How this couple found financial independence in their 30s | FIRE Starters: MarketWatch 

Wow! Congrats on that. Is it preferable for me to save money or allocate a significant amount of my salary to stocks in order to accomplish this goal??

Varied sources of income is wise and especially living within your means. My net worth is over $1M and I can pay my bills with no stress, but I don't live like I have that. I have no complaints.

Although financial advice is arbitrary and what works for one person may not work for another, planning is always preferable. I consider myself fortunate to have been introduced to personal finance at a young age. I started working at the age of 19, purchased my first house at the age of 28, was laid off at the age of 36 during the COVID-19 pandemic, and immediately sought advice from an advisor to manage the expansion of my finances. After further investments, as of right now, I'm only 25% short of my $1 million target.

This intrigues me. I've looked up financial advisors online, but finding one to connect with is a bit difficult. Do you mind if I ask for your recommendation?

'Angela Lynn Schilling’ maintains an online presence. Just make a simple search for her name online.

Thank you! We were very nervous to share our story with a main stream source but this comment made it all worthwhile :)

​@@modernfimily469 I'm praying for these 2. They seem like nice people but the lifestyle is questionable.

Hahah yes, yes, and YES! Glad to have sparked some inspiration with the film :)

@@modernfimily469 I live in AB. Do you have a blog or something I can follow? It’s so hard to find Firers in Canada much less AB.

3. Beware; our weather is best described as utterly insane :D . 10cm snow for just one day in the middle of the summer; Chinook winds removing most of the snow randomly in the midst of the winter, and weather best described as utterly wild. If you have weather sensitivity issues like I seem to, you might have problems, but otherwise it's also sorta fun. If dangerous for cars.

Thanks for the love!

That’s amazing!

Letting your kids see money as a normal thing/topic is so important! And we really mean what we said in the video. It’s definitely been a harder coming out experience this go around.

I agree. It's hard to tell people (especially those who know you're not dirt broke) no when it comes to buying/doing things. My family knows about how much I make, but convincing them the $20 desk off marketplace is a better option financially than a nice $200 one can sometimes be hard.

Thank you!!

Incredible numbers and very impressive! We too are in the sub 4% camp and plan to withdraw less than 3%, hopefully sub 2% if all goes according to plan.

Good for you! Its equally inspiring to look back and see younger folks getting stuck in and doing it. My favourite thing to do I educate people and see then turn their financial lives around. Two of my students started 4 years ago are now 1/3rd millionaires and the third has $1.2M after 8 years. Just awesome to see..:)

Happy to hear this is inspiring you! Kudos to MarketWatch for creating this series :)

Absolutely - so inspiring for people who budget to see what can be accomplished.

Rooting for you! You’ve got this!

That divorce is coming. Them lesbi marriages don't last. How they have a kid? Scissoring don't make babies... u need a guy.

Thank you! Good observation :)

Absolutely!

True! For single people, I guess you only need half of their net worth: so $430k

Thank you for taking the time to write this positive note :)

Absolutely amazing! Congrats!!

Totally agree that tying medical insurance to an employer is a broken system! Hopefully you’re able to make it all work out!

Glad you found us!

I’m working toward that percentage!

45 is my number. Five years to go!

Its so nice to see how you have planned so well. When you said to invest your savings aggressively where do you mean to invest ? Is it in direct stocks or in mutual funds . im a beginner .. can you shed some light

In order to be successful you need a problem solving attitude. Have you looked into high deductible health insurance? geo arbitrage? Finding a fun part time job with health benefits?

Canada definitely has its perks which is why we live here

That is huge, when I’m doing by budget I don’t have to put much away for incidentals like medication. When I watch other US budgeters the medical expenses are so different.

I joined the national guard in California for health insurance.

Even in the US if you have a big cash reserve you can get high deductible plans that would make this doable. With their income level they would qualify for subsidies on the health insurance exchanges. If the one who is working quit they might qualify for Medicaid as a family of 3. Even paying the full rate you just have to plan for that $800 per month expense and save up some more.

Thank you! You’re doing fantastic as well!

Agreed! Going through struggles is what makes us stronger.

