Anonymous
Post 01/20/2026 16:04     Subject: At 35, is 1M a big enough nest egg
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:For a nice retirement? My DH is the higher earner, but taking a well deserved step back and got a nice Fed position. We'll both be GS-15, maxing out TSP contributions, but won't be able to invest in our brokerage in a meaningful way with expenses. Our house is worth about 900k and we still owe 500k on it, at pandemic level interest rates.

I realize I'm fortunate but it's weird not to be able to contribute to the brokerage account anymore. We're in a total world index fund fwiw



Children? Are you aware that private colleges are now almost $100,000 a year x 4 x how many children you have to put through? Add in taking care of elderly parents, surprise costs like SN kids, speciality doctors, testing, shrinks and SN schools … and you’ll
Have even less if fate removes one of you as a bread earner. I hope you have good life insurance too.


They have investments plus make 350k-400k a year. They will be fine.


A) investments were unspecified.
B) you have to pay tax on that $350k a year at the 35% level = that’s $140k gone. Incime is now down to $210k
C) they owe half a million. At Covid interest rates on a 30 year fixed, they are paying $2016 or more a month. Now down to $175
D) now you pay TSP, foid, car, insurance, life, disability, clothes, taking car of family
D) they said nothing about children, plans or otherwise.
E) they have spent everthing they made.
F) you can’t retire in “unspecified” amount of investments even if it compounded forever.
G) if ine if them loses their job or becomes disabled or stays at home, they might have to dip into “unspecified” savings to pay down the $500k


What are you ranting on about? They didn’t say they were quitting their jobs. Christ, you can’t even read and are giving them advice?
Anonymous
Post 01/20/2026 15:46     Subject: At 35, is 1M a big enough nest egg
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:For a nice retirement? My DH is the higher earner, but taking a well deserved step back and got a nice Fed position. We'll both be GS-15, maxing out TSP contributions, but won't be able to invest in our brokerage in a meaningful way with expenses. Our house is worth about 900k and we still owe 500k on it, at pandemic level interest rates.

I realize I'm fortunate but it's weird not to be able to contribute to the brokerage account anymore. We're in a total world index fund fwiw



Children? Are you aware that private colleges are now almost $100,000 a year x 4 x how many children you have to put through? Add in taking care of elderly parents, surprise costs like SN kids, speciality doctors, testing, shrinks and SN schools … and you’ll
Have even less if fate removes one of you as a bread earner. I hope you have good life insurance too.


I went to two of those $100K universities... massive waste of money. I'd never pay for anyone else to go.

By the way, I went 100% on my own scholarships, grants, and work study. It was super easy to do. My parents didn't pay a dime, and thank God they didn't waste their money on such garbage. It's only worth it if it is mostly free.
Anonymous
Post 01/20/2026 13:47     Subject: At 35, is 1M a big enough nest egg
Anonymous wrote:College will be around 100K a kid for a average school in ten to 15 years. If you have three kids that alone will cost you 12 million


You are missing a key decimal. College will cost $1.2M, if OP's kids all go to the most expensive possible colleges.
Anonymous
Post 01/20/2026 13:43     Subject: At 35, is 1M a big enough nest egg
College will be around 100K a kid for a average school in ten to 15 years. If you have three kids that alone will cost you 12 million
Anonymous
Post 01/20/2026 12:18     Subject: At 35, is 1M a big enough nest egg
You will have dual fed pension, there is nothing to worry about
Anonymous
Post 01/20/2026 10:18     Subject: At 35, is 1M a big enough nest egg
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:For a nice retirement? My DH is the higher earner, but taking a well deserved step back and got a nice Fed position. We'll both be GS-15, maxing out TSP contributions, but won't be able to invest in our brokerage in a meaningful way with expenses. Our house is worth about 900k and we still owe 500k on it, at pandemic level interest rates.

I realize I'm fortunate but it's weird not to be able to contribute to the brokerage account anymore. We're in a total world index fund fwiw



Children? Are you aware that private colleges are now almost $100,000 a year x 4 x how many children you have to put through? Add in taking care of elderly parents, surprise costs like SN kids, speciality doctors, testing, shrinks and SN schools … and you’ll
Have even less if fate removes one of you as a bread earner. I hope you have good life insurance too.


They have investments plus make 350k-400k a year. They will be fine.


A) investments were unspecified.
B) you have to pay tax on that $350k a year at the 35% level = that’s $140k gone. Incime is now down to $210k
C) they owe half a million. At Covid interest rates on a 30 year fixed, they are paying $2016 or more a month. Now down to $175
D) now you pay TSP, foid, car, insurance, life, disability, clothes, taking car of family
D) they said nothing about children, plans or otherwise.
E) they have spent everthing they made.
F) you can’t retire in “unspecified” amount of investments even if it compounded forever.
G) if ine if them loses their job or becomes disabled or stays at home, they might have to dip into “unspecified” savings to pay down the $500k


You cannot possibly be this dumb. Please don’t give financial advice.
Anonymous
Post 01/20/2026 10:15     Subject: At 35, is 1M a big enough nest egg
Anonymous wrote:As a fellow fed you’re really giving all of us a bad name….or more likely a troll trying to stir up anti-fed sentiment


+1.
Anonymous
Post 01/19/2026 15:26     Subject: At 35, is 1M a big enough nest egg
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:For a nice retirement? My DH is the higher earner, but taking a well deserved step back and got a nice Fed position. We'll both be GS-15, maxing out TSP contributions, but won't be able to invest in our brokerage in a meaningful way with expenses. Our house is worth about 900k and we still owe 500k on it, at pandemic level interest rates.

