Retire: Two-stage FIRE spreadsheet

Carina JoosteLatest, Retire

Over the last few months, we’ve been discussing what early retirement would look like to those who have Regulation 28-compliant pension funds or other retirement products. Our friend Kris Naidoo came up with a strategy that would help him utilise the funds he amassed during his working life to fund an early retirement, even though one can only access pension products later in life.

In the first post we discussed the idea that financial independence can be achieved in two stages, starting with discretionary investments and later bolstered by traditional retirement savings. The second post focussed on the numbers you need to run to calculate how much you would need to reach financial independence. In the last post we discussed the importance of tax planning, the role of cash and what one more year of work could do for your bottom line.

Today we share Kris’ own spreadsheet to help you run the numbers pre-tax. Since everyone’s tax situation is so different, it’s critically important to keep your tax obligations in mind when you plan for your financial independence. Keep an eye on our Tax Tuesday blog for help in this regard.

Download the spreadsheet below and play around with the values in the yellow cells.

2 Stage FI table


Retire blog

Saving for retirement is the biggest investment most of us will ever make. Sadly, it can also be very complicated. In this monthly blog, we try to answer some of the retirement questions we hear most often, ranging from which products are best suited to different circumstances to efficient tax treatments. Words by Carina Jooste.