Agree that @marketwatch is awesome for putting these together! We went from 2 hours of coverage to this 10 minute film. It’s hard to try to cover everything in a relatively short timeframe!

Thank you so much for these very kind words :)

Thank you for the kind words! Yes being on the same page has definitely helped to super charge our journey :)

Thank you! :)

Bahahaha thank you so much, that made our day

Bingo! A great example of compound interest at its finest. And good pick up on my car. It’s a 2009 Corolla purchased second hand. We don’t see the value in spending a lot of money on a depreciating vehicle.

How do you own your life at anything less than 2-3 million? You are just broke with that little spending a year

Modern FImily What do you think about just living off of 2% interest (+/-), plus $24K Social Security with $500K in the bank? Say at age 70, life expectancy of 85, you just say $10K in interest, $24K SS, and withdrawal $10K (+/-) is enough - $44K to live on, and maybe you don’t even spend all that. No more up/down market, etc. Is this unreasonable. Your money should outlive you. Thoughts.

M M not unreasonable. We’re having the same thoughts in thinking that if we can get to a 2% withdrawal rate, that’s close to what the yield is of most low fee index funds tracking the overall market. Could just live on that without actually selling any funds. 100% success rate indeed. The only thing I wasn’t following with your example is 2% interest coming from $500k in say a high interest savings account + $24k SS? I’m only getting $10k + $24k. Where’s the other money in addition to the $500k and SS to get the last $10k?

Modern FImily thanks for your reply. You got it. $24K SS, $10K interest, and withdrawal $10K from the $500K. It’s not perfect math but it’s pretty close. In the last five years of your life (sounds of sad), you still have $400K.

I am wondering how is it a safety net living in Canada.

M A#np They explained it in the video. 1. Health care a big hindrance to retiring early. 2. The government takes care of the elderly

I think it’s hard for Canadians to see living here as a benefit because Canadians value and believe that healthcare is a fundamental right, so it’s hard to think of how the other side lives. Also living in Canada is EXPENSIVE in most urban centres. So even though you get OAS and CPP when you turn 65 and until you die, it’s usually not enough to live on. So you need to have a work pension or retirement savings in RRSPs etc. You still have to save for retirement, but it is amazing that you get money when you’re old and can factor that money into your retirement plan, so you don’t have to save as much.

@@globalbutterfly is this couple gaming the system by having a foot in two different countries and having one of them act a legal parent and not working therefore having a reportable zero or near zero income while the other earns income and perhaps showing residencies in USA?, while still sort of living in Canada? Something fromt hier story seems off to me.

@@globalbutterfly I knew someone who own a business in BC Canada.. And they were married and had i believe 3 children.. And they said as a business owner.. they paid about $900 per yaar for the health care to the goverrnment. And i blieve they said . There is usually no additional cost except for if they needed some crutches for example and they may have to pay $5 for them as a copay fee. This was several years ago. But even then compaired to the cost of health care in the USA. it was substantially less than what it would cost in USA. And I believe the $900 was the cap on how much it would cost for ehalthcare in Canada.. They were paying the maximum any canadian would have to pay in tax for their health care insurance contribution. Low income people I belive would be able to get subsidy to lower their cost.

Thank you so much for these kind words :)

You’re welcome :)

Thank you for the love!

Thank you! :)

Glad we’re able to spark some inspiration! The FIRE is spreading :)

Great pick up! Yes we are contributing $2,500 CAD per year into her RESP to get the max government match of $500 each year. We had to convert our figures in USD for the film so good on you to pick up on that!

You guys are definitely the closest things to Canadians in the States lol!

Thank you! Our goal with opening up about our story is to help inspire others :)

Agreed! The world would be a much calmer and happier place.

Thank you! :)

Hahah glad you like our made up word!

Thank you! :)

I lived across the street from work in a not so expensive apartment with roommates. Drove a scooter for local rides. Went to the beach. Used the gym in my complex. Had friends over for pot lucks. Continued to play hockey. Became the social committee chair for a networking group at work to organize happy hours at various venues by work. Cooked most of my meals at home. Learned about travel rewards. By focusing on reducing the big 3 living expenses (housing, transportation, food) I was able to keep my expenses low and contribute a large amount of my pay check each month towards my student loans.

