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. |
|
The Best
Investment Move We Ever Made
Billy and Akaisha Kaderli

Buddhist Temple, Chiang Mai, Thailand
It wasn’t supposed to work out this way.
According to the financial pundits, we should have run out of money long
ago, barely getting by, living on social security, and with little
possibility of travel. At least, according to the
money managers who write
article after article on how Americans are
not saving enough, investing
poorly and need to follow their advice to succeed.
If their advice is so great, why are they still working?
Our situation
Instead, we have a higher net worth today than when we retired in 1991,
after decades of spending and inflation. AND we continue to travel the
globe. We have been through more market crashes than a GM vehicle on a test
track and are still going strong.
As I write this looking out at the glistening gold of the nearby Buddhist
Temple from our hotel room in Chiang Mai, Thailand, I think about how different our
lives would have been had we listened to those experts and not
pursued
our dreams.
Divorced? Maybe. New homes, cars and toys and the debt that goes with them?
Definitely.
But that’s not how it worked out. We chose experiences over stuff, and as
they say, “they can’t take away the dance you danced.”
Money, money, money
Because of the
power of compounding, tax management and lower living
expenses, retiring early was a great investment move for us.
The S&P 500 Index’s growth has annualized over 10% with dividends
for
the last 33 years, and has increased our portfolio's value significantly, out pacing our spending and inflation. We chose low
cost living areas with quality lifestyles, and
our spending has been well below the
4%
guidelines.
We managed our tax liability by using tax efficient Index funds and also
planned years prior as to the impact on our taxes of receiving social
security. This
combination has worked well for us and now in our seventies, we are
looking at the next tax hurdle which is Required Minimum Distributions (RMDs), beginning
at age 73, and minimizing that tax liability.
We are not saying to throw caution to the wind and not be financially
prepared before you make the great escape. But
you do
have options. From
living in lower cost locations not only in the
United States but in other countries
like Thailand,
Mexico and
Guatemala where your Dollar goes further, to
receiving
quality health care without jumping through continuous hoops in
order to see a doctor, specialist or dentist at a fraction of the costs in
the States. In most cases you can walk in off the street.
We are writing about this from decades of personal experiences with all of the above.
We have walked the walk - and now, talk the talk - adapting to changing
economies, locations, languages and culture.
When we gave up
our careers in 1991, there was
no internet, online banking
or digital photography. We tracked our finances in a notebook on a sheet of
paper, documenting all of our spending. We followed our investments when we could get a newspaper with stock quotes. Back
then, our “online connection” was a portable Grundig shortwave radio where
the BBC and Voice of America would broadcast news and give a brief market
update a few times a day. Life was good, traveling throughout the Caribbean,
Mexico and the
USA, and at various times, in our fifth wheel trailer.
Fast forward a few decades
With the online
financial
tools available today there is little reason for
not taking control of your finances and becoming your own investment
advisor. With these tools you can create a
sustainable financial future for
yourself.
A general rule is to subtract your age from 120 and that is the
percentage amount of stock investments you should have. We use VTI (Vanguard Total Market) ETF as one of our holdings. Everyone's risk tolerance
is different and and your number may be higher or lower than recommended. We
all have to follow our own financial path with which we are comfortable.
In the nineties when we were in our thirties, we maintained a 100%
stock/mutual fund allocation, in order to gain the maximum exposure to the
equity market. Today in our seventies and
receiving social security, we are
able to have a higher cash/bond position and continue to use Index ETF’s for
growth. We still
track
our expenses and look for value-packed
travel
destinations.
So the next time you read one of these articles stating that you will never
be able to retire, realize that the author is still working too.
They are selling fear and dependency and you don’t have to buy.
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.
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About the Authors



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.
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