How can you tell that someone’s wealthy? The first things that probably come to mind include how someone dresses, what accessories they have, what they drive, what they eat, and what home they have. However, being considered wealthy entirely depends on our circumstances: if we were stranded on a desert planet, being rich would mean having access to water.
Prompted by internet user u/Ready2go555, the members of the r/AskReddit community shared what modern-day signs of wealth they personally believe will become obsolete in the future, from gemstones and cars to beachfront properties. We’ve collected some of their most fascinating opinions. Scroll down, have a read, and see if you agree with them.
Bored Panda reached out to personal finance expert Sam Dogen, who shared his thoughts on the different types of wealth, as well as what resources might unexpectedly grow in value in the far-flung future. Dogen is the founder of the popular ‘Financial Samurai’ blog and the author of the bestseller ‘How To Engineer Your Layoff.’ Scroll down for our full interview with him.
#1
Do you think anyone is gonna give a s**t about your $1,000 sweater in 20 years?
Image credits: TheshizAlt
Just because you earn a lot doesn’t mean that you’re automatically stress-free. Financial stress can affect you no matter your salary.
CNN reported on the findings of a recent survey from the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia, and the results were shocking. 30.8% of American consumers earning between $100,000 and $149,999 a year were worried about making ends meet in the next six months.
Meanwhile, 32.5% of Americans earning $150,000 or more are also worried about paying their bills. On the flip side, somewhat ironically, only 23% of respondents earning between $70,000 and $99,999 per year have the same worries.
#2
Trophy and big game hunting.
Image credits: TikiJeff
#3
Tesla automobiles. Christ, I saw a Cybertruck for the first time, up close and personal yesterday and that thing is even uglier than in photos. You can’t convince me that anyone owning one of these isn’t just virtue-signalling to Musk and his ilk. The cars have always been odd, but not as obnoxious.
I remember having a meeting with some prospective clients back when Tesla started getting a foothold. At the end of the meeting, we all shook hands, and someone said, “Man, we’re ALL gonna be driving Teslas!” Which sounded positive at the time.
Well, their funding didn’t come through. If it did, I’d be selling my Tesla for cheap.
Image credits: delusion_magnet
Personal finance expert Dogen explained to Bored Panda that there are four types of wealth: financial, time, social, and health. “We often focus too much on financial wealth, neglecting the other crucial forms of wealth. Despite huge medical and technological advancements over the past century improving our quality of life, we need to balance our pursuit of financial wealth with attention to our health, social connections, and freedom,” the founder of ‘Financial Samurai’ told us in an email.
“Once we have enough money to cover our basic needs, we should be intentional about improving our health, nurturing our social life, and gaining more freedom. There’s no point in having money if we have nobody to share it with, and if we don’t have our health, no amount of money will make us happy,” Dogen said.
“Eat right, work out, make friends, find love, save, and invest!”
#4
Gem stones, man made gems are higher quality and carat count right now, in the future you’ll be able to line your driveway with diamonds instead of gravel for the same cost.
Image credits: anon
#5
Flocks of people gambling their retirement away at the casino. We have one close to home and it’s always jam packed. I tell my wife sure, there will always be rich people with money to burn, but once the baby boomer generation has passed and people no longer have good retirements, the casino crowd is going to shrink by a LOT.
Image credits: Squarebody7987
#6
Privacy.
Image credits: Contra-dick-tor
Bored Panda asked Dogen about what resources he thinks might potentially grow in value in the future compared to the present. “Water and clean air, though free today, will likely become more valuable in the distant future. We often take both for granted,” he shared his perspective.
“Additionally, the ideal house combines great views with flat, usable land, which is rare because houses with excellent views are typically on hills with less usable land. As a result, if you can find one of these rare houses today, buy it. It will only become more valuable and rare in the future,” the expert urged.
“As the world becomes more digitized, data and the ability to analyze it will likely become incredibly valuable. Artificial intelligence technologies are already leveraging data to write code, answer questions, and cure diseases,” he said. “Therefore, investing in artificial intelligence through a venture capital fund could be a smart move to gain exposure to this growth sector. These investors seek financial growth opportunities on our behalf, allowing us to benefit from their expertise.”
For more great insights about personal finance, feel free to check out Dogen’s blog ‘Financial Samurai,’ as well as his bestseller ‘How To Engineer Your Layoff.’
#7
A lot of swanky homes in coastal Florida are [going to become unlivable with sea level rise.](https://earth.org/sea-level-rise-in-florida/).
Image credits: doublestitch
#8
Beachfront property.
Image credits: drdoom52
#9
Fancy watches, I know rich people that obsess over collecting them but I feel like the invention of smartphones has turned them into a pure status symbol.
Image credits: Crazykiddingme
Wealth—true wealth—is rather hard to define. Sure, you could say that having a Scrooge McDuck-style swimming pool full of gold coins means that someone’s rich. However, there is a caveat. If that person is spending more than they’re earning and quickly eating into their savings, can we really call them well-off?
True wealth is freedom. It revolves around abundance, sustainable spending, long-term investments, being able to enjoy life to the fullest with the people we love, and being able to take care of our nearest and dearest. You do not have to earn mind-melting sums of money each year and have billions in the bank to feel rich if you have the flexibility to do what you want and feel purpose in your life.
#10
Strong writing voice. Lawyers, doctors, engineering managers tend to have a lot of technical writing training and skill. AI is currently killing that.
