You can if you retire at 33 or at 40. That's buying back time. If you are retiring at 55, 60, 65, sorry la. No buying back time then. That's the purpose of FIRE the RE - retire early. You step away before the official retirement age and become unemployed and unproductive to the country. 😁 (My goal)

This post has been edited by Ramjade: Oct 3 2025, 11:31 PM

easier said than done. You cannot buy back time, because time really changes everything. What you're really buying is a different expectations of standards of living.

10 years ago my thinking was like you. I was just 30 y/o. I spent some time working in sg and earning equivalent of RM20k in malaysia. Calculated the amount needed for retirement already, all set for 40 y/o target. Then around 35 I came back to malaysia with a paycut to work the remaining 5 years, relax abit because already exceeded my target.

But coming back to malaysia changes everything since now i'm spending more time with family. family starts to have expectations. family wants to go for annual european trips. family wants to stay in bigger houses. well, I have the money, so why not? But after buying all these, retirement plan at 40 also went away, now i'm expecting to delay until 50.

unless you can really keep with the lifestyle and standards of living when you started your retirement plan at 30, then you can be successful in FIRE. But most people, including me, will have mindset change as time progresses and wealth accumulates. That's why I say it is easier said than done and don't count on it until you really reach that point in time

lol. It’s like the ceteris paribus principle in economics, where all other remains equal or unchanged. Such is life. Like someone said, adapt adapt adapt. 🤣👍

I would say it's about the same actually. I noticed for similar stuff in Singapore and Malaysia, the difference is around 20-30% higher in Singapore after converting to RM. So if they need around 6M+ and in Malaysia thinking 5M, then I think it's about right.


I'm quite interested to know what do you mean about FIRE buying back your time. Today you are 30 years old, you parents maybe 55-60 years old. Due to your obsession to FIRE, you neglected your parents well being until you are 40 years old when FIRE is achieved. Your parents health etc will still same like 10 years back just because now you can pay more? I'm using your parents as an example as you are just going to get married, so I'm not sure when you will have kids, but eventually it will still be the same. Within these 10 years, your net worth is not the only thing that is changing.

This post has been edited by jasontoh: Oct 4 2025, 02:13 AM

Time cannot be bought.....retiring early isn't buying time... It is shorting your own compounding.....selling growth at a discount .

Time is now! You are wasting precious time slogging for fire ...you mortgage your present time for a future that may not show up...

Or at best trading golden hours now for bronze years later.

Can. Very important thing your spouse and family must be on the same page as you. That was my negotiable to my future wife. She must be able to live like B40. Know the struggles we have to make now.

What you faced was lifestyle inflation. Oh I have more money, need to upgrade my lifestyle. To pursue FIRE you cannot let lifestyle inflation in. Try to avoid it as much as possible because a little bit little that's how you let it in.

That's why I feel RM5m is sufficient. I want to reach at least SGD1m before I ease off. If can maybe USD1m. I can do that assuming I can generate min 12%p.a via my options. RM5m > USD1m

Remember what I say about wealth is health? That's what I am doing with my parents. There are ways to biohack their health. If you got the money, spend it on health, you won't regret it. Having healthy parents is very important. They already say they won't travel. So go walking with them in parks. They don't eat out. So my parents are very easy people. I told you I came from poverty so I am still living the poverty life.

You need to read ASSI blog. He is one of those that FIRE in his 40s and have been spending time with his parents. Now he is 55. He got extra 10 years with his parents. 10 years not wasting time in the office or work place. 10 years to be at their side. Bring them go shopping, makan.
https://singaporeanstocksinvestor.blogspot.com/?m=1

That's where you are wrong.
Remember equation about time, energy, money? Play with that.

People say in 30 or 40 you don't have money or no time? What if you got all 3 time, energy and money in your 30s or 40s? That's my goal. You have at least 40 years to enjoy your life Vs 10 years. That's a very big difference. No boss to answer to. Not at mercy of your job. No need to worry what if tomorrow no job? Can my kids and wife survive? That is buying back your time. Spending good quality time with parents, kids and spouse. That is buying back time.

Would you rather travel now when you got no illness and energy Vs when you are old? Now is your golden years. Yes I agree. Goldenr years to do what you want to do in life and have no regrets.

