Saver or spender

Nukehasslefan said:
Most people, in order to save to a point of having it comfortable, in terms of, the trappings in their old age, would have to go without some stuff or give up a lot of the normal enjoyments.

And the car analogy is far from silly.
You are going by your well off nature, as it stands. This is not any real yardstick for the majority.
Most people can't even save. Most people who can't even save, are still in debt for various things.

However, a person has a choice.
Do you go without a washing machine and wash in the bath/sink until you save up enough to buy a washing machine, or do you borrow the money or finance the buying of the washer and actually make your life easier as is?

Here's a scenario.
A person of 20 who pays all but £30 out on bills for everything. Basically they have £30 to spend for themselves.
That person enjoys a £5 a week bet, a tin of baccy and a dozen cans, a week.

Someone tells them, if they go without those leisurely luxuries, they can save that £30 a week and in 40 years time, if saved regularly and doing without, they will have around £60,000 to do with as they want, at 60.

Imagine getting to 58 and finding you're dying or you become incapacitated.
Or just getting to 60 and having the ability to buy that merc or whatever, or go on a few holidays, eating all kinds of top notch food for however long it lasts.

Live for the time with a bit for a rainy day, if you can, without creating hardship or depriving yourself of your lesures you look forward to each day.
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You're talking about someone on the bread line. They dont have much choice.

I'm talking about someone on what should be comfortable salary that enjoys a comfortable life, but choose a payday to payday lifestyle cos they 'have' to spend it
 


42 said:
You're talking about someone on the bread line. They dont have much choice.

I'm talking about someone on what should be comfortable salary that enjoys a comfortable life, but choose a payday to payday lifestyle cos they 'have' to spend it
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Plenty of those about.
 
42 said:
You're talking about someone on the bread line. They dont have much choice.

I'm talking about someone on what should be comfortable salary that enjoys a comfortable life, but choose a payday to payday lifestyle cos they 'have' to spend it
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Yeah, I get what you're saying, I really do....but the same applies only in a different scenario.
In your thinking of a person that lives pay cheque to paycheque and who earns decent money into the bargain, goes on the spend on whatever takes their fancy, until it's gone and their next cheque arrives.
They may borrow on it or finance themselves to death for the finer things in life that their pay cheque would not ordinarily allow for the actual time...but....finance allows them to have that finer thing, or things, as is, to enjoy as is...as they're young.

The saying is usually, live fast, die young.....but, what is young against what is old?
You get one chance in life to live it, amid working. Live it now, not as a dream for the future that may not be the one you envisioned.
 
Nukehasslefan said:
Not knowing how long you have to live but knowing that your life is potentially a bit shorter than the real old age latter years, I'd say saving to enjoy it later in those terms, is a pointless exercise.
Very few can walk away from working at 50 or even 60 and very few can amass enough savings to enjoy the so called trappings,,,but, like you mention, you can save enough (depending on your wage and job) to have a decent enough pot into your 60's and maybe have a paid off house...but to get there, many people would need to live a life of economy beforehand.
Basically go with the basics in order to enjoy the so called trappings....assuming good health to do so.

It's each to their own, of course but what I'm saying is, if you can't enjoy your money in full as you go and then still have enough savings to retire and enjoy, then....for me, I'd rather enjoy my money as I go and get by with whatever comes my way as I'm into the latter years, because by then I wouldn't be needing that much to enjoy.

My motto is, don;t suffer now for the comfort of later when that comfort may never materialise.
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For many that just means not feeling guilty about smoking,gambling,living on take aways and having a £80 a month phone and a £150 sky account .You can have a great life and save as well .
 
JAZZMANB said:
For many that just means not feeling guilty about smoking,gambling,living on take aways and having a £80 a month phone and a £150 sky account .You can have a great life and save as well .
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Those that can have a great life and have all the mod cons....and save..... are lucky. They're few and far between.
 
Nukehasslefan said:
Yeah, I get what you're saying, I really do....but the same applies only in a different scenario.
In your thinking of a person that lives pay cheque to paycheque and who earns decent money into the bargain, goes on the spend on whatever takes their fancy, until it's gone and their next cheque arrives.
They may borrow on it or finance themselves to death for the finer things in life that their pay cheque would not ordinarily allow for the actual time...but....finance allows them to have that finer thing, or things, as is, to enjoy as is...as they're young.

The saying is usually, live fast, die young.....but, what is young against what is old?
You get one chance in life to live it, amid working. Live it now, not as a dream for the future that may not be the one you envisioned.
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I am 67 and have a ned who is nearly 33 and someone who has chosen to live on what we feed him while out on a tag instead of serving a prison sentence with restrictions. His disposable income goes on Buckfast, weed and cigarettes and then finds whoever to make up the shortfall. I have been told that the drink will kill him before the drugs and cigarettes so don't fund anything to enable him to satisfy his addictions which to me is a death sentence but is lost on him. Whether he bottoms out before he dies is anybody's guess but at his age but live fast and die young appears the likely scenario in his case. Me and my wife have worked hard bringing up 2 sons, 1 with severe learning difficulties and the other as described but leaving an inheritance to either, 1 in very unfortunate circumstances who will be looked after by carers, and the other self inflicted who probably will die before either of us anyway unless he goes back to prison, will still give us an incentive to spend what we have without guilt.
 
Nukehasslefan said:
Those that can have a great life and have all the mod cons....and save..... are lucky. They're few and far between.
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The live for today brigade aren't having a great life its two blokes on similar incomes doing things different .We're not talking 4 weeks in Mauritius here ,we're talking spending all your cash on "treats " cos you "cant take it with you " . pick 10 ten people and half will do it one way half the other .The spenders aren't living the dream ,its hardly noticeable . If you love the credit card and all the lovely things it buys and the min payment you are handing cash over for nowt in interest
 
South Banker Wolf said:
CP is quality mate. This is the first year for many that I’ve not caned the sales. Don’t like the online thing I’d rather try stuff on. We have a big Flannels shop near me at Rushden Northamptonshire. Have also bought stuff from up near you from Aphrodite mainly trainers.
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Can get 10% discount at aphrodite with a season card. Try to shop there as much as I can with it being a local business


Psyche In middlesbrough is excellent too. Shame its just been took over by Mike Ashley
 
I’ve got a few months salary in the bank just in case. Wouldn’t sleep at night if I didn’t have that safety net. Everything else goes on holidays or the house usually. Only debt we’ve got is the mortgage.

I’m always astounded on these threads at the amount of people on here who are spending hundreds of pounds a pop on shirts and shoes etc. Doesn’t exactly match the working class stereotype the area gets.

There’s a noticeable increase in expensive cars, clothes etc. I assume a lot of it is borrowing. So long as it’s available and people can afford it then I guess that’s the way attitudes are shifting. Does worry me how cavalier some people I’ve spoken to are towards debt and the threat of bankruptcy. We still haven’t recovered from 2008 yet and there’s another bubble waiting to burst.
 
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Saver now, lessons learned after having some iffy financials in younger years, the usual relationship splits, credit cards etc,. Healthy pension, some decent savings and relatively low mortgage left. Comfortable I would say and miles from the sleepless nights worrying in the past. Very much think having had issues shapes how you go forward and glad it happened this way round rather than being skint in my current years with kids to support etc.
 
I’m massively stingy and won’t spend a penny on anything I don’t have to. I’m obsessed with savings.

But with my wife and 2 daughters I would never scrimp. I’m just very wary of spending anything on myself and hitting the savings buffer
 

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