All FIREDesk articles

27 articles on the SPY bull put spread and options income for FIRE. New here? Start with the complete strategy guide.

FIRE

Automated Options Signals for FIRE Investors: How Daily Alerts Remove Emotion
Automated options signals for FIRE investing remove emotion from trading. Daily SPY alerts help retail investors execute disciplined strategies consistently.
Can Options Income Replace a Salary? Real Numbers for a $50k, $75k, $100k Income Goal
Options income replace salary real numbers: earn $50k-$100k annually with bull put spreads. See exact calculations, win rates, and capital requirements.
IBKR vs Tastytrade for SPY Options From Europe: Full Comparison 2026
IBKR vs Tastytrade for SPY options from Europe: compare costs, commissions, platform features & regulatory compliance for 2026. Full breakdown inside.
Options Income for FIRE: What It Can and Can't Do
Can selling SPY put spreads support FIRE? Month-by-month results from a paper record, why income is lumpy, and how to size by maximum loss.
Safe Withdrawal Rate: Can Options Income Let You Retire on Less?
Safe withdrawal rate options income: Can selling SPY spreads reduce retirement withdrawals? Explore how options income boosts FIRE timelines.
Sequence of Returns Risk: The #1 Threat to Early Retirement
Sequence of returns risk FIRE is the #1 threat to early retirement. Learn how to mitigate it with income strategies and market timing.

Options Strategy

Bull Put Spread (Put Credit Spread) Explained
What is a bull put spread, also called a put credit spread? How it works, payoff, maximum loss and when to use it, with a worked example.
Can You Get Assigned on a SPY Credit Spread? Assignment Risk Explained
SPY credit spread assignment risk explained: learn when assignment occurs, how to avoid it, and protect your FIRE strategy. Full guide inside.
Delta and Strike Selection for SPY Put Spreads
What delta means for the short put of a SPY put spread, why 0.10 delta is not a 90% win rate, and where 102 logged strikes actually sat.
How Much Capital Do You Need to Sell SPY Put Spreads? ($500 vs $5000 Account)
How much capital for SPY put spread? Learn if $500 or $5000 is enough to start selling bull put spreads on SPY with defined risk and margin requirements.
How to Sell a Put Spread on SPY, Step by Step
Step-by-step guide to selling a SPY bull put spread with a real logged trade: expiry, strikes, credit, maximum loss, profit target and stop.
How to Set Up a Bull Put Spread on Interactive Brokers (IBKR): Step-by-Step
Bull put spread interactive brokers tutorial: learn to set up credit spreads on IBKR step-by-step. Sell 0.10 delta SPY spreads with 50% profits.
How to Track Your Options Trades: What to Measure to Improve Your Win Rate
How to track options trades journal with metrics that improve your win rate. Learn what to measure for better decisions.
Put Spread Expiry: 30, 45, 60 or 120 Days?
How many days to expiry for a SPY put spread? The trade-offs, what FIREDesk uses (about 60 or 120 days) and what its paper record shows for each.
Put Spread vs Naked Put: Why Defined Risk Matters for FIRE Investors
Put spread vs naked put defined risk: learn why defined risk matters for FIRE investors. Compare strategies, manage losses, and trade options safely.
Selling Options for Income: A Beginner's Complete Guide (2026)
Selling options for income beginners guide: learn credit spreads, premium collection, risk management & start earning monthly with SPY strategies in 2026.
SPY Bull Put Spread: The Complete Strategy Guide for Income Traders
Learn how to trade SPY bull put spreads using 0.10 delta strikes, EMA-200 entry filter, 50% take profit, and 1.5x stop loss to generate consistent options income.
SPY Put Spread vs Covered Call Compared
A SPY bull put spread and a covered call side by side: capital needed, maximum loss and what happens if SPY rises or falls, with real numbers.
The 1.5x Stop Loss for SPY Put Spreads
How a stop at 1.5 times the credit works on a SPY put spread, the arithmetic, 30 logged stops from a paper record, and why real fills can be worse.
The 50% Take-Profit Rule for Put Spreads
How the 50% take-profit rule works on a SPY put spread, with real logged trades, holding times of winners and losers, and what the rule costs you.
Theta Decay Explained: How Time Works in Your Favor as an Options Seller
Learn how theta decay works for options sellers. Discover why time is your ally in selling options and how to profit from daily premium erosion.
What Is the Best Credit Spread Strategy? What Our Paper Record Shows, Stops Included
No credit spread strategy is best in general. What 84 closed SPY put spreads show about strike distance, expiry and stops, and the limits of the data.
Why SPY Is the Best ETF for Selling Options (Liquidity, Tax, Data)
SPY ETF options selling offers unmatched liquidity, tax efficiency, and data for retail traders. Learn why SPY dominates options strategies.

Strategy

Backtesting a SPY Put Spread: Our Paper Record
How to judge a put spread backtest, and what 84 closed SPY paper trades show: win rate, average win and loss, drawdown, and why one number misleads.
Selling SPY Put Spreads Above the EMA-200
What the 200-day EMA filter is, how FIREDesk uses it to allow or block a SPY put spread, and what a paper-trading record can and cannot say about it.
VIX and Options Selling: How Volatility Affects Your Premium
VIX options selling strategy explained: how volatility impacts premium, delta, and SPY spreads. Learn to profit from falling VIX with data-driven tactics.
What Happens to Your SPY Put Spread in a Bear Market? (2022 Case Study)
SPY put spread bear market 2022 analysis: how credit spreads performed during the crash. Real data & lessons for options traders.

FIREDesk content is for educational purposes only and is not financial advice. Back to the blog