549: Is FIRE Dead? No, But Here’s Why Most WON’T Achieve It

BiggerPockets Money Podcast

Is the FIRE movement dead? In 2024, more people are catching on to the huge downsides of pursuing financial independence, retire early. Strict frugality, massive sacrifice, working harder than ever…is it really worth it to retire decades before everyone else? If you’re internally screaming, “Yes! Of course it is!” you’re in good company. Today, we’re talking about why FIRE is NOT dead in 2024 but why most Americans won’t achieve it.

It’s easy to claim that the FIRE movement is dead in 2024 when inflation has been high, savings rates are low, and there’s economic uncertainty all around. The problem? Almost all of that can be easily factored into your FIRE plan, and with some sacrifices, you could easily retire early in five, ten, or fifteen years. So, if FIRE is still possible, what must the average person do to achieve it?

We’ll discuss the mindset shift you must undergo to reach financial independence, the sacrifices you must prepare for, and what we would have done differently on our own paths to FIRE. Achieving financial freedom doesn’t need to be an all-out grind with zero enjoyment. Even if you make minor money moves today, you could be retiring YEARS earlier than you thought possible!

In This Episode We Cover

An update on the FIRE movement and whether or not FIRE is possible in 2024

The 4% rule explained, and why it works EVEN during high inflation

The sacrifice that most Americans will NEVER make to retire early

How to achieve FIRE even if you have an average income

The “grind” that gets you RICH and how to tell you’re on the right track for FIRE

How frequently to check your investments/accounts (and whether it really matters)

And So Much More!

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BiggerPockets Money 120 - Are FIRE Naysayers Bad at Math? Yes. with Michael Kitces

BiggerPockets Money 169 - Breaking the Taboo of Talking About Money with Friends, Family, and Bosses w/Erin Lowry

BiggerPockets Money 243 - Ramit Sethi’s Money Advice for Couples: Live a Rich Life, Together

BiggerPockets Money 516 - Jaspreet Singh: Getting Rich Slowly and Why Some People STAY Broke

cFIREsim (FIRE Calculator)

My Death March to Financial Independence

Email [e-mail] for the “4% Rule” Article

00:00 Intro

04:19 Is the FIRE Movement Dead?

10:93 Do You Need a High Income?

16:36 Should Everyone Pursue FIRE?

24:44 How Average People Achieve FIRE

30:04 FIRE in 2024

35:54 Retiring Early During Inflation

38:38 You CAN Achieve FIRE

Check out more resources from this show on BiggerPockets.com and https://www.biggerpockets.com/blog/money-549

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