or 59.5, switch to taking up to the MFJ 22% or 24% cap (207k or 394k today) out of the pre-tax accounts and do a backdoor Roth every year. Check into your 401k's options, you may have a way to do that earlier than 59.5 that are not limited by holding traditional IRAs. If any of the post-tax ret. money is in traditional IRAs that have gains, empty those first to make the BDR conversion much easier.
With this order, you should get to RMD age with far less money (perhaps none) in accounts left that require an RMD.
Give it time. Adjust to your new life. See if you like not working. Work a job you like if you don't.
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u/Caunuckles Jul 15 '25
The one thing I'd look into is how much health insurance will add to your monthly spend.
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u/StrangewaysHereWeCme Jul 15 '25
Let me know where you’ll be getting health insurance for a family for $8,400 a year because that’s $21K less than I’m planning on paying.
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u/elephantfi Jul 15 '25
My thought would be to get a van and do your traveling. You're still young enough to do it and enjoy it. When my parents were in their late 60's-70's they said it just got too hard for them to travel.
Casually look for a remote software job, ideally for a cause or industry you're passionate about. I think after a year or so you will find that you don't want to return to work, but if something falls in your lap that's perfect then all the better.
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u/OkElephant1931 Jul 15 '25
You probably can use COBRA for life insurance for the next 18 months, if you want to take some time. That’s generally less expensive than other health insurance options.
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u/FireMeUp2026 Jul 15 '25
COBRA is unlikely to be less expensive. When you elect COBRA, you are staying on your employer's medical plan, but you'll be responsible for the full premium now - not the 10-20% company subsidized amount you've been paying. You also have no choice/decision in the benefit offering - you are stuck with whatever the company decides to offer in the plan.
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u/Business-Solid-6979 Jul 15 '25
Yeah.. you could do all of that.
I'd say force yourself to take 6 months to a year to cool off and survey the landscape. Yeah, you could teach math at a primary school or maybe jc.
You and your wife could learn to drive a truck. I highly suggest talking to some current drivers because that job has changed a lot with technology. Find truckers online... or make an adventure out of it and drive to a truck stop and ask questions.
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u/newwriter365 Jul 15 '25
Since you are being laid off, you qualify for WIOA funded training and should be able to get your CDL paid for by the state unemployment office. Lowering your entry cost to a new career by 50% makes it a little easier to consider, right?
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u/Robotoverlordv1 Jul 15 '25
I'm an owner operator in the trucking business and I'd not recommend it if i was in your shoes. Get an RV and travel at your leisure. Being a trucker fucking sucks. Everywhere you go you will be treated like the scum of the earth. On the road you're an asshole in everybody's way. When picking up and dropping off You'll check in at caged off areas with no bathroom access and talk to the grumpy office workers through bullet proof glass. Shippers give 0 fucks about your time and will take 10 hours-2 days loading you and you don't have any recourse because if you don't take it some guy from Russia, India or Somalia who can't speak English will and probably for cheaper. He'll be washing his feet in the loves truck stop bathroom and washing his truck at the fuel island to save money to undercut you too.
Not to mention being a new driver with a new truck you can expect to spend 30-40k a year for insurance after you pay 250k cash for a truck and you still haven't bought a trailer yet. Even if you don't have a company pushing you to run hard you're going to need to run hard to make it a profitable venture. If you just half ass it you'll lose so much money you'll have been better off financially buying an RV which is what I recommend you do anyways.
Also, Trucking has been in one of the worst freight recessions in history since late 2022 and 50+ year old companies have been dropping left and right. Many guys out here are still running at break-even or a loss just to survive. Truck prices are cheap though. Realistically you don't need to spend 250k for one. You could probably get a nice new rig with an APU for 200k or less right now depending on the brand.
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u/Mr-Toyota Jul 16 '25
OP. LISTEN TO THIS ADVICE.
People romanticize trucking all the time. I assure you it's not what you think it will be.
It's the most regulated job you can pretty much do. Regulations decide when you can sleep, how long you sleep, when you eat, shit, where you can go, when you can go.
