For many super wealthy people, their assets and savings have come from being hard working and exceptionally successful in their careers. Millionaires often have run their own businesses or have risen to senior positions in highly profitable companies. For others, wealth has come as a part of being famous in the world of professional sports or film. Today there are estimated to be about 22 million millionaires in America, of which a third are women. Whether their wealth has come from a lifetime of hard work from poor backgrounds, or they worked hard with gifts from family, there are often some shared traits amongst the super wealthy in terms of how they use their money and the lifestyles they enjoy. This article explores three key traits of the ultra-rich.
Prestige cars
For many ultra-rich people, prestige cars and high performance supercars are status symbols of their success in life. As well as being an indication of their wealth, many rich people appreciate performance and prestige cars for their aesthetic beauty. Self-made millionaires may have grown up with posters of such exotic cars on their walls and their financial success has led them to being able to afford their dream cars or marques from their youth. Whilst buying such vehicles can be extremely expensive, the rich often see them as investments, especially in the case of classic and rare exotic cars. Some ultra-rich will cultivate a collection of exotic cars for both investment purposes and for their own pleasure. However, it is not uncommon for the super-rich to buy or sell Lamborghini or Ferrari sportscars at short notice. This is done to either raise finances for other investments or to invest in vehicles that are likely to appreciate over time.
A broad investment portfolio
Another key trait of the extremely wealthy is that they invariably have a broad range of investments over a range of different commodities, stocks and markets. The rich know that by having a diverse portfolio of investments they can manage the associated risks with trading and can maximize their chances of generating meaningful returns over a range of timescales. Short term investments may be in more volatile markets such as cryptocurrencies as these have the potential to generate significant returns quickly. The risk of volatile investments will be balanced with investments in more stable long-term stocks and commodities such as bonds and the gold market.
Property ownership
As a final point, property ownership is another key trait of the super-rich. Many multi-millionaires will own a range of properties and these buildings will have numerous purposes. Some properties will be used as a source of perpetual income by renting them out to tenants or businesses to use. Other properties will be bought for second homes, often in prestigious locations such a Monaco or on tropical islands such as the Maldives. The ultra-rich can then use these properties as a base for vacations without needing to use hotels. The ultra-rich tend to invest wisely in the property market and are fully prepared to sell some of their property assets when the property market is booming and often buy new properties when the market is flat.
