Who are we? Where are we from? What does our F.I.R.E. Journey look like, and how are we going to get there? What can you expect from us? Let us get started
Who are we?
We are Kristine and Gean, a mid-40 something Canadian couple who met through a great modern invention of online dating! People thought we were crazy, but we found each other in 2018, fell in love, and have not looked back! As of right now, we do not have any children, and are looking forward to a future where we can leave our current jobs, live off our investments, and explore the world together!
Where are we from?
I grew up in a small farming community east of Toronto, and after graduating from University, I moved to Toronto to try to find work! Except for a short one year in South Korea teaching English, Toronto has been home for me ever since 2000.
Gean was born in Brazil, spending his days on the sandy beaches of Fortaleza, located in the northeast part of Brazil! Through hard work and determination, he obtained his degree in Computer Science and post-graduate studies in Human Resources. In 2003, Gean emigrated to Canada and began creating a life here.
Currently, we live and work in Toronto, Gean is working as a consultant in the Human Resources field, and I work for the City of Toronto. We “own” our home…or instead, the bank owns a large part, and we are working at paying them back! It is not large or fancy but has come in handy as part of our plan of F.I.R.E.
What does our F.I.R.E. journey look like, and how are we going to get there?
We came across the concept of F.I.R.E. early in 2019, when we were both wondering how we could travel the world while we were still young and able to see many of the places on our bucket lists! We quickly realized that to retire and have the life we dreamed of, several things were going to have to change, and fast! Our consumer lifestyle had led us to have a combined debt of close to Cdn $60,000.00, by simply spending on credit and living beyond our means. Beginning in February of 2019, we started aggressively paying down our debt, and by the end of the year, we were debt-free!
Being debt-free has allowed us to use the money we had been paying towards our debt, for investment in the stock market. By re-financing, our house into a re-advanceable HELOC (Home Equity Line of Credit), we have greater access to capital for further investment purposes.
Currently, our target F.I.R.E. date is January April 2024 (previously November 2028). We will retire and slow travel the world, spend more time with family and friends, discover amazing places, food, and wine (of course), and just live our lives to the fullest!
What can you expect from us?
As we began our path to F.I.R.E., we were seeking investment information related to Canadians, more specifically, a couple in our 40’s who didn’t have 20 to 30 years of investment ahead… we have eight years!!! As we sought out information, we realized that a lot of it was geared toward younger individuals who were entering the workforce. There was limited information geared toward people starting the Journey later in their lives.
We wanted to share our story with others and document our successes, and failures, what worked for us…and what did not! We want to be open and transparent about our numbers, and exactly how our investments are doing. We hope that by joining our Journey, you may learn or take away something useful. We look forward to your feedback and knowledge…we are not professional investors or financial advisors, this blog is merely documenting our decisions and our Journey, so we are always open to advice and new ideas! Let’s get started. Here is our path to F.I.R.E. 2024 (2028)!