Young Research & Publishing Inc.

Investment Research Since 1978

Disclosure

  • About Us
    • Contributors
    • Archives
    • The Final Richard C. Young’s Intelligence Report
    • You’ve Read The Last Issue of Intelligence Report, Now What?
    • Dick Young’s Research Key: Anecdotal Evidence Gathering
    • Crisis at Vanguard
  • Investment Analysis
    • Bonds
    • Currencies and Gold
    • Dividend Investing
    • ETFs & Funds
    • Investment Strategy
    • Retirement Investing
    • Stocks
    • The Efficient Frontier
  • Investment Counsel
  • Dynamic Maximizers®
  • Retirement Compounders®
  • Free Email Signup
  • Dick Young’s Safe America

The FIRE Movement by the Numbers

July 16, 2019 By E.J. Smith

By Eviart @ Shutterstock.com

The financial industry is full of anecdotes and stories by writers (myself included) providing their own perspective on events. The FIRE (financial independence, retire early) movement is blessed with many blogs and podcasts discussing the early retirement journeys.

But anecdotes never tell the whole story, so I want to give you some numbers on the FIRE movement. These numbers were assembled by a Harris Poll conducted for TD Ameritrade.

How Many People Are Aware of the FIRE Movement?

  • 11% Know about FIRE
  • 26% Are familiar with the concept but not the term
  • 63% Are not familiar with the idea of FIRE at all

That’s a pretty small portion of the population that knows about FIRE, but it appears to be increasing quickly. Over the last five years, there has been a 94% jump in the number of Google searches for “Financial Independence Retire Early.”

What Are The Most Important Steps in Order to Achieve FIRE?

According to financially independent people interviewed for the Harris Poll, these are the most important steps in achieving FIRE.

  1. Avoiding high interest debt
  2. Sticking to a budget
  3. Investing in the stock market
  4. Maxing out retirement savings
  5. Downsizing my lifestyle
  6. Pursuing side career/secondary income
  7. Living in a cheaper state
  8. Buying only used cars
  9. Pursuing a higher income career
  10. Limiting cont. to my children’s education
  11. Living in a cheaper country
  12. Limiting financial support for my parents

How Much Do You Need to Save for FIRE?

Not everyone shares the same view of how much money they need for financial independence. The poll ranked various net wealth targets by dollar value and found the percentage of people who felt that was the appropriate amount necessary to achieve FIRE.

  • 8% chose Less than $500,000
  • 23% chose $500,000-$999,999
  • 33% chose $1,000,000-$1,999,999
  • 18% chose $2,000,000-$2,999,999
  • 7% chose $3,000,000-$3,999,999
  • 4% chose $4,000,000-$4,999,999
  • 8% chose $5,000,000+

The study is a valuable tool for understanding the FIRE movement. Read more about the FIRE movement in my series by clicking here.

Originally posted on Your Survival Guy. 

Share this:

  • Email
  • Twitter
  • Facebook

You Might Also Like:

  • Top 10 “Retirement Killers”
  • Have You Already Lost Hope for Retirement?
  • Your Retirement Life: It’s OK to Take It Easy
  • Author
  • Recent Posts
E.J. Smith
E.J. Smith is Founder of YourSurvivalGuy.com, Managing Director at Richard C. Young & Co., Ltd., a Managing Editor of Richardcyoung.com, and Editor-in-Chief of Youngresearch.com. His focus at all times is on preparing clients and readers for “Times Like These.” E.J. graduated from Babson College in Wellesley, Massachusetts, with a B.S. in finance and investments. In 1995, E.J. began his investment career at Fidelity Investments in Boston before joining Richard C. Young & Co., Ltd. in 1998. E.J. has trained at Sig Sauer Academy in Epping, NH. His first drum set was a 5-piece Slingerland with Zilldjians. He grew-up worshiping Neil Peart (RIP) of the band Rush, and loves the song Tom Sawyer—the name of his family’s boat, a Grady-White Canyon 306. He grew up in Mattapoisett, MA, an idyllic small town on the water near Cape Cod. He spends time in Newport, RI and Bartlett, NH—both as far away from Wall Street as one could mentally get. The Newport office is on a quiet, tree lined street not far from the harbor and the log cabin in Bartlett, NH, the “Live Free or Die” state, sits on the edge of the White Mountain National Forest. He enjoys spending time in Key West and Paris.

Please get in touch with E.J. at ejsmith@youngresearch.com
Latest posts by E.J. Smith (see all)
  • Your Retirement Life: Meet Your BMW Club Racing Program Director - January 22, 2021
  • Do You Know Who’s the Largest Owner of Farmland in America? - January 21, 2021
  • I’ve Been in Richard Young’s Maximizers for Years - January 20, 2021

Search Young Research

Most Popular

  • The Fed is Sacrificing Retirees to Save the Banks
  • Dick Young’s Safe America: Chapter 1, Part I
  • I’ve Been in Richard Young’s Maximizers for Years
  • Vanguard Wellesley (VWINX) vs. Wellington (VWELX): Which Fund is Best?
  • The Power of a Compound Interest Table
  • Whether Through Audacity or Ignorance, Stock Fundamentals Are Being Ignored
  • The Highest Yielding S&P 500 Stocks
  • Smith Family Robinson in Live Free or Die, NH
  • Jim Simons's Renaissance Technologies vs. Internet Forum Traders
  • February RAGE Gauge: Americans Focusing on What's In Front of Them

Don’t Miss

Default Risk Among the Many Concerns with Annuities

Risk and Reward: An Efficient Frontier

How to be a Billionaire: Proven Strategies from the Titans of Wealth

Could this Be the Vanguard GNMA Winning Edge?

Cryptocosm and Life After Google

Warning: Avoid Mutual Fund Year End Distributions

Is Gold a Good Long-term Investment?

How to Invest in Gold

Vanguard Wellington (VWELX): The Original Balanced Fund

What is the Best Gold ETF for Investing and Trading?

Procter & Gamble (PG) Stock: The Only True Dividend King

The Dividend King of the North

You’ll Love This if You’re Dreaming of an Active Retirement Life

RSS The Latest at Richardcyoung.com

  • Absentee Ballots Not Verified
  • SARS-CoV-2: Probability of Outdoor Airborne Transmission Very Low
  • Your Personal Safety: Concealed-Carry How to Carry Your Freedom
  • Mostly Peaceful, Ungovernable Protestors
  • Biden’s Inaugural, the Most Confusing, Contradictory, Incoherent Ever?
  • Is the GOP Over? Not Even Close: Here’s Why
  • Impeaching an Ex-President is Unconstitutional
  • Ten Republican Senators to Get Behind
  • Why Do Government Officials Want To Silence Their Opponents?
  • And 2022 Is Right Around the Corner

About Us

  • About Young Research
  • Archives
  • Contributors

Our Partners

  • Richard C. Young & Co.
  • Richardcyoung.com

Social Media

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Youtube
  • Pinterest

Copyright © 2021 | Terms & Conditions

loading Cancel
Post was not sent - check your email addresses!
Email check failed, please try again
Sorry, your blog cannot share posts by email.