The Joneses can afford luxury, but we don’t have to keep up

You’d have thought a global recession would have stopped us from getting into debt to impress, writes Jim Duffy

It seems we are all at it! We cannot help ourselves! Yes, from millennials to silver tops, we cannot stop ourselves from spending. Why?

Well, we have to keep up with the Joneses, even though that now feels so 1970s or 1980s. Surely now that we are more self-aware, have experienced recession and feel more post-modern, we ought not to feel the need to compete with the neighbours?

However, despite all the warnings on household debt, personnel debt and living within our means, we still thirst for what we cannot and should not have.

Did you know that the average credit card debt of a millennial in the San Francisco area is a staggering $3,000? These youngsters have to have it all and they are happy to pay for it on plastic.

And this is being replicated all over the globe as they chase each other in travel, fashion, tech and whatever else makes them look good on Facebook and Instagram.

The fear of missing out, or FOMO, is fuelling debt. As our millennial generation feels the need to experience life, thrills, culture, cocktails and trainers, they are strapping themselves to debt in order to make it happen.

But, even when they know it is going to be a heavy burden financially, they still spend. Keeping up with the Joneses is the new moral panic that is sweeping the globe.

But, let’s not just single out millennials as they are an easy, identifiable target that fits nicely into our social petri dish. Millennials may be newsworthy, but they are not the only ones who need to be seen to spend. The 30 and 40-somethings are also caught up with the idea.

It seems keeping up with the Joneses is not age-specific. The urge to have the right clothing brands traverses all ages.

Driving the right car sends out a signal to the neighbours, work colleagues and our friends, while holidaying in the right place is a must if we are to make ourselves visible and stand out on the “Joneses” map.

Let’s look at cars. Despite car insurance rising year-on-year and road tax increasing for the more thirsty vehicles, our appetite for luxury has not waned in these times of austerity.

Many of us cannot afford to walk into the Jaguar garage and simply pay cash for the new ipace. Priced at a mere £63,000, this is no doubt a cracking car and would look very good on most driveways.

But, really who has this kind of available cash to stick down on a lump of metal? And all the car companies know that, so hey presto! PCP. A ‘personal contract purchase’ means you can have that luxury icon sitting on your driveway for a mere 400 quid a month.

Pretty awesome and the neighbours will know it. After all, they will also be into expensive leases and PCP contracts to keep up with you. But it doesn’t stop there with our need to look good.

Not only do we buy these expensive cars as part of our Joneses’ journey through life, but pamper them as well. You will all recall armies of people washing their cars in the driveways in the suburbs on a Saturday morning.

But this ritual is being replaced by car valeting or “detailing” vans who park up and give that luxury musthave the once-over, while you photograph it from your conservatory. Why waste time setting up the hose and a bucket, when you can have it gleaming for a tenner?

But, while this is going on, the gardener arrives to cut the grass. Yes,