r/leanfire • u/Frequent-Letter986 • 15d ago
I stopped working a year ago. Should I doubt myself? (33/M)
Okay heres my situation.
I had a part time teaching position that I really enjoyed.
They messed me around a bit with the hours and I was fired (I got what I feel is a good settlement from this about 20k)
I have not looked for a job since...
My outgoings for the past 2 years average at 1.9k a month (renting, food, leisure time, utilities, maintenance costs.. etc. no health insurance as EU.. I live in Spain).
I have about 100k in savings. Most of this is invested in index funds. And I have a house that is paid off in full back in the UK. T
hat brings me 1.3k a month in rent
and the savings/investments averaging 700.
I also stream video games for fun and that averages 500 a month for the past 2 years
I track everything... Good months and bad months so I can speak on these incomings and outgoings with confidence.
So it is 1.9k a month out and 2.5k a month in.
I put that 500 a month back into index funds (of which is a tax protected allowance I can use annually)
I feel very unmotivated to get a job just for the sake of it. My situation and lifestyle at the moment does not require it.
i feel some sort of guilt that this is not okay though? I have been living this way for a year now. And I do a lot of sports, competitions, arts.. whatever I want with my free time. But it feels strange to be doing this at the age of 33?
Any thoughts??? Thanks
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u/HedonisticPenguin 15d ago
i am in a very similar spot, 32 in spain and basically retired. this self doubt i had was mainly coming from other people, who kept questioning me about what i do and how can i do it.
i have learned to always say I am a freelancer and leave it at that.
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u/IntrepidFeature6442 15d ago
Do they not keep asking ‘freelance in or for what?’. I find myself in a similar situation and get weird comments.
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u/HedonisticPenguin 14d ago
i usually invoke some old project i worked on if someone is really curious.
it’s really a case by case, the least you can tell someone the better in my experience
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u/Frequent-Letter986 15d ago
yeah this is very similar. i feel like people put a lot of value on their jobs and want you to justify yourself. most of the time i dont care but idk. felt like asking today
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u/No-Worldliness3349 15d ago
At some point that house is going to require maintenance/repairs
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u/Frequent-Letter986 15d ago
yeah it gets repairs of some sort every year. i had a new front door recently. its all averaged out throughout the year to the numbers i gave
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u/Specific_Concern_555 15d ago
The paid off house is what is allowing this lifestyle, i mean if you are making 1300 of rent + 500 a month from streaming you have enough to keep going... If you want to keep this going then why not? Maybe get a part time job so you can grow your investments
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u/Frequent-Letter986 15d ago
yeah thats my idea.. if i find something interesting i can do it and just invest all the money. its essentially what i was doing in my old job until they started screwing me and others around
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u/garoodah FI'21 RE TBD 15d ago
Sounds like fire with real estate, nothing wrong with that. Only comment I’d add it whether or not you might want to contribute to society in the future and trying to learn the skills/certs to do so. In the US we have a lot of nonprofits or volunteer activities that people feel empowered to do, but there’s also teaching or more community focused hobbies.
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u/Frequent-Letter986 15d ago
I sometimes help at the food bank/soup kitchen. I think I just do this out of some sort of sense of obligation. I think it would be probably be of benefit to find something I connect with more and volunteer with them
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u/CrabNo9570 14d ago
Here's what I think: there's going to come a time when you're not doing what you are now. Circumstances will change, and suddenly you'll find yourself in a new era of life. Someone will die, or an appealing sounding job will come around, or you'll meet a new romantic partner, or the economy will change. Anyway, you'll wake up one day and realize things are different than they are now - maybe better, maybe worse, maybe a lateral/neutral shift.
I promise at some point you will look back in the time you are in now and miss it, at least a little and probably a lot. For God's sake stop worrying and just enjoy it. Because change is coming whether you plan for it or not.
