A Worrying Trend from “Generation Spend”

Hello Everybody!

An article from Mcleans’ dated early last month, reflects the astonishing attitude that Generation Y-ians have towards spending.

Our generation is said to be well on track to consume more than our parents ever did, and this is not because we have higher salaries, but because we don’t know how to save. 

In Canada, young people between the ages of 25 and 34 “who say they are impulsive spenders and can’t save is 30 per cent… according to a recent study by the Royal Bank of Canada.”

Why is this troubling? This spending habit left our parents in “crippling debt”, as painfully seen in the most recent recession. Saving at 4.4% (our average national savings interest rate) is obviously way too low. “four in 10 Canadians say they struggle to put a nickel in the piggy bank” – is saving really so hard to do?

This appears to be problem that will be hard to solve. Canada.com also wrote early this year of how “Only 13 per cent of Canadians understand financial risk”. Even the after the global economic crisis, “only 10 per cent of Canadians indicated they have tried to learn more about finances matters”. 

We owe it to ourselves to make sure we know how to manage our finances. Because ultimately, we’ll pay for it in the future, just as our parents did in the last 2 years. And it really isn’t as hard as it sounds, all we have to do is spend less than we earn and put aside a decent amount for a rainy day!

From The cashsmart Team