Thank you! :)

Thank you @Yves! You will get there too with the right mindset :)

They do. It's the @modernfimily on Instagram. They also have a blog 🙂

Yep! As Michael noted we are on Instagram but the best way to connect is through our blog www.modernfimily.com. Feel free to reach out to us!

@@modernfimily469 thanks!

Thank you!

Thank you for this sweet comment! We’re hoping to inspire others along their journey :)

Exactly :) it’s all about the balance and escaping the crazy consumeristic world we live in

Aw thank you Mark. You will find someone too with the right attitude and mindset :)

Haha good luck!

Me too. Heading for Thailand in three years. America is insane.

🇨🇦 I love to hear it when others are interested in my country!

It honestly came from seeing many money mistakes in my family. It made me realize I wanted to be in control of my finances and NOT the other way around. That’s what triggered the aggressive student loan payments. Then after buying the short sale I discovered Mr Money Mustache and went down the FIRE hole from there.

Deciding to slowly glide into early retirement has been a wonderful transition for us. I feel like I’m already retired yet we’re still able to save 1/2 of my income.

Reaching FIRE and leaving your corporate job does not mean never working again. It means options and choices. We now have the choice to stay at home with our kids while they are young. We can go work some chill stress free part time gig while they are in school. We can pursue our hobbies. This is a lot of padding in our plans. The key is to remember to be flexible. We are humans not robots.

Yes and this is why I keep harping that Canada is an early retiree dream country. We currently are receiving ~$4,000/year from the government in Canada Child Benefits. Once I leave my job and we are living solely off investments (which will be a lower number than my current pay) and we have 2 kids in the mix, this will jump up to $17,000/year while they are under 18 which is just WILD to me.

Yes, in Canada essential healthcare is free (the rest like dental and massages etc. is covered by workplace/or paid benefit); there is a 12-18 month parental leave, and some child benefits (tax and monthly benefits) you get depending on your income. Higher income=lower benefit dollars and vice versa.

Yes like globalbutterfly explained the healthcare system in Canada is fantastic and depending on your income, the government of Canada provides a Canada Child Benefit to parents out there. We currently receive $236/mo ($2,832/year). The current max is $6,765 per year for each child under 6 and and $5,708 per year for each child aged 6-17.

Hey Court and Nic here. You can find us on our blog ModernFimily.com. We’re also on Instagram @modernfimily but not very active there anymore

Aww thank you @Elizabeth! 🙌

Cash is not the only thing that is liquid. You could withdraw from a 401k early if you chose to (along with a penalty). Not saying I would recommend it but it’s an option. You can also roll it over into a Roth IRA. We do not plan to withdraw from our 401k immediately since we can access funds from our other accounts penalty free. Considering the duration of these videos, there was not enough time to go into weeds regarding our housing. We wrote a blog post on it if you’d like to learn more.

Sharing his details here on the comment section might be a bit cringe but since you really want it, reach him *Alecpayden (a) g ma il. Com...* Came across him at an investment webinar. You can get all the information you need, just leave him a message.

I have come across countless recommendations, never knew he offered such services.

I don’t make that much, but I sure do make enough. However, it will not be a bad idea to hear from a professional. I hope he replies my mail.

Thanks for pointing this out. I usually skip past those since everyone can tell a spam. I also wrote him. How quickly does he respond? I will be patient though. Also, have you made any significant profit so far?

I have made over $25,000 from profits during the pandemic, more so because I was reinvesting every two weeks. His strategies cuts across major financial markets which cuts across major financial markets which I found generates more profit.

There is no healthcare costs in Canada, unless people choose to pay for extended healthcare through their work or external insurance program. That would include dental work, medications, physiotherapy, psychotherapy, etc. Also the Canadian child benefit payments are given by the government to parents based on their incomes reported to the revenue agencies.

Zohra is right. You report your taxes to the government and they give the child benefit money based on your yearly income. Lower income families get more money.

Hahaha she’s something!

Haha aw! Come to Cochrane, AB :)

Precisely! Glad you could relate!

