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How to Become a Millionaire in 10 Years (2024 Guide)

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  By Forrest McCall | Last Updated:  November 7, 2021

Do you want to become a millionaire in 10 years?

You might be wandering how you can build wealth and become a millionaire in this short time period.

In this post, I’ll explore how to become a millionaire in 10 years, the best methods to grow your money, and much more. Let’s get started!

How to Become a Millionaire in 10 Years

19 Ways to Become a Millionaire in 10 Years

Becoming a millionaire in 10 years won’t be easy and you'll need to earn around $100k a month to reach your goal.. Below are some of the best ways to learn how to become a millionaire in 10 years.

Invest in the Stock Market with a Brokerage Account

Here’s the deal. It’s going to be extremely difficult, if not impossible, to save your way to millionaire status in 10 years.

You need to grow your money.

Investing in the stock market is a great way to grow your money. If you want to learn how to become a millionaire in this short time frame, it’s important that you build wealth through the stock market.

How do I invest in stocks?

There are tons of ways on how to purchase stocks, but my favorite is with Acorns . These accounts make it easy to start investing and have low minimum requirements.

As a bonus, Acorns will give you free money to invest when you create a new account.

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What stocks should I invest in?

Once you create a brokerage account, you’ll need to deposit money into it and purchase your investments.

It’s wise to keep your investment portfolio diversified so that you don’t put all of your eggs in one basket.

My favorite stock investments are index funds, ETFs, and mutual funds.

These investments can be thought of as low-cost, diversified funds that track the performance of an entire stock market index.

They are great investments because they only move when the overall market moves and they have a low expense ratio and minimal fees.

How much money can I make investing in stocks?

Investing in stocks is by no means a get rich quick scheme. You’ll need to give your money time to grow.

The more money you have to invest – the faster you can reach millionaire status.

The average stock return is around 8% per year.

By doing some math, you can calculate your returns each year. For example, if you invest $10,000 with an 8% return, you would have a total of $10,800 after your first year of investing.

While this might not seem life changing, it will begin to grow exponentially.

In your second year, you would earn 8% on $10,800. That’s right – you’ll earn interest on the interest you earned.

Invest in Real Estate

If you’re looking to generate compound interest – real estate is a great way to reach financial freedom and become a millionaire in 10 years. There are several ways you can invest in real estate that I'll explore below.

Invest in Crowdfunded Real Estate

If you’re looking for a simple way to invest in real estate without the headache of managing rental properties – using crowdfunded real estate like Fundrise is a great method.

I love using crowdfunded real estate platforms because they are hands-off and require little work on my part.

You can invest in fractional real estate with as little as $500, which is much less than you would have to invest if you want to buy a rental property.

You can also choose from a wide variety of real estate investments – so there’s likely something for everyone.

If you want to grow your income and reach financial independence – register for Fundrise below!

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Invest in REITs

Just like crowdfunded real estate, a REIT (real estate investment trust) is an excellent way to invest in real estate without hassle.

REITs are traded on the stock market and you can buy individual REITs or buy into an exchange-traded fund (ETF) that invests in many different types of real estate.

The reason why many investors will choose to invest in a REIT is because they are required to pay out 90% of their taxable income as dividends to investors.

This means that you will receive a predictable and reliable dividend payment each year into your investment accounts.

If you want to reach financial independence and enter the millionaire club – using REITs is a superb method.

Invest in Rental Properties

Rental properties are one of the most profitable investments to grow your net worth and build wealth – but it will come with the most work.

Purchasing a rental property will require extra cash to get started.

You’ll need to save money to afford a down payment for the property which is usually 20% of the loan amount. Interest rates will also be slightly higher than a traditional mortgage.

However, owning rental properties comes with one major advantage – stronger returns.

There are a few main methods in which a rental property makes money: rental income, appreciation, and mortgage pay down.

For example, if you rent a property for $1,200 each month – you'll receive $1,200 in rental income, plus you'll pay down some of your mortgage, plus your property could increase in value.

How much can you expect to earn in appreciation? In short, it depends. Most properties will increase on average of 2% annually. Divide this by 12 and you'll get .167% each month. If your property is currently valued at $150,000 – you could raise your net worth by $250 each month.

These three income methods will help to boost your net worth each month and help you become a millionaire in 10 years.

But it's important to remember that owning a rental property can come with a lot of work and expenses like maintenance, vacancies, and repairs.

