Top 10 Reasons People Overspend

Would you like to know why you spend too much? Here are the top reasons people say they overspend. See which of these apply to you.

by Debra Vaughn

There are as many reasons that people overspend as there are budgets to help people get out of the debt overspending has caused.

By talking to people, conducting surveys and helping people throughout the years, I have made a list of the ten reasons I hear the most often. Take a look to see if you fall in line with any one or more of these causes to indulge.

10. Keeping up an image

Many people feel like if they fall below a certain image that the neighbors set, the neighborhood will think less of them. This is known as keeping up with the Joneses. The truth behind this is that the neighbors are thinking and feeling the same way.

9. Avoidance

I cannot tell you how many people in all financial situations have told me that when they spend too much money for lunch out with friends, shopping with the girls, etc., it is to not have to admit to them that they cannot afford to pay the bill for the whole table. If your friends drop you because you cannot afford to buy them lunch, are they really friends?

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8. The money is on it’s way

I have heard over and over “I thought the check was in the mail.” The people who tell me this are telling the truth! The check was in the mail, either late or far less than was expected. When they heard they were getting money, they spent it before they had money in hand.

Related: 13 Ways To Waste Sudden Wealth

7. Credit doesn’t feel the same

Let’s face it, plastic simply does not feel the same as good old fashioned paper cash. For this reason people use credit more often and tend to overspend much more than they would if they had used cash instead.

When you can go into a store, see something you think you need NOW, then get credit in 5 minutes or less, you get this sense of accomplishment. After all, you get what you want now, and think of how you are actually going to pay for it later, when the bill arrives.

5. Lifestyle maintenance

After a person has lived a certain way for a while and suddenly they find themselves in a bad place financially, it is hard to give it up. The lifestyle they have become accustomed to, they feel, must be maintained, even if it means more debt followed by bankruptcy.

4. Poor as a child

Freud would love this one! Many people who are poor as a child feel the need to spend everything they can get their hands on as soon as they can. Perhaps there is a fear of someone taking the money away if it is not spent right away. These people must realize that once it is yours, it really is yours.

Related: Ending the Fear of Poverty

3. Sense of power

Spending money actually makes many people feel more powerful. Whether it is handing over a wad of cash or pulling out a gold card to charge money, the simple act of spending a large amount of money gives them a rush of false power.

2. Prove self worth

Spending $60 on a haircut, $150 on a designer dress, $75 on a new pair of shoes and maybe $90 on a facial every other week sounds outrageous to most people. However, for many people, it makes them feel like they are someone. It makes them feel like they are worth something to the world.

1. Just can’t say NO!

This one is the one that I have heard the absolute most. Whether it’s a child asking a parent for the newest fad toy or a spouse wanting the newest computer game, some people just cannot say no! Even if they cannot afford to say yes, they feel like a failure to some degree if the money is not there to meet the wants of the other person. No matter what, these people will make it happen, even if it becomes a dead end to bankruptcy court.

Reviewed September 2024