Totally get where you’re coming from with your comment. We’re not breaking any rules, living within the system at hand which grants breaks to people and corporations with wealth. My recommendation? Vote to have a leader in place who will tax based off net worth not income. Likely a fat chance of that happening as most politicians would be losing their power as their “friends” within the system who are endorsing them are likely part of the top 1% and would never let that person get in power unfortunately. Also, we decided to save our money vs spend it. Why should be be penalized for being able to retire earlier than someone who decided to spend 100% of the same income we made over the years?

Modern FImily I agree 100% and y’all are a total inspiration! Not knocking you whatsoever, you had the discipline, Drive, and vision to put yourself in the situation. I appreciate your point on the wealth tax unfortunately I believe there are practical implementation problems with a tax of that nature. It really is an interesting phenomenon with modern welfare states and y’all have put yourself in a position to maximize your freedom. Hope my comment did not come off as derogatory because it certainly was not intended that way.

No offence taken at all, no worries. It’s a valid question and thought. Wouldn’t it be such an amazing “problem” for countries to have to deal with if suddenly all its citizens saved 50% of their income and retired early? It would obviously spark some change to how the country gets its funding vs taxing ordinary income. Until that day comes, we likely won’t see many changes as most people will be working their entire lives to fund the lifestyle creep over the years.

I am not sure I follow. People are taxed on how much they use or make, not have. If their primary investments were tax deferred, they pay taxes everytime they withdraw money. If they invested aftertax money, they paid a premium in tax while working. At the end of the day, the government always gets their taxes. These women own property and finance companies that provide services for others. They add value and contribute to society irregardless of their schedule.

Thomas Reedy everything you laid out is true - however in a system in which many public goods are provided by the state (tax payers) you could certainly make the argument they are being subsidized in an unfair way. They receive the “public goods” while having high wealth and being in the prime working years of their lives but are not working. Typically the subsidization is not looked at as a negative as it very generally should help those who have/make less (which is the main argument for a progressive tax system). However in this case the wealthy are being subsidized by the working. Again I feel the need to empathize this is not a personal attack on these awesome ladies, who are rock stars and made major sacrifices to put themselves in this position. However it is an interesting dynamic of modern welfare states and how tax policy is Designed.

TyphoonStrom - in the video they say they did not get any inheritance. They’ve always tracked their expenditures, saved, and invested. They live simply and continue to invest & live off their investments.

No inheritances, no child support from other family members, no current side hustle income. The only money we ever made besides our W-2/T4 jobs was rental income for a few years.

I am still working part time. And the only thing we rely on is the money in our bank accounts. We do not rely on any government benefits to do what we’ve done. We view any additional benefits as icing on the cake and know they can change at any moment.

@@modernfimily469 So happy to see you guys on here, Court!! A true inspiration.

@@modernfimily469 does Nic keep up her nursing license just in case? I live on $20k but it's just me not a family of 3 like you guys.

Thank you @hot4fi! Glad you enjoyed the clip 🙌

@illiniwu her license is valid for 3 more years if she chooses to go back. She likely won’t as she did not enjoy that field of work. You’d be surprised at how little more an extra 1-2 people in a household adds to your annual expenses. Kudos to living on $20k/year!

We’ve worked for more than 8 years. No inheritances, sorry to burst your bubble. Not trust fund babies. Hard work, grit, determination, and thinking outside the box. Canada and the US are different countries and we prefer living in Canada because it’s citizens are taken better care of in our opinion (affordable healthcare care and tuition for example). We have built in costs for the future for our child. Also, kids can be expensive but they definitely don’t have to be. Many kid related expenses are for non essentials. What do kids really want? You time, love, and attention. We’ve spent less than $2k/year on our daughter so far not including her RESP (like a 529). Most people could spend that on a stroller alone. Remember we are in Canada where many of the one off items you listed are a fraction of the cost for us. Most Americans have a huge burden with health related costs but thankfully that does not apply to us (and people living in many other development countries across the world). We’ve also built in costs for future car purchases. And new roofs. Etc etc. We are very conservative with our figures.

Is there a problem?

Rosy Crown!!! No no no