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Quoted: How much was the house? Was he really living beyond his means or did he have a lot of investments go bad? On a million a year, a 3 million dollar house, a million dollar vacation home, a Benz and an exotic is not all that out of spec. His income might have taken a bit of a hit, but that is one of the few professions that kept on chugging through 08. Or he wanted it to go back because in '08 it was worth 25% of what he paid for it in '06 |
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I worked for a VP that made excellent money (base + annual bonus = $280K - $300K, plus stock awards each year). Upgraded homes 3 times while I knew him. Expensive hunting trips a half dozen times a year. He and the wife did big vacations. Big boat. Pair of jet skis. He also bought some very nice shotguns and hunting rifles. This is in TX, so cost of living and homes are lower than some parts of the country, but it all made me wonder how he afforded all of it. Our company was sold and he got a wad of cash for his stock. He and two other guys left and started their own company (energy related). The company they formed hit it off and was bought out by a major energy company after about 3 years. At 55, he was set to enjoy the rest of his life with his portion of the payout somewhere in lower 8 figures. I got an email from him about a week ago....he was trying to sell a pair of Ceasar Guerini O/Us and a couple of hunting rifles for quick cash...as in " I would need the money by EOD today" quick. 
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Quoted: You came in her asking about other people who failed. Got mad when I told you to expect the worse. I feel for you. You relish in other peoples sorry. As I said, what comes around goes around. I’ve never seen it not happen. So what you’re saying is you’re terrible with money and feel personally attacked by this thread |
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Quoted: ETA: my favorite part about his situation currently is that he hired a mexican guy to drive him around. He's tatted up, wears suit pants, a short sleeve white button down with a tie. Ubers were annoying and inconsistent so he pays this guy like 50k/ a year and bought him an older SUV. If you've ever seen Lincoln Lawyer, he's like that.  That is luxury, totally worth it. It's the little things. |
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Quoted: My ex-wife seriously believed that if there were checks left in the checkbook, then there was money left in that checking account. I am not joking. Hence the "ex" prefix. My ex was about that bad during the divorce. If she saw money in the bank account, that meant she could spent it. Didn't matter that there were bills pending. Fortunately, upon learning that I was the one earning all the money and paying all the bills, my attorney said there was no problem with me moving my finances to another account that she didn't have access to. Amazing how much easier it was to manage finances when she wasn't involved. |
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Quoted: I got an email from him about a week ago....he was trying to sell a pair of Ceasar Guerini O/Us and a couple of hunting rifles for quick cash...as in " I would need the money by EOD today" quick. Over a college summer I worked for a guy, made him tons of money. After a month full time (and a previous month part time during school), I had my own truck, would bring in over $1000 a day as a one-man crew with low overhead. He would never give me a raise. Had big plans for me to be his #2 and do bids, run crews, etc.... One day he opened the door to collect the checks at the end of the day and excitedly said, "I just put down $25k on such and such table". Online gambling. So that's where the money went. That, and down his morbidly obese wife's gullet. He was piiiiiiiiiiiissed when I just bought my own truck in the middle of summer and slapped my name on the side. so yeah, you don't know where that money's getting blown on. |
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Had many coworkers over the years that make the same or more than me that have 0 savings and live paycheck to paycheck. But having a $800/month car payment, drink 2-3 energy drinks a day, smoke a pack a day, drink a 6er a day, and eat out 3 meals a day will do that. Wife’s current coworker was just denied a cheap rental due to bad credit, yet keeps showing my wife $500,000 houses she is planning on buying. Yeah okay. But my all time favorite was my friend who was an E4 in the Army. Smart with his money. His O5 brother who was not smart with his money(house, truck boat all outside of his means)called him one day asking to borrow $3,000 so he could buy a cheap truck In Korea so he wouldn’t have to ride the bus with the enlisted. |
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Quoted: Not as extreme as some others,but a guy I used to work with had a $400K home, but couldn't furnish it. Wanna relax in a 600sf living room? Use a folding chair. Another buddy's ex wife never did laundry, she would just buy new clothes for herself and the kids when they got dirty. College roommates (actually my gf's roommates, I technically still had a dorm room I visited every few weeks) were like that. Guy had a great big pile of shirts that had been worn and discarded. They'd buy a whole turkey but only eat the white meat because they didn't like dark meat (why not just buy the breasts? Or Hell, let me chip in and I'll eat the dark meat, it has better flavor). They both work in IT, so make good money, which is how they've survived this far. But now both their kids have decided they're transgender and they were talking about whether one of them should go on puberty blockers, so I quit paying attention to their drama. |
