I’ve seen this with my own parents. Mortgage paid off fully, so even in their 30k/year agency job, they’re still earning more than me after I pay rent. I don’t fault them for not understanding my financial struggles, or why I work the crazy hours that I do.

The world changed, but they didn’t, they untethered themselves from its harsher edges by simple merit of owning property back when it was cheap to do so.

And I think that’s the ultimate divider. If you own your source of shelter and maybe even food, you can happily survive the rest of your life doing nothing.