Elon Musk calls himself ‘former trillionaire’ as billions vanish amid Tesla, SpaceX crash. Why the rich laugh at losses

Elon Musk calls himself ‘former trillionaire’ as billions vanish amid Tesla, SpaceX crash. Why the rich laugh at losses Jing Pan Tue, July 28, 2026 at 12:55 PM GMT+2 9 min read SPCX TSLA Moneywise and Yahoo Finance LLC may earn commission or revenue through links in the content below. Elon Musk made history in June when SpaceX's blockbuster stock market debut pushed his net worth beyond $1 trillion.

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What to do before the window closes "(Former) Trillionaire," Musk wrote in a viral post (1) on X on July 24, apparently poking fun at the extraordinary reversal in his net worth. At its peak, Musk's fortune was estimated at roughly $1. 45 trillion (2).

By July 27, Forbes estimated that his net worth had dropped below $700 billion — wiping more than $750 billion from his fortune on paper. That is more money than almost anyone could spend in several lifetimes. Yet Musk seems to be taking it better than most people handle a bad day in their 401(k).

He did not panic, dump his holdings or retreat into cash. That is partly because the ultra-rich experience market losses differently from ordinary investors. In Musk's case, much of his wealth is tied to the companies he helped create, meaning sharp fluctuations are an unavoidable part of owning the assets that made him rich in the first place.

Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) shares have plunged 25% over the past month, while SpaceX (NASDAQ:SPCX) has delivered a turbulent ride since going public in June. The stock debuted at $135 and initially surged as high as $225. 64.

It has since fallen below its IPO price and now trades roughly 50% below its all-time high. Volatility is part of the game Of course, Musk is still the richest person in the world by a wide margin. His lifestyle is unlikely to change because a wealth tracker assigns a lower value to his holdings.

But the magnitude of the decline offers a vivid illustration of what it means to own assets: The price can move sharply even when the owner has not sold a single share. For ordinary investors, watching a portfolio fall can feel like something has gone terribly wrong. Historically, however, market pullbacks have been the rule rather than the exception.

The S&P 500 has suffered a decline of at least 5% during 93% of calendar years since 1980. It has fallen by at least 10% in nearly half of those years, according to Fidelity (3). Story Continues The average intra-year drop over that period was approximately 14%.

Yet despite regularly subjecting investors to double-digit declines, the index delivered an average calendar-year return of 13. 3% over the same period. That does not mean every stock recovers.

Individual companies can decline permanently and even the broad market can remain underwater for extended periods. But temporary declines have historically been an unavoidable part of capturing the stock market's long-term growth. Legendary investor Warren Buffett once put it bluntly : "If you're going to do dumb things because a stock goes down, you shouldn't own a stock at all.

" When asked what he considered a "dumb thing," Buffett did not hesitate: "Selling a stock because it goes down. " That patience has historically paid off. Despite frequent corrections, the S&P 500 has returned more than 250% (4) over the past decade.

One straightforward way to participate in that long-term growth is simply to own the index. Buffett has repeatedly argued (5) that for most people, "the best thing to do is own the S&P 500 index fund. " By tracking the index, investors gain exposure to 500 of America's largest companies across a wide range of industries, providing instant diversification without the need for constant monitoring or active trading.

The beauty of this approach is its accessibility — anyone, regardless of wealth, can take advantage of it. Even small amounts can grow over time with tools like Acorns , a popular app that automatically invests your spare change. Signing up for Acorns takes just minutes: Link your cards and Acorns will round up each purchase to the nearest dollar, investing the difference — your spare change — into a diversified portfolio.

With Acorns, you can invest in an S&P 500 ETF with as little as $5 — and, if you sign up today with a recurring investment, Acorns will add a $20 bonus to help you begin your investment journey. For investors interested in individual stocks, research tools like Moby can come in handy. Their team of former hedge fund analysts does the heavy lifting — breaking down the market, flagging quality stocks and making the research easy to digest.

In fact, across nearly 400 stock picks over the past four years, Moby's recommendations have beaten the S&P 500 by almost 12% on average. Their research keeps you up-to-the-minute on market shifts and takes the guesswork out of choosing investments. Plus, their reports are easy to understand for beginners, so you can become a smarter investor in just five minutes .

