SINGAPORE: A 30-year-old Singaporean man has sparked a lively discussion online after asking if it would be “too extreme” to retire early, now that he’s hit a major financial milestone.
Posting on the r/singaporefi subreddit on Saturday (June 21), the man explained that he’s currently single and lives in a nearly fully paid-up two-bedroom condo, with only a small $500 monthly mortgage, fully covered by his CPF. He also shared that he has about S$1 million in savings and investments. His annual income ranges from S$200,000 to S$250,000, while his monthly expenses are kept relatively low, around S$3,000.
“I’m thinking of quitting and FIRE now since my savings and investments can cover my lifestyle. I will travel, exercise, do some hobbies, and maybe start a YouTube/Instagram page to talk about investing/my life as a retiree. Should I retire now at 30 years old? ”he wrote.
“Not sure if I’m crazy to retire so early and get out of the rat race. Anyone can relate or have suggestions? Will I be too bored and waste my life away?”
“You should just retire first. Try it out.”
His post drew a wide range of responses from fellow Redditors. Some encouraged him to go for it, noting that many people have retired with far less in the bank.
They also praised him for his discipline and said he deserved to enjoy the fruits of his labour. One commented, “Just do it! You can always go back and do some random work if you feel bored or need to do something later, but you’re never going to have this health and time back again.”
Another added, “The whole point of getting up every day and going to work is to make enough money so you can stop getting up every day to go to work… if you think you have enough money, I see no reason to delay it.”
Others, however, were more cautious. They raised concerns about long-term sustainability, inflation, and whether he might end up feeling lost without the structure of a job.
One user advised, “S$1m these days won’t go a long way. If you decide to have even one kid, you’ll realise how fast your bank account will drain. Work till 40 at least and save up more for contingencies/emergencies, etc., too. A 5% yield on your savings won’t help much, honestly.”
Another shared his own experience, “You should just retire first. Try it out. I FIRE-d once when I was 31. Then went back to work at 32 because OMG it’s so damn boring. You’ll realise you are completely alone. Your friends are still working. I’ve FIRE-d again last year since I was laid off. I’ll wait till I’m bored again to go back to work.”
How much do you really need to retire?
According to investment firm Fidelity International, your FIRE number – which stands for “Financial Independence, Retire Early” – is the amount of savings and investments you’d need to stop working and still maintain your lifestyle. The most common way to calculate it is by multiplying your annual expenses by 25. So if you think you’ll need about S$40,000 a year to live comfortably, your FIRE number would be around S$1 million.
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