Has the FIRE gone out?

[Lesley Resnick]

The FIRE movement was really hot, no pun intended, early this year and I have not heard much about it.  Has the corona virus and social issues moved it to the back burner? 

 I appreciate its goal and approach, except I do not want to drive a 1998 Oldsmobile.

Has anyone reached the goal during all the craziness?  How are people doing living FIRE.

[Ben Zimmerman]

FIRES aren't easily extinguished, the lay dormant waiting to be rekindled.  

FIRE was a big deal because it was trendy, and because we were on a decade long bull market run.  So when people saw this success, they wanted to read about it and jump on the bandwagon.  Unfortunately many of these people reading about it were the same ones that make New Years resolutions, and don't have the personal fortitude to actually stick with anything.  Once the economy crashed and these people became disinterested, they stopped clicking on all of the articles about FIRE, and consequently agencies stopped running FIRE articles since they aren't profitable without readers.  

However I would argue that anyone serious about FIRE, has become even more serious about it once they witness a global pandemic like this that can suddenly cause serious financial stress on the entire world.  When you are 100% reliant on your job for an income you see just how fragile the system is and how quickly you can go bankrupt with a 15% unemployment rate.  You wake up every morning wondering if your factory will suddenly be closed for health reasons and everyone be out of a job.  You constantly log into the governments website anxiously wondering where your stimulus check is so that you can pay bills, instead of being financially stable and viewing that check as an opportunity to buy 1200 worth of cheap stocks.

I've seen some crazy FIRE bloggers, one actually advocates eating canned dog food because it's a cheap source of protein.  You don't have to go to such extremes when it comes to FIRE, you just need to be mindful of what you are spending.  So you don't need to drive a 98 Oldsmobile, but maybe you drive a 2015 Ford instead of a 2020 Porsche.  

As for my finances, none of my rental properties had trouble paying rent.  This is due in part to luck obviously, but also due to not catering to the lowest common denominator in C-D rentals.  My stock portfolio is breaking even as opposed to what it was prior to the crash.  Yes I lost some money during the crash, but you adapt and overcome and readjust to investing in companies that will rebound very well.  So I'm currently breaking even-ish, but have the potential for a lot of runway ahead of me.