We’ve got $7.5m in net worth and a few rental properties that are unbelievably stressing us out – should we sell?

A Reddit user with a $7.5 million net worth is feeling stressed about her job situation and isn’t sure what she should do. Both she and her husband are highly stressed out by their jobs and by managing their properties but they have pretty high expenses and aren’t certain about the best path forward. 

So, should they cash out and start living off their savings or do they need to keep working to build up a bigger nest egg?

Is coping with tons of stress worth it with $7.5 million?

Understanding the numbers is key when deciding whether it’s possible to leave a stressful job and sell off rental properties. In this particular case, the original poster (OP) has:

• A $2.2 million primary residence
• $4.2 million in stock and 401(k)s
• $2.1 million in rental properties

She and her husband have a combined income of $800,000, and both earn a comparatively equal salary. They are in tech in the Bay Area, which is a very expensive area, and they pay for expensive overseas trips for themselves and family members as well as for private school for their kids. Their jobs have become toxic, though, and they have experienced personal and family losses that have them feeling stressed. The OP in particular believes she may be on the verge of a mental breakdown, as she had one many years ago. 

While she and her husband both want to consider taking a break or perhaps even leaving work altogether, she’s not sure if they should bite the bullet and quit or not. If they do, the OP said selling the rental properties would be necessary so they can invest the money to generate enough cash flow. 

If the couple can end up with $6.3 million invested, this should produce around $233,100 at a safe withdrawal rate of 3.7%. Ultimately, the question will be whether they can keep their spending within that limit — which might be hard if they want to continue to live their same lavish lifestyle with a $2.1 million house, private school, and travel. 

If their spending can’t come down far enough, then at least one of them would likely have to keep working. The big question for them is whether they’d rather keep putting up with jobs they don’t like or whether they want to take the money they have — which should be enough to buy them financial freedom at a reasonable spending level — and change their lifestyle to make it work without big paychecks coming in. 

Cutting back could also be a solution

Of course, the couple does not have to stop working entirely. In fact, a better solution might be for one or both of them to find a low-stress job that pays far less than they are earning but that provides enough money to help them get by when supplemented with their savings. 

There are plenty of non-toxic jobs that top tech workers could get that pay way less than $800K a year but that would provide a pleasant working environment. The key would be to look into what options are out there and to find one.  This could be a happy medium that allows them to keep spending, continue to fill their days since they are young, and allow them to escape the stress of the rat race. 

A financial advisor can help them to determine how much income they’d need to bring in, or what spending cuts to make, and they should seriously consider talking to one because, with $7 million, there’s no reason they should keep working in positions that are causing a mental breakdown.

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