I realize I'm fortunate but it's weird not to be able to contribute to the brokerage account anymore. We're in a total world index fund fwiw



Children? Are you aware that private colleges are now almost $100,000 a year x 4 x how many children you have to put through? Add in taking care of elderly parents, surprise costs like SN kids, speciality doctors, testing, shrinks and SN schools … and you’ll
Have even less if fate removes one of you as a bread earner. I hope you have good life insurance too.


They have investments plus make 350k-400k a year. They will be fine.


A) investments were unspecified.
B) you have to pay tax on that $350k a year at the 35% level = that’s $140k gone. Incime is now down to $210k
C) they owe half a million. At Covid interest rates on a 30 year fixed, they are paying $2016 or more a month. Now down to $175
D) now you pay TSP, foid, car, insurance, life, disability, clothes, taking car of family
D) they said nothing about children, plans or otherwise.
E) they have spent everthing they made.
F) you can’t retire in “unspecified” amount of investments even if it compounded forever.
G) if ine if them loses their job or becomes disabled or stays at home, they might have to dip into “unspecified” savings to pay down the $500k
Anonymous
Post 01/19/2026 15:02     Subject: At 35, is 1M a big enough nest egg
The number doesn't matter.
The growth rate and the growth rate of the growth rate matter.
Anonymous
Post 01/19/2026 14:52     Subject: At 35, is 1M a big enough nest egg
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:Lmao, yes, it’s enough. If you don’t put a dime into it, it’ll be $7.5 million at 65 in today’s dollars (i.e., controlled for projected inflation). From that, you can safely withdraw 350k a year in today’s dollars with like a 95% chance of not drawing down the principal.

If you can’t comfortably live on 350k/yr in retirement, I judge the shit out of you.


But it's not a comfortable amount to say quit your job now and "retire".



That wasn’t the question.
Anonymous
Post 01/19/2026 14:50     Subject: At 35, is 1M a big enough nest egg
Anonymous wrote:Lmao, yes, it’s enough. If you don’t put a dime into it, it’ll be $7.5 million at 65 in today’s dollars (i.e., controlled for projected inflation). From that, you can safely withdraw 350k a year in today’s dollars with like a 95% chance of not drawing down the principal.

If you can’t comfortably live on 350k/yr in retirement, I judge the shit out of you.


But it's not a comfortable amount to say quit your job now and "retire".

Anonymous
Post 01/19/2026 14:44     Subject: At 35, is 1M a big enough nest egg
Anonymous wrote:For a nice retirement? My DH is the higher earner, but taking a well deserved step back and got a nice Fed position. We'll both be GS-15, maxing out TSP contributions, but won't be able to invest in our brokerage in a meaningful way with expenses. Our house is worth about 900k and we still owe 500k on it, at pandemic level interest rates.

I realize I'm fortunate but it's weird not to be able to contribute to the brokerage account anymore. We're in a total world index fund fwiw



The Internet is filled with so many useful information about Debra Evans Flyte.
Anonymous
Post 01/18/2026 22:17     Subject: At 35, is 1M a big enough nest egg
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:For a nice retirement? My DH is the higher earner, but taking a well deserved step back and got a nice Fed position. We'll both be GS-15, maxing out TSP contributions, but won't be able to invest in our brokerage in a meaningful way with expenses. Our house is worth about 900k and we still owe 500k on it, at pandemic level interest rates.

I realize I'm fortunate but it's weird not to be able to contribute to the brokerage account anymore. We're in a total world index fund fwiw



Children? Are you aware that private colleges are now almost $100,000 a year x 4 x how many children you have to put through? Add in taking care of elderly parents, surprise costs like SN kids, speciality doctors, testing, shrinks and SN schools … and you’ll
Have even less if fate removes one of you as a bread earner. I hope you have good life insurance too.


They have investments plus make 350k-400k a year. They will be fine.
Anonymous
Post 01/18/2026 21:35     Subject: At 35, is 1M a big enough nest egg
Anonymous wrote:For a nice retirement? My DH is the higher earner, but taking a well deserved step back and got a nice Fed position. We'll both be GS-15, maxing out TSP contributions, but won't be able to invest in our brokerage in a meaningful way with expenses. Our house is worth about 900k and we still owe 500k on it, at pandemic level interest rates.

I realize I'm fortunate but it's weird not to be able to contribute to the brokerage account anymore. We're in a total world index fund fwiw



Children? Are you aware that private colleges are now almost $100,000 a year x 4 x how many children you have to put through? Add in taking care of elderly parents, surprise costs like SN kids, speciality doctors, testing, shrinks and SN schools … and you’ll
Have even less if fate removes one of you as a bread earner. I hope you have good life insurance too.
Anonymous
Post 01/18/2026 21:31     Subject: At 35, is 1M a big enough nest egg
If OP and DH pit it all in TSP C-fund (or an S&P500 index fund with low expense ratio) and leave it alone for 20-30 years, it will grow a lot. Both should contribute to TSP at least enough to get the full match, ideally to the max allowed TSP contribution. Again, stick to C fund.

Ask the Bogleheads folks online also. Better financial advice there.