The Coast FI manifesto: I would love your input
I want to put together a coast FI manifesto and would love to get your input. In your opinion, what's core to coasting?
Posted Jun 2, 2022, 4:29 PM UTC
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The trickiest part for us was health insurance. We have a small child, so we need good coverage. What saved us while we figured it out was a sizable HSA account from our years working full time.
13
That's awesome. Did you end up getting an ACA plan in the end?
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No, my husband ended up getting good benefits from his part-time coast job. It’s a pretty large family owned business, so they were willing to help us out.
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Being pro-work. Or at least, not being anti-work or hating work, as I see of so many people on traditional FIRE paths. I find my work fulfilling and I enjoy being a "productive member of society". CoastFIRE provides flexibility to find something fulfilling and productive while still enjoying the journey.
12
Excellent point and rarely referenced explicitly in Coast.
4
I totally agree this this point.
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FI path is 100->0 as far as the grind goes.
CoastFI could take you from 100->50.
It doesn’t have to be binary. Maybe more autonomy and less hours is all you need for your job to be closer to your dream job.
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Completely agree, it can change over time as well...you may want to go 100 -> 50 -> 25 and even do volunteer work if that suits your desires and you can afford it. Some organizations would provide a stipend while you volunteer. Many years ago, I did some volunteering for the OAS https://www.oas.org/en/ and had a great time.
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Flexibility and knowing when you're nearing a guardrail that warrants adjustment (I'm thinking of investing but there certainly applies elsewhere)
5
Yes, definitely flexibility. And I agree, knowing when to adjust investments, work hours, income, expenses, lifestyle, interests, etc.
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I always struggled with the coasting "chart" - if you're this age and portfolio is this size then you can coast. Great advice at the stock market bottom in 2009, maybe not the most relevant chart when S&P is at/near an all time high.
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I feel like that's true with regular fire with coast you at least have some time for it to readjust or for you to save more if it doesn't pan out like the calculator
2
True, I just see a lot of flaws with the quintessential coast fire chart that doesn't quite hit the same when viewing shockingly simple math etc. Good point on time to adjust, I feel like going rat-> coast and then back to the rat race might be harder than that race -> Full FIRE -> back to rat race. But it's probably more individualized/nuanced
1
To me, Coast FI is just about building a safety net for yourself. Many of our countries have gutted and will continue gutting our social safety nets.
By paying careful attention to your finances for a couple years relatively early in life and putting in extra hours you can save up a nest egg that will passively grow to cover your expenses at a traditional retirement age.
Then you can back off your hours and live a more fulfilling life, earning just enough to support yourself and your family for the bulk of your life without having to worry that you are endangering your future. If you happen to find a lucrative job or hobby you like and earn more than typical, that's great and you'll be able to retire early. But if not, you'll be okay.
Coast FI isn't the complete freedom from the need to work the FIRE is. It's just clawing back to get what society should guarantee everyone: a healthy work life balance and a future free from want.
5
Coastfire doesn't have to be something you do in your 30s or 40s. You can do it later than that. Being able to coast the last 10 years makes a huge difference. Your body can change a lot in 10 years. You can fit a lot of active living in that 10 years.
Coastfire also helps you see that retirement isn't a cliff you fall off or a line you cross never to return. It's just a slow transition you make and one you can reverse if you want to or need to. This is empowering when that sinks in.
4
I actually love this idea! I don’t know what the core tenants would be and would definitely look at such a guide if there was one
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Defining your goal. Enjoy your journey.
Love it—like the fioneers say: enjoying the journey just as much as the destination
This is great. Along with knowing your goal is defining what is enough, both to fund your desired lifestyle and to grow during the coast fi journey.