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Chris_ssj2 t1_j5iuq94 wrote

Reply to comment by humvee911 in LPT: A good financial habit to get into is treating money as hours of work. Ask yourself how many hours of work something would take if you buy it. The awareness of the amount of time you put into purchases helps reduce compulsive spending. by humvee911

What's a lifestyle creep?

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nonametrans t1_j5j0g6y wrote

That 70 series nvidia card that's keeping you going for ages is fine, but you upgrade to a 80 or 90 series card. Then you justify that purchase by upgrading your perfectly good 1440p monitor with a 4k one.

Or you've always been getting a Toyota Corolla for years. It's done you and your family good, average fuel costs, low maintenance costs. But then all of a sudden you wanna get an Audi A8 cuz you think your higher paycheck can support it.

The argument is, why get all these purchases and upgrades if you've been okay with what you had previously? Sure, buy some luxuries to treat yourself once in a while. But most people can't stop themselves. That Audi A8 then becomes a Mercedes S class. That average coffee machine becomes a $2500 barista machine...you eventually outspend your means and have little savings for retirement.

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Chris_ssj2 t1_j5j1aw5 wrote

I see, so the basic idea being that if something that you own has kept you going and will continue to do so, there is no point in upgrading it, just like that saying, the cheaper your pleasures are, the richer you will be

Thank you so much for taking the time to explain :)

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RODAMI t1_j5jz43i wrote

Drive your car until it dies. Any maintenance is still cheaper than a new car payment.

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Chris_ssj2 t1_j5k0zre wrote

But the more we delay the maintenance, the more fuel it will keep on guzzling though...

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Dreshna t1_j5k8afy wrote

Yes and no. For most people that is the case. Sometimes the reliability is the more important thing. If you routinely have to make flights or drive through the areas that are inhospitable to life, a roadside breakdown can cost you more than a car.

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Prometheus188 t1_j5jbm36 wrote

Basically as your income increases, so do your expenses. As you get more salary; you also eat out at, buy a more expensive car, a bigger house, more expensive drinks, more expensive restaurants, etc...

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RODAMI t1_j5jz8du wrote

Yup. I got a 20% pay bump? Now I can buy a. At that costs 20% more and eat a restaurant that costs more. People are weird.

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