Recently, Reddit user u/StalkSmash asked the people of r/AskReddit, "What is one thing that you flat out just don’t know how people afford?". Here are some of our favourite answers:
1. "Secret hidden families. I can barely afford one."
2. "I still don't know how we afforded daycare. At one point we had two kids in daycare for a year before our oldest went to kindergarten."
"We paid $42k per year for two kids in daycare. When I filed my taxes, the software had like a confetti animation to tell us we qualified for a $200 deduction..."
3. "People who eat exclusively by ordering takeaways or delivery from restaurants. It's mind-bogglingly expensive."
4. "A boat or RV (or both)?! I can barley afford to exist much less spend all this money on recreation."
"The DEFAULT payment plan many boat dealerships offer is a 12-year loan."
5. "First-class airfare. It’s just so overwhelmingly expensive in comparison to regular seats. I can’t imagine anyone ever having that amount to spare unless you’re incredibly wealthy."
"Very few people pay cash. They do it with points or someone else is paying."
6. "Eldercare. $300 a day is about typical for most states, and it goes up if they need special care (dementia, etc.)"
"Three-quarters of Americans who live to 21 live to 65, of which two-thirds will need long-term care for an average of three years. Maybe not all long-term care is nursing level, but some of it is even more expensive — memory care, etc. comes out to roughly $150k per person — and almost double that if you limit it to those who need any at all. Somewhere between a generous down payment and a new house. Who can afford that — especially after decades of not working?
Sources: (https://www.ssa.gov/oact/STATS/table4c6.html, https://www.aplaceformom.com/senior-living-data/articles/long-term-care-statistics)"
7. "Being a bridesmaid. Weddings have become so much more elaborate, with multiple showers and bachelorette weekends."
8. "Mental health treatment."
"You'd have to be crazy to spend that kind of money."
10. "Houses."
"600K used to buy you a serious mansion. Now it's an average family home.
I make a good income, my girlfriend also has a normal average income. Yet we can barely afford an averagely priced house these days."
11. "Weddings. I’m a wedding bartender and people dropping $30k on one day is insane to me."
12. "Brand-new pick-up trucks for people who don’t use them as pickup. $60k for a transportation appliance used just to commute?"
13. "Vet bills."
"Even routine care and vaccinations can be $400. Not to mention, if there are any unique issues or an emergency, you’re paying thousands and they won’t give care until you pay."
14. "I've seen plenty of people post their huge and expensive Funko Pop, Gundam, vinyl, manga, retro game collections, and I don't know how they do it."
15. "Concert tickets."
17. "Smoking. A packet of cigarettes can cost more than some people get paid an hour."
Shout out to u/StalkSmash and r/AskReddit for having this discussion.
Note: Submissions have been edited for length and/or clarity.
Thumbnail credits: Getty Images / NBC / Universal / Nickelodeon /