Retiring early takes planning.
When Justin McCurry originally ran the numbers, he thought he would need to save around $2.5 million to pay off his mortgage, cover college for his three children and have enough left over to live comfortably for the rest of his life.
McCurry used “the 4% rule,” which says you can typically safely withdraw 4% per year from your portfolio.
But after a few years of living frugally, McCurry adjusted his goal to $1.3 million. The new total would still leave his family with over $50,000 per year, which would be more than enough to maintain his lifestyle.
McCurry and his wife started saving with a combined income of around $90,000 and were making around $140,000 when he retired in 2013. The couple managed to save around $50,000 to $100,000 per year factoring in their 401(k) employer matches.
Check out this video to learn more about how the couple retired early and to see the investment strategy McCurry used to grow his savings.
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