Why Everything You Know About the Rich Is WRONG!

[@GregJSchneider]

Bo's excitement has to be at the bowling point right about now

[@Nemesisnxt]

The next Billy Mays? Of course, without the premature ending.

[@6thManSam]

🤣

[@christophercamargo5209]

Boiling*

[@Ulandyw]

@@christophercamargo5209 thatsthejoke.jpg

[@bgoode652]

@@PJMeyer-hr4dc Almost every episode, lol.

[@guschtel-y9w]

I will say there's a bit of confusion and misinterpretation of much of the data here. So I wanted to clarify that. If you go to an Ivy League or you become a doctor/lawyer/engineer/banker, your chance of becoming a millionaire is much much higher. However, most people don't - so that's why even most millionaires are not ivy league graduates.

[@FIRE_DrNinjaTurtle]

How many went from homeless to financial freedom? I was in a homeless shelter at 25 years old. I became financially free around 60 years old. If I can do it, anyone can do it. Love the channel

[@mlsasd6494]

„If i can do it anyone can do it“ is a very strong survivor bias. While it might be right, the decisions you have to make if you are less advantaged get incredibly hard and less ans less people are actually able to do it the harder it gets.

[@JPEight]

I think you mean "If I could do it, then anyone who was also born into the boomer economy and also had an aptitude for a high earning skill could also have done it" Then does not equal now.

[@GenghisKahn]

​@@JPEightnow, in his defense. We have had some really good benefits. A housing crash that crippled the housing market to affordability followed by massively low interest rates. No doubt when you turn 60 a younger person will make the same lines talking about how easy you had it because of whatever beneficial event that created opportunity that was not taken advantage of by the population as a whole, but yet assumed that everyone had the benefit of it no matter what.

[@44andbroke24]

Much respect to you, I also was sleeping on the railroad tracks at the @ of 24. And it was an incredibly difficult journey. Legal problems, no family and friends and penniless not even a driver's license. Now at 52 been married for 25 years, same union job for 24 years. And we just became nw millionaires. A survival skill has be turned into the willingness to do work most aren't willing to do. Currently saving 30% of our gross pay. And a plan to retire early

[@johnhitchcock4323]

I was also homeless at 25 as well…had a bachelors degree and was a veteran. Unfortunately I numbed my emotions with Alcohol. I try to keep what I learned on the streets in my career. I’m now investing, have an emergency fund, and have a car and apartment. I never walk past a homeless person without either acknowledging them or helping them.

[@josephburton3232]

While it's interesting that so few people in your survey received little to no inheritance from their family on the way to their first million, I'm curious what other type of support they may have received that isn't direct financial compensation. Were they supported with knowledge that a family member had from a lifetime of experience in a particular field/business? Were they allowed to live at home while they went to college so they had to rely less on student loans? Did their parents have a college fund set up for them so they could skip student loans all together? Was their first job through family/friend connections or at the family business? Were their parents college educated and, therefore, could help them navigate the college admission and financial aid process? Just because someone wasn't given inheritance in the form of a check doesn't mean they didn't have a lot of assistance from family. That assistance can come in many different forms that may not be accounted for by simply asking "Did you receive inheritance?"

[@randombandit362]

Including a good example of secure relationships and supportive family

[@thecurrentmoment]

Well 80% are first generation so, aside from not being about receiving a big inheritance from parents, it seems that millionaires don't necessarily raise millionaires, which is very interesting

[@carterwgtx]

I’d like to see a show in the difference between a millionaire, a 10 million, 50 million, 100 million, billion net worths…it’s the difference between roller skates vs the Saturn 5 rocket going from 1 million to 100 million.

[@Finallegend_]

I would guess that from a happiness point of view, you probably get most of the benefit of wealth from the first 1-2 million. More than 10 million seems to cause more problems than it solves.

[@dreamchaser5758]

Half of Americans can't afford a $400 emergency without reliance on credit. Most Americans are woefully unprepared for retirement. For the working and middle classes, the psychological hurdle is to get them to understand that having a $1M net worth is doable. People achieve that milestone through discipline every day.

[@epbrown01]

@@dreamchaser5758 Yep, I wish there was more focus on single-digit millionaires. All the focus on people with 100s of millions or billions makes a lot of people think wealth is unattainable. People need to see what the entire spectrum looks like.

[@carterwgtx]

@@epbrown01 I agree - so many people think that a millionaire is somebody with a mansion and 2 or 3 luxury sports cars...when in reality most live in modest homes and drive a normal vehicle. I think showing people the difference between reasonably attainable wealth vs rare extraordinary wealth would help avoid people conflating the two and help them get to a point of getting started.

[@ryankiel4895]

I read an article in Money Magazine that stated that 3.5 million was the sweet spot. After that figure, there was no more level of happiness reported for net worth.

[@andycastro9697]

As an exercise science major who switched careers (at age 28) - the statement that health is wealth is absolutely true.

[@rffinances8567]

I recently got into your show, and there are a few things that really impress me. One is that you go into detail. This is the most in-depth exploration of millionaires I've seen, which is really fascinating. I also like how you're good at meeting people where they are. Like you should pay cash for your car if you can, but that's not realistic for many people. So instead, you have the 20/3/8 rule, which gives people more practical guidelines that by following it, they can build wealth. Or, in this episode, acknowledging that most millionaires didn't follow the 20% downpayment rule for their first home. Loved the stories about how they see money as a tool and what that tool allows them to do.

