To wonder how they have so much money? Or is it just social media?

[Spice22]

I understand how older people have money ; they work for it. But I'm just puzzled by how people my age (and younger!) have so much? I'm in my early twenties.
Whenever I go into Instagram or snapchat, I am sure to see lots of pictures of people "popping over to Australia" or beaming with pride because they just a bought a Range Rover. I am not exaggerating!
Don't get me wrong, I'm not envious - though I am jealous of course. I don't blame them at all for the pictures/posts because I would/probably will when i acheieve these things too. I just don't get how they can do this at 17-24 ?
It's small stuff like eating out twice a week, multiple designer handbags a year, to large stuff like new cars and long distance holidays multiple times a year. How??

I know some these girls have 'blessors' but not all. Anyway, I'm just wondering if you guys know people leading such lives and how they do it ?

I think it's all credit. It's easy to lease a car now. People change then every three years so, they never OWN it in the way our parents saved for a car and it was theirs. I Kniw young women who've 3 and 4 children and huge houses £550k+ but probably again, they're mortgaged to the hilt and it might all fall down as the job market/Brexit changes things. At least, I assume so. If not....if they're all "high achievers" then I've let myself down, very badly 😊

I think if you look at 'influencers' bloggers or social media personalities, it is their job, the more they spend the more work they attract... The trend at the moment is luxury clothing and accessories, everyone sporting a chanel le boy, gucci dionysus/marmont, etc etc.. To attract views and followers they have to spend

My niece is a bit like this. Not to the Australia and Range Rover extent, but her social media is full of photoes of her latest gadget, designer handbag, how she refuses to shop in the sales, getting her nails done etc etc etc. Must raise a few eyebrows especially as she works full time in Tesco earning just above minimum wage.

However - she lives at home rent free. Her parents don't ask her to contribute anything to household expenses including food and also pay for her mobile phone. So everything she earns is hers to spend.

My early 20s niece is similar Tinfoil. She's a lone parent on low wage PT work plus tax credits.

Her baby DS has loads of clothes/shoes/toys all shown off on social media posted on her iphone 7, which costs £60 pm .

But before she got her own place she lived with grandparents who bankrolled her so she didn't have to pay for anything herself. She also has loads of delinquent credit cards and store cards still registered at their address and they're a bit worried that bailiffs will start turning up.

My sis and bil live like this.
Their huge house is on a IO mortgage so they have not paid off any of the capital and so they are now stuck in negative equity
Their cars are leased and cost ££££ per month
She has so many handbags, shoes, bottles of perfume...I'm sure her life looks enviable.
Except...she is on high dose anti depressants (and has even for some time) and has high blood pressure.
She is miserable but her FB feed looks anything but.
All that glitters etc.....

Honeyandfizz - I think I know the blogger you're referring to!

I agree that a lot of this is fake in terms of using credit etc. There are a lot of parents who are giving their DC huge deposits to buy a home in their early 20s to avoid inheritance tax. It is one of the many reasons the housing market is so inflated.

Badders My sis and BIL are very flash too. They live in a home which looks like a mansion from the outside. When you walk in the kitchen is from 1971 and the bathrooms are equally old. The outside is all updated and looks fab, she drives a BMW, he a Merc etc etc . I NEVER see a single picture of the inside of their home on FB, only the outside. I posted a picture of my kids in their lounge and my sister got very upset and made me delete the picture from FB. DH and I call them hospital gowns. Nice and normal looking at the front meanwhile their arse is exposed at the back.

I agree flash lifestyles are often funded by credit or by spending everything you earn. That Live Well for Less (or whatever it is called) shows plenty of examples.
Also agree that often the better off tend not to be flash. Me and H are relatively well off through professional careers and having both inherited some substantial sums from family in the last few years. But probably no one would guess as we don't talk about it and appear to live modestly.
We live in a terrace (but mortgage paid off some years ago). Don't have flash cars (though did buy them brand new with no credit). Son goes to state school (felt it was best option for him - brilliant SEN support - though could afford private). Went three years without a holiday recently (couldn't face it with our toddler). I've got designer handbags but bought them second hand from Etsy.
I'm always busy with work and don't have time to spend money. I just forget to!

Realhousewife don't you just wonder where all the money comes from?! I'm 40 and earn a decent wage but nothing compared to that! I do love her blog and she has fabulous taste but an endless pot of money it would seem!

I was working part-time since the age of 16 at a prestigious London company, and at 18 after finishing my A Levels I was offered a full-time job there in a good role with exciting prospects, so I went for that instead of going to university... making a decent salary instead of racking up student loans. My company also offered massive staff discount (between 30-50%) on designer goods and accessories, and these kind of things were important in my job, so I always had nice bags/shoes/coats (I prefer to pay more for expensive but high quality accessories and then wear simple high street clothes).

By the age of 21 I had been headhunted with a job offer in Dubai (tax free earning!) so I took that opportunity. Treated it as an adventure at first; I had nothing to lose - all my school friends were still at uni. 5 years later I'm still here, and now married. My DH has a very high income and when we got married we had 5 top end luxury cars between us, but have now sold 2 of them and given a 3rd to his brother as it was excessive and we really didn't need all that, though we are blessed to be able to afford it.

As other posters mentioned it's also all about priorities. For me, I've always loved cars and I knew I wanted to save up to pass my test and buy a car at 17. I got a used Mini Cooper and it was my pride and joy. By 19, with more savings + salary I traded up to a new BMW. When I moved to Dubai at 21 I sold the BMW and bought a Porsche. A few years later I sold the Porsche and bought a Range Rover. I've never used credit cards and the only 'loans' I've ever had are for auto financing on the more recent cars, because honestly it works out as the most sensible way to purchase a car these days.

