One writer on why she prefers to make it rain
Words by Stina Sanders
'I feel guilty for buying a house'. Were the words my friend spoke as we finished off our third glass of wine, in an expensive bar, that I could barely afford to be sitting in.
Despite his wonderful news of buying his first home, it was obvious that he felt ashamed of his purchase; a gorgeous apartment in a high-end area of London which none of his friends could ever afford.
For the average millennial, buying a house without struggling to find a deposit, is very unusual. Most of us struggle to pay our rent, let alone save to buy our first home. We unfortunately live in a generation where buying our own property is as likely as winning the lottery.
This has recently got me thinking about my own financial situation. I’m working hard but am I a good saver? Short answer: no.
Am I good at spending? Yes. In fact, I worked out the other day that I spend around £700 on coffee a year. I'm not even joking! It's funny because if someone handed me £700 in cash - I would definitely not spend it on coffee… I'd probably buy a pair of leather trousers (which I definitely do not need!)
And here lies the problem: us millennials don't save to survive - we spend to live.
'Wanna go to Ibiza?', 'Want to eat at this expensive restaurant?', 'Shall we order a bottle of champagne?'
Yes to all of the above.
It's me. I'm the problem. Not the government or how the pound currently stands. Some people will even argue that our education system didn’t teach us how to manage our finances. But isn't saving obvious? If you want to save money to buy a car, then don't buy those shoes or go on that trip to Paris. Why does someone need to explain that!?
We make our own choices. We are a generation that believes in living for the moment and not saving for a rainy day. If you are not like that, then please show me how you can save money whilst living in a city like London. Because honestly, I want to know your secrets. If the answer is staying in, then I'm afraid, I’m not interested. I want to live.
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I like my daily coffee. I like shopping for things that I want and don't really need. I like going out for dinners with my friends. I know I'm probably making life difficult for myself in the long-run, but I'm happy with my choices right now.
Until the day I need to save for a house, I will. But right now I’ve got other priorities on my list. Like where to travel to next…
