Thanks, delay and fingeek! To cover my current spending level I would need another €300k, but I believe if I needed to retire I could live much cheaper.
With regards to the Airbnbs, I was lucky that I had an empty family property which I could use as a base camp in Germany. In the months that I have been living out of Airbnbs all I brought with me was a homeoffice setup of portable extra screen, keyboard and mouse, as well as a knife and knife sharpener, as I have never seen an Airbnb with sharp knives. Talking about Airbnbs is a bit misleading, mostly I stayed in them for just a few days and then made a deal off the platform or found something in the area. That tends to bring costs down a lot. I like to find the Airbnb owners who are annoyed with the Airbnb work of checking in and out guests, cleaning and all the hassle. I pay everything in full in advance, stay a few weeks and leave the apartment super clean. Like this I managed to get better deals when returning.
Clothes for about a week are enough, I washed them in the Airbnbs and the occasional laundromat.
Without the family property as the base camp, I would have probably rented a studio in Germany's rust belt, for example Gelsenkirchen. I have a certain fondness for the people there. I would cost around EUR 350/month I guess.
Singvestor’s retirement lifestyle test run
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singvestor
- Posts: 206
- Joined: Tue Jul 21, 2015 12:48 am
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singvestor
- Posts: 206
- Joined: Tue Jul 21, 2015 12:48 am
Full year update 2023
2023 was the first full year of working at the startup. The last time I earned that small a salary was in 2009.
Development of yearly net income after tax:
On the bright side, I have been building a nice chunk of equity in the startup. This equity will either be worth a lot or nothing at all, depending on how the startup is going.
Where did the money go in 2023?
Waterfall chart:
My portfolio had a great year, but my large allocation to Asian indexes has hurt the performance significantly. In the long run, I am still optimistic about Asia, at least more so than about Europe.
Portfolio development longer view
My portfolio ended the year at €615,047 which was a nice increase after the underwhelming performance in 2022.
Things have been going well in recent years.
The issue with my spending…
My spending is nearly all on wants and little on needs. I am scared that I will be kicked out of the ERE forum.
I lived a bit like a nomad and spent my days in hotels, Airbnbs, an empty family property in the country side, my sister's unused flat in another city… Family members refused any rent payments, but I did some renovations and bought new appliances in the family property and made sure to leave the places cleaner than I found them.
Mobility was expensive, because I subscribed to a car - similar to a long term rental. Upon giving the car back, they found the tiniest dent (hardly visible with the naked eye), for which they charged me my full deposit of EUR 750, which I booked under “mistakes”. I will try to live car-free as much as possible in 2024.
Eating out was rather expensive as well, this is due to the time I spent in France / Spain. In Germany I hardly eat out.
I did not donate much to charity, which I want to improve in 2024. I did however volunteer my time as a board member at an environmental NGO and managed to put a new strategy and website in place that ended up quadrupling the online donations.
The key chart
The good news is that I could retire immediately and probably I would be ok. Right now my plan is to stay at the startup until at least November 2024, as in October a large share of my equity is going to vest.
In September I would also become eligible for 12 months of unemployment pay from the German government, should I become jobless. The unemployment pay would be a luxurious EUR 2,400 / month. I am not planning to make use of it, but it feels good to have the extra safety net.
I must try to reduce my expenses. Tackling the mobility costs by not having a car would be a good place to start.
Upcoming experiment: Angel investment
I have been an evaluator in a few startup competitions and saw ~100 proposals from German startups. Most did not convince me, but one seemed rather promising and I decided to make a small angel investment of €25,000.
Using a strange German government policy, I can claim 25% of it back as a subsidy.
This investment should be concluded sometime in the next three months or so.
The money for this investment will not come out of my portfolio, but rather a cash buffer which I had built up in 2022. It was meant as a backup if my current startup should fail, which is not likely in the mid term, as we conducted a big funding round and received a large grant.
Let’s see how this experiment will go.
99 Problems but ERE ain’t one
While personal finance is still somewhat of a hobby, it has taken a backseat, now that I am not in the corporate world anymore. My main struggles are:
Living in Germany
Having had to relocate to Germany for the job has proven to be a major struggle. The country is crumbling on all fronts. Digitalization is severely lacking, infrastructure is in decay (e.g. 48% of all trains were delayed in November) and there is an infectious spirit of severe hopelessness and pessimism permeating the whole country. I have escaped to Southern Spain now for 2 months, it feels like a huge relief.
