#retirement

3 articles

Rachel's FIRE Number Is $1.26M at 50 — Marcus Earns 2× and Hits FIRE 4 Years Later

The FIRE number depends on what you spend, not what you earn. We ran two real-world profiles through the calculator: a $85K saver who spends $50K, and a $150K earner who spends $120K. The lower earner retires first.

$210K Saved at 40? Why Fidelity's Age-Based Benchmarks Lie to Half of Workers

The Fidelity 1×/3×/6×/10× salary milestones assume you started saving at 25 and earn a stable 7%. The median 40-year-old has $63K saved against a $210K benchmark. Here's the math behind the gap, and why catching up is easier than the headline suggests.

Retire at 45 Needs 30× Expenses, Not 25× — Sequence Risk Closes the Gap

The 25× rule survives 30-year retirements 95% of the time. Stretch the horizon to 45 years and survival drops to 76%. Here's why early retirement needs a different multiplier — and what fixes it without saving more.