Now, you have the extra funds to revamp your home or invest in a new wardrobe.
Add another subscription service.
Treat yourself to some fine dining events.
Verywell Mind / Getty Images
You deserve these nice little luxuries and plus, money is meant to be spent, right?
But it’s easy to get carried away binge shopping on Amazon and Target and risking your financial health.
That said, there are ways to avoid this sneaky trapand we lay them all for you below.
Signs and Effects of Lifestyle Creep
For many, a pay bump is a huge financial relief.
But it can also lead to the slippery slope of overspending also known as lifestyle inflation.
Instead of saving or investing the extra income, people upgrade their lifestyle by buying non-essential items and luxuries.
Here are the most common causes.
Pressure to Keep Up
We often want what others have, or we wantbetterthan what they have.
A big part of partaking in any experience now is thinking about the Instagram post that will follow.
But this pressure isn’t limited to social media.
Before the digital boom, people compared themselves to neighbors, friends, and family.
After all, that $5 expense seems negligible, compared to when cash was tighter.
This leads to giving in to moreimpulse purchasesor splurging more often than they may have before.
A compulsive shopping addiction can also exacerbate lifestyle creep.
Poor Financial Literacy
Another reason why lifestyle creep occurs is because of pooror the lack offinancial education.
Taylor-Jackson, J., & Moustafa, A.
(2016).Compulsive buyingfeatures and characteristics of addiction.In: Neuropathology of Drug Addictions and Substance Misuse.
