Net worth is assets minus liabilities. Assets are anything which can be assigned a monetary value that can be realized by selling the item. Liabilities are debts which have to be paid eventually. So maximizing assets and minimizing liabilities are basic objectives. However, all assets are not created equal.
Some assets maintain or even increase their value over time while others leak like a sieve.
Financial advisors tell us that a home is the most expensive purchase that most Americans ever make, followed by automobiles. Hopefully the value of ones home will increase but the value of a car can only decrease. By not supplying reliability and durability data on their products auto makers are leaving consumers in the dark and engaging in information hiding. By paying an additional amount each month a mortgagee can reduce the total interest paid and eliminate years of payments. But the money for that extra payment has to come from somewhere.