Anthony Drew Gary, 35, and his wife had a combined net worth of $5,000 a decade ago.
Gary believes his path to wealth has been “incredibly average”, focusing on careful investments and frugal living.
He makes a decent living in real estate, and says he and his wife have never made more than $200,000 a year. With two children and the rising cost of living in the U.S., that kind of money can disappear quickly, so the couple have been meticulously budgeting for 10 years.
“We shop at Aldi,” he says, “and we do enough of the right things to make sure we have a lot of room in our lives. Ten years of hard work has brought us closer to where we want to be.”
Gary worked through college and graduated from a public university with no debt. He and his wife, now a stay-at-home mom, married at 27, became parents at 30, and bought a small three-bedroom, two-bathroom house outside Indianapolis for $200,000. They could have qualified for a bigger home, but financial flexibility was more important to them.
Gary built a career in real estate, negotiating raises and moving from job to job, starting a real estate agency and buying homes to rent out. He said he “intentionally de-maximized” his income to spend more time with his kids. He prioritized maxing out his retirement and investment accounts.
Anthony Drew Gary says his path to wealth has been “incredibly mundane.” Anthony Drew Gary
To avoid making lifestyle changes, they stuck to a strict monthly budget, vacationed when accommodation was cheapest, and traded children’s clothes and toys with other families in the neighborhood — some pretty simple ways to live frugally without sacrificing quality of life, he said.
“I play a lot of golf, and I play just as bad a shot whether I’m wearing a $100 polo or a $25 polo,” Gary says. “My story is about doing all the boring things right and setting myself up for a great life. Depending on how much money I want to spend in the future, I might have two kids and be done with it by the time I’m 40.”
Some stories of people who got rich and retired early involve less common circumstances: family fortunes, entrepreneurial ambitions, or superstar careers at the top of companies.
But many of the billionaires Business Insider spoke to in recent months didn’t get rich overnight, instead spending more than a decade investing wisely and living frugally. Most stressed that while it can be hard to ignore the societal pressure to continue spending on luxury items and experiences, both before and after they’re rich, the importance of budgeting and saving shouldn’t be overlooked.
Flashy wealth is not the goal
Xiao Yu, 37, developed the habit of saving at an early age. Her parents were rice farmers in China before immigrating to the U.S. and taking a minimum-wage job in a restaurant. She never took out student loans at a public university, but she says she was an average student.
He plans to work his way up to become a certified public accountant and financial manager, and then in October 2023, he and his wife, who is a stay-at-home mom, will become financially independent, quit their corporate jobs, retire early, and start a tax consulting business. He plans to make about $180,000 before retirement and earn $100,000 a year as a self-employed person.
Xiao Yu and his wife save 35 to 45 percent of their income. Xiao Yu
Yu, a father of two who lives in a 2,100-square-foot home outside Indianapolis, said he and his wife built their wealth by consistently saving 35% to 45% of their income, setting an annual budget, driving a 10-year-old car, avoiding lifestyle changes and changing jobs or seeking internal promotions every 1-2 years. He also monetizes his financial coaching skills by helping colleagues with tax return and planning advice.
This has allowed him to spend the money he earns on vacations, renovating his house, and investing in his children’s future. In his free time, he enjoys trying new hobbies, like gardening in his backyard.
“We don’t flaunt our wealth because money is not our ultimate goal. What we aim for is financial freedom to choose how we want to live,” Yu said.
It’s true that many Americans budget and live frugally, not to get rich, but to simply get by. Americans who live payday to payday have less room to invest and take risks, making it nearly impossible to significantly grow their wealth. Some families, even those with six-figure salaries, struggle to invest for the future or buy a home.
According to the Federal Reserve’s latest Economic Well-Being Report, 14% of households making between $50,000 and $100,000 a year are unable to pay their bills in full this month, more than half of all households have seen their savings decrease in the past 12 months, and only 63% of households say they could cover a $400 emergency expense with cash alone.
Meanwhile, credit card debt has hit a record high of $1.14 trillion, with 3.25% of that debt being delinquent, or more than 30 days past due, according to the Federal Reserve. While the percentage of Americans who are late on their credit card payments is lower than it was during the Great Recession, it has risen in recent years, suggesting that many people are finding it harder to keep up with their payments.
Still, many Americans are refusing to catch up with their neighbors and are learning to be content with what they have. Lawrence Delba Gonzalez, 41, who works as an auditor in the Washington, D.C., area, has built his net worth from $150,000 in debt in 2012 to more than $1.3 million as of August. Still, he has no plans to slow his savings rate.
Delba Gonzalez grew up in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, where he says he was “not wealthy at all.” He recalls his grandmother getting up at 4 a.m. to work a variety of second jobs to make money, and his mother didn’t make more than $30,000 a year.
Lawrence Delva Gonzalez and his wife have grown their net worth from $150,000 in 2012 debt to $1.3 million in 2024. Lawrence Delba Gonzalez
After moving to the US, he earned bachelor’s and master’s degrees from public universities and accumulated more than $100,000 in debt. His first job paid $27,000 a year before taxes, but he says he spent most of his income on food.
But when he realized his finances were stagnating, he decided to reduce his monthly student loan payments and invest some of the money in the stock market and retirement accounts.
“The more you invest up front in a tax-advantaged account, the greater the benefits you’ll see later,” Delva Gonzalez said.
A Marine Corps veteran, he moved jobs frequently to boost his pay, and saved more than 50% of his income by using a budgeting app to track all his spending and cut back on unnecessary expenses. He bought a condo in 2016 for $132,000, which he says saved him money in the long run, given the skyrocketing rent prices in Washington, D.C. Once he and his wife had more solid savings, they bought a rental property in Tallahassee that has appreciated in value significantly.
“It’s just human nature: We see wealth as something that’s elusive,” Delba Gonzalez says. “The more you do what you have to do, the more opportunities you have to do what you want.”
After all, being a millionaire isn’t just about retiring to a beach house. Justin Holl, 56, says that while he appreciates the importance of retirement, his goal in building wealth isn’t just to live a lavish lifestyle.
Hall discovered FI strategies in 2017, but says he’s always been frugal and built his wealth slowly. A civil servant and teacher, he and his wife have built a combined seven-figure net worth in Virginia, saving enough to retire early and live a full-time nomadic lifestyle through passive income from investments.
Justin Hall and his wife are now living a nomadic lifestyle after taking early retirement. Justin Hall
Hall, who served in the Air Force for 20 years, began investing at a young age, putting the majority of his assets in an IRA and maintaining a minimalist lifestyle. During his final years in the Air Force, he earned a total of $128,000 in gross income, and his pension is currently $61,600 per year. He also earned just under six figures each year during his 10 years as a civil servant. He and his wife earn a total of $34,000 per year from real estate and $64,000 from investments.
He had many hobbies – he was a musician, a coin and stamp collector, and a cyclist – but sold most of his possessions to focus on self-improvement and cutting back on his expenses.
Hall acknowledges he made a variety of investment mistakes, including losing thousands of dollars on individual stocks, buying mutual funds high and selling low when the dot-com bubble burst, and being too cautious about the market during the 2008 recession. Still, careful savings, low debt and strict budgeting have helped him retire at 52. He and his wife are downsizing about 98% of their possessions in 2023, and he has been traveling the world full-time for the past year.
“I disagree with the well-worn dichotomy between making money with a purpose or retiring early and sitting on the beach all day drinking fruit drinks,” says Hall. “I strongly believe that early retirees can live fulfilling lives without paid work.”
Are you part of the FIRE movement or live by its principles? Contact this reporter at nsheidlower@businessinsider.com.
