Let’s first talk about why I won’t retire at 38, even though I can.

  1. That’s less than 3 years out of fellowship. It would be the beginning of my professional prime as a radiologist. I’d like to use my skills and knowledge from 26 years of schooling to serve others. I get a wonderful sense of fulfillment from draining a patient’s pelvic abscess today; I will also relish saving someone’s life by making a imaging diagnosis in 7 years.
  2. I want to care for others beyond myself and my daughter (Mini Wise Money.) These people include my parents, MWM’s paternal grandparents, some of my extended family, & my sponsor child Mariela.
  3. I want to provide for MWM more than I have been blessed with growing up. While I worked 7 jobs in college trying to send meager money home to help my parents with their 30% interest rate credit card debts, I’d like MWM to have at least 1 but no more than 2 jobs in while going to school full time.
  4. I’d like to keep blogging. Blogging costs money and a lot of time. I plan to support my blog because helping others succeed financially & personally is rewarding to me.
  5. I’d like to give more. I sponsor one child now. I’d like to sponsor more. I may even adopt a child one day, so that Mini is not so lonesome when I’m in heaven one  day.

3 things to help you achieve financial independence/ability to retire sooner includes:

  1. Lower the cost of your debt by refinancing.
  2. Mindful financial practice.
  3. Make your money work for you. 

Now, let’s see how I CAN retire at 38.

I first started my calculations with my current post tax annual income of $52,671 and annual savings of $29300. My annual savings rate is 56%, which gives me financial independence (ability to retire) in 13 years.

Living, Earning, & Saving like I do today; I can retire in 13 years.
Living, Earning, & Saving like I do today; I can retire in 13 years.

Savings include 23.5k in Roth IRA & Roth 403b, as well as 1k in taxable investment & 4.8k in home equity. Note that my home equity does not exactly grow at 5% ROI (return of investment) but I have 5k of additional savings that will make the 4.8k in home equity a bonus even if it’s getting negative ROI (home value drops rather than grows.)

This does not account for the fact that in July 2020, I will get a pretty big raise from PGY to attending-hood.

Accounting for the transition into attending-hood:

My calculations with the jump in salary when finishing fellowship here:

My attending post tax annual income $160,857 (based on an ultra-conservative estimate of 250k annual income, when most rads I know are getting 300k to start at academic/VA jobs) and annual savings $137,486.

My annual savings rate is 86%, which gives me financial independence (ability to retire) in 2.8 years of finishing fellowship (8.8 years from finishing medical school.)

Read the full article  published on Physician’s Money Digest here.

Then make comment or ask questions on this blog; I usually answer them within 24-36 hours.

Financial Independence at 38 (year 2023)