When I was in London I was living at home but paying towards the mortgage from the age of 16, knowing that the property will eventually be mine as I am the only child. I still pay monthly towards the mortgage in London. In Dubai I was renting (rent is pretty cheap here, a small fraction of my salary) and have now invested in 4 off-plan properties with my husband.

Honeyandfizz Yes, there seems to be a bottomless pot of spending money and there doesn't appear to be any concept of having to forego one thing to get something else. So it's endless travel plus property renovation plus new cars plus all the house styling (the flowers and candles alone!!). Got to create that blog content though!

Do they love with their parents and thus have all their wage as disposable income?

When I was 25 I bought a brand new car, took 6 months off work and travelled then bought a flat with my now dh ... however I had a entry level graduate job, did lots of freelance work and lived at home paying £100 keep ..... miss those days!!

This is one thing that used to puzzle me when I used to work in an off-licence some years ago. The shop was in the local area to where I lived, and this area was (and still is) a fairly deprived area. A lot of unemployed people,quite a high crime rate,especially regarding drugs,local schools having 75% of the kids in receipt of free school meals etc. Yet every time I worked,I would witness customers with wallet or purse loads of cash. And I mean literally wads of it. One bloke that I knew for a fact was unemployed and had been for several years,came in a couple of times a week and spent in the region of 50 quid on alcohol,cigarettes and various sweets and snacks. He would pull a wedge of notes out of his wallet to pay and I'm guessing there must have been around 500 quid in 10 and 20 pound notes. Where on earth does someone who has no job get that sort of money? And can afford to spend near on 100 quid a week on booze and fags? And believe me,he wasn't the only one.

My friend was just lusting after the lifestyle of her (newly divorced) young colleague who is dating their boss (who left his wife & family). He buys her designer bags 'n' heels, trips to Dubai, brand new Range Rover etc... Telling me that she wants all of that, too!

Then she, rather sheepishly, admitted that he's an arsehole...

Yes I know 'influencers' are paid to promote that lifestyle so that's not who I'm referring to. I'm talking about people I went to school/uni with and people I still know today. Examples.

Girl 1 (I know personally)

• She's 21, in university, rents her own place in the Souh East, no inheritance for certain. She often goes out for meal and cocktails but she doesn't go on holidays. She works part-time and receives student finance so I can understand how this is affordable. BUT she has atleast 3 deisgber bags - one of which costs around £5k. I know this via snapchat - she snapchated herself making the purchases and unboxing. I can see how she can afford the meals etc, but such bags?

Girl 2 (Went to school together)
Admittedly I don't know her background in terms of inheritance etc. Normal middle class family I would say. She recently took a year out and went travelling with a friend. Every year she goes in 2+ holidays anyway. She also goes out often. I don't know what she does for work, if she works but she hasn't graduated yet.

Girl 3 (Know through a friend and SM)
This girl shares a lot, but I only know what she lets us see I guess. She's 24 and rents. She says her family is poor so I don't think she inherited.
She goes out to eat everyday - London restaurants and cocktails.
She snapchats herself going out shopping and buying designer items at the end of the month, as a treat
She has recently upgraded from an Audi to a Range Rover.

These are 'ordinary' people in my life. I know a few more, and then of course the people I see on Instagram.

I wonder ; would you recommend this ; I spend a year just 'living life' and then start saving for deposit afterwards? So I can do it both? But then my job is dependant on me passing exams - what if I don't pass and I've already splashed the cash?

Want2b...I would have lots of sympathy for her if she didn't make sly digs at me all the time 😞
We have a weekly budget for food which she thinks is hilarious
My car is 11 years old (only 35000 miles on the clock as it's only used as a run about)
My house isn't as big as hers but in 10 years (hopefully!!!) it will be ours
She has store cards, credit cards...it's all a bit worrying really 😞
All this stuff doesn't make her happy. And yet if you saw her FB feed you would think she lived a charmed life
I think lots of people are in huge debt tbh

"...A blessor is basically a sugardaddy - someone who takes you trips to accompany them for business or as 'treats' etc. You may or may not sleep with them - I guess it's up to the couple..." Oh, a prostitute! Nothing wrong with that of course, but why sugar coat it?

My colleague mid forties top of band 7 NHS with London weighting so £50,000 pa lives at home with parents only wears designer clothes (often from outlets or TKMax), drives a nice car on lease, has lots of foreign holidays which are half the price when avoiding school holidays.
SAHM I know from school run, husband is a builder has 2 cars Range Rover and Merc. Mum and DCs have lots of designer clothes, goes to Spain often, lives in an affluent area. The rumour in playground is the dh is also involved in supplying drugs in the area.

Janey I would hazard a guess they're involved in the supply and selling of drugs

Or do cash in hand jobs

I work with a girl like this. Never done spending money etc but she is in debt up to her eyeballs and thinks nothing of remortgaging the house to pay for a holiday. I wouldn't be able to sleep at night.

Friend A- regularly travelling. Theyre still living at home and work full time. Minimal bills. Apply for leave and off tbey go travelling. All their money goes on it.

Friend B - Good job in London for a few years. Bought a new sports car when he relocated out the city.

I work with some young people who live like this but they simply have a very high disposable income because they still live at home and don't pay any rent or bills.

If you earn £20k and it's all yours to spend, that's a lot of income for holidays, shoes, and going out. Cars are leased.

I don't have a problem with it. They couldn't possibly buy a property in this area ( a one bed flat is £300k) and even renting is impossible for many unless they are in a couple or are happy to house share.

I had more spare cash to spend how I pleased at this age. I went out a few nights a week and regularly treated myself to new clothes. Now mortgage, bills, food and kids come first and I'm lucky if I can afford a pair of knickers from Primark.