[@BeerFoamy]

In the Money & Marriage chart, I’d like to see stats on how divorces changes the outcome.

[@eddiemalvin]

I agree. It would be interesting to see the impact over time. As expected, divorce was an immediate and severe financial setback for me. It briefly put me off track from my financial goals but surprisingly opened the door to a much faster track within a relatively short time.

[@TR-lh9yz]

I think they had that in another video. The people who got married and stayed married were more likely than single people to become millionaires. But people who got married and got divorced were set back 77% in wealth creation. That was the number that stuck with me.

[@999bmxbandit]

I feel like the stats on gifts and inheritance leaves open a lot of room for people to not include parents doing things like paying for college or living expenses when younger.

[@Jacosmi]

Yeah, this is huge. Also a sense of stability when doing, e.g. internships or trying new things.

[@gregshirk6176]

I agree but they had a separate statistic that said a majority attended public college and had a breakdown of how college was paid for. Not super clear statistics, but it’s evident parental help was in the majority, just not very descriptive as to how much.

[@BossMan_Jerm]

Pessimists are never satisfied lol @10:30 … watch the full video

[@999bmxbandit]

@@BossMan_JermI did. The point I’m making is that the magnitude of those contributions is not remotely made clear through this polling methodology. And even the college part doesn’t remotely cover the starting out costs like parents housing you or paying for rent, paying for your bills, etc. And the point I made is also that the polling strategy here doesn’t include college paid for as parents as it’s very reasonable to not classify this as a gift with the way this is presented.

[@servalous]

To be married brings different kind of risk to your personal and "teams" wealth. It can be a good oppertunity to build up wealth, but also it can destroy two generation of wealth build up also. Seen it all to often.

[@randombandit362]

Yeah, one of the biggest impediments to wealth is divorce, but a misaligned partnership will also make it impossible. If one of the partners has no care about the future or saving, kiss retirement goodbye

[@maoisn]

If money doesn't buy you happiness, you're not spending it right. Almost everyone knows how to make money but few know how to spend money properly.

[@jiangpkpful]

But if you need to spend money to be happy, you've got some thinking to do about life...

[@Zorlig]

Absolutly. Not that happyness is a proper end goal, but if you have money and don't it to resolve your problems then you aren't doing it right.

[@Zorlig]

@@jiangpkpful Sure, if you are single man no children.

[@maoisn]

@@jiangpkpful True. I hate having to spend money just to live. I got some thinking to do about life.

[@RobertBeedle]

Money does not, in itself, make you happy. Doesn't really matter if you spend it right or wrong. If you had enough of it, you may just feel stressed to managr it and fearful of losing it. Family and friends may want their piece of the pie. Stressed because you don't want to work but also feel useless at home doing nothing.

[@danielnelson2820]

Finished the book...great read! Already have passed it on to educate more people.

[@diegoavila1501]

11:45 - if you add up these percentages, it equals 200%. Does this means that respondents had more than one response? I think this hurts the accuracy of the statistics.

[@ssaini74]

Stats on education are misleading. Reason it shows majority who go to public universities in their survey are millionaires is a numbers game. It is due to most go to public univ likely in their survey. Of the ones that went to public what percentage are millionaires. And of the ones who went to private or Ivy what percentage are millionaires. I would like to see that info.

[@hockeyhalod]

Mann..... I'm going to hit the 11% on the pie chart. Turning 35 this year and we are a bit off.

[@rffinances8567]

That's awesome, congrats!

[@explorecreativity1622]

Hopefully we can eventually see stats for people in the next tier of wealth. Say net worth of 10million or greater. How did they get there?

[@SF-fb6lv]

I think you are right. Unfortunately $1M is just not enough, at least not in the Bay Area, CA.

[@fnamelname7296]

The same way you made your first million. I am 50, my wife is 47 and we have networth close to $8M. I try to get a return of 10% return on my assets every year. I am semi retired. Plan to fully retire by 65.

[@SF-fb6lv]

@@fnamelname7296 Awesome! Is it enough (serious question)? Seems like it would be unless: 1) You gotta have a really really nice house, 2) you like to charter yachts, or 3) you like to fly private. If you don't do any of those, I would think $800k/yr is fine. Right? I calculated if you do #2 or #3 you should have like $17M.

[@fnamelname7296]

@@SF-fb6lv it was enough since we reached 3M… that’s because we live in SF Bay Area, else I would say a million is enough. We tried to retire early and quickly discovered it is boring. While we do live in a very nice house, everything else is fairly modest. I am still driving my 2008 Camry, we shop at Costco/Target and only recently started flying business. I have been able to help my parents and my siblings and even some cousins… we will probably end up lot higher than 17M because we have fairly high incomes which we plough right back into investments which grows our networth even higher. We donate to charity and plan to leave significant portion our networth to charity. Obviously, we plan to leave a decent portion for our boys too but not so high that it will leave them with no ambition. Life is good!

[@kyleolson9636]

​@@fnamelname7296 Things are going to look vastly different when comparing average millionaires to average decamillionaires. The average millionaire started saving a few hundred dollars a month by their mid-20s and progressively increased that amount until they reached millionaire status in their late 50s. That does not describe the average decamillionaire. Decamillionaires would be far more likely to have a very high income, own a business, or have significant inheritance. Reaching $8 million by 50 (your scenario) as an employee through investing would have required around $100,000 of annual investing (in 2024 dollars) over the past 30 years. Probably only a few percent of millionaires had that level of income in their 20s, 30s, or even 40s. Many of the perceptions this show was debunking for millionaires will apply to a much greater percentage of decamillionaires. Which makes sense, since decamillionaires are much closer to the general public's perception of "wealthy."