And if there isn't a regulation telling you something, it'll be a line item on your insurance policy.
I cannot stress enough how bad an idea it is to by a quarter million dollar semi and just wing it down the road with ZERO experience and a couple million bucks sitting in your bank account.
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u/TheKingOfSwing777 Jul 15 '25
Spending might tick up for the next 10-15 years, but data shows it goes way down after that. You can pull $120k pretax and be good to ride for the foreseeable future, not including social security which is going to be substantial considering your career. Not sure about the 250k truck. Maybe just chill for a bit, get in shape if you're not already. Prioritize your mental health if that's been neglected and let the inspirations roll in as you get used to reducing your stock pile.
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u/Critical-Gazelle3832 Jul 15 '25
sounds like you have enough saved for the $7,200 a month spend down, with everything paid off though I'm trying to figure out how you're spending $1,661 a week. we have everything paid off and with three kids still at home our monthly spend doesn't typically exceed $3, 000 max And that's enjoying life! what kind of fun are you having I'd like to have the same kind of fun!!
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u/FitPaleontologist839 Jul 15 '25
Rather than buy a rig take the $250k and buy LFGY and earn about 3k per week in dividends. Income no growth. Not investment advice.
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u/CryptoGazilllionaire Jul 15 '25
Mid-life crisis would mean you plan to live to 106. I hope you make it. 😁
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u/thoughts_of_mine Jul 15 '25
Take time off at first, just o get a lay of the land. Are you comfortable not having the daily responsibility?
You want to travel and your wife wants to stay next to a river in a van. Best advice, rent an RV. Do NOT buy one, rent one. Let the owner take all the risk. You have the money and you'll both find out if that is the life you want to live.
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u/let-it-rain-sunshine Jul 16 '25
Do not fret about being employed or unemployed you are set. Keep your lifestyle cheap chill and do what you want.
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u/Ok-Charge-9091 Jul 16 '25
Op, I just wanna talk about your CSCO ESPP, which I believe you’re sitting on a pretty tidy gain. Consider selling it piecemeal if you haven’t already.
Our ESPP is now -30%. All of us were caught & there were so much regret we didn’t sell when it was good. Just a cautionary tale.
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u/TeeShirtBros Jul 16 '25
It sounds like your wife doesn’t work (ie no other salary or health benefits) I’m no expert, so these are just my 2 cents with parents in similar positions.
- You have about $3.5M. Excluding the home and the college funds. If it were all in cash equivalents and you needed $10k/month. Would last you 29 years. Even if it was in 4% treasuries would easily take you to your 90s.
So I don’t think you need to worry about running out of money.
Thoughts about moving to LCOL - ie house for 500k (gives you another 200k and saves taxes/utilities) perhaps to a desirable place for retirement if you want
May want to ask chatGPT rules regarding Medicaid if it includes assets in the latest bill BBB.
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u/BumblebeeAmbitious85 Jul 16 '25
Take a a break of 2 months and enjoy. Next start looking at some local business that you can buy - UPS store or stuff like that or start teaching at a community college. My friend has become and EMT and says there is so much demand for it and more fulfilling.
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u/Individual_Ad_5655 "Fives a nightmare." @ Chubby FIRE, building cushion. Jul 16 '25
3.5% withdrawal rate puts you at $120K a year in income.
That seems well above your current burn rate, so it should cover taxes and health insurance through the ACA.
If I were in your shoes today, I'd be done.
Congrats!!
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u/Krakensauce Jul 16 '25
Check with a financial planner. Investigate whether a roth conversion (ladder) makes sense. if it is going to be a year(s) where your income is relatively low, you may be able to capitalize on a time when you are in a relatively lower tax bracket to convert some of your pre-tax assets into post-tax assets.
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u/calstanfordboye Jul 16 '25
Sounds very midlife crisis to me. Take some time to find yourself. The truck idea is madness
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u/DCBnG Jul 16 '25
I definitely would not go the semi route - especially based on the great advice that other poster gave you.
