[silverquiet]

Speaking as someone who's not there but can also see it (I recently learned that I'm in the "mass affluent" - those with $100K to $1M in net worth), I don't think it's "a" choice, but many of them. I've never made anything like some of the developer salaries I see bandied about on this site, but I do OK and live modestly; small house, beater car, only eat out on special occasions, etc... But I think the biggest thing is not having children. The estimates of their costs sans college is already in Lambo territory just for one. I often wonder how much that sort of thing has to do with the decline in fertility.