| If my SIL and former BIL got a $1, they'd use it to borrow another and then spend $2. A few years back, they bought a 3,500 square foot five-bedroom house that they couldn't afford for them and two little kids. Last year when they divorced, she had a chance to sell the McMansion and walk away with enough to make a down payment on a decent house that she could afford by herself. Instead, she did a max cash-out refi with $10,000 in closing costs and borrowed against her 401(k) to buy her ex's equity to keep the status house. She just got furloughed after already taking a pay cut. I'm sure her ex's company is struggling too, so he'll be looking for a child support reduction no doubt. She'll wind up moving her boyfriend and his two kids in prematurely to try to keep the status house for a bit longer. That won't go anywhere good either. |
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2008 collapse. Was living with my fiancee' and her kids in one of the wealthiest zip codes in AZ (renting, fortunately.) The number of snooty assholes in the neighborhood was off the charts, but one of the worst was the mother of one of the kid's friends who would make digs at our vehicles (VW and a Jeep, both bought new with cash, but not Mercedes/Lexus etc), the fact that we were renting and didn't own a house (I did, but didn't mention it) while they had four mansions in that immediate area, a couple more vacation properties, and name-dropped exotic vacation destinations they'd been to in the past year, etc. You probably know the type. 100% of their income from her husband's real estate business, every single thing they "owned" was financed, expecially the four mansions which were interest-only real-estate speculation loans. Less than six months after the collapse they were upside down with literally millions in debt, foreclosures filed, she had been downsized from a Mercedes SUV to a used Honda and was working at a starbucks. To her credit, she was no longer the snooty bitch she was. This story was repeated dozens of times in that neighborhood, it seemed like everyone was living their lives to show off how "rich" they were. |
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Quoted: 2008 collapse. Was living with my fiancee' and her kids in one of the wealthiest zip codes in AZ (renting, fortunately.) The number of Fixed that for you~ 
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Back in the day I used to date this realtor chick. She sold lots of big "McMasion" homes. She told me that it was pretty common to go back a year later and visit her clients and find the homes pretty much empty...no furniture or anything on the walls. They could barely keep up with the payments......they would rather have a huge house, and lease/finance fancy cars, and buy expensive clothes than have furniture in their homes.
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Quoted: Power of attorney Shit can get messy.....If the guy really wanted to go after her, he could spend thousands on lawyers to get her to pay it back. And then she still might not. Divorce really just fucks over guys in the US. The courts don't give a shit about what happens to the men. If it had been the other way around, the courts would have wrecked that guy for selling the house, etc... Quoted: Quoted: How could she have sold "their" house? It would have been in both of their names? Power of attorney Shit can get messy.....If the guy really wanted to go after her, he could spend thousands on lawyers to get her to pay it back. And then she still might not. Divorce really just fucks over guys in the US. The courts don't give a shit about what happens to the men. If it had been the other way around, the courts would have wrecked that guy for selling the house, etc... You can’t sell a house with a general poa. You have to have a specific Poa that grants that authority. I think there’s more to the story, as there usually is. |
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The wife and I had some mutual friends who were living way outside their means. We didn't find out how far outside of their means until we kicked them out of our wedding party about a week and a half before the wife and I got married. We heard about them having their utilities shut off fairly regularly, but saddest was the time the wife called my wife to bitch about what a piece of shit her husband was. The story she told was that the bank had stopped letting them over draft their accounts with their debit cards and she was sitting in a parking garage while her husband was returning stuff to target they have bought the day before so she could pay the parking fee to leave. It was something like $3.50 in parking fees...the wife was leaving an AA meeting. I'd feel worse for them, but after the wife getting black out drunk and missing my wife's wedding shower, and the husband steeling the "pot" that everyone had kicked in for my bachelor party festivities, I felt no remorse kicking them to the curb. It just sucks because we'd been friends with them for about 5-6 years at the time all this came crumbling down. |
