This is a story of how a couple reached very early retirement using the FIRE approach. Zero To Millionaire in Ten Years - Root of Good

Although their story is rather on the extreme side I used a similar but less sacrificial approach so I could retire at 35. I always lived well below my means, drove an older used car and so on. Luckily I had a wife who agreed to do so as well. I had started investing in the stock market while in high school out of my own pocket from earnings from a part-time job. After I got married at 25, on my lunch hour I picked up a book that inspired me. https://www.amazon.com/Turned-into-M.../dp/1607964244
and we started investing in rental apartments, moved on to commercial properties from there and it all worked out.

I enjoy your posts and hope you have many more. I am hoping my posts don't annoy you.

I read better than I hear and very much enjoy this forum.

I was 47 and my wife 37 when we retired and we have never regretted it. We have lived on boats, RVs, Mexico, Central America, and of course the USA. Time is your most important asset. Money the icing on the cake. Less is more.

Everyone needs to pick there time and no, The Villages is not for everyone as we all see from the complainers. God bless you made it through cancer. I turn 56 next week and will be retired as of 1/15. I have been out of work since April and because of all my chemo, work is just not going to happen. I will continue my 6 1/2 year battle with the hopes of getting back to the Villages soon.

I have never met anyone who on their death bed said "I wished I had worked longer"

I worked to long. I started when I was 12 and always had a job until I retired at 66. Part time through high school and college and full time except for military until I retired. I could have retired sooner and should have. I retired for a short time when I was 51 as I had 30 years with IBM and they were changing the retiree medical plan the next year and they had a buy out package so I took it. But very soon got bored and went back to work.

So my answer would always be retire as soon as you can financially. And you do not need as much money as you think you need. That was my biggest concern and it has been a non issue. And I know I could be just as happy spending a lot less than we do if we needed to. Live in a smaller home, a lower cost community, and do more things that cost less. Happiness isn't about what you have, it's about doing those things that make you happy. And I can find many free things that I enjoy and make me happy. I probably would have sailed less, fly less, golf less, eat out less, but I would have climbed more mountains, hiked more trails, cooked more, given more time vs money, and I would have enjoyed life just as much.

So again retire as soon as possible.

After I retired at 35 I did soon get bored. One day I was playing golf at the local CC with three 75 year olds and ran into a lady I had dated in high school. She asked me what I was doing and I told her I was retired. She laughed and told me I was too young to retire. Actually, my biggest problem was finding other guys near my age in similar circumstances. After a year and a half I went back to work, retired again at 41 for three years and again went back to work. Then at 52 I hung it up for good and have never once regretted finally retiring over the 25 years since I did so. I love it!

The biggest problem for me was my huge health insurance premiums for so many years but I never went uninsured. I would encourage others to make sure they can obtain and afford health insurance!

I retired at 56, but could have retired at 45. I always had a good job, and I never spent more than half of my net pay. I only had one loan ever, which was $35K for a $55K house. I paid it off in 3 years because I couldn't sleep at night. The book that inspired me was "Your Money or Your Life" by Joe Dominguez. But, saving money becomes a life long habit that is very hard to break. How do you change your spending habits when you no longer need to save money?

Absolutely retire as young as possible. Know your income. If you are not at or more than $100,000.00 annual expendable income, I would stay clear of The Villages. I asked that question when we were looking here and was told by the villages realtor that we would need around $50,000.00 to live comfortably. Not True, that would have had us moving out in the first year. Don’t get me wrong, we love it here and live in a modest Designer, but we would not be comfortable with a combined $50K income. I would question the Comfortable reference even for a trailer on the historic side, But again, if you can afford it, we highly recommend this place.

:ohdear:All how you budget. Lots of people in TV enjoy life at $50k/yr. It just depends on definitions & spending.

Expenses
 

A lot depends on your monthly expenses. No mortgage or car payment lowers your outflow. The entertainment The Sharon vs Savannah Center price difference is significant. Our biggest expense is restaurant especially because we rarely eat at chains. Some of my friend go on several expensive vacations a year. I feel like I live on vacation so that limits our travel dollars. The other expense is Golf Priority and Green Fees 3 days a week. A major reason we moved here was for the 18 hole courses. The golf expense is going up not down.

And god love them for it. I could not enjoy being broke all the time
Amenity fee. 1,800
Utilities. 7,000
Ins & Taxs. 5,000
Eating out. 5,000
Vacation. 15,000
Maint. 10,000
Bond. 2,500
Vodka. 1,000
These estimates are at a minimum.
There goes 50K
Not for us!

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Expenses
 

The amenity fee is $1800 not $18,000
My ins & taxes are a little higher
Under $4000 for us for vacations
The eating out is where our money flies to.

IMHo, if you're retired and are still on a budget--you didn't plan for your retirement-- budgets are for working people who can modify their income and expenses

we're unique , never had a budget, never had a mortgage--I was ingrained with the following,"if you can pay for it , you can't afford it"

Amenity is 1,800 but with a pool, hot tub and 10 watering zones, that est is low for our utilities