Millionaire chooses to rent

Haley Sacks, a financial creator known as Mrs. Dow Jones with over two million followers, says she proudly rents despite being a millionaire and wants to challenge traditional ideas about home ownership.

“I'm a millionaire, and I proudly rent.”

Rethinking the American Dream

Sacks argues that younger generations have been told owning a home marks adulthood and financial success, but many will never own one and need to rethink that measure.

“We all still have this idea in our head that when we own a home, that's when we're going to be an adult.”

Housing costs far outpace income

Between two thousand nineteen and two thousand twenty-four, the median U.S. home value rose thirty percent after inflation, while median income for households headed by someone under forty grew just nine percent.

Earning needed to buy versus rent

By September two thousand twenty-six, a household needed to earn about one hundred twenty-one thousand five hundred dollars a year to afford a typical home, compared with roughly seventy-seven thousand three hundred for a typical…

Home as lifestyle, not investment

Sacks says she would only buy a home as a lifestyle choice, never as an investment, because money for a down payment is better used as a nest egg for stock market investing.

“I would only buy as a lifestyle choice, never as an investment choice.”

Acknowledging her own advantages

Sacks lost her job in two thousand eighteen but did freelance writing through media connections and paid rent with help from her parents, which she says is important to acknowledge.

Desperation driving risky choices

As the American Dream feels unattainable, younger people turn to risky investments like prediction markets and cryptocurrencies, seeking a life-changing payout when traditional paths seem blocked.

“With the American dream really changing, people are so desperate for a way to make money and to advance themselves.”

Her own dream remains possible

Sacks still wants to own a house outside New York City once she has a family, but only if her investments are in good place and it will make her happy on her own terms.

“If that's what's going to make me happy and I have my investments in a good place, then maybe I'll do it.”