How much can you expect to pay for these costs? It's wise to assume around 15% of your rental income will go towards expenses.

Be sure to account for these things when calculating your rental price so you have money left over at the end of the month.

If you don't want to do as much work for your property – you can consider hiring a property management firm to complete most of the work for you. They will manage things like lease agreements, collecting rental income, dealing with maintenance issues, and more. The cost for property management is typically around 10% of your rental price.

If you're not sure about investing your own money into a rental property, I recommend doing some research before getting started. You can learn a significant amount by hearing others opinions on the subject.

Invest in Retirement Accounts

Retirement accounts like a 401k or a Roth IRA can be great ways to grow your money with tax advantages.

Retirement plans are a good way to invest in the stock market because your money is tax-deferred or tax-free.

In addition, most employers will match a portion of your 401k contributions, which is basically free money. Usually a company match will have limits. Be sure to check the details so you don't miss out on a matching contribution.

There is also a contribution limit when it comes to your retirement accounts.

For example, an individual retirement account there is a limit of $6,000 for most individuals. For your 401k, the limit will be increased to $20,500 for 2022. These limits are set by the IRS and are not related to any employer match. If your employer match is $20,500 for your 401k – you won't be able to contribute more than this amount. If you have a 401k at work and aren’t contributing to it – start today!

There is one catch when it comes to retirement accounts, however.

If you plan to retire early, many retirement plans will come with a hefty penalty if you choose to withdrawal some of your retirement savings before retirement age.

If you’re planning on an early retirement – it might be beneficial to use a traditional brokerage account to avoid these penalties. However, it’s also wise to grow your “true” retirement savings for your older years with these retirement accounts.

Saving a million dollars with an individual retirement account is easy if you start early enough.

Remember, time is your greatest asset when investing. Invest early so you can see the greatest impacts of compound interest.

Utilize Special Savings Accounts

There are other types of savings accounts that can be a great way to save cash tax free for certain living expenses.

Opening a health savings account is a great way to pay for health costs for some individuals who are covered by high deductible health plans or are uninsured.

This account will allow you to pay for medical expenses with pre-tax dollars, which can help save you a lot of money on your tax bill.

However, one big benefit with health savings accounts is that the funds can be carried over from year-to-year.

For example, if you don’t use all of your health savings account funds this year – the remaining balance will rollover to next year.

Grow Your Savings with a High Interest Savings Account

If you want to become a millionaire you need to be smart with your money.

One of the biggest mistakes you can make is by leaving money in a traditional savings account that generates almost 0% interest.

By using a free high yield savings account you can grow your money and reach your financial goals faster.

My favorite account is through CIT Bank. They offer 10 times the national average in interest payments which will help you make extra money each month.

Sign up below to create your free account!

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Get a Higher Paying Job to Make More Money

Your income is one important factor to becoming a millionaire and reaching your financial goals.

High income earners are able to invest more money and therefore make even more cash.

If you have an average income – try finding a higher paying job with a greater starting salary and take home pay than your current job.

Switch Career Fields

If you're currently working in a career field with a lower average pay, consider switching to a career path with a higher average salary.

For example, working as a certified public accountant or a licensed practical nurse can be great career paths to boost your income.

Start a Business

There's no doubt that many millionaires own a business of some sort. By starting and growing a successful business, you can boost your income and make millions.

Not every business has to be a massive investment, either.

Some of the most profitable businesses are those with proven business models and have been around for decades.

Businesses are risky, however. If you don't understand the basics of business and don't have the capital to invest in a new venture – you might want to think twice before going it alone.

You can check out my full post of the best business ideas to profit each month.

Keep Your Expenses Low

Keeping your monthly expenses low is vital if you want to become a millionaire in 10 years.

Even if you think you have enough money – it's wise to spend less money to keep your finances in check.

If you're having trouble keeping your living expenses down try looking at your regular monthly bills.

Does it make sense to pay for premium cable channels you never watch or the most expensive cell phone plan?

There are many different options when it comes to cutting back on your living expenses – so take some time and think about where you can save money each month. If you're not sure where you can cut expenses, take a look at these areas.

  • Gym subscriptions
  • Cable packages
  • Cell phone plans
  • Auto insurance
  • Car Payments
  • Utilities
  • Food waste
  • Entertainment

If these tips aren’t enough for you to become a millionaire in ten years, check out my full post on how to drastically lower expenses that will help point you in the right direction.

