I agree but there are also plenty of "I started over with nothing at 50" stories on these Boards, and people who retired without these levels of assets but are happily retired and living modestly.
I know what you mean, though- when I was in my 30s and married to the Financial Train Wreck and trying to raise a small child in my spare time, I couldn't bear to see the cover stories in Money magazine- all those smug couples with the $500K paid-for house with a swimming pool and fully-funded education accounts for their toddlers. It was not my reality.
LOL, Believe it or not, those Money Magazine stories would drive me CRAZY too! For one thing, felt like it took a long time before I was gaining any traction money-wise and those magazines were like salt on an open wound. And for another, they would never give you enough detail to quite figure out how those people were able to achieve the lifestyle they had at a reasonably young age. There was always something missing - and the way my brain works, it cannot stand when there is something missing.
The other day, I was thinking about how impossible achieving that Money Magazine lifestyle seemed back in my 20's and early 30's. And so many people my age at the time in NYC seemed to be living this charmed, carefree existence. None of it made any sense. How could people afford things like nice clothes, or owning a decent car in NYC, much less owning a home. I recall buying my first interview suit (on a credit card of course) on sale at a department store - I did not dare spill anything on it it seemed so expensive (maybe ~$150).
Anyhow, seemed like a lot of well-to-do parents were financing the Money Mag lifestyle for their adult children. And when I was on my co-op building's board, I got to see first hand just how true that was - at least in NYC. As a landlord, I've also seen how true it is - both situations where you get an inside look at where the money is really coming from. And of course, much was financed on credit cards, then as it is now.
I had none of those advantages (except for the credit cards). It's a miracle I figured out how to save and retire someday. I do credit DW with a lot of wisdom in that department. We struggled mightily in the beginning, drowning in student loans, burning the midnight oil to complete grad degrees and start careers in the most expensive town this side of the world.
Anyhow, to your point on people happily retired on more modest assets, I have have huge respect for that. I know I way overshot the landing zone - more than a few reasons for my OMY syndrome, fear and ignorance being two of them. I see and read about lots of folks happily in a state of non-work, early enough in life to enjoy their freedom from servitude to a paycheck, on far less than I could have possibly imagined possible. Those examples on this forum have been very educational and enlightening.
