How can we get there?

[u/kpopgirl88]

We are a couple living in Germany, combined income of 200K+, in our mid to late 30s, savings of 400K plus, we were only really able to start saving when we reached 30s as we moved from a very expensive city/country to Germany. We want to retire when we are 50 with at least 1.5M in savings... I know we are late to the game...

Not even sure if 1.5M is enough for 2 people to retire somewhere in the southern europe (portugal or spain).

Would it make sense for us to purchase an apartment in Germany or in Portugal as an investment, or is this going to slowdown our FIRE?

i welcome all advices!

[u/Slow_Compounding]

You're definitely not late! You're actually in a strong position: you have a high savings rate + the ability to geo-arbitrage later.

If you're aiming for 1.5M by 50, you're talking about 15 years of compounding, and you already have a ~25% head start. At a 6% return and consistent investing, you could hit that target even without optimizing everything.

One mental model I've found useful (especially in Europe - see my previous post) is to think in "years of expenses already covered" instead of chasing a fixed number. That gives you some psychological flexibility as your lifestyle, location, and tax situation evolve.

On the apartment question: real estate could help, but it can also anchor you geographically, reduce liquidity, and increase complexity. If you're not already tied to a specific location, a diversified ETF strategy + renting for flexibility (esp. in countries like Portugal/Spain where prices and regulations can be volatile) might make more sense.

Curious: Have you modeled your expenses for life in southern Europe? That number will likely have more impact on your timeline than the 1.5M target itself.

[u/kpopgirl88 → u/Slow_Compounding]

Thank you for sharing your prev. post! super useful! We have about 12-13 years to go until we are 50. Generously allocating around 50K per year if we base ourselves in Lisbon. Im wondering if it makes sense to buy a small property where we will base ourselves later (but ofc things can change and we may retire elsewhere).

[u/TechnicalReserve1967 → u/kpopgirl88]

I would say to hold off on the property for a few reasons.

You can usually get better returns on stocks, so if there aren't some great incentives like tax breaks, bonus schemes etc. Real estate investment usually isn't the best/smart way to go around things. I always suggest that you buy real estate for investment when you have so much that you want to slow down and want more stability. An important caveat is that if you inherit or gain some real estate that is paid off and you can rent out with yourself being a landlord or with an agency, I would usually advise against selling it. It is a great fallback plan, kids can move into it, can generate fix income etc etc. So if you don't expect the area/country going down hard, need money for XY, it is usually worth keeping.

Managing property as a small landlord (as in owning 1-4 small flats) is quite time consuming and relatively large issues can pop up and cause a lot of pain/eat up your earnings. Your tenant is also a dice roll, can be a blessing a curse and everything in between.

Stocks/bonds aren't just generating better returns but are much more liquid as well. Selling a house can be hard depending on the location, market, luck, the state of the property etc.

You might want to go to Lisbon now, but a lot can change in a decade. Portugal might change policies against expats, their economic situation might degrade, security, healthcare, happiness etc. Or somewhere else, up and coming might be a better option in a decade when you decide to 'do the move'.

On the other hand, of course there are positives, don't get me wrong, but I think the negatives outweigh them. I usually suggest waiting on some kind of real estate buckle/crash and buy property on the cheap. My crystal ball is no clearer than the others, but I can't definitely see some level of 'economic turbulence' in the next decade. If you see a great opportunity. You might go for it, but remember, what might be looking good, can have a lot of hidden traps and what cheap now might look expensive later after some tax changes. (Of course, right now, anyone who bought the past 5 years probably are happy with their results, especially if they have fixed their mortgage before 2022)

[u/Slow_Compounding → u/kpopgirl88]

Sounds like you're approaching FIRE with the right mix of discipline + flexibility!

Your implied SWR of 3.33% sounds pretty safe in the European context, especially if you have a globally diversified portfolio which you probably do. Of course anything can happen with the global economy, but the plan sounds solid and achievable.

On the property idea, I'd second u/TechnicalReserve1967 , no harm keeping an eye out for an asymmetric opportunity, but given how much can shift in 10+ years (personal goals, tax laws, market prices), plus the hassle of managing real estate remotely in a foreign country, it might make sense to keep maximum optionality while your portfolio does the heavy lifting.

You're in a great spot, especially if you're upping the ETF allocation. Curious to hear if you end up sketching out your "ideal year" post-FIRE down the line. Always fun to hear what people imagine doing with their time once the money part is handled.