I would not disagree with your observation, although I might designate some of their success to simply being better managers than average. The only ones I can think of in my circle of knowlege that have been very successful without the use of at least a fair to moderate amount of leverage are retired or dead from a generation ago. I can't think of anyone right off hand younger than me (57) that has seen much success remaining debt free. That is not saying they are not out there, I just cannot identify any.

John