Biden: not in politics for the money. Never has been.

[Hortensis]

13. AND, not only was he not well to do on entering congress,

he decided then that he would never buy stocks or bonds because they so often raise questions of influence. And he hasn't, a decision that has to have cost him literal fortunes in this period of great wealth run-up. (Note that insider trading is trading on information not publicly known, not listening to ethical chat at gatherings by people making big things happen.)

What investments Biden has made have been in real estate, mostly his own homes. He's fond of fixing up old houses and, when younger at least, enjoyed working on them himself.

That $4 million, btw, is paltry for someone who's been a congressman and then U.S. senator for 5 decades. But salaries often don't cover much more than expenses. His wife, of course, was a schoolteacher for most of her working years, and we know how greedy and overpaid they are.

Much of their estate is going to be from appreciation related to their residences in areas where even people who bought a 1400 sqft cracker box 30 years ago can be at least technically millionaires as a result. But any real estate investments should have shown at least a nice appreciation over this period.