Financial independence pioneer and popular early retirement blogger known as Mr. Money Mustache is packing up his mountain bike and heading south for the winter. After nearly two decades of championing early retirement, frugality, and sustainable living from his home base in Colorado, he is trading the snowy Rocky Mountain winters for a four-month stint in Culdesac Tempe, a prominent car-free community in Arizona.
The move marks a significant milestone for the retired tech worker turned writer, whose primary motivation for achieving early retirement back in 2005 was to secure the freedom to devote his best hours to fatherhood. When he first left his career behind eighteen years ago, he had a strong intuition that a demanding tech trajectory would be unsustainable once full-time parenting took center stage. Looking back, that prediction proved entirely accurate. With his son now finishing high school and preparing to step into adulthood, the primary child-raising chapter of his life is drawing to a close, freeing him up to explore a new lifestyle experiment.
On December 1st, he plans to load his gear, tools, and top-tier mountain bike into his Tesla Model Y to make a road trip across the mountains, accompanied by his son. The timing is designed to sidestep the incoming Colorado winter while allowing father and son to maintain a flexible routine, with his son alternating months between Arizona and Colorado to split time with both parents.
The destination for this winter sabbatical is Culdesac Tempe, a neighborhood the blogger has frequently praised for its innovative approach to urban planning. Billed as the first built-from-scratch car-free community in the United States, the development emphasizes walkability, bikeability, and shared transit options rather than traditional parking lots and sprawling asphalt. For a writer who has spent years advocating for reduced automobile dependence and smarter urban density, living in the community offers a chance to test these principles firsthand.
For the duration of the winter, the duo has secured a spacious two-bedroom apartment within the complex. Rather than using his vehicle for daily errands once he arrives, the car will be parked offsite, serving its purpose merely as an electric moving truck for the initial migration. Once settled, daily life will rely entirely on the neighborhood’s pedestrian pathways, light rail access, and onsite bike, scooter, and car-sharing facilities.
This temporary relocation is intentionally designed to shake up a comfortable routine. After years of being deeply entrenched in a familiar community surrounded by local construction and personal projects, the move forces the creation of an entirely new daily rhythm. This deliberate disruption aligns with a broader philosophy the author has long championed: the value of introducing strategic challenges and novel experiences to keep life engaging and meaningful.
This perspective is heavily influenced by concepts surrounding human psychology and comfort, including principles discussed in literature such as Dr. Anna Lembke’s book Dopamine Nation. The core premise suggests that human brains establish a baseline for satisfaction based on the most demanding activities undertaken. When individuals eliminate all friction and hardship from their environments, overall contentment tends to plateau, and the mind becomes accustomed to comfort foods, entertainment, and luxury conveniences that ultimately lead to a stagnant and unmotivated existence. Conversely, embracing calculated challenges—whether through physical exertion, temperature extremes, or radical lifestyle changes—can reset that baseline and make everyday life feel vastly more rewarding.
The winter experiment in Arizona serves as a living example of this philosophy. By stepping away from the predictable comforts of his Colorado setup, the blogger hopes to inspire readers to evaluate their own routines. Whether that means pursuing a career transition toward a healthier work-life balance, relocating to a more vibrant community, or simply challenging the physical body with new athletic endeavors, the underlying message is to avoid settling for mere comfort when purposeful growth is an option.
As for his Colorado property, the main-floor home and its separate walkout lower-level apartment are being managed to generate income during his absence. Rather than leaving the space vacant, he plans to rent out a portion of the house to a trusted acquaintance or friend, putting into practice the classic "Mustachian" principle of earning income while traveling. Meanwhile, a portion of the home will remain available for his occasional return visits over the winter months.
Looking beyond the end of March, long-term plans remain intentionally open-ended. While he intends to return to his Colorado base as his primary hub, the winter in Tempe represents a new chapter of life where additional adventures may take root. Alongside ongoing involvement in mountain property development projects in other regions, future possibilities include establishing a dedicated mountain retreat.
For those interested in following the day-to-day realities of this seasonal transition, a dedicated tracker page has been established on the Mr. Money Mustache website to document updates, observations, and reflections on the car-free urban experiment as it unfolds.