To ask if saving is a lost habit

[OneRingToRuleThemAll]

Several times recently I've seen posts from people who 'can't save on a high income'.

Is saving up a lost habit? I'm sure back in my parents and grandparents generations saving was just something that everyone did.

Don't buy what you can't afford and save up to spend later.

I'm the sole earner on an average salary (mid £20k's) and I save as if it was any other bill. It goes out on payday along with the mortgage, gas and council tax.

No, I don't think it is. I think those who can afford to save still do, but incomes are squeezed so for many saving isn't an option.

I think the consumer debt culture of the last 20 years has diminished both the inclination and ability to save.

You're totally right, absolutely noone saves anymore...

I save every month like you, it's the first thing I do after bills. But there are some months when I have to take money out of savings.

Cost of living has increased faster than wages. House prices have risen faster than wages, meaning people are paying expensive rent instead of a cheaper mortgage.

There's considerably more pressure on wages than there used to be. 30 years ago, one wage could sustain a family of four comfortably, now it's often the case that both parents need to work (and incur additional childcare expenses in the meantime).

This has been all over the news and widely discussed over the last few years, I'm not sure how you've missed it. It is much more difficult to save now than it used to be.

good grief - No it’s not.

It’s like it’s always been. Loads of people (high and low earners) save, loads of people (high and low earners) smash money up the wall.

Good for you.

Aside from your slightly smug post you are right, saving isn't seen as a priority for many.

Seems to be a combo of the growth of consumerism and therefore don't prioritise saving and those that genuinely can't as ends barely meet already.

Similar attitude to pensions. I see my team in their mid twenties who think saving 6% of their salary is unfair - it won't give them anywhere near the pension they'll need in 40 years time. Very scary.

Not in our house it isn’t!i recently had one of those account reviews at the bank and the very young lady doing the review commented on how much I have in my account and what was my plans for it. I told her that it is my emergency fund and that I go with the principal of having a years salary in case the worst should happen.
She looked me in the eye and said she had never ever heard of this.
But it’s what Martin Lewis says!! He is like the god of al finances surely!
The Florence nightingale of the money world!
Like you we have savings come out each month like a bill.

I do think that with credit cards it’s easy to have stuff now then pay it back, it’s kind of the same as saving first then buying later.

I have a standing order for money to go out of my main account into my savings. Unfortunately it's very very low and recently I've had to half the amount weekly and things are so tight that I have to go and take the money out often for shopping.

I would love to save, but, currently, I earn approximately £210 a week. Every Sunday I round up what’s in my account and take it out, so if my balance is -726, I’ll take out £4 so rounding to the nearest ten.

Unfortunately, at the end of the month I nearly always have to use that money. It’s not that I don’t know how or I don’t want to, it’s that living costs money and money is in short supply!

I’ve saved all my life. 1p from my 3p pocket money, £5 from my £15 wages from my Saturday job, £12.50/month from my student grant (yes I’m old); monthly direct debit to ISA and premium bonds now; my children save too (they are 7 and 12 so we are not taking big money); DS usually saves fir particular Lego sets, dd likes to save then splurge!!

DH on the other hand has never saved, and goes through money like water. He had a big promotion 3 or 4 years ago, when I finally persuaded to start saving.

I don’t think it’s an age thing, it’s a mindset. DH’s family are much better off than mine. If they need something they can afford it, or afford the credit, to buy it. I have always had to save up. When we bought our first house, the deposit was £8k (I know!) - the £4K I put in was my life savings; the £4K DH our in came from his parents.

I do think that with credit cards it’s easy to have stuff now then pay it back, it’s kind of the same as saving first then buying later.

It’s the exact opposite!

But there is a relationship there. By their 20s most households are in some form of debt - be that credit cards, overdrafts, consumer finance for appliances, car loan etc etc. Once a household is in debt it can be counter-intuitive to save because the ‘rules’ tell you to pay debt back first.

