An old friend from school days who happens to be a local estate agent once told me when I was musing about how seemingly ordinary people afford that big house, massive renovations, private schools, nice cars, expensive holidays lifestyle that very very often it was all on credit...
Colleagues used to speculate about how well-off my mate, who was also a colleague, must be. They lived in a beautiful large, listed house, in a great area, both kids went to private school, always had nice clothes, new or newish cars, fantastic holidays, expensive nights out/weekends away etc.
They were actually really struggling. Her husband earned good money, but he was funding most of their lifestyle from credit cards and by spending all the takings from shops he owned, plus his salary, and he'd remortgaged the house.
He hid all this from her, until one day none of her cards worked. They'd all been cancelled. They had to go and get heating oil in jerry cans, because the oil suppliers wouldn't let them have credit. They went bankrupt eventuallly.
She doesn't take his word for anything financial now and checks all statements and everything.