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My girlfriend's neighbors are seemingly nice folks. Young couple, in the tech field. Kids, brand new build (house). Since knowing them just a few months, he's bought a Ford Raptor, and got her an Infinity QX60, both brand new. Garage is filled with toys, SxS, motorcycle, tons of tools (best of everything). He lost his job at the beginning of the COVID, she's furloughed. They've got the house for sale, and the GF told me that the wife was over complaining that they were trying to get out of the car loans....between the two of them they pay $2250 a month for their cars. Just the fucking cars. She was also telling the GF that their wedding a few years ago was in the high 5-figures, and they still owed on it. Yes, read that right, they borrowed money for their wedding. They're both mid-20's, maybe, so imagine how much savings they don't have....but they had toys, new house, new cars....all of it. |
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Quoted: Ok, this requires some further explanation, I think. Quoted: Quoted: Some people have work policies that don't allow them to be around lenovos, even at home. Cough cough. Ok, this requires some further explanation, I think. |
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Quoted: It's pretty common here in SWMO to see a newer $60K corvettes, $80K wakeboats, $50K BMW's, and $60K Jacket up diesel trucks with $15K of wheels and lifts kits on them.........parked in front of beat up trailer homes that aren't worth more than $10K.  |
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Around me it is middle class working stiffs trying to seek out a living while showing that they are upper class. Ladies want to say they don't need to work full time. So they get part time gigs around the time baby #1 pops out. Then they stay that way until they hit 60. In the mean time they drive Land Cruiser (no minivan because they arent cool and of course they need a huge SUV to be safe). Then they furnish out of high end stores and bespoke pieces. Home depot just won't cut it. Remortgage is easy free money so we do that to finance the home remodel with vintage solid brass fixtures at $700-$3000 each and remanufactured $30 push button switches and matching wall plates at $15 per. New custom pool, vacations, gifts for kids. The kids can't be expected to work and go to school so free cars, travel for vacation with friends, sports all tournaments, etc. Retirement?! Nah it'll be fine. Social security and shit like that. Now the kids who's idea of "work" is babysitting need college money and need to be "supported until they get a job", mom and dad hit 60 and do the pre-retirement workshop only to find that the money they never saved isn't enough and now they are going to be working until 67 to max out SS payments and wifey needs to hit full time unemployment in order to put the bills mounting up because their progeny never needed to work a day in their lives. The worst part is they are the loudest mouths when I try to sit down with our newbies (who have this as their first full time gig and real money maker) and try to enlighten them about retirement. The financially illiterate keep up the mantra of "you can't save that much" and "you need to be able to spend your money too!" And that's why you are working for almost 10 years extra and I plan on working for fun money only once I hit 55. |
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Quoted: I think you do not offically graduate from the Academy until you finance an expensive truck. I was actually told by a Sergeant when I was in the academy not to buy anything until I was not only out of the academy and field training, but off of probation too. Lived in a rent house and drove a beater truck until I made it. Good advice. I made it, but I've seen quite a few finance houses and cars, then get washed out. |
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Quoted: It's pretty common here in SWMO to see a newer $60K corvettes, $80K wakeboats, $50K BMW's, and $60K Jacket up diesel trucks with $15K of wheels and lifts kits on them.........parked in front of beat up trailer homes that aren't worth more than $10K. I see this every day in the part of Kentucky I live in. Diesel truck, jet skis, boat, side by side, travel trailer all parked in front of beat to shit mobile home. |
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Quoted: My brother works in transportation. Makes probably $50k per year. His wife works in education, makes roughly the same. They have no kids. Their apartment, rented back when he was still working for a cellphone store, cost $1100/mo. Their first house was a 5 bedroom for $175k. Their second house, purchased some 3 years later, is a mansion that cost $280k. They’re looking at upgrading, having spent less than 4 years in their current house. Next one will cost between $6-800k. They also lease current year sportscars every year. And they eat out so much, they don’t have hardly any food in their refrigerator. Last I heard, my brother has a clothing store credit card with $1300 on it. He’s making minimum payments on that, and that’s just a side card to his main card... which he is also making minimum payments on. I don’t know how they sleep at night. Where in the hell are you guys living that 280k gets you a mansion? 280k will get you a very average 2500sqf house a postage stamp sized lot here. |
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Quoted: My friend's SIL just did that, took out a $50k loan for their wedding. I once dated a girl in another century, that had spent $10K on a wedding in rural Tennessee...The marriage lasted less than 1 year. How do you spend $10K on a wedding in bumfuck Tennessee in 1987? In 1987, it would have been better to have booked GNR at the wedding when they passed through for $10,000...At least you'd have a backstage pass to show for it. |
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Quoted: My friend's SIL just did that, took out a $50k loan for their wedding. Holy crap what a great way to start a marriage. I was upset that we spent 17k on our wedding. Some family pitched in, but between wedding and honey moon I was out 15k+. I can't imagine going into debt for a one night thing. |
