Tyler Perry | $374k | New Orleans

Filmmaker Tyler Perry lived in this little shotgun house in New Orleans during his childhood. Two blocks north were huge mansions, while two blocks down south were housing projects. The director once shared to The New York Times that residing between the two borders “became my metaphor for life.”

Throughout his career, Perry has produced and directed more than 30 films, eight TV shows, and 20 stage productions. He is widely considered as a self-made tycoon, having built his empire from scratch, beginning with a single play he produced and wrote entitled I Know I’ve Been Changed. He once lived in his car, where he reportedly parlayed that play into a mini-theater domain which eventually grew into today’s multi-media empire. Perry owns 100% of his revenues, costs, and profits, and his investments contributed to his enormous $800 million net worth and annual salary of $80 million.