Fitness levels
Not having access to a gym in December and eating and drinking all the unhealthy things has severely impacted the fitness level and I have 2-3 kg of Xmasfat to lose.
Relationships
Total mess
Lack of connection to “normal” life
After having joined the startup on a fully remote basis and starting the “Nomad life”, I am struggling more than ever to connect to the daily lives of my friends that are filled with raising young children, paying rent, commuting to work and furnishing their apartments. I feel like drifting away more and more from the normal blueprint of life, which at times makes me feel lost.
Surely a feeling that people on this forum must be familiar with?
Development of yearly net income after tax:
On the bright side, I have been building a nice chunk of equity in the startup. This equity will either be worth a lot or nothing at all, depending on how the startup is going.
Where did the money go in 2023?
- Salary: €35,448
- Side income: €10,656
- Dividends: €9,890
- Spending: -€37,771
- = Leftover €18,223
Waterfall chart:
My portfolio had a great year, but my large allocation to Asian indexes has hurt the performance significantly. In the long run, I am still optimistic about Asia, at least more so than about Europe.
Portfolio development longer view
My portfolio ended the year at €615,047 which was a nice increase after the underwhelming performance in 2022.
Things have been going well in recent years.
The issue with my spending…
My spending is nearly all on wants and little on needs. I am scared that I will be kicked out of the ERE forum.
I lived a bit like a nomad and spent my days in hotels, Airbnbs, an empty family property in the country side, my sister's unused flat in another city… Family members refused any rent payments, but I did some renovations and bought new appliances in the family property and made sure to leave the places cleaner than I found them.
Mobility was expensive, because I subscribed to a car - similar to a long term rental. Upon giving the car back, they found the tiniest dent (hardly visible with the naked eye), for which they charged me my full deposit of EUR 750, which I booked under “mistakes”. I will try to live car-free as much as possible in 2024.
Eating out was rather expensive as well, this is due to the time I spent in France / Spain. In Germany I hardly eat out.
I did not donate much to charity, which I want to improve in 2024. I did however volunteer my time as a board member at an environmental NGO and managed to put a new strategy and website in place that ended up quadrupling the online donations.
The key chart
The good news is that I could retire immediately and probably I would be ok. Right now my plan is to stay at the startup until at least November 2024, as in October a large share of my equity is going to vest.
In September I would also become eligible for 12 months of unemployment pay from the German government, should I become jobless. The unemployment pay would be a luxurious EUR 2,400 / month. I am not planning to make use of it, but it feels good to have the extra safety net.
I must try to reduce my expenses. Tackling the mobility costs by not having a car would be a good place to start.
Upcoming experiment: Angel investment
I have been an evaluator in a few startup competitions and saw ~100 proposals from German startups. Most did not convince me, but one seemed rather promising and I decided to make a small angel investment of €25,000.
Using a strange German government policy, I can claim 25% of it back as a subsidy.
This investment should be concluded sometime in the next three months or so.
The money for this investment will not come out of my portfolio, but rather a cash buffer which I had built up in 2022. It was meant as a backup if my current startup should fail, which is not likely in the mid term, as we conducted a big funding round and received a large grant.
Let’s see how this experiment will go.
99 Problems but ERE ain’t one
While personal finance is still somewhat of a hobby, it has taken a backseat, now that I am not in the corporate world anymore. My main struggles are:
Living in Germany
Having had to relocate to Germany for the job has proven to be a major struggle. The country is crumbling on all fronts. Digitalization is severely lacking, infrastructure is in decay (e.g. 48% of all trains were delayed in November) and there is an infectious spirit of severe hopelessness and pessimism permeating the whole country. I have escaped to Southern Spain now for 2 months, it feels like a huge relief.
Fitness levels
Not having access to a gym in December and eating and drinking all the unhealthy things has severely impacted the fitness level and I have 2-3 kg of Xmasfat to lose.
Relationships
Total mess
Lack of connection to “normal” life
After having joined the startup on a fully remote basis and starting the “Nomad life”, I am struggling more than ever to connect to the daily lives of my friends that are filled with raising young children, paying rent, commuting to work and furnishing their apartments. I feel like drifting away more and more from the normal blueprint of life, which at times makes me feel lost.
Surely a feeling that people on this forum must be familiar with?
