If you pay cash for something then that's what it cost you.
If you pay some cash, like $50,000 and borrow $450,000 dollars and what you bought produces monthly income to pay the monthly loan payment and 5 years later you sell it for $525,000.
At that point the loan balance is $350,000 which is paid off from the $525,000 proceeds of the sale. That leaves cash in hand of $175,000 and $50,000 of that was what you started with leaving a profit of $125,000.
That's not being debt free but between the option of being debt free and having $50,000 cash on hand and 5 years later still being debt free and having $50,000 (It could have been put into a Bank that hopefully wouldn't fail and earn 1 to 2% todays interest rate) plus maybe a bit of interest or......Taking your $50,000 and buying an income producing asset that will make the bank payments but now being no longer debt free. Now 5 years later decide to jump on the debt free train with a few other people. You sell the income producing asset and pay off the debt and are now debt free with $175,000 in your pocket.
Now, is being debt free the greatest feeling in the world? Maybe for some who believes their neighbor has more than them because they are lucky or think they inheireted it.
If I decide to close on this transaction I could say I'm debt free with a bundle of cash but that probably won't happen.

If I get debt free I'll probably go back into debt or not pay my current debts and find another investment for the money. May just not sell and stay in deep debt and cash out in a couple more years.
Many people have went in to debt and bought land 20/30 years ago, maybe even had a house on it and they actually could have lived in that house. Had that debt hanging over their head all those years. Today because they went into debt they own that house and land free and clear and it's worth maybe what they paid (small down payment) but it's probably worth alot more than that small down payment and they've lived in it and not paid rent.
The individual that stayed debt free and rented is still renting and owes nothing and owns nothing that can cash out for more than they paid. All they have are rent receipts but no debt.