[@anniealexander9616]

I think people use "time" as an excuse to be lazy. Tuesday, my pay hit my bank account. I balanced my checkbook and paid bills before I got out of bed. Then i went and mowed the lawn. After a shower, I cut my hair. Then i made some lunch. I have friends who can't mow, cook their own food, or cut hair. They aren't earning more money than I am. They are sitting on the sofa while someone else mows their lawn. They aren't picking up an extra shift at the hospital lol. But the money I save, is working for me and earning money. What's most important about Tuesday is the exercise i got while making my yard look good. Im not taking high blood pressure pills, cholesterol pills, diabetic weight loss shots, and vitamin D shots.....like my buddy who can't mow his lawn. I have a friend who is out of the country once a month at a resort.... except for January. January is always Disney world. A certain amount of "experiences" is just over kill. When you think about it, we are 4 hours from a beautiful beach and only minutes away from great restaurants. Too much "luxury" packs on the pounds. I'm cooking at home not because I can't afford to dine out but because my waistline can't afford it. Last night, I wanted onion rings. I was too lazy to make them. My body thanks me for not adding those calories.

[@circrna]

I hear you. I cut my lawn. Fresh air, relaxing. Takes 45 minutes. Some prefer to run on their treadmill in their basement (I have one) or watch TV. I prefer cutting my own lawn. I feel good and know I also save money.

[@mrjuvy49]

You will go to exotics vacations in your future, and your peers will still give you excuses on why they can't go wiht you.

[@kyleolson9636]

The poor and middle class spend their spare time to save money. The upper middle class and wealthy spend money to create more spare time. I spend just over $1k per month on cleaning services and yard work, but I'd much rather spend that time playing with my kids. Sure I could probably save an extra million dollars by retirement if I did all this work, but no one sits on their death bed wishing they spent more time doing household chores.

[@mrjuvy49]

I have heard it is experiences that count. Vacations, get togethers might be more important than spending time on the job. Agree with you, you must invest in yourself and RE and or stocks to get ahead today. I get where you are coming from I am there now.

[@anniealexander9616]

​@@kyleolson9636I did about an hour of yardwork, yesterday. It doesn't keep me from family and friends. I have a buddy wanting to hangout. I'll clean while he drives. My children grew up helping me work on rental property. Today, they aren't helpless like most of the population. They were given free homes from Mom and still do their own chores....and have time for friends and family. Oldest two called and talked to me for over 4 hours the other day.

[@johnchappell1261]

Y’all are so enthusiastic about boring wealth building slowly. I love it!!!! So inspiring for me!!!!! Thank you so much!!!!!

[@drticktock4011]

The inheritance pie chart seems biased: I'm guessing (multi) millionaires are too busy or don't care to fill out data responses to build this chart. I can imagine those who are self made millionaires are proud (and should be!) and are happy to share their data...especially when coming from nothing.

[@kyleolson9636]

No, it is probably your perception of the average millionaire that is wrong. Most millionaires never received inheritance and never even made $100k in a single year throughout their career. They also never lived a lavish lifestyle because they simply couldn't afford it. $1 million in net worth is not much money. In retirement it is a $350k paid off house and a $70k annual budget (social security + investment income). Bank of America surveyed 1000+ individuals with over $3 million in investable assets. They found 27% were self-made, 46% received significant inheritance (around $500k), and 28% had legacy wealth ($1M+ inheritance). That is probably much closer to your perception of wealthy individuals. Another factor into why most millionaires didn't receive their wealth from inheritance is because their parents were still alive when they reached millionaire status. I'm likely to receive $500k - $1M in inheritance, but probably not until my 50s-60s. And I'll be a millionaire in my mid 40s.

[@adam872]

Gents, this could be one of your most important videos. There is all sorts of misinformed commentary about millionaires and how they got there in the media. I particularly liked the questions on where your clients started out in terms of inheritance and their relationship with debt. This survey is where the theory intersects with the lived reality and I think it's important that people understand the lessons. It's OK to take on a bit of debt and maybe not be so serious about your finances early on, but the sooner you are the better off you'll be. I'm living proof of this. Like most people I made some non-optimal choices (mainly with cars) in my 20's, but by the end of that decade my then partner (now wife) decided to knuckle down and do things properly. A couple of decades later and we're reaping the rewards, just like a lot of your clients. We'll be able to afford to retire early and take control of our time (truly the most precious resource any person has IMHO).

[@jayholiday256]

I did myself by my mid fifties. Second generation millionaire. Will inherit an additional million at some point in time. I agree with most of this stuff, paid cash for a new $50k Lexus that will be fine for 15 years

[@Bailey1879]

Did I miss the statistic on what percentage of millionaires are high income earners? I know not all high income earners are millionaires and there are some middle class and lower income folks who achieved the millionaire milestone. Still, I would be interested what the breakdown is.

[@kyleolson9636]

Considering about half of all millionaires only reach a $1-2 million net worth, and less than a quarter reach $5 million, the average millionaire is not a high earner. About 1/3 never made a six figure income in a single year throughout their career. One millionaire next door blog post claimed the median millionaire was making $89k in household income the year they became millionaires. When the term millionaire became a common term to describe the rich, $1 million had the spending power of $30 million today. Arguably this is still the level of wealth most people are picturing when they use the term millionaire. This is why so many perceptions of real millionaires end up being incorrect when you look at the statistics. I bet most of these perceptions are accurate if you look at people with a $30+ million net worth.

