[mistursinistur]

> I bought my first house in Berkeley > rented out 2 remaining rooms > buy a house in south SF > my mom and I bought a 3 unit run-down place in Oakland and fixed it up > rental income coming in around 13k / month > Looking back, the best thing I did for myself is to refrain from living extravagantly

Surprising! Sounds like the best thing that happened in this story was partnering with other wealthy people to engage in leveraged speculation on Bay Area real estate.

[mark212]

Maybe financially, but in the long run the best thing that he/she learned was that spending money doesn't lead to increased happiness. Stated differently, the same level of happiness can be reached at far lower financial cost.

Even financially, that may be the more valuable learning.

[songzme]

> Sounds like the best thing that happened in this story was partnering with other wealthy people...

I can see how you made this conclusion, which is semi-correct. You don't have to partner with other wealthy people though, it just makes getting to a point of retirement faster. So if I was to do everything myself, it would probably have taken 12 years to get to where I am vs 6.

[interdocken]

> it would probably have taken 12 years to get to where I am vs 6

This isn't a small difference, it's huge. 6 years of your most productive adult years.

[anothergoogler]

For real. Trying to imagine the reaction I'd get to "hey mom, want to go in with me on a multi-family building?"

[songzme]

Not sure what you are trying to say here, but I'll try to indulge.

1. Your mom doesn't have enough money - You can still involve your parents by having them manage your property. You'd be surprised though, most parents have at least 20-30k saved up.

2. You can't imagine a partnership with your mom (maybe she's too controlling?). Coming from asian parents, I personally felt this way growing up. I suggest finding ways to bond and build trust with your parents first. If you notice friction with your parents, it would improve your long term happiness if you addressed this sooner than later. Usually, parents are the few people in this world who would never scheme behind your back to screw you over. Having them as your ally could do wonders.

[daviross]

> You'd be surprised though, most parents have at least 20-30k saved up.

Most American households couldn't come up with $1k in an emergency, much less "20-30k saved up to go in on an investment". Plus, they'll already have jobs themselves, and you're suggesting adding an additional one on top of that? I hope they're getting paid well off that

[ryandrake]

I think the point was: your story (while interesting) is one of an outlier person with an outlier income and friends/family with outlier financial means. Congratulations to you for the good fortune, but it’s not a path available to many. Most people don’t even have the means to get past your step 1: “Buy first house in Berkeley”.

[csisvunit]

dude, you are in the 1%. MAJORITY of the nation doesn't go to college, nor do they earn $100k/yr salary in their lifetime, let alone right out of college.

I think the commenter was poking fun at your 1% lifestyle.

Good for you mate.