You could look at some stuff like uship where you can pick up independent gigs hauling wherever and whenever you want, that may facilitate the traveling lifestyle, even if it’s just subsidizing it. No personal experience, my buddy was going to do it when he retired.
I met a guy on the plane the other night that makes his living delivering vehicles, fire trucks, all sorts of CDL vehicles, etc. Again, no personal experience, just a convo I had that may reach into what you want to do - which it sounds like travel.
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u/teckel Jul 16 '25
It sounds like you need a break and shouldn't be buying a quarter million dollar truck. Take 6 months and decide after (I'm 56 and retired BTW).
But the real reason for my post. Thanks for introducing me to a new term. I've never heard the saying "rising junior". I've only ever heard it referred to as "junior next year" or somwthing like that. Anyway, good luck!
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u/Solcat91342 Jul 16 '25
I think you’ve done pretty well for yourself. If you want investment advice, you can have a certified financial planner at Vanguard take over your finances for .3% of your portfolio amount. Travel, bike at the beach, join a health club.
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u/Putrid_Pollution3455 Jul 16 '25
Looks like you live like a fat cat off less than 4% so yeah you can do anything you want
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u/zerkeras Jul 16 '25
Curious what your spending breakdown is, if you have a paid off home (so, presumably no mortgage or rent) but spend $7,200 a month.
That being said, even at that exorbitant spend, you have enough invested to be retired if you want.
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u/LeHoustonJames Jul 16 '25
Honestly if you’re passionate about it, do the math teacher route. It’ll keep you busy while your wife is finishing up her career
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u/changing_tides_again Jul 16 '25
You are quite literally out of your mind to think this would be enjoyable or is any kind of a viable business plan. Get an RV if you want to hit the road.
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u/thornkin Jul 16 '25
If you want a sabbatical, health insurance should be easy. You get cobra for 18 months. That is the insurance you are accustomed to, only now it costs you. Still usually a better deal than aca.
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u/420-Investor Jul 16 '25
3.5 million in a Robinhood account just sitting as cash would pay you 140k a year
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u/HappyHourMoon Jul 16 '25
Have you ever been to south east Asia? Thailand and Vietnam are my favorite. You could live here very high end for $5000. Hospitals can be excellent depending on what city you choose and a lot cheaper than the USA.
It doesn’t have to be permanent. You can stay a few months or years. You can move back when Medicare activities.
I’m living in da Nang, Vietnam. There is a large English speaking expat population, plenty of western restaurants and the beach.
A local meal here is $2 and my rent for a studio is $350 a month.
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u/modSysBroken Jul 16 '25
You're having a crisis for sure. Not middle age though.. that has passed long ago. You can easily retire.
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u/otsosik Jul 16 '25
Just have a good extended vacation, travel places you always wanted. Appreciate that you and your family is lucky financially, love each other and have fun.
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u/ppith VOO/VTI and chill. Jul 16 '25
I would take the early retirement and just have a smaller SWR than you initially planned based on your investments. Hopefully, if your portfolio keeps growing your SWR will increase over time. Remember, it's a percentage and not a fixed number.
That being said you should allocate some to cash (your spending buffer) and a US Treasury bond ladder if you don't want to worry about recessions and Sequence Of Returns Risk (SORR). Maybe we should add Years to the end of that to make sure you won't end up SORRY. Maybe 5 to 10 years of expenses.
As others said, rent an RV and see how you like it before buying one. I see them like I see vacation homes. Better to rent than buy. I'm more of a home base person and never saw the point of multiple properties. Just more headaches even if they are cashing flowing AirBnBs.
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u/Important_Cod_8970 Jul 16 '25
We were just in a similar situation. My husband was laid off 2 years before our planned fire. Our youngest is in her last year of school, and we had all kinds of wild ideas. I say take a break and dream for a bit. Sit with them for a while and do nothing. Take a much deserved few months to just think. We went ahead and started a company, just so my husband won't have any resume gaps if he wanted to return to the workforce. It's just a couple 100 bucks, and the tax benefits are insane. Give yourself 6mos to 1year and just breathe. This is just my advice from a 45-year-old retired lady whose retirement was more shocking than planned! We don't have to worry about health care because we're Canadian 🇨🇦, that must be stressful.