Re: Singvestor’s retirement lifestyle test run
Thanks for your detailed journal update!
It seems everyone has a portfolio that grows like that. My graph doesn't look very different. I wonder what happens when people stop throwing money at the stock market and start withdrawing. Perhaps stock prices will reset or perhaps there will be inflation.
When you experience "drifting away", what do you think your subconscious is telling you?
Honest enough! What I had in Asian stocks went down as well. Curiously Japan did very well last year.singvestor wrote: ↑Sun Jan 14, 2024 4:32 amMy portfolio had a great year, but my large allocation to Asian indexes has hurt the performance significantly. In the long run, I am still optimistic about Asia, at least more so than about Europe.
It seems everyone has a portfolio that grows like that. My graph doesn't look very different. I wonder what happens when people stop throwing money at the stock market and start withdrawing. Perhaps stock prices will reset or perhaps there will be inflation.
Your housing costs seem unusually low and transportation unusually high. Not a bad thing! By the way, wouldn't a spending breakdown look better in a pie chart?
Interesting, I've heard this before, yet Germany looked great when I visited last year. Clean, orderly, no decay whatsoever. Certainly none of my trains were delayed.singvestor wrote: ↑Sun Jan 14, 2024 4:32 amHaving had to relocate to Germany for the job has proven to be a major struggle. The country is crumbling on all fronts. Digitalization is severely lacking, infrastructure is in decay (e.g. 48% of all trains were delayed in November) and there is an infectious spirit of severe hopelessness and pessimism permeating the whole country. I have escaped to Southern Spain now for 2 months, it feels like a huge relief.
Losing connections with friends who start families happens even if you live close by. They have kids to care for. They're part of two families instead of one. Women do most of the social networking and wield the sceptre of invitation. Bachelor friends from their partner's former life are not high on the list. To me such distancing looks quite natural.singvestor wrote: ↑Sun Jan 14, 2024 4:32 amAfter having joined the startup on a fully remote basis and starting the “Nomad life”, I am struggling more than ever to connect to the daily lives of my friends that are filled with raising young children, paying rent, commuting to work and furnishing their apartments. I feel like drifting away more and more from the normal blueprint of life, which at times makes me feel lost.
Surely a feeling that people on this forum must be familiar with?
When you experience "drifting away", what do you think your subconscious is telling you?
Re: Full year update 2023
I am using my full powers of deduction, honed over years of studying statistics and doing (but not finishing) a PhD, and when looking at this graph...
Singvestor, I feel like for you 2023 was a year where you continued to explore a new lifestyle that you started with at the end of 2022. It changed your income (but not in a very relevant way for a good future), but the more important thing is that it let you experiment with your lifestyle. And I would try to see this first full year as an experiment, where some things were good, some things were okay but could be improved, and some things need to go and will not become a permanent part of your new life.
I'm looking forward to your updates over 2024 and beyond
...I can tell you: something happened in or right before 2023.
Singvestor, I feel like for you 2023 was a year where you continued to explore a new lifestyle that you started with at the end of 2022. It changed your income (but not in a very relevant way for a good future), but the more important thing is that it let you experiment with your lifestyle. And I would try to see this first full year as an experiment, where some things were good, some things were okay but could be improved, and some things need to go and will not become a permanent part of your new life.
I'm looking forward to your updates over 2024 and beyond
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singvestor
- Posts: 206
- Joined: Tue Jul 21, 2015 12:48 am
Re: Singvestor’s retirement lifestyle test run
Thank you Delay, I pondered over your post a lot, great points
Dutch girl, your powerful deduction and analysis made me laugh and your tip about continuously improving after the trial year is spot on
Dutch girl, your powerful deduction and analysis made me laugh and your tip about continuously improving after the trial year is spot on
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singvestor
- Posts: 206
- Joined: Tue Jul 21, 2015 12:48 am
Quarterly update: Q1, 2024
The first quarter zipped by… For the first time in ten years I sold some stocks and had a negative saving rate - what happened?
Portfolio in Q1, 2024
I sold €9,114 worth of stocks, as I invested a total of €40,428 in two company participations. Most of the funds came from my cash buffer. I consider this money gone and I will value my ownership in both companies at €0. Having said that, one of the companies is already making profit and I bought a big chunk of it, so there is a great chance for upside potential.
