A few weeks ago, Steve (one of our readers) commented that Personal Capital might not be a good tool because it encourages you to check on your portfolio too often. For those of you who haven’t tried it, Personal Capital is an account aggregator site. It can pull the data from all your various accounts […]
How Often Should You Check Your Portfolio?

When I quit my engineering career in 2012, I was completely burned out. I was having physical and mental problems and I had to get out. I thought I’d give it at least a year and see how this whole early retirement thing pans out. Finance was a big factor, of course. We were not […]
[…] Read more:  Am I Ready to Go Back to work?

A couple of weeks ago, Christian approach me about sharing his Financial Independence journey. He is at the early stage of the journey and I think it would be a great series. We can follow his finance and see how he improve from here on out. He is just starting out, but he is in an enviable position. […]
Christian’s Financial Independence Journey

Hey Everyone, I hope you had a great Christmas. We spent the day putting together Lego sets and the basketball hoop for the little guy. It was a ton of fun, but now I’m back to the serious stuff. I’m revamping retireby40.org because occasionally I will get a random blank page while I’m browsing. *Blogger […]
Revamp In Progress

The following article is from Melanie, our staff writer. Melanie is in the beginning phase of her journey to Financial Freedom and she’ll offer a refreshing point of view for us. I’m very excited to interview one of my best friends, Brittany Hassell! I met her, along with Joe, at our local bloggers meet-up over a year ago.  We instantly bonded over our lov
[…] Read more:  Interview with an Urban Nomad

Yes, sometimes I wonder if retiring by 40 is sustainable. Can I really quit working full time at 38 and sustain a comfortable retirement for 30 to 50 years? Well, Mrs. RB40 is still working, but she plans to retire early at some point as well (maybe in 10-15 years). Finance is a big consideration, but I also want to keep active, have fun, and enjoy life. Luckily
[…] Read more:  Can You Really Retire For 60 years?

Last week, I was researching for a Roth 401(k) article and came across a Roth IRA study from T. Rowe Price. Basically, the study concludes that the Roth account is the better choice for most investors. You’ll have more money unless your tax rate is much lower in retirement. If you’re 55, then your tax rate will have to drop by 7% for the Traditional IRA to be
[…] Read more:  Is Roth better than Traditional IRA/401(k)?

Whoa, it’s Q4. Where did the year go? It’s time to buckle down and finish 2014 strong. I hope you’re still keeping track of your 2014 goals and resolutions. I’m doing pretty well on the financial goals, but the fitness goal is going by the wayside. Let’s get started. 2014 New Year Goals Invest $50,000 in tax advantaged accounts We added $3,498 in Septe
[…] Read more:  September 2014 Goals and Financial Update

I love updating our net worth and seeing it grows. The growth means we are getting closer and closer to true financial independence every year. If you’re not keeping track of your net worth, you really need to start. Seeing your net worth grows is a great motivator and it doesn’t take much time to calculate. Net worth = Assets – Liabilities Assets: Yo
[…] Read more:  Do You Benchmark Your Net Worth?

Last time, we had fun being indignant about people who make six-figure income and are going broke. I’m pretty sure the majority of people making that level of income are smart enough to live within their means. There are just a few rare cases that are spending way too much and can’t save for the rainy days. I’m not sympathetic at all because middle class ho
[…] Read more:  The Most Important Tip for Retirement Saving