Hello,
while browsing, the name caught my attention.
We (4 people) will spend some time in the south during the summer, have booked a vacation in October (on the weekend), and the ski hotel.
So just casually spending 5,000 euros (about 5,500 dollars). I often struggle with whether to live life or save. We earn well, have hardly any loan payments, and will also receive an inheritance at some point.
What about you?
while browsing, the name caught my attention.
We (4 people) will spend some time in the south during the summer, have booked a vacation in October (on the weekend), and the ski hotel.
So just casually spending 5,000 euros (about 5,500 dollars). I often struggle with whether to live life or save. We earn well, have hardly any loan payments, and will also receive an inheritance at some point.
What about you?
I don’t fully agree with that in general.
Priorities change. Whether it’s due to age, life circumstances, or major events, that’s hard to say.
A single person might really spend everything and "live" extravagantly, only to start focusing on a house, family, and retirement once they become a new parent.
Someone who grew up living hand to mouth in their parents’ home and learned to live very frugally might, after landing their first well-paid job, stop worrying about every dollar and even swing in the opposite direction.
I agree with you that slowing down is always harder than living large after years of hardship.
But someone who has two or three children in a short time might choose (not for cost reasons) to go on vacation less frequently—say, not four times a year—because vacations with children rarely feel like a real break and often require another vacation afterward.
Instead, they might prefer to send the kids to play in the garden and relax with a book in the living room.
Priorities change. Whether it’s due to age, life circumstances, or major events, that’s hard to say.
A single person might really spend everything and "live" extravagantly, only to start focusing on a house, family, and retirement once they become a new parent.
Someone who grew up living hand to mouth in their parents’ home and learned to live very frugally might, after landing their first well-paid job, stop worrying about every dollar and even swing in the opposite direction.
I agree with you that slowing down is always harder than living large after years of hardship.
But someone who has two or three children in a short time might choose (not for cost reasons) to go on vacation less frequently—say, not four times a year—because vacations with children rarely feel like a real break and often require another vacation afterward.
Instead, they might prefer to send the kids to play in the garden and relax with a book in the living room.
H
HilfeHilfe4 Jun 2020 13:14Tolentino schrieb:
I don’t fully agree with that generalization. Priorities change. Whether it’s due to age, life circumstances, or significant events is another question. A single person might really spend freely and “live extravagantly,” only to later focus on the house, family, and retirement planning as a new parent.
Someone who has always lived hand to mouth in their parents’ home and learned to be very frugal might, with their first well-paid job, stop worrying about every dollar and even swing in the opposite direction.
I agree with you that scaling back is always harder than living large after years of hardship.
But someone who has two or three children in a short period may voluntarily (not for financial reasons) stop taking four vacations a year, because vacations with children are rarely relaxing and often require a break from the vacation itself. They’d rather send the kids out to the garden and relax with a book in the living room. I find it hard to believe that consumption is reduced just because the goal is now to own a house.
But it’s an interesting assumption that I can confirm for us.
I agree with you that scaling back is always harder than living large after years of hardship.
It’s comparable to the lockdown…
It is also a question of generation—perhaps that is why homeownership rates in Germany are relatively low. My impression is that the generation of my parents was much more willing to limit their (already much lower) consumption to afford their own house. Many older people I know have maintained this frugality to this day, even though they no longer need to. Nowadays, it seems painful for some to give up things like the latest smartphone, an expensive car, or yet another foreign trip.
H
HilfeHilfe4 Jun 2020 14:10Nummer12 schrieb:
It’s also a matter of generation – maybe that’s why we have such a low homeownership rate in Germany. My impression is that my parents’ generation was much more willing to limit their (already much less intense) consumer habits in order to afford their own house. Many older people I know have kept this frugality to this day, even though they no longer really need to. Nowadays, it seems painful for some to give up things like the latest smartphone, an expensive car, or yet another vacation abroad. Well, we were also raised by the economy that way.
Constant advertising, smartphones, package holidays.
Everything affordable.
HilfeHilfe schrieb:
I find it hard to believe that people reduce their spending just because they now have the goal of owning a house. No, I mean the cause-and-effect relationship is often different than you suggest.
So not:
Single -> Family -> House -> Need to cut back
But rather:
Single -> Family -> No interest/time to spend money on hobbies and travel -> Cutting back (as a side effect) -> House
This is just a theory, but it is something I can confirm from my circle of acquaintances.
Good luck
Tolentino
There is some truth to that.
Maldives for two costs 7,000€ (around 7,700 USD), Maldives for four 14,000€ (around 15,400 USD). The first was manageable, the second not, or rather, I don’t see the point in spending so much on a vacation. The kids don’t care anyway whether it’s Mallorca or Male.
Maldives for two costs 7,000€ (around 7,700 USD), Maldives for four 14,000€ (around 15,400 USD). The first was manageable, the second not, or rather, I don’t see the point in spending so much on a vacation. The kids don’t care anyway whether it’s Mallorca or Male.