Real estate is the only thing that is secure…Buying your own properties, being your own boss…always made more investing than as an engineer. …Of course structural engineers make half of what tech engineers make…most I ever made as an employee was $50k per year, of course that was 1986…been unemployable since…lol
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Gainfully unemployable 
For most, this is the Career Ending Point.
Getting laid off by Webcor at 32 years old was a gift…Started my own engineering business and had the time to buy fixers and build new on the side. …Much more satisfying than building large commercial buildings…and more lucrative. …don’t have to worry about a $500m lawsuit…lol
Yes but I think those mid level managers are less likely to be laid off than IC’s.
Turnover kills project deadlines though. Most of the valley is running at over 10% attrition a year and 3-6 months to backfill. Lack of talent is a problem at many companies. Products end up late to market or canceled, because they can’t do all of them.
Oh boy…that kissing each other woke me up…
My mom has been working at Cisco since 2013 and survived all the layoffs but this time almost her entire team including the manager were laid off. She’s getting a 5 month severance. She’s going to look around for a job but if she doesn’t find something easily she’ll just retire. 
My dad is already retired and has been bugging her to join him.
Personally DH and I (both software engineers) are aggressively saving. The goal is to be financially independent by the time he’s 45 but we’ll see what the future brings!
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This thread should be renamed as The Engineer Thread.
Just to share, degree BEng (EE) plus MBA. Hardly worked in EE area, mainly in software area. Now use Mac though work experience is Windows application development. Retired at age of 44. Now 58. 14 years of stay-at-home-husband. Use to play video games, now blogging with you guys.
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I am curious. How did you retire at 44? Made a bunch from AAPL stocks?
Tech Engineers are like athletes. Ageism is very widespread in the Valley. I know middle aged people with PhD’s who have hard time finding jobs. It doesn’t help that their fields have shrunk.
My philosophy is that all employees will eventually get fired, and all business will eventually go under. The only thing that lasts is real estate. I am on a mission to buy as much as possible.
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Not financially independent and live like a poor undergraduate. Luckily some1 high up help me.
I will take that as your wife? 
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Wow Hanera!
Finally meeting somebody who is enjoying life and not like those guys thinking in money and money and money until they kick the can and are buried as quick as possible so their next of kin go on a shopping spree…
It can be appx 10% in bay area = 2000, most of them above 40 ages
10% of 5500 = 5,500
According to the site, 80% are 40+, inlined with what we thought… rid of the old, hire the young.
The actual proven fact is investment, either it is real estate or stocks or business or other forms of investment, is the best source of security !
Save at least 15% of income, invest for a long haul either stock or real estate, sure to reach financial security.
I suggest forum viewer, whoever has got investment interest, read “Margin of Safety by Seth Klarman”. only 5000 original published books are floating in ebay & Amazon from $1200 or more.
Seth made 20% return, year over year, in his hedge fund and he is not like other book publishers who talks with little subject. His book is a compilation of topics he made with MBA students. He had printed 5000 copies first time that failed make big dent. He told the same in one of his interviews. Later, readers found the book is very good for stock investments and become hit with sky high price.
You can get them from internet by google search “Margin of Safety by Seth Klarman pdf”. It is just 224 pages of his experience shared in the book.
I feel bay area has clear moat on real estate, buy at low price and hold them for long will definitely give an advantage for financial independence.
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Downloaded the pdf version. Thank you for tip.
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While I do not know how many 40+ people got axed at Cisco, I know PLENTY of people who are 40+ and they are all gainfully employed making good money. Can’t recall them unemployed for long term ever.
Mostly, people with skills which do not match up to needs OR, their group has shut down are laid off.
But that’s very likely to happen over the lifetime of an engineer.
Imagine someone starting out 20 years ago, in 1996. Java was the latest hot thing, and people still talked about client server architecture. Fast forward to today. How much is that relevant in today’s market?
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