People in their 50s who live as cleaners despite their annual investment income of 300 million won...an invisible millionaire
Oct 01, 2025
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According to Japanese media The Gold Online and Hong Kong media South China Morning Post, Koichi Matsubara, a 56-year-old man living in Tokyo, Japan, is in charge of cleaning and simple maintenance in an apartment complex.
His salary, which he works three days a week, four hours a day, is 100,000 yen (about 1 million won), far below Tokyo's average salary of 350,000 yen.
But he had a twist.
It is an invisible millionaire who earns 30 million yen (about 300 million won) per year from renting seven apartments in Tokyo and nearby areas and investing in stocks and funds.
But he still works as a cleaner and sticks to his frugal life. Living in a cheap apartment, cooking for myself, and not buying new clothes for over 10 years. Smartphones also use the basic type, and most of the movement is done by bicycle.
Matsubara said "I don't clean up to make money, I work to maintain my health and vitality"
"When I wake up every morning, clean up and tidy up, I feel really good," he says. "I just hope that I have something to do every day, that I can stay healthy, that I can think for myself," he said.
His frugal life began as a child.
Growing up in a single-parent family, he had to save for a long time to buy what he wanted. After graduating from high school, he worked at a factory and received a salary of 180,000 yen (about 1.8 million won), and bought his first studio apartment with 3 million yen, which he saved over the years.
He said "The real estate market was at rock bottom at the time. He said, "I paid off the loan quickly, saving it and gradually increasing the real estate."
He is now looking forward to a pension he will receive at the age of 60, based on his nearly 20-year career.
His goal is to live a satisfactory life in his own way without showing off his wealth.
His story made a big splash on Japanese social media. One netizen commented "Someone who is reasonable and good at managing assets", while another commented "Cleaning is both mental healing and good exercise". Also "Never underestimate the cleaner or the person serving. There could be an invisible millionaire right next doorThere was also a comment that read ".
Matsubara's life makes me think again about the nature of wealth and the satisfaction of life. A life of self-satisfaction rather than showing, that may be the true appearance of the rich.
This article was translated by Naver AI translator.
