> Unfortunately housing prices are rising so fast that saving for years doesn't necessarily get you there
Where? In many, many highly developed countries this isn't true.
> 1M is close to 500K after taxes
Woah. Where do you live where effective income tax rates are 50% for 1M+? Please don't confuse marginal ("headline") vs effective ("actual") tax rates.
In San Francisco if you make $1M as a W-2 employee your marginal tax rate is ~53% and your effective tax rate is ~47%.
If you make $1M on your own the rates are even higher.
(That's not including the 10% sales tax you pay on almost everything you buy with the money you have left, property taxes on property you thought you owned, property taxes landlords financially pass onto you as a renter, etc.)