Image credits: DNAchipcraftsman
#11
I’d go out on a limb here but perhaps houses? Not this or next generation but if populations keep shrinking, it’s possible that older homes owned by family who’s passed on (mostly ones not located near the large metro centers) will be treated like the current inherited huge oak china hutches – a large and bulky burden with little to no value. I believe rural properties in Japan have already been going through this in the current day.
Image credits: MisterJasonMan
#12
Being skinny thanks to Ozempic. Right now rich people can afford the $1k+/month out-of-pocket and have connections, but in just a few short years GLP-1 d***s will be pervasive and practically free.
Image credits: boner79
If you’re putting food on the table, have a roof over your head, have an emergency fund, are paying off your debt, can travel, and don’t have to stress over fluctuations in the global economy, then you can really consider yourself rich. The actual amount of money in your wallet/account/portfolio/hidden under your mattress doesn’t matter because you’re able to do what you want when you want to.
But beyond even that, it’s really the depth of our positive relationships and our physical and mental health that are worth the most. All the riches in the world don’t matter if you’re constantly ill, burned out, anxious, exhausted, and find no joy in your day-to-day life. Similarly, no fancy salary, job title, or investment portfolio is worth it if you find yourself socially isolated from your family, friends, and coworkers.
#13
Let me go back in time and say that only the absolute richest people had cell phones. And those were more like “car phones” than anything you could put in your pocket. Now, even toddlers have smart phones.
Image credits: ClownfishSoup
#14
Cryptocurrencies.
#15
I hope it’ll be designer clothes lol.
Image credits: Acrobatic_Raise506
According to research, social isolation and loneliness are both linked to higher risks for high blood pressure, heart disease, and obesity, as well as anxiety, depression, cognitive decline, Alzheimer’s disease, and a weakened immune system.
At the same time, a decades-long study from Harvard found that our deep positive relationships make us more resilient to stress and directly make us happier.
So, if there’s one thing that you take from all of this, it is that it’s worth investing more in your social life than stressing out about overtime, far-off promotions, and stock market charts. Who knows, in the far-off future, we might each have our personal emotional health scores to keep track of!
#16
Growing up in the 90s, I thought people were wealthy if the mom didn’t work. In my area, it seemed about a 50/50 split. My mom worked and actually was the primary breadwinner. Today, I know one spouse doesn’t work for a myriad of reasons.
I’m a millennial born right in the middle of the millennial window.
Today, an indicator of wealth to me is a second home. I think to me it’s something that is just out of reach for me but is something people I know have. It could be attainable one day but today is not that day.
Image credits: Standard_Mud1464
#17
Access to good quality air, water and other natural resources.
Image credits: NoAdministration3612
#18
Minerals. I really hope that in the future humanity will be able to synthesize any substance; now they are already synthesizing organic substances. I hope that in the future we will stop depleting the land and oil, coal, gas, etc. will lose their value. Technology will be the main value.
Image credits: LisTwiwiwi
What does true wealth look like in your personal opinions, Pandas? What current signs of wealth do you think will go the way of the dodo in the near future? What kind of salary and expenses do you think would help someone live a stress-free life?
Let us know what you think. We genuinely want to hear your thoughts on all of this.
#19
More like looking into the past but I moved into an older home. I’ve been ripping out telephone, cable, and surround sound wires. Which would have all been a luxury at one point in time.
Image credits: Greenfieldfox
#20
Rich grandparents/elders.
Image credits: dankdashvol2
#21
Cars.
Image credits: Charming_Wrapper
#22
State of the art tech that will be outdated in a few years.
Image credits: Nintendontdothat296
#23
Physical currency.
Image credits: AbdulSameed
#24
Lawns. Man, PLEASE let lawns go the way of the dodo.
Image credits: Ippus_21
#25
“Old money aesthetic,” “quiet luxury,” etc a la TikTok. It’s already well on its way out, but the hordes of middle class people on the internet patting themselves on the back for saying “money talks, wealth whispers” to hate on already out-of-fashion conspicuous consumption markers is going to shift the needle on what exactly rich and upper middle class people wear.
Image credits: TerribleAttitude
#26
In the 1990s, the McLaren F1 set the world record for the fastest 0-60 mph time of 3.2 seconds.
It cost over $800K back then, or nearly $2 million in today’s money adjusted for inflation. As collectables, they sell for around $20 million on the secondary market today.
A Tesla Model 3 performance starts at $42K.
It does 0-60mph in 2.9 seconds.
So yeah, fast accelerating cars will no longer be a sign of wealth.
Image credits: CarbonMop
#27
Owning things.
Subscription plans are rising day after day for almost everything, offering to keep that thing properly maintained/renewed/updated with a possibility to change it for the newest model.
Maybe it won’t be anymore about how many things you own, but how many subscriptions you can have, specially for expensive things.
Image credits: Soulzito
#28
RTX 4090.
Image credits: SomeGuyInSanJoseCa
#29
Beach houses.
Image credits: absolutpiracy
#30
Employing a full time life coach.
Image credits: TheSanityInspector
#31
Modern signs of wealth like luxury cars, large homes, high-end electronics, designer clothes, exclusive memberships, art collections, second homes, expensive education, and fine dining might become obsolete as self-driving cars, eco-friendly living, fast tech obsolescence, ethical fashion, virtual communities, digital art, remote work, online learning, and sustainable dining gain prominence. Wealth indicators are shifting with changes in technology, sustainability, and lifestyle preferences.
#32
Having a bunch of people working for you. We’re entering the age of smaller and smaller companies.
Image credits: notruescotsmandias