[@mlsasd6494]

I have to vehemently disagree with the statement about „being born into money“. Inheretance is the last factor which should be considered when talking about „first-genrration wealth builders“. Literally just googling shows that socioeconomic mobility in the US is poor. On a societal level its not about inheriting much or having a paid for college. Its about having your parent not working 60-80hrs a week so that they can read to you in the evenings. Its about having proper nutrition to support physical and mental development. Its about having opportunities outside of school to learn useful social skills. Its about getting access to study support if needed. Its about not having to pick up a job at 16 to help mom with the bills and not having to raid your retirement savings so that your parents dont die on the street because they didnt have savings. Or just about your parents being financially educated enough so you dont make the same mistakes everyone around you is making to get a better start. Or being financially supported a little bit so that you can take more risk earlier because you have a fallback. All these points are personal and yes, socioeconomic status and education are not the same, but these things are heavily correlated. Showing a graph about inheritance for such a complex and nuanced question is imo ignorant. On an individual level you CAN beat all of that. You CAN become wealthy while your parents were not, you CAN learn all the skills necessary to do it and in some regards you will probably have an advantage (e.g. learning discipline, hard work etc.) but on average the cards ARE stacked against you if you start in the lower half of the population and you will have to work harder than people who were born „into money“ aka „not poor“. Inheritance has nothing to do with that.

[@randombandit362]

Another huge factor is partner selection. Many people with divorced parents were raised with dysfunctional attachment patterns which most likely means they probably didn’t pick great partners and that will also undercut wealth building in a meaningful way

[@anniealexander9616]

I think it mostly has to do with self control. My brother is 18 months older than I am. We were raised by the same parents. He buys liabilities and I buy assets. I like cars too but I know they are a wealth killer. Our dad had a heart attack when I was 6 and died when I was 11. I went to work at 15. That job was one of the best things to happen to me. I learned so much more at work, than I was learning at school. I was lucky to have a mother that took me to the bank when I received my first check. I put $100 into savings and kept $7 to spend. I paid my car insurance, gas, tires, prom gown, class ring etc. But mostly, I was focused on buying a house vs my friends who were buying cars. Im a millionaire because I was a teenage home owner who continues to choose assets over Liabilities.

[@lalyssasyoung2822]

I agree that people who grew up in lower socioeconomic households will have to work HARDER to reach financial independence for all the reasons that you've mentioned but that is what makes everyone's journey unique. I believe that the hardships that we faced, can be a strength in that it can be a motivator to help us achieve financial stability. For example, I came to the U.S as a refugee at the age of 3. My parents didn't speak any English and was dependent on government and charitable organizations for the majority of my youth. At the age of 13, I started working part-time after school and would help my parents make ends meet. On top of that, I also had to co-parent my younger brother by helping him with his homework, going to doctor's appointments, sport events, etc since my parents were still not able fully speak/understand English. Fast forward to college, instead of going to the state university that I was accepted to with full scholarship, I decided to go to the community college for the first 2 years then transferred. I worked throughout my undergrad and did not take out any student loans. Obviously, I did not get any financial support from family. I graduated in the worst possible time and no one was hiring (2008). So I decided to go to graduate school but came out with a 6 figure studen loan since it was a private university. I stayed disciplined and paid off the student loan in 5 years. Currently 36, married with 2 little ones and on track to hit millionaire status by 40, not including our primary residence. This is all to say, yes, it would be nice if we were all given the same start at life, but since we are not, let's make our own reality!

[@torchy187]

I guess I don’t understand why pay cash for a car when you can still get low interest rates…sub 4% with solid credit. S&P 500 averages about 10% a year. Seems like a large opportunity cost to pay cash.

[@randombandit362]

4% on used cars?

[@torchy187]

@@randombandit362 Good point. I was only thinking about new cars.

[@kylewynja3031]

I think the argument would be that consumers spend MORE when financing vs cash and it also leads to lifestyle creep. I’m one of their statistics though. Financed short term when I was in 20’s. By the time I reached 40 started paying cash for cars.

[@TR-lh9yz]

​@@kylewynja3031Yeah this has been my experience. I pay cash for cars and you really think twice about how much car you need when you write that fat check.

[@Ydy-d7u]

I have a question about the Ramsey data. Where was the sample taken from-their own clients? Because if so, then that would seriously skew the results. It would just be nice to know the sampling methodology and if data are available for peer review.

[@nvn__]

I just purchased the book.

[@Successfinder123]

35:22 so my wife an I have always been saving just not the way of the FOO. I am 37 she is 34. We are just starting to see the bowling point accumulation of my 401k and our brokerage. Now we are taking it more seriously. We are def interested in the fire movement. But my fire is Financial Independent Recreationally Employed. I don’t think I could ever retire. I love contributing to society. I will still enjoy my life early though. Tons of vacations and life on our terms.

[@tracyfitzgerald-ni6gb]

Guys, most of us millionaires didn't have to pay anywhere near what the current kids have to pay.

[@asandrik3124]

Agreed. My daughter attending my Alma Mater is paying about 4-5x what I paid for school. I put myself through the University I really don’t see how she could do it without debt like I did.

