Tell me how YOU would ERE with 200k.

MichaelAndrewLo · Post by **MichaelAndrewLo** » Sat Jul 02, 2011 10:29 pm

Simple thought experiment. Have $200,000, what's your ERE method? Just trying to gather forum opinions/insights. Thanks!

Post by **jacob** » Sat Jul 02, 2011 10:55 pm

Pretty much like I described on the blog

m741 · Post by **m741** » Sat Jul 02, 2011 11:05 pm

This is a good idea. If I had to retire on that much, I'd probably look around an see if there was another country where I could live cheaply for a while - either SE Asia or South America.

DividendGuy · Post by **DividendGuy** » Sat Jul 02, 2011 11:45 pm

$200k would provide $8k/year based on a 4% withdrawal rate. That's just north of $660/month. Based on my ERE budget of appx. $1k/mo that would fall a little short. If I had to retire on $200k I would probably find a way to cut expenses further, or more likely I would go semi-ERE and work part-time at the beach (which is something I'd like to do anyway). I would probably work 20 or so hours a week to make up the difference. I could also possibly visit family and friends for extended periods of time, thereby saving on rent.
Alternatively, like m741 mentioned SE Asia could make for an interesting lifestyle on that amount of money. There are areas in the Philippines and Thailand where $200k could probably last indefinitely.

JasonR · Post by **JasonR** » Sun Jul 03, 2011 12:21 am

MichaelAndrewLo · Post by **MichaelAndrewLo** » Sun Jul 03, 2011 1:51 am

Yes Jacob I think submitting your whole blog as a response to this post is a response that I've already read :p

Post by **jacob** » Sun Jul 03, 2011 2:07 am

Ha!

sky · Post by **sky** » Sun Jul 03, 2011 3:17 am

buy a small sailboat, spend winters in the bahamas, summers in the canadian maritimes.

akratic · Post by **akratic** » Sun Jul 03, 2011 3:27 am

I spend more than $666/mo (4% SWR) in Chicago, so I'd move somewhere cheaper to make the numbers work out.
I'd spend the first $792 on a one way flight to Thailand. I'd tour Thailand and the rest of Southeast Asia for anywhere from one week to one year, with the goal of deciding whether to retire there or not.
If I warmed to the idea of retiring abroad, but wasn't liking Asia, I'd check out places like Ecuador/Agentina next.
If that's not working out, I'd buy another ~1k ticket home, and settle somewhere cheap in America. My family has a summer house in Maine, so I'd probably end up spending 3-5 months there each summer, and the rest renting a room in a cheap town with nice winters. Maybe Austin or Asheville.
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I'd also be tempted to pursue one of my FI dreams that actually pays me a bit of money. For example, I'd love to start a PhD program (but not necessarily finish one) and the stipend would be boosting my savings each year. Maybe by the time I was bored with the PhD program my savings would be high enough to support my spending level.

DividendGuy · Post by **DividendGuy** » Sun Jul 03, 2011 3:42 am

@Akratic
You sound like you were speaking the words from my mouth. I also plan on living up north with family for 3-5 months a year and renting a room in the south during the winter.
Too funny.

KevinW · Post by **KevinW** » Sun Jul 03, 2011 7:58 am

Buy a fixer duplex in a cheap small town in a warm climate. Do the renovation yourself using materials and tools off Craigslist or similar. Buy a bike and cargo trailer; no car or truck. Produce almost all your own food with an intensive vegetable garden, fruit trees, laying chickens, and dairy goats. Plant shade vegetation and learn to deal with no A/C. Invest the remaining capital and try to cover all fixed costs with the proceeds. Rent out the larger unit and use the income for discretionary expenses.