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A year in review: 2018, the year we hit F.I.R.E.

In 2018, we reached financial independence in spite of the craziness of the market in the last quarter. We also both stopped working in corporate America. 

Our Net Worth rose +7% and we hit F.I.R.E. 

And while 7% growth is kind of low, the market corrected between October and December.. ughhh 😔. At the end of September, our net worth was tracking up +15%! But that’s the market, there are ups and downs and you need to be in it for the long term. And 7% is definitely nothing to sneeze about.

We got serious about this journey June 2015 and in 3.5 years we were there. When I first calculated that number, I never thought it possible but real estate made it possible! We are free!!!! Free to pursue the things we enjoy. 

https://gph.is/2zNGbFq

So how did we do? After all this is a financial independence site. Most of the growth in our net worth in 2018 came from our real estate investments and cash in flows, bonus and RSUs. If you want to read how we got to F.I.R.E. and the strategies we used, read the post, Freedom from the daily grind.

Continue reading “A year in review: 2018, the year we hit F.I.R.E.”

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Freedom from the Daily Grind Part 1

It was 2015, I had just started a role at a start up, excited to finally be in a place where I could make a big impact. I had been hired by a VP, who I admired, and we were creating a product that could make a real difference in people’s lives. Six months in, my boss changed and the situation didn’t feel the same anymore. Like I mentioned in my previous post, I came to the realization that what I was looking for was freedom, freedom to do what I loved and live a fuller, richer life, not be dependent on a paycheck from the corporate world. In my spare time during my commute and after the kids went to bed, my focus turned to financial independence. Here is some of what I learned. 

The first rule of FI is spend less than you make.

The more you save, the faster you will get to FIRE, duhhh! And you would think most people spend less than they make but I read a recent article that talked about 50%+ of Americans spending more than they make.* A lot of the FIRE community reached FI by saving 75% of their income.  We weren’t willing to save as much …… Continue reading “Freedom from the Daily Grind Part 1”

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The Awakening: Embarking on the Financial Independence Journey through the 4% Rule

After working for 2 multinational corporates and then for a start-up, I finally acknowledged to myself that I didn’t like big or small companies. Both types were rampant with politics and the constant high stress levels left me feeling depleted and unfulfilled. So I started to search the internet for how to retire early. By this time I had missed my 35 year mark. It was 2014 and I was 38. The first article I came across was Jeremy’s story on Go Curry Cracker and I found it so inspiring, I started following them and digging into the whole concept around FIRE, Financially Independent Retire Early. It was like I had finally found my peeps, everything I had been thinking about was right there in front of me! I started reading Early Retirement Extreme and learned about how Jacob lived on $7000/year living in the Bay Area! Whew, I really wish I could do that but that’s closer to my monthly cost so I am never getting there. Then I discovered Brandon’s site, MadFientist (my favorite) which pointed me to Mr. Money Mustache and JL Collins Stock Series which led to me to reading, “Your Money or your life” by Joseph Dominguez. I realized that every minute I spent working was taking me away from doing the things I love. Continue reading “The Awakening: Embarking on the Financial Independence Journey through the 4% Rule”

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That’s what weekends are for

I’m 41 and yesterday was my last day in the corporate nightmare of politics, territorial wars, bosses and power games. All I can think is whewwwww what a relief. 😅 But at the same time, I am terrified! This is unknown territory, living without a full time job! I’ve worked since I was a kid. My first paid job when I was 17 but I had numerous unpaid jobs well before that. I almost don’t know how to relax but I guess it’s time to sing a different tune, “He he he I am on vacation, every single day, every day-ay-ay-ay-ay….😀). I don’t plan to sit idle. I am creating a new life, crafting a life doing the things I love, and like they say, “Love what you do and you’ll never work another day in your life”.

The start of a new life and the end of an old one

Continue reading “That’s what weekends are for”

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Welcome to SimpliFI By The Bay!

Simplifying Life to achieve Financial Independence and Retire Early by the Bay

My husband and I and two kids live in the Bay Area. Both of us have left well paying, traditional jobs in our early forties and have retired to do things we are more passionate about. For my husband, that is about creating and teaching art and for me, it is about writing this personal finance blog to learn and share strategies to achieve Financial independence, Retire Early (FIRE)! Read about how we are redefining for ourselves what success means, simplifying our everyday, traveling and living by the rules we create rather than those of societies’. This is about our experiment with FIRE or semi FIRE! While geographic arbitrage can enable us to live comfortably in other parts of the US, we want to live by the Bay and so we are trying to create our own income streams to enable our dreams to come true. Come with us on this journey to see if and how we can make this happen!