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Quoted: Holy crap what a great way to start a marriage. I was upset that we spent 17k on our wedding. Some family pitched in, but between wedding and honey moon I was out 15k+. I can't imagine going into debt for a one night thing. Quoted: Quoted: My friend's SIL just did that, took out a $50k loan for their wedding. Holy crap what a great way to start a marriage. I was upset that we spent 17k on our wedding. Some family pitched in, but between wedding and honey moon I was out 15k+. I can't imagine going into debt for a one night thing. My sisters wedding was like 40-something-k, my parents offered to write them a check and get married at the courthouse. At least I got free booze at the wedding 
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Quoted: Some people have work policies that don’t allow them to be around lenovos, even at home. Cough cough. Quoted: Quoted: Quoted: Quoted: My sister makes shitty decisions on roommates, ends up getting fucked with rent. Takes out college loans, then buys stupid shit with them. Buys new phones all the time. New Macbook. Lived with my parents for a few months as they were trying to help her get out of her thousands of dollars of debt. Got most of it cleared up, moved out and racked the debt right back up. She had a shitty Chevy Cruze and was paying 12% interest on it, that got repoed. Now she has a pretty new Hyundai, don't wanna know the interest on that. Used part of her stimulus money to buy a new TV when her old one was perfectly fine. She just started making OK money at the casino until the Rona shut that down. It's amazing to me how many people in this thread think a Macbook is a luxury purchase that apparently defines one as a spendaholic. That’s because they aren’t part of the Lenovo master race Some people have work policies that don’t allow them to be around lenovos, even at home. Cough cough. wut? |
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When I was 29 years old (1987), we were sailing from Nassau Bahamas to Bimini one night, and it got to storming and we ended up pulling into Cat Cay, a private, very hoity toity island (Richard Nixon had just flown out a couple of days before, they said we would have not even been allowed to pull in while he was there). We got a slip and asked if we could get something to eat and they directed to their dining facility. It was like something out of a movie, but we were the only ones there. The waiter showed up, and asked us what we wanted to eat, and we said, we'd like to see a menu to see what you have. He said, we don't have menus, but we have everything, just tell us what you want. That should have been a clue, but we ordered drinks, steaks, salads and some other stuff, fabulous dessert. It was all delicious, some of the best I ever had in my life. The waiter brought out the bill and it was only $250 for five of us (this is 1987 mind you). And, we're all saying to each other that's not bad. Then, another waiter hands us another bill, for $750 and we realize the first one, was just for our drinks. In 1987 dollars, that's a lot. More than I had ever spent on a meal (and still, I think)' I found out that night that American Express really didn't have a limit on their cards. Thank God! |
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Quoted: We were sailing from Nassau Bahamas to Bimini one night, and it got to storming and we ended up pulling into Cat Cay, a private, very hoity toity island (Richard Nixon had just flown out a couple of days before, they said we would have not even been allowed to pull in while he was there). We got a slip and asked if we could get something to eat and they directed to their dining facility. It was like something out of a movie, but we were the only ones there. The waiter showed up, and asked us what we wanted to eat, and we said, we'd like to see a menu to see what you have. He said, we don't have menus, but we have everything, just tell us what you want. That should have been a clue, but we ordered drinks, steaks, salads and some other stuff, fabulous dessert. It was all delicious, some of the best I ever had in my life. The waiter brought out the bill and it was only $250 for five of us (this is 1987 mind you). And, we're all saying to each other that's not bad. Then, another waiter hands us another bill, for $750 and we realize the first one, was just for our drinks. In 1987 dollars, that's a lot. More than I had ever spent on a meal (and still, I think)' I found out that night that American Express really didn't have a limit on their cards. Thank God! My wife and I, (girlfriend at the time), went through something similar on Grand Bahama island around the same time...They had an "all inclusive" dinner deal...They came to get you in their island hopper "TC" style van, fed you conch, steak....Good meal...Got the bill and it was like $150 plus tip plus $60 "travel fee"...Holeeeeshit... I paid with American Express travel checks, ("don't leave home without them")... Last time for that shit...Next time, we learned where the hidden Bahamian grocery stores were. |
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Quoted: I once dated a girl in another century, that had spent $10K on a wedding in rural Tennessee...The marriage lasted less than 1 year. How do you spend $10K on a wedding in bumfuck Tennessee in 1987? In 1987, it would have been better to have booked GNR at the wedding when they passed through for $10,000...At least you'd have a backstage pass to show for it. A friends sister had a huge fairytale wedding. Her parents spent something like $25k on it. Marriage didn't last three months.  I have two daughters. There's no princess weddings in their futures unless they pay for it themselves or bag a rich guy willing to fund it. I cannot think of a bigger waste of money than an elaborate wedding. |