I do not plan to do further angel investments. It is too stressful, complicated and it generates plenty of extra work. I realize I want my investments to be passive and hands-off, even though I enjoy the entrepreneurial challenge / impact it can bring.
The portfolio is still growing nicely:
Portfolio allocation:
I sold my REITs and individual stocks, so now my portfolio is pretty much only index funds of shares and bonds. REITs are quite popular in Singapore, because their distributions are tax free. In Germany I have to pay close to 30% tax on any dividends, so it is not so great.
Income:
After my salary increase, my monthly net income increased from ~€2.6k to ~ €4.2k, which is a relatively good salary for Germany. In the first quarter, I had the following income sources:
Spending:
In the first quarter, I spent €7,865 or 62% of my salary / 48% of my total income.
The main retirement chart is quite stable.
Last year I spent ~€4,700 to subscribe to a car, this year I decided to resume my car-free lifestyle.
Other main expenses this year was eating out & bars at around €1,000 - this was because I lived in Spain for two months and spent some time in France again. The restaurants there are much better than in Germany, in terms of quality and value. In Germany I hardly ever eat out - good quality restaurant food is hard to find and more expensive than in France or Spain. Back in Germany I cook more.
Spending on groceries was high as well: about €1,100. This means that I spent about €700 a month on food in total. I think I could very easily eat well and healthy for around half that if I had to, but I bought lots of expensive groceries without caring so much about the price. I did not buy processed food, but typically I only buy organic meat, nice seafood, etc…
Outlook:
These days I do not think about personal finance as much as I used to. I do not have to set foot in an office or deal with many meetings each day, so overall I feel quite free. I have been taking Spanish classes and helping out in the two companies I invested in. My main job in the startup is going great as well. By startup standards it is neither terribly busy nor too crazy.
I lived in Southern Spain for two months in the first quarter and I also visited Marseille (by train) - nice place. I am now back in my base camp - an empty family property in the middle of nowhere in Germany. I made a pile of books next to the bed and am enjoying reading again.
Life is good!
Portfolio in Q1, 2024
I sold €9,114 worth of stocks, as I invested a total of €40,428 in two company participations. Most of the funds came from my cash buffer. I consider this money gone and I will value my ownership in both companies at €0. Having said that, one of the companies is already making profit and I bought a big chunk of it, so there is a great chance for upside potential.
I do not plan to do further angel investments. It is too stressful, complicated and it generates plenty of extra work. I realize I want my investments to be passive and hands-off, even though I enjoy the entrepreneurial challenge / impact it can bring.
The portfolio is still growing nicely:
Portfolio allocation:
I sold my REITs and individual stocks, so now my portfolio is pretty much only index funds of shares and bonds. REITs are quite popular in Singapore, because their distributions are tax free. In Germany I have to pay close to 30% tax on any dividends, so it is not so great.
Income:
After my salary increase, my monthly net income increased from ~€2.6k to ~ €4.2k, which is a relatively good salary for Germany. In the first quarter, I had the following income sources:
- Salary: €12,732
- Side gigs/other: €1,286
- Dividends €2,324
- Total: €16,342
Spending:
In the first quarter, I spent €7,865 or 62% of my salary / 48% of my total income.
The main retirement chart is quite stable.
Last year I spent ~€4,700 to subscribe to a car, this year I decided to resume my car-free lifestyle.
Other main expenses this year was eating out & bars at around €1,000 - this was because I lived in Spain for two months and spent some time in France again. The restaurants there are much better than in Germany, in terms of quality and value. In Germany I hardly ever eat out - good quality restaurant food is hard to find and more expensive than in France or Spain. Back in Germany I cook more.
Spending on groceries was high as well: about €1,100. This means that I spent about €700 a month on food in total. I think I could very easily eat well and healthy for around half that if I had to, but I bought lots of expensive groceries without caring so much about the price. I did not buy processed food, but typically I only buy organic meat, nice seafood, etc…
Outlook:
These days I do not think about personal finance as much as I used to. I do not have to set foot in an office or deal with many meetings each day, so overall I feel quite free. I have been taking Spanish classes and helping out in the two companies I invested in. My main job in the startup is going great as well. By startup standards it is neither terribly busy nor too crazy.
I lived in Southern Spain for two months in the first quarter and I also visited Marseille (by train) - nice place. I am now back in my base camp - an empty family property in the middle of nowhere in Germany. I made a pile of books next to the bed and am enjoying reading again.
Life is good!