Personal Finance

I'm in my late-30s and have been making a huge income in Seattle but want to retire now - should I stick it out or pull the plug?

Christy Bieber

Published: January 25, 2025 10:33 am

Last Updated: February 2, 2025 7:32 pm

If you have a chance to make a few million dollars by working a couple extra few years, should you take it? Does the answer change if you have $5 million already? This is a question that a Reddit user is currently trying to answer.

The original poster (OP) is in his mid-late 30s and has a wife and two children. He has a $5.5 million net worth including a 401(k) and 529 plan, and this doesn’t include his paid-off primary home. His wife earns $200,000, their spending is $150K including buffers, and he is in line to get $1 million in stock each year over the next two years.

The problem is that he is bored with his job and knows there are no guarantees in life. He wants to be there for his kids and focus on his hobbies, family, and health. He said he’s not interested in lifestyle creep, his wife wants to work until she is in her 50s, and he is in line to get an inheritance. Still, it’s hard to walk away from the millions that are set to arrive in the coming few years. 

So, should the Reddit poster quit, or should the OP stick with job his for another few years to end up even richer?

Do you quit when you have enough?

Obviously, retiring in your late 30s is a huge lifestyle change and it is typically one you should undertake only if you are 100% confident that you’ll be financially secure for decades to come. 

In the OP’s case, though, there’s a pretty good argument to be made that he’s ready to quit. For one thing, his wife supports him doing so and she’s making enough money to cover their expenses and then some. So, unless he has reason to be concerned about divorce or her job stability, he should have plenty of income coming in even if he didn’t already have a $5.5 million net worth.

The fact is, though, that he does have that. And if the OP follows a safe 3.7% withdrawal rate with this money, a net worth of $5.5 million would offer him an annual income of $203,000. Again, this is more than enough to cover the $150K he says he spends. Now, he may not have quite that much income from investments because he said some is in a 529 plan. But, the fact is that he doesn’t need all of it. This money could be a backup plan just in case something happens to his wife’s income while they are living on it.

Because he has a large amount invested, that $5.5 million can also take advantage of the power of compound interest and grow dramatically over time — especially if nothing is withdrawn because he can live on what his wife is earning. In a decade, for example, the OP would have around $10,819,332.47 assuming a 7% average annual return. That would mean he’d have enough savings to produce more than double the income he needs. 

Now, his future expenses may go up as his kids grow, especially if he opts for private school. But with the couple in such good shape for their finances, there’s no reason to think he wouldn’t be able to easily afford this extra cost burden. 

Is the goal to be financially independent or run up the score?

If the OP’s goal was to be financially independent so he could enjoy life, he’s pretty much achieved that. There’s no reason to push himself to stay on the job for a few more years just to get even more money he doesn’t really need — and that even his kids may not need since they are already on track for an inheritance. 

Rather than just trying to increase his bank account balance, which would only help him on paper in this situation, the OP should think seriously about his plan to quit and enjoy life. Sure, he’ll end up with a few million less over time — but once you are already a multi-millionaire that probably doesn’t matter much as long as your tastes don’t run to the extravagant.