Alberta and most of Canada had some pretty amazing economic years from 2001 through 2007. With lots of jobs and low unemployment, there was a fair bit of money to go around.
Quite a few people invested the extra money they were making, some put it into much larger houses, a few paid down debt, and others used it as a down payment to buy boats, quads, ski-doos, RVs and other somewhat expensive luxuries. Whether those actions were right or wrong is not the point of this article. My point (question) is this: With the drop in the economy, possibly a reduced income for you and your family, has your spending changed?
The reason I ask this is because spending for many of us is not so much a necessity as it is a habit. Our lifestyle is generally a level of comfort with the habits we pay for. That can include annual trips to Mexico, or a large RV trip, eating out a few times a week, or many others things that are not necessities but simply habits of our lifestyle.
The trouble is that often, even though our income may no longer support the same lifestyle, it is difficult to change those habits we have formed. Some of those habits may even have contracts that are difficult to break, like cell phones, car payments, leased furniture and many others. Some are luxuries that we may deem as necessities like satellite TV, RV, multiple vehicles. Each one of things has a cost associated with it that can make life difficult if we can’t really afford them.
For my family, moving from a very low cost housing market in Saskatchewan to Alberta was a bit of a shock to us. Our mortgage payment increased a lot. We have responded to this change by becoming a one vehicle family (not always easy, but it works), not eating out much at all, and keeping our eye on grocery sales more than we used to. Our overall enjoyment of life has not declined, in fact it has grown because of our love of the region, but it does mean saying NO to the kids at times because our situation has changed.
So, has your spending changed with the economic slowdown? What are you doing differently? Do you feel these changes have had a big impact on you?
My pay hasn't been cut, but I have seen the pay of my friends get cut. As a result we don't go out on the weekend quite as much any more, but tend to gather at someone's house and bring food there instead of ordering in. It saves money for all of us.
ReplyDeleteWe have pulled back our spending quite a bit. We have cancelled a cell phone, reduced our satellite package, and taken the plates and insurance off one of our vehicles. Our teens fell like they are suffering a great deal. We are hoping things improve soon, as my husband just called back to work after almost 6 months of nothing. Once he goes back, I’m not sure if we will go back to spending the same way again.
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