afterFI/RE Life after FI/RE
People
Selected life timeline 2023—2026

A travel sabbatical became a flexible working life

A one-year break grew into three years of travel, a home renovation and intermittent consulting. This Spain-based engineer discovered that choosing when to work mattered more than permanently abandoning work, while a smaller home changed what enough meant.

Finances
Net worth at retirement2023 · Household
450000–500000

Self-reported departure range; around €100,000 cash, remainder invested. Sabbatical/semi-retirement, not permanent cessation of paid work.

Source
Reported spending2026-07-21 · Household
18000–32000

Reported annual all-in Spain costs, despite sentence calling them monthly costs.

Source
Posts2
2024Year 1
Post 01Recalled in 2026

A home worth ending the trip for

“Doing the renovation saved money, but I also loved the process and I feel extremely proud of it.”

u/sunnyBCNRead original post (opens in a new tab)

Life at the time

  • Ended nine months of travel when a long-sought apartment became available.
  • Bought the small apartment without a mortgage and largely renovated it personally.

How it felt

  • Loved doing the renovation and felt proud of the result. “I also loved the process”
  • The small, bright home prompted a rethink of the larger properties once considered necessary. “Now I was thinking about what I actually needed.”
FreedomWork
u/sunnyBCN (opens in a new tab)
Notes

Explicit retrospective in dated source; year approximate from stated elapsed years.

Housing observations: end of year one

Explicit retrospective in dated source; year approximate from stated elapsed years.

Editorial summaries with short, attributed quotations. The original contains the full story.

2026Year 3
Post 02

Keeping the right to stop

“I was in love with the idea of “stopping work”, but in reality I am in love with being able to decide when I take a break.”

u/sunnyBCNRead original post (opens in a new tab)

Life at the time

  • Consults for one client at a time, taking breaks and testing business ideas between engagements.
  • Tried renting out the apartment for three months while travelling; the administration outweighed the appeal.

How it felt

  • Feels reassured that returning to work remains possible and would not mean failure. “I now know that I can return to work”
  • Values deciding when to take a break more than the original idea of never working again. “being able to decide when I take a break”
FreedomWork
u/sunnyBCN (opens in a new tab)
Notes

Dated publication describing current life.

Work and employability; Housing year-three rental; Travelling without a return ticket

Dated publication describing current life.

Editorial summaries with short, attributed quotations. The original contains the full story.

See how these posts compare with other people’s experiences.

Research

Last checked Sep 2026. The accounts are self-reported. This timeline follows selected accounts, including recollections where labeled; it is not a complete archive.

  • English post was self-described as translated by the author with AI from their own Spanish post.
  • Calendar year of year-one apartment purchase is approximate; account explicitly places it at end of first year.
  • No precise current investment balance or apartment value disclosed.
  • Selected public self-reports, not a complete archive or independent verification of finances.

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