In the 80's I was working in the Beauty industry and got real good at what I do. I live in Los Angeles and celebrities "heard" about me and started coming in. Howard Stern loved three of the girls that I took care of and when interviewed, they all mentioned ME on his radio show. I had a long run of fame and worked from 6am until 10 or 11 at night back to back for a number of years. I was married to a cameraman, and we had the same hours so often we left and came home at the same time. We kept our money separate. He spent, in my opinion, so frivolously as he bought watches (boxes self winding on the dresser side by side) and cars (like a new one every 6 months) and I bought (broken down) houses, but in GREAT Locations. And I have never Sold. There was no housing boom...yet. My first ($84,000-in a GREAT Location) was abandoned for years and my husband thought I had a screw loose because I wanted it and ohhh...it needed a lot of work.It smelled musty so he wouldn't even venture inside to look at it with me. But I loved it, and bought it, and spent weekends working on it. I worked with focus and paid to have my houses fixed up little by little and did so good with my first one that we actually moved in to it. I was raised dirt poor so I learned early how to make something out of nothing and my proprieties were very fun to fix-up, and I didn't cheap-out on things you shouldn't cheap out on. Got the best re-pipe plumbing (copper), 35 year new roofs, Cast iron Bathtub (not resin), went to amazing high class tile stores and picked out from the Clearance section the beauties and surrounded them with a black liner and white tile all around to finish, got expensive hardy faucetry (not plastic), the Best Dunn-Edwards paint etc. The housing "boom" wasn't quite here yet, in the 80's, so for awhile there I was buying a house a year. So, to be "blue-collar" working appearing (and I still very much am) I drive a small old mini truck (1998) that I LOVE, (but I do have a Mercedes in the garage~an old black beautiful one that I rarely drive) I buy my clothes from Salvation Army (better made!), I live humbly but not cheaply and I think most people really wouldn't think at all that I have what I have. I still work part time, I love it when I get a notice to vacate from a tenant because I still love fixing up the houses and I do clean and make them nice, attractive and so desirable (I even check the corners with q-tips before I release a home to a new tenant) that usually the first people that look at it, want to take it.
So my ex-husband (friendly divorce) that thought I was crazy bought beautiful watches and cameraman expensive cars and I bought houses that needed a LOT of fixing up. And I had so much fun customizing them to an easy to live in style and my motto was always: to "Stay on the Creative Side of Classic." Oh, and my 24 houses now, are also all paid off. I feel very blessed for having the intuition that I did in the 80's, and those rent checks each month are so very sweet. I think the best investment you could EVER make is in Real Estate. And I never ever tell anything to people that know me. That is some bad karma to brag. Nothing but ill will vibe energy may/will come your way if you do, guarenteed. Stay humble, stay safe and Thank God for all of your smarts, your blessings, and that you had the common sense to think of your future.