It takes commitment AND discipline.This is what it took for me...

It takes commitment AND discipline.

This is what it took for me to achieve a debt-free, wealthy lifestyle by my 30s.

• Always refusing to rent. I just would not rent because moving it out is the stupidest thing you can do (unless it's unavoidable due to family issues, location etc.)
• While I didn't pay rent, I paid 50-70% of my salary towards wealth creation assets & super
• I paid off my parents' mortgage (about $200k debt), I bought myself an investment property and paid it off ($240k), I bought my parents an investment property and paid half of it $140k. This is like a business where I get proceeds of the sales on the properties now which has set me up very well
• I built a share portfolio ($200k) that generates income
• I put $250k in my super
• I built savings of $100k

All on a salary that started at $40k in 2008, increased to $100k in 2014, peaked at $180k in 2019, and then dropped to $70k in 2022. I now live in a much lower cost city (have moved out of the parents) but have the funds to easily buy a place on one income. In the first 6 years of this journey I only went on 2 international trips and also underwent divorce (no financial claim but wasted money nonetheless).

I very aggressively saved by taking the bus where I could, leverage my employers resources instead of paying for my own dinner (it came with the job which was nice) but even when I spent my own money, I didn't do what others did and spend $20 on a burger fries and coke, I always kept it to <$10,.

Meanwhile many of my friends/colleagues complain they simply cannot buy a house but have always spent the vast majority of their income on lifestyle. They're on $250-$400k salaries with barely $50k in the bank (if even that).