I retired at 49 with eight rental units and $800k saved: should I sell one property to pay off another?
Melissa called into the Afford Anything podcast with one of the more enviable problems in personal finance
She retired at 49, six years ago, and lives off the cash flow from three rental properties totaling eight units. She wants to know whether to sell one property to pay off another, or keep the leverage working. Her balance sheet is the kind that makes the question interesting rather than urgent.
She holds $800,000 in retirement accounts, $250,000 in a brokerage, and $50,000 in a high-yield savings account. For perspective on how unusual that is, the national personal savings rate has slipped from 6.2% in the first quarter of 2024 to 4% in the first quarter of 2026, with per capita disposable income running at $68,617. Melissa is operating well outside the national norm.