"Slumming" It

"My house is a shack. I live in a slum. I drive a crappy car," Chapman says with delight. He exaggerates; he lives in a large, gorgeous, 100-year-old stucco home. But while many in New Jersey's prosperous suburbs are taking out $500,000 mortgages on brand new $650,000 starter castles, Chapman bought his $110,000 home with cash. And he bought it in Trenton, a small city with a number of delightful neighborhoods, but enough poverty to scare off many people, and keep real estate values reasonable.

And the car, well, it's gray, pretty big, and paid for.