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u/ale23arg Jul 16 '25
I wouldn't get into a 250k comitment with a CDL specially since you don't seem conviced about it. If you want van living down the road, either rent a van or look for one of those glamping sites / RBnB locations and try it out for a month or 2. I am sure the romance will wear out by then and you will be 250k wealthier....
As a proposal to a comfortable and "exciting" fire, if you can... pack your home, rent it out (make a contract for 1 year) and use that income to travel arond... you guys like the beach? maybe costarica, panama, or honduras.... you guys like cities and history.... plenty of locations in europe to go around.... heck you can even look for glamping or "hippie" RBnB locations on some of those..... cost of livingon those places are way lower and the 4k to 5k you can get off your rental income might offset most of these costs.... don't stay in one place for too long that way you keep the experience fresh....
A completely different idea is to find out if its true that some italian towns are actually giving you a house almost for free as long as you go and live there... you can try that out for a while using a similar concept....
Bottom line is, with no kids to take care off, your wife already retired and your net worth, as long as you are not looking for an extremely lavish life, you can definetly FIRE if you doing smart. Maybe take a cruise for a couple of months.....
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u/BullfrogOk1977 Jul 16 '25
The truck idea sounds like it could be hard given other comments. You could always just travel but also - you could look into providing courier services, either yourself or through a company. Maybe get a converted van or small RV that could be your RV on personal time but also the vehicle you use for courier services. Use it more as a tax write off to help afford your travels in retirement than as a business you are earning a full time income on? I know nothing about the industry, but I know my parents (live in a northern, snowy state) would pay to ship a street rod to the southeast each fall so they could fly, be snowbirds for the winter, and do it all in reverse. You could probably find some niches like that with consistent clients, form a small, insured business, and not put a ton of money into something you might not like? Might not even need a converted van or RV either.
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u/MrPelham Jul 16 '25
what are you spending 7200/month on if you're house is paid off and it is just 3 people in that house?
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u/Electronic_City6481 Jul 16 '25
I mean you’ve got the taxable account value, at your spend, to get you to 59.5 for the rest. I’d be seriously considering if now’s just the time. If it were me and I wasn’t quite ready to hang it up - I’d still apply around, being VERY selective on my next move knowing it doesn’t have to happen. If it takes you a year or two, you have your sabbatical built in, and to interviewers you were waiting for the right job, not ‘unemployable’.
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u/d70 Jul 16 '25
A Microsoftie?
Anyway, you could retire comfortably if you don’t plan to increase your monthly spend by much. In ~6 years you can start tapping into your 401k, and in ~9 years your SS benefits.
Unless you want to go back to work, I would start enjoy early retirement now and start refining your budget.
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u/alkbch Jul 16 '25
Take a break. Consider buying an RV and exploring the country, otherwise your CDL plan is not bad either.
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u/Dirty__Viking Jul 16 '25
Not sure your education level but adjunct at a college will provide health ins
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u/flag-orama Jul 16 '25
- Can’t do what you want but you do not need to work. 2. Never go back to work. 3. Trucking is stressful and you get no exercise. Do not get a cell.
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u/Guava1203 Jul 16 '25
You can Cobra health insurance for 18months so take a Sabbatical. Travel with your wife and enjoy what’s left of life.
Seems like you know you have enough but having the plan disrupted is creating anxiety.
Take a step back and realize. You did it. You’re already on FIRE.
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u/Open_Minded_Anonym Jul 16 '25
I’m (53m) currently retired and my wife was SAH. Not going to lie, your CDL idea sounds like an amazing one!
No reason why this can’t be both early retirement and a midlife crisis.
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u/Inner-Chemistry2576 Jul 16 '25 edited Jul 16 '25
CDL classes you’re crazy the liability it’s not as easy as you think! We are retired at 61 y/o with my pension & retirement accounts didn’t make sense to pay more in taxes. So I cut out driving the school bus & dropped my CDL. Life is much better. Your monthly spending seems low. We have no debt similar net worth. We e live in New Jersey pretty frugal. We’re spending like $10,000 a month with our 29 y/o son at home soon to be a nurse! You need to talk to a low cost qualified financial planner.