What is there to shorten compounding if you already have more than enough having more won't do anything extra? Also unless you stop investing completely or use up all your cash every month, your compounding stops. There are other ways to compound without working. I know you are antiFIRE. For me, my dividends will continue growing at 10-20%p.a. I will still be doing options. So I am still compounding even though I won't be working. I may have turn off one stream of income but I still got 2 steam of income bringing in money. The 2 stream will bring in more money even though I am not working. That's working smart.

This post has been edited by Ramjade: Oct 4 2025, 07:16 AM

This RM5m net worth is for your whole family or yourself & spouse or per person?

Whole family. But that calculation is just for myself, haven't factor in future wifey part. Always use a conservative calculations. Never be aggressive so that by being conservative, you build in buffer so that you can make mistakes or your buffer exceed your conservative estimate.

So yeah likely going to be more. I don't care about net worth as I invest for cash flow. I don't follow the traditional FIRE or retirement where I am going to sell my assets.

This post has been edited by Ramjade: Oct 4 2025, 08:19 AM

A decade or so ago when i just came into the forum, i said we need at least 4 million for fire and everyone laugh at me. Fast forward to now, some even says need 10 million.

Depends on how much you want to spend in retirement and your lifestyle. If like my parents easily can get by with RM2k/month. But if you factor in inflation, maybe RM4k around 20-30 years time.

It all comes down to how minimum you can live. I already can hear some here will say work so hard and don't enjoy money for what.

This post has been edited by Ramjade: Oct 4 2025, 11:20 AM

hmmm, I think back then your "at least 4 million" statement was just a bit too broad. u were refering to value of money back in 2010, whilst others maybe looking at future number money.
Ie if we take 4 million in 2010 and compound it at 5% a year, that’s already about 8 million today. So it consistent why some now say 8 or 10 million.

People also feel inflation and lifestyle shifts differently. What felt comfortable back then might not cut it now. Pretty sure, come 2040, we'll probably see someone else saying, "You need 16 to 20 million for FIRE!" and the whole cycle repeats again.

Still, in all seriousness, back in 2010, having 4m is "more than enuf" to fire... in 2025, 4m is "enuf" to fire... as long as that 4m can generate adequate income to cover expenses whether in 2010 or 2025. But their value is diff, if you get what I mean.

(tldr: the number has to be indexed to the year)

This post has been edited by Wedchar2912: Oct 4 2025, 01:26 PM

Other than life expenses (and inflation effect on those), will also depend on:

1. Year u want to retire. Retirement at 2026 will.have a different number than retire at 2036 due to inflation.

2. How long the retirement period. Someone retiring at 40 will need a bigger amount than someone retiring at 65 due to the longer period of retirement.

3. Expected investment return rates.

4. legacies planned for ones beneficiaries

you don't need 4 million to fire, nor 10 million. 1-2 million is good enough. The caveat is you don't go for overseas trips, stay in a 500k condo instead of 2 mil landed house, and drive an axia instead of bmw/mercs.

The problem is, when you really reach your 2 mil accumulated wealth, then most people will tend to buy that 2 mil landed, drive that bmw, and go for european holidays.

That's right. That's why I said depends on how much you can live by. If you don't have much wants can get by with RM1m or lesser.

This post has been edited by Ramjade: Oct 4 2025, 06:56 PM

Which country to go for European holidays? just saw a YouTube on how bad paris has become.

Switzerland

good condo fees expensive... cheap condo bad upkeep...

Sure i remember saying how you compartmentalised your life so rigidly.
and advised you to play with it.

trade a little of each for another, enjoy your golden hours now.
Time is now,
you can never buy back!




to retire early you slog hard, work like a donkey(your word), live poor below B40, do every OT available....to buy time?


Why 'buy time' later when you dont appreciate it now?

you dont need early retirement to buy time,
just stop selling all now

work smart should mean no suffering,
you can enjoy now and still retire well later.

itu baru balance life bro..
not your all or nothing method...

Switzerland, Poland, Norway, Finland. Poland is very strict with their border. They will remain one of the last European stronghold.

Actually all or nothing. You cannot have both based off the traditional FIRE way. It's very rigid that is why lots of people cannot tahan and invent all sorts of derivative so they can feel good and "think they can FIRE". Is whether you want to ease off now slightly and work extra 5 years or be done with it ASAP. If you choose to be done with it ASAP, you get more years to enjoy without stupid bosses, companies KPIs, companies which don't care about their workers. That's a reason why FIRE people can do it. They stick to it and bear with it (the traditional FIRE). When you are desperate and poor you will find a way.

This post has been edited by Ramjade: Oct 5 2025, 06:39 AM