At the age of 17, Tony Hawk made his most profitable investment, which he considers his "saving grace."

In the '80s, Tony Hawk was among the world's highest-earning children.

At 14, he began skating professionally and made $160,000 annually, which felt like having all the money in the world, as he shared on the "Richer Lives by SoFi" podcast.

"I didn't have a clear understanding of the situation," he admitted. "My dad tried to steer me in the right direction and give me a heads up, 'Be careful, this may not last forever.' At that age, when money is constantly flowing in, it's hard to imagine the future."

Hawk was careless with his spending, as he described taking his friends on trips to Hawaii and paying for everything, as well as buying "super expensive" electronics at Sharper Image.

"I would simply stroll through the store and purchase whatever was new, without much thought," he stated. "The most absurd purchase I made was a tanning bed. I thought it would be cool to own one, even though I reside in southern California and don't need it."

During his senior year of high school, Hawk was earning a substantial income. His dad advised him to invest in real estate.

""I bought the house when I was 17, so my friend had to cosign for it," Hawk said, adding that he was excited about inviting a few friends to live with him in his very own party house."

He said that the house he bought would be the best purchase he ever made. Later, he bought his "dream home" with a skate ramp. However, when his income decreased, he struggled to keep up with his mortgage payments.

At one point, Hawk's situation became so dire that he had to survive on a $5-a-day food budget, which consisted of Taco Bell, ramen, and peanut butter.

Hawk decided to sell his dream home and return to the property his dad had recommended he buy when he was 17, as he now has a child on the way and is starting a new skateboard company.

""My first property purchase became my saving grace, and I ended up moving back into that house with my new family because my son was born at that time," he stated."

In 1999, the success of "Tony Hawk's Pro Skater" video games would once again provide him with a financial windfall. However, Hawk learned a valuable lesson about money from this experience.

"It was a wake-up call," he said. "You should always be living with the knowledge that you have savings."

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