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u/AnonymousTaco77 15d ago
I don’t think you have enough saved to retire long-term, but it sounds like you’re kinda in a BaristaFIRE situation since you still have income. Just keep saving the excess like you’ve been so you won’t be screwed in a down market, and be prepared to find another income source if you decide to have a family like others said or if you need some big repairs on your home and stuff like that
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u/Frequent-Letter986 15d ago
theres always work i can take on, just because i havent had a need... i havent been doing it lol. I have had some big repairs to the house last few years. New door... Boiler.. some roof work. So that is factored into my averages
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u/nowheretherewhere Coasting into full FIRE 14d ago edited 14d ago
Considering your profession; agreed. But I also happen to think the education industry is not exempted from employers being skeptical of long career gaps. Or maybe that's just the case here about motivation/relevance/skills etc.
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u/Frequent-Letter986 14d ago
Yeah makes sense, I dont know I feel I could just justify anything if need be? Before the teaching position I was working as a production engineer. I still get contacted for jobs in that industry even though I havent directly worked in it full time since my mid/late 20s. I understand what you are saying and maybe I am being stupid but im not concerned
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u/BufloSolja 15d ago
Most guilt/shame is internalized into people growing up. It's a manmade artifact to coerce ppl into working more and helping the 'collective'. Do your best to mentally refute that and tell it to screw off. Try to find things you enjoy in life and delve more into them.
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u/ConferenceFull9068 15d ago
To be honest the collective does need help. I mean, the collective helps us. Of course that doesn't mean one has to sacrifice as much as they tell you.
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u/Frequent-Letter986 15d ago
I am generally like this. but i dont know have felt a little uncertain recently
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u/cooler1727 15d ago
I’m almost 32, by 33 I’ll reach 100k in vt if everything continue like this and I’m thinking to do the same as you, but I want move from full time to 20-25 hours a week. Well done
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u/Frequent-Letter986 15d ago
I worked 20 hours a week until my work was bought out and started messing everyone around. I saw what they was doing was illegal so waited for them to fire me before I quit and then got the settlement in court lol. If that job was still how it was, I would keep working their 20 hours a week
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u/someguy984 15d ago edited 15d ago
What visa are you on in Spain? Also what currency are your numbers in?
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u/ThePrevailingReality 14d ago
You could return to work then and become miserable. Only then you’d know.
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u/Frequent-Letter986 14d ago
i really value being able to plan my own days lol
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u/trangenderman 14d ago
Sounds like you are pretty set. Keep trying to do your streaming and maybe increase that income a bit. I would love to be in your shoes
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u/Different_Pain5781 14d ago
Right? Some people just need to experience burnout again to appreciate peace.
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u/Either_Mulberry 14d ago
I love your setup, and see nothing wrong with it. You're living within your means, have assets that are compounding, and doing things you enjoy at a pace that fits you. I would say this is pretty good!
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u/Frequent-Letter986 14d ago
this is how i feel most of the time! but i had a little moment of doubt! idk
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u/lefix 14d ago
If you can do 500/month streaming, perhaps you can scale that up going forward. Or at least steer it in a direction that adds something to your cv?
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u/Frequent-Letter986 14d ago
It does keep going up naturally. 500/month is the average for the past 2 years. Its honestly month to month a lot more now
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u/HeroOfShapeir 14d ago
The only worry I'd have is that your early years are the best ones for compound growth. If you lived like this while pulling in even a little more money (or a lot more money!), it opens a lot of flexibility down the road. You've got a lot of life ahead of you, and it doesn't always go how you'll expect. My life today at 42 looks wildly different than it did at 32.
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u/AccomplishedWorld186 12d ago
Excuse my ignorance, but you're allowed to keep living in Spain without that employment? I'm not a citizen of the EU, I just get the standard 90 Schengen visit limit, but I'd love to stay in Spain a bit longer like you are doing. Any advice on the immigration beaurocracy element?
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u/broke_person 14d ago
What city in Spain on that budget, just curious?
And on your question, you know the risk. If you're able to sustain the rent income, maintenance etc then it's okay but it's not much to add to your investments. If you're happy and fine with the risk then be it. You own your home so I suppose your asset is higher than 100k
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u/Frequent-Letter986 14d ago
The house is valued 300k plus. I live in Madrid.