[@kylen6430]

Before we were married, and just living together, we had one joint account where we direct deposited just enough to pay for joint bills like rent and utilities. The rest went into our individual accounts. Once we were married, all went into the joint account, but we still transferred an equal amount to each of our joint accounts. This allowed us to maintain our individuality when it came to financial decisions. Want to buy something for yourself? We had an account for that. Want to buy a gift for someone? There’s an account for that still. Etc

[@definingecology6623]

There is a difference between the everyday person who is barely a millionaire and billionaires and multi tens to hundreds millionaires. I’d love to see the stats on them.

[@kyleolson9636]

Even just looking at people with $3+ million in investable assets makes the inheritance figures shift significantly. Bank of America found only 27% of them received less than about $500k in inheritance. There is a huge gap in what it takes to reach a $1 million net worth and what it takes to reach $5+ million. Think of it as the difference between finding a job paying $70k and a job paying $350k.

[@ZuNiBao]

I think of first generation millionaire as having being raised in a sub-millionaire household. You receive plenty of benefits (good education, healthcare, etc) that’s not enumerated among the inheritance/gift column. My guess is that number is lower than 80% General point stands though that the majority of millionaires probably got there by themselves. However, the odds of reaching millionaire status given that you were raised in a sub millionaire household is likely much lower than the odds for those raised in millionaire households. It’s just that the base rate of millionaires is low, so logically most millionaires come from non millionaires

[@josephburton3232]

Is it really getting there by themselves if they were raised in a stable household that provided them with a good education, healthcare, good nutrition, access to opportunities and the ability to take risks at trying new things knowing if they fail they will have a safety net to fall back on?

[@ZuNiBao]

The first part of my comment is getting at your point. The ‘getting there by yourself’ part I wrote was about just literally reaching $1 million without direct inheritance. And I think that’s true for the most part. But as you mentioned, it’s a disservice to not consider all the other benefits of being raised in a high income household. It’s easy to forget those things because people take their upbringing for granted. I’m also sure most of these people worked hard and were patient. Many things can be true at once

[@rffinances8567]

I think this is key. The research has shown that most millionaires are first-generation, but even if they didn't receive a lot of financial help from their parents, there are still so many less direct ways parents help their kids become healthy. Like in my case, there's a very good chance I'll become a millionaire, and while my parents were never rich, they still helped. They provided a stable home in an area with good public schools, they valued education and hard work, and while they didn't pay for college, they helped cover other expenses, so I didn't have to take out as many loans. My home was like Brian's in that there was more love than money, and that love really did make a difference. I'd be very curious if there was a study that looked at the life these first generation millionaires had growing up.

[@kenmoorhead2943]

Bo Hanson: ✅ So excited ✅ Just can’t hide it ❓About to lose control and likes it

[@Azel247]

When parents want to set their kids up for success: "Wow! You are amazing parents! Your kids are so lucky!" When kids get help from parents: "Omg those kids are spoiled. They are only rich because of their parents. They don't deserve wealth!" Y'all gotta pick a side and stay on it

[@kylewynja3031]

Ha! Very true. It’s an interesting cycle. My wife and I came from middle income families and are nearing ultra high net worth and the dynamic that causes for our children is a challenge also. Different type of challenge but a challenge nonetheless.

[@kyleolson9636]

I see no contradiction in these statements (except perhaps the spoiled part). I will give my kids advantages very few parents are able to. I consider myself a very good parent and think my kids are quite lucky. My kids are fairly average at school, but will probably live their lives in the upper quintile of income because of the head start and continued assistance I can provide. They will not "deserve" the wealth they will enjoy in life (not that this will stop me from ensuring they have it). Being privileged does not make someone a bad person. Not acknowledging it does. I don't expect my kids to be ashamed of their privilege, but I expect them to not look down on people with less money than them because of some misplaced belief that the poor and middle class weren't disciplined enough and didn't work hard enough.

[@angelachapman4415]

Something that I'm wondering about with this is many people don't necessarily receive inheritance until their parents pass away, so they may still receive this inheritance in their 50s or later. Perhaps what allowed them to be "self made" per the terminology used here, is parents that paid for their college education, bought their first car, gave them a leg up in many ways, taught them how to invest, gave them connections to a good job. I'm actually really not trying to say first generation millionaires aren't a thing, but I do wonder if the question of inheritance, when you are asking people while their parents are still living, is an accurate way to capture that. Do the surveys also include the question in a straight forward way- were your parents millionaires? Maybe it was, I am just curious.

[@kyleolson9636]

Bank of America did a study of people with $3+ million in investable assets, and found only 27% of them inherited less than $500k of their wealth. This is more in line with our perception of how many millionaires are truly self-made. The reason these statistics don't match that is most millionaires are retirees who own their home and spend less than $100k per year on their lifestyle.

[@Maxi-miser]

Can you cover something about finance that Bo is not excited about? I need a basis to measure the levels for a comparison.

[@caseyrichards3212]

🤣

[@cl538-t1w]

No, they wouldn't make a video about something Bo isn't excited about.

[@WallaceDunn]

I’ve seen exactly ONE video where Bo did not start off with his “I’m so excited” comment. It was remarkable so I left a comment.

[@Austin-fc5gs]

Problem with the analysis for college tuition is you're selecting for people who are already millionaires so are older, so havent been affected as much by the insane inflation of schooling

[@TR-lh9yz]

It's not that insane if you choose schools carefully and constantly balance with working. I graduated in 1994 with no debt because I worked full time while I was in school (starting my junior year of high school through college graduation). And I went to the cheapest state school that had my degree. Took me five years to graduate because I wanted to cash flow. So that's seven years of full time work to pay for a four year degree. Can be easily done today with in-state tuition and $17/hour you can make in any city.

