CPA Explains: How to Retire in 5 to 7 Years - Low/No Savings

I retired 21 years ago at 45 mainly by reducing my spending and having side gigs I enjoyed and brought in cash sometimes. Biggest has been slow flipping my home. Working on home #4 now. But there's the rub. Most people I know hate their job because they hate working...period. No interest in anything other than consuming. No interest in finding new interests.

However for me the biggest issue by far was being able to feel secure. Retiring but spend nights staring at the ceiling worried about money, investments, etc... I'd say you made a poor choice. And I did that for several years. Coming to terms with that wasn't easy. I did it by telling myself I could always go back to work. I was a software engineer so that was reasonable. That gave me the security to enjoy retirement. Also hard, but helped, was to give myself permission to do retirement things. For me it was 2-4 hour walks everyday. I could finish getting a house ready to sell a lot faster if I didn't take those walks. I have to remind myself enjoying retirement is the whole point to retiring.

This needs to be titled “Common sense Investing Tips”. Not worth watching if you have basic knowledge of investing. And if you are 5 years out from retirement and you didn’t know these things already you don’t deserve to retire.

I stopped using local CPA's. They didn't have the expertise. They would say "Well looks like you have to pay the tax on that". Now I use Tax Services for overseas contractors. They are fast and professional. I get big refunds.

It’s such a blessing that my husband and I aren’t just married, but we’re also each other’s best strategic partner in business. I’m great at what he lacks, he’s great at what I lack and we have an Adviser to work with. Praise God!! And thank you for the awesome content!!!

Im new to the channel and I was caught way off guard by the intro and channel name. 😂😂😂😭😭

I have always lived like I was poor…and now I’m not!

I do not buy anything on a credit card that I cannot payoff at the end of the month.
There is a name for us that the credit card companies use.
Maybe, slackers.
I am getting rid of a few subscriptions, etc.

I iterate by paying down my mortgage faster. That interest savings is more than I'd save in the market.

This is entering the realm of clickbait. Not sure how cutting menial cost helps anyone retire in 5-7 years. I already do all that and more for the past 10+ years. I save 50+% of my income, live below my means, and even have a perfect 850 credit score but Im no where near retirement.

I lost my job during the pandemic at age 62 and was unemployed for almost 3 years. I lived off my meager savings. I finally received a job offer this year, making less than half of what I used to make. So here I am age 66, no real savings, and forced to work. I hope that our younger generations save more money then I ever did, that they buy a house when young (I bought my primary resident at age 59). I have a lot of anxiety about losing everything I have worked so hard to achieve. As it is, this is not sustainable for me due to health issues. Best of luck to everyone.

Thanks,sir. The video is very good and the explanations are very detailed.I've been learning about the options market recently.
It's a high leverage, high-risk financial produc with a lot of unpredictable factors. I appreciate your video, which has been a great help to me. I'm also looking for a more beginner-friendlv platform.

"Gazelle intensity" 🦌....my people...😁 ..You can dooo it.
Careful with a personal business investments, at an old age. Not a sure thing, some hit, some have to shut down operations. Some only do well for a while.

I have no credit score because I don’t borrow money anymore, how is that going to effect my retirement?

I am very concerned about the direction we are going in as a country and how it has affected out retirement savings. This makes me leery of investing. I’m afraid of losing pour investment and having nothing.

I’d be retiring or working less in 5 years, and considering possible recession, I’m curious to know best how people split their pay, how much of it goes into savings, spendings or investments, I earn around $180K per year but nothing to show for it yet.

I am a teacher moving into an administrative position. I will have a pension through the state when I retire. I would like to invest into something else (i.e. Roth IRA, etc) to set myself up for a comfortable future. If you had 35 years to invest in something before retiring, what would it be and why

Amazing! Thank you!!

Recently, I've been thinking of investing in dividend stocks for retirement, and I've set aside $350,000 to do so. However, I'm getting cold feet, maybe because I'm a beginner with no understanding what I'm doing; please advise.

Great info, but try to move your lighting to about a 45 degree angle instead of straight on. The reflection in your glasses are very distracting.

This is good. I'm 76 and need a passive income doing something. I just don't know where to start. It would help pay for my golfing.

Is it safe..IRA,?? bank closure?

Litmus test: If you have a two-car garage and can fit both vehicles inside at the same time your spending is most likely under control in the USA.

I can’t read the list of Opportunity Categories that fast or remember them! Please add text to the screen that spells out which Opportunity Category you are calling by its number.