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Quoted: My sisters wedding was like 40-something-k, my parents offered to write them a check and get married at the courthouse. At least I got free booze at the wedding I got married in a small private ceremony. Just me, the bride, two friends for witnesses and the reverend who was a friend of a friend that did it for free. We were his first wedding and he read it all off of index cards. We spent some money on the reception as thats the only thing people actually care about. Long drawn out ceremonies are torture to guests who spend the whole time wondering when this shit will be over and the bar will open. Nobody remembers the wedding, they only remember if they had a good time at the reception. |
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Quoted: As with most of you billionaires on arfcom, you're either living in fantasy world, or you have no idea how the real world works. Quoted: Quoted: Quoted: I love all this "it takes a million dollars to retire". Almost nobody ever gets a million dollars. And yet they retire. Perhaps you live in a rarified world where you need millions of dollars in income to live. Most of the rest of the planet doesn't, so making assertions about what it takes for "a teacher" to retire is kind of silly for someone like you with your Lamborghinis and supermodel harem and 12" dick. Out here in the real world, people retire all the time, and they live ok, and they mostly do it without a million dollars in the bank. I am not sure why you are taking what I am saying the way you are. I am not trying to say what you think I am. I am literally pointing out math. Not knocking anyone. Not talking down to anyone. If you make 60 grand a year, you need more than a million bucks to make that a year without working anymore. That is all. That is factual. I realize most people don’t replace their income in retirement. I don’t know what else to say other than I hope you realize what I am saying and it isn’t what you thought. As with most of you billionaires on arfcom, you're either living in fantasy world, or you have no idea how the real world works. @josh you say “not many people have a million dollars but the lifetime value of your retired chief pay is damn close alone, not to mention if you put aside ANY money in TSP. A lot of people do get to a million dollars |
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Quoted: @josh you say "not many people have a million dollars but the lifetime value of your retired chief pay is damn close alone, not to mention if you put aside ANY money in TSP. A lot of people do get to a million dollars Anybody who works 20 years at $50k per year will have earned a million. In a dual income home with comparable incomes they'll do it in ten. It's also not exactly like six figure household incomes are exceedingly rare. My folks were doing that back in the 90's and only one of them had any college education. I do that alone and have about 6 credit hours to my name. Not sure where all the "most people will never earn a million in their lifetime" comes from. Probably not working at Walmart or Taco Bell but any mildly successful adult will achieve that at some point. |
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Quoted: I refuse to relish in someone else's misery. You might learn a lesson from that OP. Attached File |
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my neighbor started building houses in 2003 after being a carpenter for 10 years , like 30-40 per year ,60-80 guys working for him. he bought the ususal toys, a new harley.,( he traded it in a month later and bought another one because he wanted a blue bike not red) a new polaris ranger , boats, snowmachines- and a F350 king ranch 4wd that he bragged the payment was more than his house payment. then 2008 came around and he was building 0 houses. he had put no money into savings and he lost everything. his busines,his house. everything. i would not wish that on anyone but he was a perfect example of shortsightedness. |
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Quoted: @josh you say “not many people have a million dollars but the lifetime value of your retired chief pay is damn close alone, not to mention if you put aside ANY money in TSP. A lot of people do get to a million dollars Quoted: Quoted: Quoted: Quoted: I love all this "it takes a million dollars to retire". Almost nobody ever gets a million dollars. And yet they retire. Perhaps you live in a rarified world where you need millions of dollars in income to live. Most of the rest of the planet doesn't, so making assertions about what it takes for "a teacher" to retire is kind of silly for someone like you with your Lamborghinis and supermodel harem and 12" dick. Out here in the real world, people retire all the time, and they live ok, and they mostly do it without a million dollars in the bank. I am not sure why you are taking what I am saying the way you are. I am not trying to say what you think I am. I am literally pointing out math. Not knocking anyone. Not talking down to anyone. If you make 60 grand a year, you need more than a million bucks to make that a year without working anymore. That is all. That is factual. I realize most people don’t replace their income in retirement. I don’t know what else to say other than I hope you realize what I am saying and it isn’t what you thought. As with most of you billionaires on arfcom, you're either living in fantasy world, or you have no idea how the real world works. @josh you say “not many people have a million dollars but the lifetime value of your retired chief pay is damn close alone, not to mention if you put aside ANY money in TSP. A lot of people do get to a million dollars Lol. Not really. I do ok, but because I have a real career where I get paid now. |