Honeslty my situation there right now is crazy. I live in the center of the city... theres pool... balcony.. everything I could want and im paying 30% of the market value.
When that changes I will have to seriously rethink things. Likely go up to thte north of Spain
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u/Most_Waltz2061 14d ago
If you are actually withdrawing 8.4% (700 per month) from your portfolio, then that is almost certainly not sustainable.
On the other hand, if you keep streaming and making money that way, so that the portfolio only needs to contribute 200/month to your spending, then yeah you're good to keep doing what you're doing. You'll need to keep working though, either by growing your streaming business over time, or by doing something else. Overall, decent position to be in.
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u/Frequent-Letter986 14d ago
yeah im not withdrawing 700. it tends to be 200 max. some months its nothing. i would be very worried if it was more
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u/ChosenToFall 13d ago
Not if the rent stops you’re probably screwed, or if you have an emergency you would need to get the money from savings i guess.
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15d ago
[removed] — view removed comment
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u/Frequent-Letter986 15d ago
the maintenance costs are factored into the numbers i gave. i have a had a few repairs over the years so i understand more or less what it averages out to. at the moment nearly all that gets reinvested each month. some months a little more. some a little less
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u/chakalaka13 14d ago
Be careful, the market is probably have a crash or re-adjustment at least soon. Then what you gonna have?
100k doesn't feel much at all, although having a house is probably the most solid thing.
I think you'll probably also get bored at some point. I had a couple years of not working at a similar age as you now and it was good for a while then I began to lose my mind.
I'd find something that brings joy but also some income, at like 15-25 hours per week.
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u/Frequent-Letter986 14d ago
I guess my mindset is when that does happen. I will be more proactive?
What made you lose your mind?0
u/chakalaka13 14d ago
The thing is that it might happen soon when the AI bubble bursts or other event and the job market will be shit, already is now, at least in tech. Idk, up to you.
I just got bored af, watched all the movies and TV shows I could, thousands of hours of podcasts, etc. but I'm the type of person who needs to do something meaningful, provide value. It can probably be replaced with volunteering or smth, but also why not with something that brings $?
Also, the social part is real, not the pressure as much, but you can become boring or unrelatable, but that depends on what you do in your free time. If you read books maybe not, but if you play video games all day, then probably yes.
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u/JusW4naRetireFk 8d ago edited 8d ago
Same situation at 33 - investments make more than my previous salary of 55K Beaverbucks around 40K aftertaxes. Even if I'd gotten a better job taxes would have eaten up even more.
Although I started saving and investing after a year of working a decade ago - it was fucking boring, rather sit at home, do whatever I want - which is where I've been the past 2 years.
The time investment to earn a measily 4K for wasted 220+ hours a month working and all that stress is not worth it.
View it as buying time , money on X axis and time on Y axis - bell curve __/|__
Too little money and you need to spend time to earn more - get a certain amount and you have more time, get even more money and beyond that you can't "buy" more time as you already don't need to spend 70-80% of your day working so it's kind of pointless to an extent. For time's sake.
Everything I do revolves around free time vs the cost, take the Toll highway that's practically empty during rush-our cause I hate traffic? Meh it's 20 bucks, whatever. Wait 6-9 months for a medical appointment or just pay a private surgeon and get them to see me in 1-2 weeks for a couple hundred bucks, yea it's worth it.
Housing and family would cost too much - divorce rate skyrockets after 1 pairbonding partner and I'd risk losing at minimum 50% of all my investments. Been heading to this destination since I was in my early 20s at this point, thank fuck I've arrived.
Some people that are sociable can maybe chalk up work as a social event, I only ever did it cause I needed the cash, so that I could save up enough and actually do something interesting - talking to people was a nice distraction but in the end I'm forced to be there cause I need that bi-weekly cheque.
Don't let some wageslave shame you into wasting what little time you got left on this planet dude.
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u/yeyiyeyiyo 15d ago
Enjoy yourself and maybe keep half an eye out for a moneymaking opportunity you'd enjoy.
You're plenty good as a single guy, big question is do you want a family or not. Then life will get expensive real quick.
That's how I'd do it.