Have an Emergency Fund

Having an emergency fund to cover any unexpected expenses is a great way to keep your finances in check.

To create an emergency fund, you can set up an automatic transfer into a savings account each month.

Even if your monthly budget is tight, it’s important to contribute to your emergency fund.

If you don’t have an emergency fund, one unexpected expense can be devastating for your finances.

Even if it’s just $500 at first, this is a great start that can help you reach financial freedom and put you in the right direction.

Limit Credit Card Debt

Credit card debt can cripple your ability to become a millionaire in 10 years and reach your financial goals.

To decrease your credit card debts, you can try the snowball method.

Using this method, it’s best to focus on paying off your highest interest credit card first before tackling the rest. This will result in the least amount of interest paid by you.

You can also try to negotiate with your credit card company or you could consider transferring balances from a high interest rate card to a low interest rate card.

Reduce Student Loans ASAP

Student loans can crush your ability to get rich and become a millionaire.

After college, you may feel like your student loans are impossible to get rid of if you have a low income.

But don't give up. You have to be methodical if you want to reduce your student loans and take your negative net worth to the green side.

How?

I recommend picking up a side hustle or part time job to increase your income and grow your net worth. Any earned income you make from these ventures can be put towards paying off your student loan debt. Even if it's a little money via a minimum wage job – this will pay dividends going forward.

Become a Millionaire in 10 Years by Starting a Blog

A blog is also known as an online business and is a great way to make money online.

The best part is that you can start a blog with little or no investment and it’s relatively low maintenance.

If you want to become a millionaire in the next decade, starting an online business like a blog is definitely something that should be considered.

Not sure where to start when starting a blog?

First, you’ll need to decide what you want to write about. I recommend writing about something you are interested in so you don't get burnt out.

Once you've landed on your niche, you'll need to purchase a domain name.

If you're not tech savvy, I recommend purchasing a domain name from Namecheap as they have easy to use interfaces and offer great customer support. It will cost as little as $10 annually for your domain.

NameCheap is my favorite domain registrar to easily purchase your next domain name. They are extremely affordable with domains costing less than $9. Sign-up below!
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Picking the right domain is essential if you want to grow a profitable blog. Try to think of something that's related to your niche to get the best results.

Once you've purchased your domain, it's time to purchase hosting for your blog. You can think of hosting as a physical location where your blog will live.

There are several hosting options available and the one you select is going to depend on how much control and customization you want over your blog.

If you're just starting out, I recommend using SiteGround to get started as it's easy to use and very affordable.

SiteGround is my favorite hosting platform to easily start a blog. They have top-notch customer service and prices starting as low as $7 per month. Sign-up below!
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Once you've purchased hosting, it's time to install WordPress or another CMS to easily add and edit content on your blog. This is completely free and should take less than 1 hour to complete.

Finally, it's time to start writing content for your blog. Not sure what to write about? You can conduct keyword research to help figure out what your target audience is searching for. Then write about that topic on your blog!

The more content you publish, the higher your chances of ranking on Google and attracting targeted traffic to your blog.

Once you have traffic to your blog, you can start making money by adding affiliate links to your posts and using display ads on your site.

Affiliate links are a great way for you to earn money on autopilot as they allow other people's products and services to generate commissions for you.

Affiliate marketing is a great way to diversify your income and could be one of the keys that helps you become a millionaire in the next decade.

Display ads are another easy way to make passive income from your blog each month. The amount of money you can make is quite lucrative. Some blogs are capable of making over 5 figures each month from display ads alone. How's that for some extra income?

Start an Affiliate Site

Just like a blog or other online businesses, an affiliate site is similar in that you will need to create a website and earn commissions from sales generated through your site.

Affiliate sites typically rely on search engine rankings to obtain traffic. Starting an affiliate site is the same process as starting a blog. You'll need to secure a domain name, purchase hosting, install WordPress, and start writing content.

To grow an affiliate site, you'll need to concentrate on building backlinks from other sites. This is a great way for your site to rank higher in search engines and drive more traffic to your site.

But this isn't the only way. You can also take advantage of social media by making sure you have a presence across all the major platforms, including Facebook, Twitter, and Pinterest.

Consider Peer to Peer Lending

Peer to peer lending is another way to grow your income by investing money to others.

Peer to peer lending is also known as “social” lending because you will be investing with others instead of a bank.

The amount of money you can make from this investment varies depending on the interest rate, but typically you can expect to earn an average of 12-14% per year.

