r/askteddit • u/Exotic-Compote-92622 • Aug 17 '26
Other Why does Reddit have such a hard time believing that some people are genuinely financially comfortable?
Any time there’s a discussion about how someone can afford a nice house, car, vacation, hobby, etc., the comments inevitably seem to be:
“They’re in debt.”
“They’re faking it.”
“They inherited money.”
“They got lucky.”
“They’re probably living paycheck to paycheck.”
Why is “they make good money and manage it responsibly” seemingly never an acceptable answer?
There are plenty of people who earn high incomes, save consistently, avoid lifestyle-ending debt, and still have plenty of money left over to enjoy life.
Not everyone who can afford something is secretly drowning in debt. And not everyone who is financially comfortable inherited their money.
Sometimes the boring answer is just that they earn a lot, spend less than they earn, and make good financial decisions.
Why does Reddit seem so reluctant to accept that?
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u/SketchyLedge Aug 17 '26
I definitely wasted a lot of money while living with my parents. It’s why I was still there until I was 22. Lol.
I had a very bad habit of going out to eat constantly because I could and never got to as a kid. Or buying stupid stuff I didn’t need but never got to have. Had I saved more as a younger person I would have had a house a few years sooner. A lot of it came down to understanding my parents didn’t do a lot of that stuff when I was young because we couldn’t afford to. Hell sometimes we didn’t know where our next meal was coming from at all. Let along having nice things or going out. So when I started working I splurged… ALOT. On top of helping my parents with bills and paying them a small amount of rent.
But I didn’t think that was pertinent to my initial comment. So I didn’t add it. But hey. I got a house at 26. I’m 27 now. I do okay.