I also don't pay for high zoot tires for my general purpose bike (the road bike has tubulars, and different rules apply).

I use mainly IRC (because I have them) slick tires that are probably worth LT $15.00 at retail. They wear well, and when they finally die, usually because of a large glass cut rather than wear, they're nothing to cry about.

BTW- wearing a rear tire bald is a minor achievement, though putting up with semi-knobby tires on the road that long is. The real challenge is in trying to wear out a front tire. In 45+ years of riding, I've yet to do that, though I came close on the commuter bike last year.