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Quoted: Anybody who works 20 years at $50k per year will have earned a million. In a dual income home with comparable incomes they'll do it in ten. It's also not exactly like six figure household incomes are exceedingly rare. My folks were doing that back in the 90's and only one of them had any college education. I do that alone and have about 6 credit hours to my name. Not sure where all the "most people will never earn a million in their lifetime" comes from. Probably not working at Walmart or Taco Bell but any mildly successful adult will achieve that at some point. Quoted: Quoted: @josh you say "not many people have a million dollars but the lifetime value of your retired chief pay is damn close alone, not to mention if you put aside ANY money in TSP. A lot of people do get to a million dollars Anybody who works 20 years at $50k per year will have earned a million. In a dual income home with comparable incomes they'll do it in ten. It's also not exactly like six figure household incomes are exceedingly rare. My folks were doing that back in the 90's and only one of them had any college education. I do that alone and have about 6 credit hours to my name. Not sure where all the "most people will never earn a million in their lifetime" comes from. Probably not working at Walmart or Taco Bell but any mildly successful adult will achieve that at some point. And that’s not what I said. |
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Quoted: Lol. Not really. I do ok, but because I have a real career where I get paid now. Quoted: Quoted: Quoted: Quoted: Quoted: I love all this "it takes a million dollars to retire". Almost nobody ever gets a million dollars. And yet they retire. Perhaps you live in a rarified world where you need millions of dollars in income to live. Most of the rest of the planet doesn't, so making assertions about what it takes for "a teacher" to retire is kind of silly for someone like you with your Lamborghinis and supermodel harem and 12" dick. Out here in the real world, people retire all the time, and they live ok, and they mostly do it without a million dollars in the bank. I am not sure why you are taking what I am saying the way you are. I am not trying to say what you think I am. I am literally pointing out math. Not knocking anyone. Not talking down to anyone. If you make 60 grand a year, you need more than a million bucks to make that a year without working anymore. That is all. That is factual. I realize most people don’t replace their income in retirement. I don’t know what else to say other than I hope you realize what I am saying and it isn’t what you thought. As with most of you billionaires on arfcom, you're either living in fantasy world, or you have no idea how the real world works. @josh you say “not many people have a million dollars but the lifetime value of your retired chief pay is damn close alone, not to mention if you put aside ANY money in TSP. A lot of people do get to a million dollars Lol. Not really. I do ok, but because I have a real career where I get paid now. Not really? If you think of your retirement as an annuity, the entirety of your retirement is close to the millions, depending on your specifics, which granted I don’t know if you were a chief, Senior, or Master Chief or how many years. Still, your retirement probably technically is worth millions. |
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Quoted: That is the most common way, but far from the only way. The finance world is among the industries where employed people (selling their time for dollars) can become seriously wealthy. Sports and entertainment are other ways. And about 2/3rds of wealthy people started off middle class or lower. That is most. The majority of wealth in the U.S. is new wealth. Not old money. Quoted: Quoted: The only way to get wealthy is to run your own business. You're never going to be wealthy selling your time (working) for some other guy to get rich. The shitty thing is if you dont start off with wealth you have little chance of ever being successful. That is the most common way, but far from the only way. The finance world is among the industries where employed people (selling their time for dollars) can become seriously wealthy. Sports and entertainment are other ways. And about 2/3rds of wealthy people started off middle class or lower. That is most. The majority of wealth in the U.S. is new wealth. Not old money. Yup. I deal with wealthy people for a living. Very seldom do I run into "old money", most are self made, many from very humble beginnings. And a lot of it is from really odd businesses that you wouldn't really think are lucrative but are (think the My Pillow guy). |
