Personal Finance (Not Investing) • Just got laid off - Coast Fire and downshift career or keep looking?

I was recently laid off and will receive severance of almost one year. I have been looking for a new job prior to the layoff, since January, but the job market hasn’t been great. I’m in the final interview stages for a position that is a few steps lower than where I am now, and would be a big pay cut (almost half in terms of total compensation). Assuming I get an offer, I’ve been debating whether I should take this lower level position, which seems to have good WLB, can be remote, stable F500 company, good team, opportunity to learn new areas, etc. or keep looking for a lateral or higher position. I work in-house as an attorney and this position would be changing industries and reporting into a younger hiring manager, so likely have limited growth / promotion opportunities.

I’m 40 y/o, single income, no kids. I have about $200k in MMF / HYSA and the rest in stocks/index funds (~$850k in retirement accounts, both pre tax and Roth, and ~$1.4M in taxable brokerage).

I’m feeling pretty conflicted - I’m interested in career progression so taking this step down would be a big adjustment. My main goal is to retire within 10 years with NW of $5m in today’s dollars, to have good WLB (which I’ve always had), and to continue to be engaged while working.

I’m in the Bay Area right now and I’d love to be in NYC for the next few years (which is where the company and team is based). It would also be great to have the flexibility to move back west at some point, and then live abroad in early retirement.

If I take the position, I’d be earning double income until spring of 2025 due to severance. The compensation for the new position would still allow me to max out my 401k, HSA, backdoor roth and finally contribute to a MBDR (max 15% of salary) but not much savings left over while living in NYC.

This move would be a downshift in my career and a Coast Fire move, and I’m not sure I’d be able to recover and find a lateral or higher level role (eg VP or higher) later on.

If I don’t take the position, I would continue to look for a job closer to my level but have a gap in my resume for an indefinite period of time until I find a new job, which would get increasingly stressful as time progresses.

I’d love to hear if others have been through similar situations (downshifting or Coast Fire) and your experience or any regrets on the move, either from a career or FI / RE perspective.

Statistics: Posted by BitTooAggressive — Mon Apr 22, 2024 2:32 am — Replies 2 — Views 877