[@Austin-fc5gs]

@@TR-lh9yz Price of public universities varies, but has increased nationally by 100% since 1994. So if it was hard for you (7 years), double that and remember all your fixed costs have inflated as well.

[@TR-lh9yz]

@@Austin-fc5gs I was making $4 an hour back then. Lived in a four bedroom run down house that we rented for $600 a month split four ways. Tuition then was about 25% of what it costs today at the exact same school. This tracks pretty well to me making 25% of entry level hourly pay now. No eating out, no vacations, drove a 12 year old car. I guarantee you the whiners who have six figure student loan debt now are not working full time, going to public universities and making all the other sacrifices that were common 30 years ago. You can bitch about the water being too cold, or you can start swimming.

[@natefreeman1466]

You’re the exact type of person who they’re talking about because you’re approaching retirement age and lived at time when you could pay for the cheaper tuition at the time with summer jobs/working during school. Tuition has exploded in price where even going to cheap state schools it’s not nearly as feasible as it used to be.

[@TR-lh9yz]

@@Austin-fc5gs You find me someone now who started working full time at 17 and kept it up all the way through college and couldn't find a school they could afford and I'll believe you.

[@chrishayes4166]

This was a really great episode, love the stats/charts and the conversation surrounding it all. Very insightful! Automating savings early (as possible) is such a key point. Even if it's relatively small to start, and take advantage of the +1% automatic yearly contribution increases, made so much of difference from being a 22 year old starting out through my early 30s and now looking at the significant the accumulations that have built up as someone in their late 30s now. Its kind of amazing how that all kind of happened in the background as I went about living my life.

[@heidiortiz9352]

I think of inheritance as a small part of generational wealth. Statistically, the zip code you grow up in is the biggest predictor of your lifetime earnings/ wealth🧐

[@kyleolson9636]

Absolutely. I'll likely inherit $500k-$1 million when my parents die, but the upbringing I had allowed me to be in a position to reach millionaire status by my mid-40s. So while my inheritance will be significant, it will never be the majority of my net worth.

[@michaelc8179]

Yeah it blows me away how many ppl don't even look at the scholarships offered at college/university. So many and hardly anyone applies. 🤷

[@kylewynja3031]

When I toured a university with my daughter all the tour guide wanted to talk about was the scholarships and aid that was available. Not once did he ask if that was important to her or us. In fact, it wasn’t as we started a college savings plan when she was born. So, it may seem crazy to you but it seems crazy to me that people need it.

[@bluetick67]

Please do a show like this strictly on decamillionaires, 25, 50, or 100+

[@da2ndtolastdon1]

I bet those stats would be WILDLY different for $100 millionaires

[@kylewynja3031]

Agree. Like mark Cuban says, no one becomes a billionaire solely by working hard. Some “luck” is involved. Prob if you get to north of 30million (ultra high net worth) you were a combination of high income earner and disciplined saver.

[@kyleolson9636]

​@@da2ndtolastdon1 Even looking at people with a $5 million net worth would make these statistics look far different. Bank of America did a study of people with $3 million in investable assets, and only 27% were self-made (< $500k inheritance). The main reason our perception of millionaires is wrong is because we are really thinking of people with a $5+ million net worth.

[@Moist._Robot]

I didn’t figure it out until 50. Better late than never.

[@EdgarVerona]

I want to see the same stats for your customers, but for people who have more than 10 million in net worth. A million these days is relatively easy to build up over decades of 401k contributions, but I would be really interested to see if the stats hold up as you get to 10 million plus.

[@josephburton3232]

I'd imagine those people in the deca millionaire category are going to be people with extremely high incomes (doctors and lawyers with certain specialties, successful business owners, wall street financial folks, etc) and people taking over family businesses.

[@dreamchaser5758]

If it's so easy, why has it been widely reported that six figure earners/households are living paycheck-to-paycheck, a third of Americans don't have any retirement savings and half of Americans can't cover a $400 emergency without relying on credit. Forays into Deca millionaires and above feels like financial voyeurism. Discipline is never easy.

[@EdgarVerona]

@@dreamchaser5758 my point isn't that discipline is easy: but that if a person can consistently contribute to a 401k over their career, becoming a millionaire by retirement is basically guaranteed. So all the statements about millionaires being slow savers rather than entrepreneurs or having inherited wealth just makes common sense. What I am wondering is if all these "myths" about millionaires are actually truths for deca millionaires, and we are simply looking at the wrong group because a million is not the level of wealth that people think it is anymore.

[@dryfus423]

I got there in my late 30s with the help of a 2-year expat assignment where I continued to be careful with money allowing us to invest consistently before and through the COVID trough.

[@ryanu.4953]

This can be skewed by lies. How many millionaires want to admit they were handed the reigns of the kingdom? How many millionaires are there and don’t even realize the gifts they’ve been given? Where does the line of raising a child and gifts end? Also age matters, a millionaire below the age of 30 is very different than one at the age of 60. A professional athlete would say they were never given gifts to become millionaires, completely ignorant of all the money their community and family put into their training.

[@LawrenceTimme]

Lol.

[@randombandit362]

Yeah, the 6’8” basketball player would say they did it alone, no help from anyone, not even their thyroid

[@ryanra44]

I’m 41, my wife is 32. We are both chemical analyst and we will hit millionaire status in the next 4 years. Neither one of us has inherited anything. We have completely separate accounts. My wife paid for her own schooling through student loans. I went to a private college. I had $84k in scholarships, my parents paid $12,000 and I took out $16,000 in student loans. We both work in the field that we got our degrees in. The only debt we have is our home at 2.7% interest /15 year mortgage that we will pay off early.

