👨‍🏫 **多元化的收入来源与退休金积累**: Dan Steven Erickson 主要通过在社区大学任教，并积极参与雇主提供的退休金计划（如KPERs）以及其他学校的匹配计划，为退休基金奠定了基础。他从17岁起就开始工作，但直到30岁才开始大学教育，并在获得通信领域的学士和硕士学位后，开始了他的教学生涯。他持续参与了不同雇主提供的退休金匹配项目，这是他退休储蓄的重要组成部分。

🏠 **房地产投资的财富增值**: Erickson在2012年左右开始涉足房地产投资，并在2019年出售第一处房产时获得了约7万美元的利润，这笔资金帮助他还清了学生贷款、信用卡和汽车贷款。随后，他又在2021年购买了另一处房产，并在2023年出售获利，进一步增加了他的财富。目前，他在缅因州拥有一处房产，并通过出租给家庭成员来覆盖抵押贷款。

💰 **退休金现状与担忧**: 截至59岁，Erickson的退休账户已达到50万美元，加上2022年母亲留下的7万美元遗产，以及房产约10万美元的净值，总计约65万美元。然而，他对此仍感到不安全，计算出如果每年花费5万美元，他的储蓄仅够维持12年。他担心自己可能需要工作到70多岁，并且不希望在晚年依赖社会保障和公共住房。

💡 **对年轻人的投资建议**: Erickson最大的遗憾是没有更早开始投资。他特别建议年轻人，一旦开始工作并获得有雇主匹配的退休计划，就应该尽早投入，因为复利效应会随着时间的推移显著增加储蓄。他强调，即使是小额的持续投资，也能带来可观的回报，并且房地产投资也是一个强有力的财富增长途径。

Dan Steven Erickson built a $650,000 retirement fund from a career of mainly teaching.He also leveraged real estate investments and employer-matched retirement plans to grow his savings.Despite financial growth, he feels insecure about retirement and wishes he had invested earlier.

I got my first job at 17 and worked mainly dead-end jobs at restaurants, in construction, and at mini-marts. I was a late bloomer and started college in 1993 at 30.

I graduated with a bachelor's and a master's degree in communications and moved to Kansas to take a full-time position teaching at the community college level.

The job offered a state program called KPERs, a retirement program with some matching. I participated and contributed a small amount, which started my retirement journey.

I left the community college and Kansas a year later

My partner and I lost our firstborn child, and it was too hard to stay there. I then went to work for a college in Indiana. They also offered retirement benefits, such as matching, which I participated in. I worked there from 2002 to 2004.

I left Indiana and got a job at a college in Washington, where my daughter was born in 2005. I worked there for the next 20 years and just quit in June.

I bought my first property in Washington in about 2012, which got me into real estate

I then sold it in 2019 for around $70,000 profit — it paid off all my old student loans, credit card debt, and car payments.

I moved to Maine in 2022 and still taught remotely. I bought another property in Washington in 2021, sold it in 2023, and made a nice profit on it.

I bought a third property in Maine. We lived there for two years before deciding to move to Tennessee. I was unable to find full-time academic work in Maine, so I relocated for better job prospects.

I rent the condo in Maine to a family member, so the mortgage is covered while I pay rent in Tennessee.

I've never purposefully invested; it's just been part of my benefits

About five years ago, I started contributing 7% of my income to retirement, which my employer matched. I was making enough money, so I invested an extra $200 a month. As I was consistent, my portfolio grew.

When I was 59 years old, my retirement accounts hit $500,000. I also received a small inheritance of $70,000 from my mom when she died in 2022. Along with my savings, that's close to another $100,000 for my retirement. I've got about $100,000 in equity in my real estate. So, my retirement nest egg is about $650,000 thus far.

In my retirement journey, I've held many jobs. I worked for the Postal Service, but I quit because I was working too much for too little pay. Now, I'm working part-time at Cabela's and part-time teaching.

I don't feel secure enough, and it's scary

I'm nervous. My ex-wife and I divorced in 2006. I'm single and building my retirement nest egg alone. Even though $650,000 sounds like a lot, it isn't. If I've lived off $50,000 a year, my retirement savings will only last about 12 years.

I have some medical issues that may make my life a little shorter than the average person's, but I don't know about being 71 and still working, and I worry I could run out of money. In my 70s, I don't want to rely on Social Security and public housing.

I'm working on securing another job in Tennessee. I'll put in another four years to get to 65 and probably retire, unless I love my job. Then, I could start taking Social Security.

The one thing I would've done differently is I would've bought real estate earlier

I've made a lot of money off the real estate I've owned and sold. Real estate boosted me financially in my mid-to-late fifties.

I'm frustrated because I'm a creative person. I'd like to spend my life doing creative work, whether I make money or not, such as writing, music, songwriting, or photography.

Now, I'm stuck working 50 to 60 hours a week at various jobs, and it's exhausting. I don't like any of the jobs that I've had; they're means to an end.

I wish I had started putting money away earlier, and that's the advice I would give young people.

Of course, working dead-end jobs is hard, and you barely make it paycheck to paycheck. I probably would've started adding a little extra once I got a job with matching programs because that's where it adds up.