20 years of frugal living!!!

I've been fortunate enough to live frugally for20 years now. For the most part, I've loved it. Here's what I've learned:<br><br>1. The key to frugal living is to have a big pot of money. If you are living paycheck to paycheck, there's just no way to save a buck here and there. <br><br>20 years ago, my family of four moved into a rental house that was half the price of our modest 1500 sq ft home. It was a little old thing built in the 40s. By moving, we used the cash from the sale of the first home and bought a rental property. <br><br>Fast forward 20 years and we have three properties and $1 million in the bank. <br><br>We have never had an emergency we couldn't afford to pay for out of pocket and we have never had to choose between life saving procedures and paying the bills. <br><br>In fact, the small rental home was so cheap that we were able to quit our jobs and take a trip around the world. By selling the properties, we could retire comfortably and pursue careers we loved. <br><br>2. Don't buy new stuff. The past two decades, I have never bought a new car. My current car is a 2016 and I have another car that is a 2010. I have never bought new furniture, new clothes, a new phone, or even a new dishwasher. <br><br>I remember back in college, when I was poor, I would go thrift shopping and people would act like it was gross. The past 20 years have changed attitudes so much!!! Now people brag about thrifting and buying used. It's just so much cheaper and there's always good stuff available. <br><br>3. Live where you want. My husband and I have always lived exactly where we wanted to. We have lived in the mountains, on a lake, and in a downtown loft. For us, location was more important than size. We have always lived in small, cozy homes but the views have always been amazing. <br><br>I have to admit, as a young person, I thought size was everything. But now that I'm older, I see the beauty of living small. <br><br>4. Don't be afraid to move. My husband and I have moved 4 times in the past 20 years. And each time, we lived in an Airbnb until we found the perfect place. We have never settled for anything less than perfect. It's just too important to live in a place you love. <br><br>5. Eat what you want. I have never been a big fan of cooking so we don't do a lot of batch cooking. But we eat whatever we want!!! We love good food so we make time and money for it. <br><br>6. Make good friends. Surrounding yourself with people who appreciate you is priceless. We have been so lucky to have found some good people. <br><br>7. Do what you love. Life is too short to work a job you don't love. My husband and I both do jobs that we love. And we make time for the things that bring us joy. <br><br>8. You have to be willing to be a little uncomfortable. My house is small, my car is old, my clothes are used, and I don't have much money to spend at all. But I don't really care. I've learned to be content with less. And that is the biggest lesson I've learned: there is freedom in living modestly. <br><br>It's not for everyone. Some people need to be comfortable. Some people need to have money to spend. And some people need to have new things. <br><br>But for me, the lessons of frugal living have been worth it.