[@Stil1_loading]

Is tuition taken into account?

[@oferzeira8125]

Excellent show. The data is remarkable and compatible with the Millionaires next door book. As retirees we experienced the same journey and nowadays we enjoy our times. As well we have been doing our best to convey these important messages to our kids and others who are willing to listen.

[@rellsimon]

DC Native here! Cant wait to attend the Live Event tomorrow!

[@MileHighMopar]

The sub counter on the shelf behind Bo needs to be updated... No longer 445k!

[@BitsOfInterest]

They probably recorded this a few weeks ago. That counter should update automatically.

[@J_pearce01]

I figured it out age 29 which was earlier this year. I’m excited to improve every year

[@connerymartin2952]

The flow of yalls presentations feels like a sports podcast. It's perfect!

[@jessemeier3447]

Talking about the ACT, I took it 3 times, and the 3rd score improved by 2 points but my scholarship at the state school I attended went from like $12,000 total to $45,000 total I believe. It was a considerable difference, I do remember that much. It can make a huge difference; it's not illegal to take it as many times as you can! (I think haha)

[@coya8coy]

Woah-Brian’s excited too?? 😱 😂

[@Lolatyou332]

4% under the age of 35, 11% under 40, 11% got over 100k inheritance... Think we know how the younger people got their wealth at that age lol

[@TheDogondone]

Having a wife and a child actually was a huge part of what made my family wealthy. I was an entitled child before I had to be responsible for a wife and child.

[@davila0893]

First generation, self achieved millionaire. Raised by single mom with 6 kids, she taught us to work hard. Married, 31 years, lovely wife who opted to stay at home with kids, raised 3 beautiful daughters (two are done with graduate school, married and working; one still at home). I attended community college and received Associates Degree at 28 years old. Have worked in petrochemical since 2000, worked OT, saved and invested. God willing, will retire at 57 in 2027 with 2 million. Definitely doable, even with a single income.

[@ParkDari]

The ones I know Drive used cars only, went to Catholic or Christian school. They worked their way through State colleges, are very renaissance people. They know how to do things like hunt, fish cook gourmet food can smoke dry food garden farm, sewing, knitting crochet they understand the basics of machinery they like travel for its own sake, not necessarily vacations, they are minimalist in what they own. They live well below their means. for housing. They tend to buy a fixer-upper and pay the mortgage off aggressively. They are married they have joint accounts. They have kids. They have very good family relationships in general and they are people of faith. They automatically invest 25% + of their income

[@kyleolson9636]

The types of millionaires you know is going to be highly influenced by who you are and the environment you live in. Most likely you live in a rural area or at least in a state with a significant rural population. You probably aren't a high earner. You probably are married or divorced and have kids. You are probably religious. If most of what I said is not true then you are an outlier. The majority of millionaires I know drive luxury cars, are not handy around the house, are married with kids, and less than half are people of faith. But I am a married parent with a high income in a more urban area and am an atheist. So naturally most of the millionaires I know are going to look more like me and the friends I choose to know well.

[@pacienciapaga287]

very interesting matters. thanks. But, about the statistics yo you... we do not know how many is the total of folks or repondents were questionend. If here we talk about numbers... there is a missing important data ¿?? ¡!!!!

[@Successfinder123]

Millionaire mission was an amazing book to read

[@lucasdagamalobo8118]

Great content. Keep up the amazing work!!

[@asandrik3124]

A millionaire isn’t rich! Not even close. To me to be “rich” maybe about $10M.

[@GregHartmann-ux7eh]

Fantastic video! This is going to be my all time favorite that I will even show my kids.

[@kimberlylefkof3070]

It might not be the best metaphor to refer to your book as "kindling."

[@Stormcoaster101]

Since 1 million dollars of net worth is considered a “millionaire” (which is not rich and solidly middle class), it makes sense that many of them are self made. They’re home equity and 401k millionaire. Let’s look at the percentage of self made 8 and 9 figure millionaires.

[@mrjuvy49]

Really should be considered upper middle class, thy have the resources that often middle class people do not have a clue.

[@User-pu3lc]

It is notoriously difficult to get wealthy individuals to participate in surveys. Also, the average household net worth in the US is above $1M.

[@kyleolson9636]

The average household net worth is above $1M, but the median net worth is just under $200k. Only 18% of US households are millionaires, but that drops to 12% when you exclude home equity. Wealthy individuals skew the averages significantly.

[@Yugiboii]

When talking about personal finance never ever use the average as it is always skewed

[@SF-fb6lv]

Based on 2000, 2008, and 2020 I don't think a few months emergency savings is enough.

[@WallaceDunn]

6-9 months of expenses is the recommended amount.

[@SF-fb6lv]

@@WallaceDunn Based on what though? I understand that's what 'they' recommend, but on what basis?

[@HP-dm8gi]

Do you count a married couple as individuals?

[@wendypounds]

that is the difference I want to see. Household vs individual

[@zzz_steve]

I've watched this episode each year. Today it really got to me. Everything you're talking about is historical possibility and historical ability to be wealthy. When people complain about the current system setting people up to fail, they're talking about today, not how people born in the 70s made their money. Perfect example is how Brian talks about paying for his daughter to game the ACT system- this is normal and accepted if you're in the know. You're claiming anyone can do this and it's worth it- the whole problem is that generational wealth is also built on knowledge like this. Not to mention the cost. The entire episode came across hypocritical and clueless. From a long time fan, (and a book buyer!), not a fan of today's episode.

