Retire Early Lifestyle
Retirement; like your parents, but way cooler

In 1991 Billy and Akaisha Kaderli retired at the age of 38. Now, into their 4th decade of this financially independent lifestyle, they invite you to take advantage of their wisdom and experience.

Car Free, Care Free

Billy Kaderli

Billy's Ride

Sixteen days in the States. Ride shares, including the airport, groceries, and restaurants: $145.56. That’s $11.60 a day.

Owning a car does not come close. And that figure does not count the money that could have been working in the S&P 500 instead of sitting in a driveway.

We’ve been writing about going car-free for decades. We’ve been living it for twenty years.

No repairs. No insurance. No registration. No fuel. No wondering where to store a car while we are overseas. The money we did not spend has had twenty years to grow.

Friends of ours have gone without a vehicle for more than forty years. We figure they saved over $330,000. Invested at 10 percent, that is well over $2 million.

The other path looks worse every year. Molly Moorhead recently reported that the average new-car payment is nearly $800 a month—$26.66 a day—before fuel, insurance, or a single repair. Kelley Blue Book put the average new-car price at $50,089 in August, up from a year earlier.

Could you become car-free?

We did not decide lightly. We talked about it for years.

The upside was obvious. No maintenance. No plate fees. No insurance. No gas. No car sitting idle in the States while we traveled for months or years.

The downside was obvious too. No leaving on a whim. And we live in the Southwest, where summer hits triple digits. How do you get around when the pavement can fry an egg?

Silly idea or feasible plan?

Most people we know thought we were out of our minds. Americans love their cars. One for work. One for the dump run. One to pull the boat. Owning them is sold as the American Dream.

Each one also comes with insurance, repairs, maintenance, and gas. Status and convenience, yes. An investment, almost never. A car is a depreciating asset with a monthly bill attached.

Our place is a walk from stores, restaurants, and a few ways to waste an evening. Most of what we need is close. The slower pace is part of the point.

Neighbors get around on scooters, golf carts, bikes, and e-bikes. Our friends Dave and Pat kept one car and added a motor scooter. Their transport costs dropped. The adjustment barely registered.

Farther than a walk? A ride-share app. Cheaper than a taxi, easier than a car, and nobody asks us when the oil was changed.

Three decades of world travel made the pattern clear. The only place we were expected to drive was the States. Even that has changed. Uber and Lyft are everywhere now. Everywhere else, it is a bus, a train, a private driver, or the same apps.

So we sold the car. That was twenty years ago.

We have not missed the payment.

Billy

Retire Early Lifestyle appeals to a different kind of person – the person who prizes their independence, values their time, and who doesn’t want to mindlessly follow the crowd.

HOME   Book Store

Retire Early Lifestyle Blog      About Billy & Akaisha Kaderli      Press     Contact     20 Questions     Preferred Links    

Retirement     Country Info     Retiree Interviews      Commentary     REL Videos