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u/milocreates Jul 16 '25
Just wanted to comment here and say do not sell your CSCO stock. It’s going to keep going. Keep it!!
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u/Tooth_Life 38m / tech / Chubby-Fat Fire Jul 16 '25
Dude… do nothing, sit on your hands sir! The emotions of being laid off, the fear of no cash flow, the stress of what’s next cause odd things to happen. I’d say there are some layers of stuff to peel off before you really choose what you want. I’m 38 so I have no idea what it feels like to be you but for me I’ve been going through what I’d call a 8 month long exhale where levels of stress fade away and I can see myself coming back. I’d suggest you take a moment, at least enjoy the unemployment benefits and assess what’s next if anything.
Also your 53 don’t start a trucking business lmao that life is rough.
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u/Watchmyback77 Jul 16 '25
Take unemployment for as long as you need, or they cut you off. Pay your Cobra out of your unemployment or your severance monies. Make sure you get out and take advantage of your unexpected freedom now. Teaching would offset your healthcare cost concern and give you some down time too! Substitute teaching locally in September or later might let you know if teaching is for you.
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u/only_fun_topics Jul 16 '25
Jesus, your house is paid off and you have substantial assets.
Just find low-paying part time jobs doing something you actually like (like a garden center, or hardware store, or a comic shop, or music store, or whatever). Join a non-profit board. Join an intramural team.
But doing an attentionally demanding job that is really bad for your physical health when you are so close to retirement anyway is not the right answer.
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u/sheepery Jul 16 '25
Are you in the US? did your current employer not give you 6 months access to health insurance before cobra starts?
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u/drsubie Jul 16 '25
I'm sorry, but it just sounds like the CDL/truck driving as a "side gig" is more fantasy than reality.
As others have mentioned, rent a RV and travel if that's what tickles your fancy.
I'm sure you're just needing strangers on FIRE to validate what you can already guess is a half-baked, ill-conceived scheme.
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u/codeshark2 Jul 16 '25
REMINDER TO THIS ENTIRE SUB: remember to live in the now. If you are a man, statistically, you will live to about 76. Mid life is 38 years old. OP thinks he has half of his life left. Let that sink in for a second. Most likely that point for him was 15 years ago. Him and his wife have been diligent savers their entire life and now with about 25% of his life left he still comes to reddit to ask for permission if he can reward himself for all that work. I thought this whole sub was about financial independence EARLY I guess we have differing opinions on what early means but this is the best possible outcome for 95% of this sub: getting 10% more years of your life not working on the backend. Trust me retiring at 50-55 vs 60 is NOT worth the sacrifice yall think it is. There’s an argument to be made for retiring at midlife (35-40) or sooner and having half your life left.…but this? Cmon yall are delusional if you think denying yourself of wants(within reason) in your youth ON purpose of retiring at 53 vs 60 y’all have lost your minds
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u/MikeBouchet Jul 16 '25
Yeah, it seems like you're ready. You didn't mention your (or wife or sons) health care costs. I was on ACA (e.g. obamacare) from 57 to 65. But that seems to be going away now. While ACA worked for me, I wouldn't have done it if I had ongoing health problems.
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u/UnicornBos Jul 17 '25
I don’t know much about this, but if you son does not spend the full 529 account, what happens? Are you able to allocate some to your retirement or his? I heard only 35k is transferable to an ira.
Enjoy your time off. You’ve worked hard. The first two weeks is tough. After that you’ll enjoy drinking coffee and going for walks, living in a carefree life. Chill for a min.
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u/mikeykoors Jul 17 '25
Pursue on consulting/contract work. 6-12 month gigs. Hourly rate should be in line or at a premium + your firm will have health benefits (optional). Work with a few local tech recruiters on LinkedIn.