However, I think that’s sometimes wrong advice because often that debt can’t be redrawn in case of emergency. I do think it’s important for people to have an ‘emergency fund’ but outgoings frequently exceed incomings particularly if households are also paying debt payments. It can become a viscous cycle.

I don't think so but I think the lifestyle these days makes spending money more tempting. When my dad was young there was no going away for holidays for most people, the whole street shared one tv that the kind neighbour lady let the kids watch a program or two, toys were handed down to siblings no matter what state they are in etc.

It's a completely different culture these days. Of course people still save just maybe not as much. It's also become more acceptable to buy things on credit or credit card in a sensible way where you can pay it off over a longer time

PP's are right on point in comments about mindset and consumer debt levels. Maybe it is a culture shift and attitude change in the main.

I think it’s a choice.

Like saving into a pension, like smoking, like wanting a brand new car now or like taking 3 holidays a year, or sacrificing some family time for a better paid job.

Everyone has different priorities

I'm a saver, but I've friends who are in a spiral of debt and it's incredibly difficult to get out of. Sadly I think for many savings are an impossible dream, and with prices rising and job insecurity so high that will continue to be the case.

It's a choice for some, not all. At the moment we can't save, we don't have big holidays (we camp) and we don't live extravagantly but nursery fees wipe us out. Once our youngest is at school we'll be able to put some away every month. We do put a bit in savings for when our children get older (driving lessons etc) every birthday but it's not much.

I think it’s a choice.

If you're bringing in £1000 and your essential bills are that or more, there's no choice.

I try to save but there's usually something broken that needs fixed that takes it out again. Our wages are too pathetic to save much and living costs are too high. Sucks but that is life currently. Only going to get worse.

It’s not entirely lost, but definitely reduced. I know so many high earners (multiples of six figures) who can’t lay their hands on spare cash. It’s normal to live up to or beyond your means now.

I agree, less seem to prioritise saving and don’t bother. I do think work ethic plays a part in it.

We seem to have a culture of “I want” rather than I need hence the levels of debt some are in as they live outside their means and make choices they can’t afford.

The benefits system doesn’t help, if it were more strict then people would have to save for a rainy day rather than rely on others.

Take into account the interest rates offered by a lot of savings too... It's less attractive than it used to be.

I save a little off my salary each payday into a separate account, but I can see why others don't, or can't.
I do have at least one friend who decided just to increase her pension contributions rather than save into a savings account, and another few who only started saving (for house deposits) after spending years paying off debts.

This is the consequence of capitalism and neoliberalism. A small number of people can only get very rich if they convince the rest of us to consume. Previous generations didn’t have the opportunity to spend 24/7 as people do now, they weren’t constantly advertised to. Cost of living is much higher as a proportion of wages, particularly housing.

You literally can’t have capitalism without this happening.

It is consumer debt culture, but it's also high cost of living, in particular housing, childcare and commuting. The MN demographic is disproportionately people with young and youngish children. These people are more likely to have childcare costs, whether that's paying for it or reducing hours to do it, are increasingly too young to have been able to access housing before the price spirals of recent decades and may well have commuting costs too. It's not a period of life where disposable income tends to be at it highest.

I think a lot of it is personality.

I've always saved and it's always been drummed into me that saving is really important. However some people don't think ahead and would rather spend their money as soon as it lands in their bank.

I've just had to deplete my savings slightly to replace my car, however my goal is now to save up again and replace that money ASAP. Some people would get a car on finance rather than buy one on finance but I don't want to commit to any more monthly outgoings.

I have been a saver all my life but my husband was the exact opposite.. But my mum is the same as me where as his parents were spenders so I do think you can inherit your parents way of thinking about money and financial responsibility. All our married life I took care of the finances even though he was the main earner.
My sons have inherited my ways and they too are savers. They are still at home paying a reduced contribution to the home on the understanding that they save a decent chunk of their wages. I don’t take it from them and save it myself for them as that teaches nothing. They set up their own isa and standing orders and manage their own finances.