You could add investing. A family that began saving from day one and accumulated steadily over their entire working life would have substantial investment gain in their portfolio.For those who have $5+ million in investible assets, I would love to see a poll showing the breakdown of the sources of their wealth. I can think of some legitimate categories:
-Inheritance
-Lottery
-Salary or bonus from employment (senior mgmt, sales)
-Sale of business/dividend from one's own business
-Stock options/IPO
-Divorce settlement
-Judgment from a lawsuit
-Others?
I think that in general, it is virtually impossible for an average Joe to accumulate this kind of wealth without some combinations of the above.
luckydude