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Quoted: As a guy with a wife, cat, and single kiddo....I don't understand the desire for the massive house. While I understand the desire for living space, the heating/cooling costs for a chateau that size gives me the willies Quoted: Quoted: Quoted: Quoted: Quoted: My brother works in transportation. Makes probably $50k per year. His wife works in education, makes roughly the same. They have no kids. Their apartment, rented back when he was still working for a cellphone store, cost $1100/mo. Their first house was a 5 bedroom for $175k. Their second house, purchased some 3 years later, is a mansion that cost $280k. They’re looking at upgrading, having spent less than 4 years in their current house. Next one will cost between $6-800k. They also lease current year sportscars every year. And they eat out so much, they don’t have hardly any food in their refrigerator. Last I heard, my brother has a clothing store credit card with $1300 on it. He’s making minimum payments on that, and that’s just a side card to his main card... which he is also making minimum payments on. I don’t know how they sleep at night. Damn 280 gets you a mansion? I only got 1900 sq ft for that A little less than that got me 3400 sqft. in AR. Yeah $275k got me 3000sqft in TX. ETA: But in my case you get what you pay for. This house has had a lot of expensive problems pop up over the ~10 years I've been in it. As a guy with a wife, cat, and single kiddo....I don't understand the desire for the massive house. While I understand the desire for living space, the heating/cooling costs for a chateau that size gives me the willies Being in/out of mansions all day makes me very, very happy with my modestly sized house. Bigger they are, the more shit to break. Past a certain point you are almost never alone in your own home, always someone there working on something. Yachts, private jets and mansions are things I would likely never own, no matter how much money I had. |
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Quoted: Not really? If you think of your retirement as an annuity, the entirety of your retirement is close to the millions, depending on your specifics, which granted I don’t know if you were a chief, Senior, or Master Chief or how many years. Still, your retirement probably technically is worth millions. Quoted: Quoted: Quoted: Quoted: Quoted: Quoted: I love all this "it takes a million dollars to retire". Almost nobody ever gets a million dollars. And yet they retire. Perhaps you live in a rarified world where you need millions of dollars in income to live. Most of the rest of the planet doesn't, so making assertions about what it takes for "a teacher" to retire is kind of silly for someone like you with your Lamborghinis and supermodel harem and 12" dick. Out here in the real world, people retire all the time, and they live ok, and they mostly do it without a million dollars in the bank. I am not sure why you are taking what I am saying the way you are. I am not trying to say what you think I am. I am literally pointing out math. Not knocking anyone. Not talking down to anyone. If you make 60 grand a year, you need more than a million bucks to make that a year without working anymore. That is all. That is factual. I realize most people don’t replace their income in retirement. I don’t know what else to say other than I hope you realize what I am saying and it isn’t what you thought. As with most of you billionaires on arfcom, you're either living in fantasy world, or you have no idea how the real world works. @josh you say “not many people have a million dollars but the lifetime value of your retired chief pay is damn close alone, not to mention if you put aside ANY money in TSP. A lot of people do get to a million dollars Lol. Not really. I do ok, but because I have a real career where I get paid now. Not really? If you think of your retirement as an annuity, the entirety of your retirement is close to the millions, depending on your specifics, which granted I don’t know if you were a chief, Senior, or Master Chief or how many years. Still, your retirement probably technically is worth millions. It’s not. I’ll just leave it at that. And even if we were to accept your broken math, how many people retire from the military? I didn’t say no one ever has that. I said most people- the vast majority of people in fact, will never have a million dollars. My retirement isn’t enough to live on in the Philippines, let alone the US. You’ve been misled. |
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Quoted: my neighbor started building houses in 2003 after being a carpenter for 10 years , like 30-40 per year ,60-80 guys working for him. he bought the ususal toys, a new harley.,( he traded it in a month later and bought another one because he wanted a blue bike not red) a new polaris ranger , boats, snowmachines- and a F350 king ranch 4wd that he bragged the payment was more than his house payment. then 2008 came around and he was building 0 houses. he had put no money into savings and he lost everything. his busines,his house. everything. i would not wish that on anyone but he was a perfect example of shortsightedness. Saw this happen to a LOT of high end custom homebuilders in 2008. They were in it to the hilt, expecting the music to never stop. But then it did. |
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Quoted: I got married in a small private ceremony... Just me, the bride, two friends for witnesses and the reverend who was a friend of a friend that did it for free. We were his first wedding and he read it all off of index cards. We spent some money on the reception as thats the only thing people actually care about. Long drawn out ceremonies are torture to guests who spend the whole time wondering when this shit will be over and the bar will open. Nobody remembers the wedding, they only remember if they had a good time at the reception. Yep....Got married at my wife's Aunt's deck in May 1992 with probably 50 people there, 40 of which I now couldn't tell you they were...Pastor was the one that married us...Total cost? Maybe $400, although it looked a lot more impressive because of all of the homemade stuff that her sister and aunt made, (decorations, frills, overall girly fluff everywhere). We looked at pics a few months ago and we were like "damn, that still holds up well"...I think I rented a tux for $40? Her dress was made by her 80 year old grandmother. I played bass at the time with a couple of guys, (if you want to call it that), and a friend played guitar... He came to the wedding and wore a really nice suit jacket he bought at Goodwill and played the wedding march for us....Nobody knew he didn't spend $300 on his suit and his guitar was a pawn shop $60 Ibanez. Funny really, because the amount you spend means nothing as to the longevity or not. It still looked good though...You wouldn't have known that we didn't spend several thousand on it, even back then. |