Read More: Millionaires under 43 hold only 25% of their wealth in stocks. Here's where their money is actually going Income, even in a down market Stocks are not the only assets the ultra-rich have used to build substantial fortunes. Real estate can provide another avenue for long-term appreciation and income while reducing a portfolio's dependence on the daily movements of the stock market.

Even during an economic downturn, high-quality, essential real estate can continue to produce passive income through rent. In other words, you don't have to wait for prices to rebound to see a payoff — the asset itself can work for you. It's also a time-tested hedge against inflation.

As the cost of materials, labor and land rises, property values often increase as well. At the same time, rental income tends to climb, giving landlords a revenue stream that adjusts with inflation. Owning rental property allows investors to collect monthly rent payments, but being a landlord is rarely as passive as it sounds.

Managing a property involves finding and screening tenants, collecting rent and handling maintenance and repair requests (out of your own pocket) — and that's assuming you can save enough for a down payment and get a mortgage to buy the property in the first place. The good news? These days, you don't need to buy a property outright to invest in real estate.

Mogul is a crowdfunding platform that offers an easier way to get exposure to this income-generating asset class. As a real estate investment platform offering fractional ownership in blue-chip rental properties , the option gives investors monthly rental income, real-time appreciation and tax benefits — without the need for a hefty down payment or 3 a. m.

tenant calls. Founded by former Goldman Sachs real estate investors, the team hand-picks the top 1% of single-family rental homes nationwide for you. In other words, you gain access to institutional-quality offerings for a fraction of the usual cost.

Each property undergoes a rigorous vetting process, requiring a minimum 12% return even in downside scenarios. Across the board, the platform features an average annual IRR of 18. 8%.

Offerings often sell out in under three hours , with investments typically ranging between $15,000 and $40,000 per property. Sign up for an account and browse available properties here to start investing today. Another option is Lightstone DIRECT , which gives accredited investors access to single-asset multifamily and industrial deals.

Lightstone DIRECT's direct-to-investor model ensures a high degree of alignment between individual investors and a vertically-integrated, institutional owner-operator — a sophisticated and streamlined option for individual investors looking to diversify into private-market real estate. With Lightstone DIRECT, accredited individuals can access the same multifamily and industrial assets Lightstone pursues with its own capital, with minimum investments starting at $100,000. A safe haven when markets crack When storm clouds gather over the markets, gold often steps back into the spotlight — and for good reason.

Long seen as the ultimate safe haven, gold isn't tied to any single country, currency or economy. It can't be created at will by central banks like fiat money and in times of economic turmoil, market turbulence or geopolitical uncertainty, investors tend to pile in — driving up its value. Ray Dalio, founder of the world's largest hedge fund, Bridgewater Associates, has repeatedly emphasized gold's role in building a resilient portfolio.

"People don't have, typically, an adequate amount of gold in their portfolio," he told CNBC last year. "When bad times come, gold is a very effective diversifier. " The market has already taken notice.

Over the past five years, as inflation continued to erode the value of paper currency and investors looked for protection outside traditional stocks, gold has climbed 126%. Other prominent voices see further potential. JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon has said that in this environment, gold can "easily" rise to $10,000 an ounce.

One way to invest in gold that can also provide significant tax advantages is to open a gold IRA with the help of Goldco . Gold IRAs allow investors to hold physical gold or gold-related assets within a retirement account, thereby combining the tax advantages of an IRA with the protective benefits of investing in gold . This makes it a compelling potential option for those wanting to ensure their retirement funds are diversified during rough economic times.

Goldco offers free shipping and access to a library of retirement resources. Plus, the company will match up to 10% of qualified purchases in free silver . If you're curious whether this is the right investment to diversify your portfolio, you can download your free gold and silver information guide today .

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Article Sources We rely only on vetted sources and credible third-party reporting. For details, see our ethics and guidelines . X ( 1 ); Forbes ( 2 ); Fidelity Investments ( 3 ); S&P Global ( 4 ); CNBC ( 5 ) This article provides information only and should not be construed as advice.

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