The most powerful change I made that started an avalanche of savings is to stop buying cars and reduce the expenses associated with them. The total cost of car ownership is extremely high when you consider the actual utility you get from them. Cars are generally parked during the day and not used. Therefore, you have a depreciating asset taking over a thousand dollars of cashflow out of your budget (car note, insurance, taxes, etc.). In 2007, I decided to be more purposeful about my car use and combined trips whenever possible. In addition, I let Amazon and others do the movement of products to my home whenever possible. My 2007 car was paid off in 2010 and currently has 32K miles. I use the car strategically and have it for times when I decide I want to use it (tired, late night, long trips, etc.). Thirteen years of no car payments and very low operating costs allowed my to invest/save with zero discomfort.

If you own a home, schedule when you want to perform upgrades/maintenance based on opportunities (sales, rebates, tax incentives, etc.). As you prepare for retirement, there will be a window where it makes sense to sell and downsize. If your house has been updated, it will be market-ready and you can sell on the market uptick and buy the downsized unit on a market recession.

When you can save, life seems less cloudy and more sunny. One can PLAN for the future instead of REACTING to things that happen.

Since "ask for tax advice" is one of your 6 cost control suggestions, it would be helpful to know how to shop for tax advice, and how to know how much to pay. Up to now, as a W2 employee for whom the standard deduction seems adequate, tax software has seemed sufficient. With a kid in college and retirement (and new and different income types and streams) lurking just beyond that, I gather that my tax situation (and associated FAFSA concerns) is becoming more somewhat more complex. But the market for "tax professionals" seems complex and opaque. Do I need a CPA, or is that really only important for a business owner or someone with lots of investment income? Is talking to a person at a company like H&R Block an adequate and appropriate next step? A video with a run-down on this subject would be helpful.

Thank you for providing such valuable information. It's exactly what I needed to hear. Both my wife and I serve as directors for our farm business, and we also own property along with our small pensions. As I approach the age of 55 and my wife is 52, we have initiated our savings journey towards retirement from the farm. Our aim is to potentially rely on rental income to support our retirement lifestyle. I would greatly appreciate it if you could organize a live session where you discuss strategies for earning passive income online and achieving a comfortable retirement, with a target goal of $1M.

I did it. It's possible! It took me about 8 years. And I started with little savings. I am lucky that I also had a pension aside from SS.

You're starting to sound a little like Baracules Geoff! I'm surprised if you follow his channel. 🙂

Fortunately (or unfortunately?) none of these 6 categories apply to me.

At beginning you mentioned NY but photo looked like Chicago to me. Sorry format of the video hurt my eyes as background was to white. Seems presentation was rushed. Need to revisit it later.

😊😊😊

I am applying these tips now! Thanks for the videos i am learning a lot about finance. I add my last raise to my 401k instead of increasing my spending

Great video. Hubby and I are already retired but appreciated the good information. It would be scary to not be prepared for retirement. I think most people don’t worry about saving for retirement when they are young. I know I could have done more when I was younger but just didn’t worry about it.

Hi Geoff,
You truly are a genius … Thank you for your priceless videos.

Zero debt. 2nd job.
Max out 401k.
Live on $300 a week.

Unless there was an unexpected catastrophe, there is NO excuse for having essentially no money moving to the retirement years. Q: Did you know age 65 was coming?

The most important step is to cut expenses to the bone. At age 60, I was $30k in debt with no savings and panicked! I looked at EVERY line item in my monthly budget and trimmed it by at least 20%. I moved to a cheaper place, started a side gig, eat 2 meals a day instead of 3, changed my phone and insurance plans, stopped buying anything other than necessities, eliminated all debt and improved my FICO from 580 to 780. Now I'm 62 and save over 60% of my monthly income in a HYSA. You must be willing to sacrifice for a short time to win.

Reduce spending, quickest path IMO

I used to be indecisive but now I'm not sure.

We turned our taxes over to a CPA over a decade ago & it was one of the best moves we’ve made. He helped us save on taxes when we gifted to our children money from a windfall a few years ago. CPAs: they’re not just for taxes anymore!

Selling drugs like Walter White?

Hum, I thought this was going to be a bit more in depth.

Great information as always!
Happy Memorial Day and God bless America and for those that gave the ultimate sacrifice so we may be free 🇺🇸✨❤️
Thanks to everyone who have served and continue thus far.

YOU MAY EARN MORE MONEY BUT INFLATION EATS IT UP

Your precise presentation makes your videos a pleasure to watch.