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Quoted: Being in/out of mansions all day makes me very, very happy with my modestly sized house. Bigger they are, the more shit to break. Past a certain point you are almost never alone in your own home, always someone there working on something. Yachts, private jets and mansions are things I would likely never own, no matter how much money I had. There are many levels to lifestyle. In a lot of ways, a monster house doesnt provide much more "lifestyle" than a nice sized home. Having 10 sports cars doesnt add much to the lifestyle over the guy that has a daily and a single sports car he really likes. The point being, it does not bring something all that novel to your life, even if it is "better" or "more." But most people can not even start to imagine how lifestyle changing a private plane is. It brings a new level of living to your life. You also dont have to own it. A second home is lifestyle changing A yacht is lifestyle changing. A ranch is lifestyle changing. These (and other things) actually bring something novel into your life. Not having to work is the ultimate lifestyle change If you can afford it, who gives a shit that it requires attention. Especially if you can afford someone to take care of those details. |
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Quoted: Not really? If you think of your retirement as an annuity, the entirety of your retirement is close to the millions, depending on your specifics, which granted I don’t know if you were a chief, Senior, or Master Chief or how many years. Still, your retirement probably technically is worth millions. Correct, and even people with just SS or even a mild 401K or defined benefits plan has more than they think... Health care deficits are going to be the problem going forward, not making your monthly bills. If I have $200K in the bank for retirement and no health insurance, then what is the first thing taken by the hospital? This is the issue facing everyone going forward. |
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Quoted: There are many levels to lifestyle. In a lot of ways, a monster house doesnt provide much more "lifestyle" than a nice sized home. Having 10 sports cars doesnt add much to the lifestyle over the guy that has a daily and a single sports car he really likes. The point being, it does not bring something all that novel to your life, even if it is "better" or "more." But most people can not even start to imagine how lifestyle changing a private plane is. It brings a new level of living to your life. You also dont have to own it. A second home is lifestyle changing A yacht is lifestyle changing. A ranch is lifestyle changing. These (and other things) actually bring something novel into your life. Not having to work is the ultimate lifestyle change If you can afford it, who gives a shit that it requires attention. Especially if you can afford someone to take care of those details. No, those things are not really "lifestyle changing", what they are a drain on resources unless you are ultra weathy....99% of people do not own or fly a "plane"...Only Arfcom millionaires which may need a separate forum to discuss their Rolexes, McLarens and porn star flings that are so common on here. You only have so many heartbeats and all of that stuff you spent so much money on, won't bring you happiness. The Vanderbilt's learned this when they owned Biltmore Estate. As a famous singer of a band once said, "money won't buy you happiness, but it CAN buy off unhappiness" and truer words have never been spoken. There are no U-hauls behind a hearse, but by the same token, you don't want to be flat fucking broke on your deathbed if you can help it. |
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Quoted: Back in the day I used to date this realtor chick. She sold lots of big "McMasion" homes. She told me that it was pretty common to go back a year later and visit her clients and find the homes pretty much empty...no furniture or anything on the walls. They could barely keep up with the payments......they would rather have a huge house, and lease/finance fancy cars, and buy expensive clothes than have furniture in their homes. I saw this and laughed. My first house was a townhouse in a neighborhood with mcmansions built by one of those shitty mass producers. They always had financial advise for my wife and i, knew what was best, etc. I'd been in a few of the houses and couldn't believe how empty they were. Finally, the only neighbor I talked to told me one of the guys, used car salesmen bought one for 600k, had some brand new Audi and asked to borrow 300 bucks because he got a flat tire.... WTF? We moved out shortly after, kept the place to rent, and bought a custom built (not by us) on 15 acres. A few of them couldn't believe the house we bought. Just assumed because we're didn't ball out like them were were poor.... |