This is/was more popular in eastern Asia, particularly in China when Confucian culture was in its heyday. I remember growing up a Chinese family bought a house

This is/was more popular in eastern Asia, particularly in China when Confucian culture was in its heyday. I remember growing up a Chinese family bought a house in our neighborhood with cash. He was a garbage man, they had two kids, and his wife didn't work. I've managed it since I was 25. Here's what I found. * If you're making below or well below the median salary for your state, good luck getting past 10% of your net pay. 30% of net is much easier when you're at or just above the median. 33% of gross requires you to have made those "long-term purchases" already, such as furniture and a vehicle. * On cars, try to buy the first "long term" one in cash. Yes, this takes time to accomplish, but the reality is once you can do it the first time, you'll be able to easily continue doing it for the rest of your life. Buy what you truly want, otherwise you'll find excuses to replace it earlier. 18-35 year olds in America would be much happier if they had bought a Miata or a Mustang or what they had actually wanted instead of their Corolla or Taurus they felt was a "more responsible" choice. * Learn to cook. Last night I had a steak, homemade biscuit, asparagus, couscous, drink and a homemade cookie for just under $3. Packaged foods and mixes are never cheap, and the cost of prepared foods is staggering. * If you don't love it and see yourself using it 10 years from now, why are you buying it? The pricier the item, the longer you better see yourself using it A huge sink in consumer culture is buying "disposable items", particularly furniture, gadgets, and even cars in some cases. Buy once, take good care of it, and avoid having to buy it again for some time, if at all. Furniture especially - go used to save money if the piece is still in production (typical for modern classics), because odds are even if it's already 40 years old it'll still handily outlast you. * Live as close to work as possible. Mass transit is cheaper than anything (I can go all over Boston, as much as I want, for $59/mo). The higher cost of living is more than offset by the extra time to cook, relax, and decompress. * Reassess your budget, in full, every year. Prune possessions and figure out why it was a waste. Repeat until your friends refer to you as that really cheap person that somehow has really nice things.