This is one way that you can make extra money each month to put towards your investments.

Invest in Cryptocurrency to Become a Millionaire

Are you looking for new and creative ways to invest your money?

Consider investing in cryptocurrency like Bitcoin or other cryptocurrencies to become a millionaire.

While these assets are extremely volatile and risky, most financial advice now recommends holding at least some cryptocurrency in your investment portfolio.

To invest in crypto, I recommend using Coinbase. You can create a free account and start trading hundreds of different cryptocurrencies. Create your free account below to get started!

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Don’t Skip Free Money with a Checking Account

Some checking accounts will offer lucrative sign up bonuses when you create a new account.

Will you become a millionaire by opening a checking account? Absolutely not. But this is a good starting place to help you generate extra cash you can use to invest and grow your net worth.

For example, some banks will offer a $200 cash bonus when you create a new account.

Invest in Art to Grow your Net Worth

Art investing is one of the most recent investment choices some are using to boost their net worth.

With platforms like MasterWorks, it's never been easier. MasterWorks is a peer-to-peer online marketplace that allows you to purchase classic art pieces without paying the exorbitant price you would pay at a gallery.

The best part about this investment is that it has the potential to offer a high return of over 32% per year.

Register for MasterWorks below to grow your wealth today!

Use Credit Cards to Your Advantage

Credit card rewards often get overlooked when it comes to building wealth and growing your net worth.

Why wouldn't you want to receive compensation on your everyday spending?

While most financial advice claims you don't need a credit card and you shouldn't use them, I disagree. If you use them wisely you can earn money by doing nothing.

Be sure to use them smart however, otherwise it could cost you money.

How Long Does it Take to Become a Millionaire?

Becoming a millionaire is going to take some time. While there's an extremely slim chance it can happen overnight be gambling or playing the lottery, for most people it will take at least 5 years to enter the millionaire club.

By using investing advice like growing your money in mutual funds or a retirement account – it can take north of 10 years to become a millionaire.

The largest factor in becoming a millionaire is time. When you start early investing, your money will start to grow exponentially – allowing you to become a millionaire faster.

How to Become a Millionaire by 30

How to Become a Millionaire Investing

Becoming a millionaire by investing is not an easy task. Anyone can claim to be a millionaire, but very few actually are because it takes time and dedication to build your net worth through investing.

Financial planning experts recommend saving 15% of your income to invest. Over time, your money will grow exponentially and you can see your net worth start to skyrocket.

With mutual funds, you can start investing with as little as $50 and grow your wealth over time.

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How to Become a Multimillionaire

Once you reach millionaire status you might be wandering how to become a multimillionaire.

Really, the answer is quite simple, keep doing what you did to become a millionaire in the first place.

For example, if you were able to become a millionaire by investing in real estate – keep investing your money to grow it even more.

There are no right or wrong answers when it comes to investing your money – it's all about getting started and giving it the most time to grow.

However, there are a few methods that will make you more likely to become a multimillionaire.

These are: owning a business, investing in stocks and real estate, and becoming an executive at a large company.

How to Become a Millionaire by 30

Becoming a millionaire by 30 poses unique challenges. You won't have nearly as much time to grow your money and you might not be at the height of your career.

If you want to become a millionaire by 30 you're going to have to create a strategic plan to reach your goal. This will often mean a lot of hard work, some greater risk, and even some luck.

The chances of becoming a millionaire by 30 by investing are somewhat lower – unless you have a large pile of cash to inject in the market.

Because of this, the best way to become a millionaire by 30 is by starting a business. This will give you the largest chance of success when compared to other options.

But running a business doesn't have to be an all or nothing sort of deal – you can often find success by creating a small passive income revenue stream to earn recurring revenue.

Final Thoughts on How to Become a Millionaire in 10 Years

If you want to make a million dollars in 10 years or less, you’re going to have to do some planning and put in the work to reach your goals.

By using a retirement account like a Roth IRA or 401k, you can grow your money with tax advantages to keep more money in your pockets.

Increasing your income is another vital step if you want to learn how to become a millionaire in 10 years and there are many different ways to do so.

Forrest is a personal finance, entrepreneurship, and investing expert dedicated to helping others obtain life long wealth. He has a Bachelor's degree in business and has been featured in many popular publications including Forbes, Business Insider, Bankrate, CNET Money, and many others. To learn more about Forrest, visit the About Us Page for more info.
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