Personal Finance

My wife retired 2 years ago and I'm still working - is our $12 million net worth enough for me to join her in retirement?

Christy Bieber

Published: January 26, 2025 9:44 am

How much do you need invested in order to feel comfortable retiring? This is a very common question among older Americans, and one a 54-year-old Redditor is grappling with. His 49-year-old wife called it quits 2.5 years ago and he’s wondering if he can do the same. 

To make this choice, the Redditor will need to look at the money he has saved and invested, as well as his spending needs, to determine if his savings can support himself and his family if he retires at a pretty young age.

Running the numbers to see if retirement is in the cards

To see if the Redditor is ready to retire or not, let’s take a close look at his financial situation:

• He has a net worth of $11.8 million 
• He owns $1.18 million in stocks, $10.4 million in property equity, $6.1 million in rental properties, $0.95 million in land, $300K in cash, and a primary home worth $3.3 million   
• He has around $230K in cash coming in from the rental properties after accounting for all costs
• His earnings fluctuate between $300K and $500K
• His expenses come to around $200,000 not including taxes

He also said he may have college tuition to think about for around seven more years, but may be able to sell his $3.3 million home when the kids go to school to free up some more money to invest and earn income with. 

So, can he leave his job and retire early even though he’s only 54? With the amount he has coming in from the rental properties alone, it’s  likely that he would be in fine shape to leave work now even with the added costs of health insurance he’s likely to incur after his employer no longer subsidizes premiums.

That’s especially true since a good amount of his income comes from estate investments and there are many tax breaks available for those within this industry.

A financial advisor can help to ease your mind about retirement 

The Redditor’s high net worth can make it seem like retiring early is a no-brainer, but the poster still had questions and concerns — and that’s pretty common. Deciding to trade a steady paycheck for the uncertainty that comes with supporting yourself using your investments can be quite a challenge. 

To ensure that you are really ready, and to get more peace of mind about your retirement prospects, it’s usually worth talking with a certified financial planner or other expert prior to quitting work. Your financial advisor can help you to make sure you don’t regret your choice to leave your job — especially if you are thinking about retiring at a younger age and have many decades of life left during which your investments will need to support you. 

In this case, an advisor could also provide invaluable assistance regarding how to minimize taxes on the income coming in and can also help to develop an effective withdrawal strategy in retirement that takes all of the OP’s diverse income sources into account. By getting this professional help, the Redditor who posted the thread can feel more confident that he and his wife will be able to live comfortably even if he joins her in enjoying their retirement years a little early.