This is the time from when you start working, up until you are five years out from retirement. Fritz saved 15-50% of his income during the grind (less so in his early years, higher savings rate as he got older). During this time, you should:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n
• Cut back expenses<\/li>\n\n\n\n
• Work on career development (raises, promotions)<\/li>\n\n\n\n
• Grow your income<\/li>\n\n\n\n
• Invest in retirement accounts, real estate, etc<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n
  <\/div>\n\n\n\n

  Checkpoint: 5 Years Out<\/h5>\n\n\n\n

  \n
  • Fritz’s experience\n
    \n
    • Did Roth conversions to get pre-tax money out of 401k<\/li>\n\n\n\n
    • Maxed out 401k for the most part. If not maxing out 401k, he has money in mutual funds (dollar cost average)<\/li>\n\n\n\n
    • Invested a small percentage of fun money in trading options<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n
    • Crack the numbers: retirement calculators, net worth, asset allocation, rebalancing strategy<\/li>\n\n\n\n
    • Think about retirement lifestyle at a high level (if you want to travel in retirement, you might need more money than a minimalist)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n
      <\/div>\n\n\n\n

      Checkpoint: 3 Years Out<\/h5>\n\n\n\n

      \n
      • Get specific about where you will draw money from<\/li>\n\n\n\n
      • Eliminate all debt (including mortgage)\n
        \n
        • There is a real emotional benefit to entering retirement debt-free<\/li>\n\n\n\n
        • Some may disagree with this point. There\u2019s no wrong answer here, but you need to think it through for yourself<\/li>\n\n\n\n
        • Frtiz’s experience: Had a house in the city and a second home (cabin). Nearing retirement, he decided to sell the city home to pay off the mortgage on cabin<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n
        • Consider hiring professional help (CFP)<\/li>\n\n\n\n
        • Long term care: self-insure or third party service?<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n
          <\/div>\n\n\n\n

          Checkpoint: 2 Years Out<\/h5>\n\n\n\n

          \n
          • Less about numbers, more psychological<\/li>\n\n\n\n
          • What are you going to do<\/strong> in retirement?<\/li>\n\n\n\n
          • Try a mini retirement (pretend you\u2019re retired or take the time to imagine what your life would look like if you were retired)<\/li>\n\n\n\n
          • Start doing the activities you think you\u2019d like to do in retirement (starting a blog, dog rescue, etc)\n
            \n
            • You don’t have to wait until you’re retired to get started<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n
              <\/div>\n\n\n\n

              Checkpoint: 1 Year Out<\/h5>\n\n\n\n

              \n
              • Make sure your \u201cwheel of life\u201d spokes are all the same length\n
                \n
                • Meaning all aspects of your life are balanced (health, relationships, growth)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n
                • Find more meaningful activities than traveling (perhaps in helping others)<\/li>\n\n\n\n
                • Set up a system to move from accumulation to withdrawal (he uses bucket strategy)<\/li>\n\n\n\n
                • The difference between a successful retirement vs not is how much time you spend thinking about it<\/li>\n\n\n\n
                • Really spend time thinking how you will spend your retirement days. Very likely it\u2019s what you\u2019re doing on the weekends now<\/li>\n\n\n\n
                • 1 more year syndrome: negotiating to yourself “1 more year” at your job before you’re ready to retire\n
                  \n
                  • Caused by assumptions made when forecasting returns<\/li>\n\n\n\n
                  • Okay to take 1 more year for safe measures, but don’t procrastinate on your retirement because you’re afraid to take the leap<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n
                    <\/div>\n\n\n\n

                    Checkpoint: 6 Months Out<\/h5>\n\n\n\n

                    \n
                    • Transfer work computer information to personal computer (passwords, documents, etc)<\/li>\n\n\n\n
                    • Plan your first 6 months of retirement\n
                      \n
                      • This way you hit the ground running and your first 6 months are busy<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n
                      • Make your last big expenses while you\u2019re working (in case you mess up and overspend, you can work for a few more months)<\/li>\n\n\n\n
                      • Give notice to your workplace of your departure\n
                        \n
                        • Make sure you notify them early if your position requires more time to fill<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n
                          <\/div>\n\n\n\n

                          The Starting Line: Final Thoughts<\/h5>\n\n\n\n

                          \n
                          • 60% of people don\u2019t retire on their own terms, they are forced into retirement\n
                            \n
                            • As a result, they have no time to prepare and it’s not an easy transition<\/li>\n\n\n\n
                            • Take control of your own retirement by planning in advance<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n
                            • Relationships change in retirement, have a conversation about it<\/li>\n\n\n\n
                            • It’s easy to get caught up in counting down the days until retirement \/ FIRE and get lost in thoughts about the future\n
                              \n
                              • Enjoy and realize the journey you are on. Your independence day will come, so enjoy the process now in getting there<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n
                              • Retirement is not a finish line, but the start. The start of your life, lived the way you want<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n

                                <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

                                Notes for BiggerPockets Money Podcast 125Guest: Fritz GilbertAudio time: 1 hr 29 minRead time: 3 min Fritz Gilbert, of Retirement…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":6968,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"nf_dc_page":"","om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[121],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-6967","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-real-estate"],"yoast_head":"\n