[@vickig6080]

I have been very fortunate to have used my education and developed my 35 year career which I love.

[@nerdobject5351]

When I talk to aspiring software engineers, they find endless excuses as to why they can’t go to college. None of them want to start at a community college and then go to a state school to get their B.S.

[@SSJBartSimp]

Personally I'm a pissimist. The glass is piss.

[@michaelbroadwell1264]

I learn so much from Bob and Ryan every time I tune the dial in!

[@MrColonelbbc]

At this point Bo got to monetize that excitement… t shirts logo etc 😂😂😂😂

[@resterAnonyme]

Please compare to the regular public (non millionaires). I was surprised that so many went to a private school 12% and 27% in private universities. It seems higher than the general public.

[@tracyfitzgerald-ni6gb]

Why would that be the case? If you have options you are more likely to take risks and do things that those with no safety nets would take or do.

[@RobWilliams007]

And, how many of those that inherited over $100,000 are keeping their money, i.e., how many that received an inheritance over $1 mill are still millionaires?

[@kyleolson9636]

My guess is the majority of people who inherited over $1 million were already millionaires before the inheritance. I'll likely invest $500k - $1M from my parents, but hopefully that will be two decades after I hit millionaire status in a year or two. Your parents' income is the strongest predictor of your income, but not because of inheritance.

[@RobWilliams007]

@@kyleolson9636 most millionaires are first generation and most millionaires inheritances is gone within two generations. Even TMGS has pointed this out, as well as Dave Ramsey and many others.

[@Yugiboii]

Of course they’re still millionaires as they were apart of the millionaire study

[@RobDob1569]

“Stains from sloppy tears of happiness” BP

[@raiden031]

Is there anything Bo is not excited about?

[@hairyrope1912]

Can Bo for once just not be excited, Thanks

[@devenmurray3580]

How many of them got a car. 60% got education help. Counting the time value of money, that help alone can easily be hundreds of thousands, over a million even.

[@jasondavidpratt]

Mr T was wrong. Respect the FOO

[@victorbaird8220]

Video starts 1:58 😊

[@beelee1394]

Do taxes count as prepaid future expenses? FOOO #8?

[@vaderwashere365]

This is a great and very accurate video in my opinion and my experience on our path to be at a combined $3.5M net worth currently. I think the only place we deviate from this video is how much our homes are worth (over $1.5M primary, $600K rental - total equity is $1.1M) and buying nice cars (like 1-3 years used ~$40K, but would be ~$60K+ new). We plan to up that to $60K for a new SUV in the next year or two and $100K for a sports car in 4 years. We buy in cash most times, but we will totally do APR's below CD rates and just invest in the stock market. Even our kids will be sharing a $25K+ car themselves with the money they have saved plus us matching their money (again, we will buy in cash or consider low APRs). We were also serious about money in our early 20's (we bought our 1st home together when we were 23). I am also a bit confused by emergency reserve %'s though... if we are talking liquid assets (like stocks), then I am surprised millionaires aren't more like us and have at least a 3 year reserve in stock (not in retirement or restricted accounts). I think we could cut some spending if we really had to and that reserve would be much longer (even after LT capital gains taxes). I mean that grew fairly automatically (quarterly stock buys, private stock offering, RSU's and ESPP), so I am just surprised so many have under 18 months... that is scary to me... and makes me think they are just barely millionaires, have spending problems, or are not telling the truth.

[@servalous]

"how they paid for School" sums to 200%. A bit unlucky data framing.

[@randombandit362]

Because it was a multiple choice question. Many had two or more of the options

[@mrjuvy49]

Yes, I had GI bill, work and grants

[@yhckelly]

If you don't know what you want to do, for goodness sake, don't go to college. Talk to Mom and Dad. Get a job, any decent FT job. Hit the OT hard. Open a brokerage account-Vanguard, whoever. Shovel cash into any index fund- pile it in for 4 years (equivalent time to a degree). Smile. Be $ free in your 40's. Live and give like no one else.

[@johnristheanswer]

If you know something , how can it be wrong ? A fact is a fact.

[@cyberwapx]

Soooo eexcciited , then she came

[@DanaSalminen]

BeautiFOO

[@Bacciagalupe]

: )

[@FinancesOnBitcoin]

Have you guys researched Bitcoin? Since 2020 when I got in it’s a way to annually gain waayyyy more than 7-10% return/year closer to 100% return/year. You don’t need as much in your portfolio if you add 5% allocation to Bitcoin. My net worth is currently over 50% liquid in Bitcoin. Started with 10k in 2020 now over $150k. It’s easy if you hold over a 4-8 year time frame.

[@mrjuvy49]

Only the top 1 per cent of your net worth should be done for investments(?) of this type.

[@FinancesOnBitcoin]

@@mrjuvy49 not when it’s the best preforming asset that ever existed…stats don’t lie man.

[@mrjuvy49]

When it crashes, just like ENRON you will learn your lesson, do not build build your wealth pyramid on speculation, you need a base of proven assets on the bottom. The best way to wealth is the DOW Jones (market) , it has been proven by the test of time.

[@Rew123]

The rich use IBC!!

[@chrissawyer1484]

Inflammatory Breast Cancer? (Goes to Google) Oh, infinite banking concept.

[@mrjuvy49]

They don't buy whole life ins , term only.

[@Yugiboii]

No, just no