My parents practiced what they preached
Even when my dad and stepmom got married and became a dual-income household , they drove around cars that were 12 years old and bought a house together that was half of what they could afford. Now they've retired in their early 50s and have plenty of money to travel the world and live comfortably. I'm all about keeping my fixed costs as low as possible so that I can maximize my disposable income. I don't have a car payment, and as of a few years ago, I'm. I've never spent more than 25% of my income on housing, even when I made $12 an hour or $30,000 per year. My salary is now about $75,000, but I'm still spending the same on rent as I did when I made $40,000.