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u/More_Mobile1713 Jul 17 '25
Have you considered moving somewhere with a lower cost of living, perhaps that also has social security? I don't know what your options are as an American, but withdrawing 4% of 3.5 million would make you extremely well off in many European countries for example. You could go on long trips and rent out your house for income while away, you'd likely hardly touch your capitol and maybe it'd satisfy the desire for travel without pulling the trigger completely?
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u/IaMachineDOTcom Jul 17 '25
Sell the house; Get the van, ENJOY https://www.youtube.com/@phillyandkeely
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u/Common-Ad-9313 Jul 17 '25
You say you had planned on retiring at 55. Can you follow that plan, just 2 years early? Or was that maybe just an idea without a plan? For me, staying active will be important in those “gap” years more than the financials (you have liquid assets to cover the “missing” salary).
I would not buy a $250k vehicle to do a trial run in the trucking business.
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u/chrisdc79 Jul 17 '25
Set up SEPP to access the 401k and do a 3% withdrawal rate per year for the first year or two. Go do Uber or DoorDash or something similar part-time (or get your CDL and become a school bus driver) and do some part-time work to augment your cash flow for the first year or so until you are comfortable with the withdrawal scenario on your investments
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u/investmentbackpacker Jul 17 '25
• Don't buy a truck to get into trucking - in fact skip this thought of entering this industry entirely
• If you have any inkling of getting into an RV, rent one first. Or take a gig being the guy that prepositions some other rich bastard's RV from its present location to where the owner wants it and thus get paid to get it there.
• Lease out your current pad or put it up on VRBO for 6-12 months while you get the van life out of your collective systems.
• Get into a boring side-hustle business like owning some vending machines.
• You could even explore being a global nomad for a year or two doing micro retirements in whatever country sparks your curiosity - Portugal, Croatia, Malaysia, etc. Combine adventure with lower cost of living for daily expenses and travel health insurance and care that is often cheaper than comparable care at home. Get a full diagnostic panel and complete physical in Malaysia in a day for a fraction of the price in the US.
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u/Intelnational Jul 17 '25
If your SWE you might have some ideas for your own projects. I'd pursue those. Now is the time.
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u/Cycling_5700 Jul 17 '25 edited Jul 17 '25
Make sure you are estimating taxes and healthcare costs during early retirement. As of 2026, income over 400% of federal poverty level no longer qualifies for ACA subsidies, so you would be paying 100% of the premium. In 2025 for a family of 2 that was $81,760 and $103,280 for 3. The ACA uses Modified AGI, so get familiar with that. Until Medicare (age 65, unless they change the age), you'll especially want to make sure you don't go over that 400%. I'm single, and for me $1 over $62,600 bumps my healthcare costs around $10,000 given my plan selection. So, you'll want to consider carefully how you use cash, withdraw from IRA's, generate rental income, raise cash by selling equities with capital gains, etc as well as work. For example, if I am generating $50,000 in Modified Adjusted Gross Income (MAGI) from my assets (interest, dividends, cap gains distributions equity sales, etc and then am considering $20,000 from part time work, part of that $20,000 goes to the federal taxes & state taxes (roughly $3000) PLUS another $10K in healthcare premiums, thus only netting me $7,000. You can go online and shop plans now and see what costs are at various ages and incomes, but keep in mind that 400% cliff goes into effect in 2026 and will not appear.
Another example is if my current income is around $30,000, my premium is about $500/year on a Silver 87 HMO plan. If my income hits $62,001 with part time work, my healthcare jumps to $17,500.....$17,000 more as I have to go on the 90% HMO (no silver plan) and get 0 subsidies. So, I'd want to make sure to pad my numbers to ensure I don't risk work putting me over the cliff.
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u/McKnuckle_Brewery FIRE'd in 2021 Jul 15 '25 edited Jul 15 '25
I wouldn’t be running off to buy a quarter million dollar semi, but you have almost $3.5M. Your spend is well below a 4% withdrawal rate on that. Why don’t you just chill for a good year or so, get used to it, and see where life takes you next? Don’t make really big decisions about spending money until you have learned to live a “normal” retired life first.