Hi PF. I'm decently on top of my financial situation - no credit card debt, paying down some low-interest student loans slightly ahead of schedule, solid emergency fund. But I feel like I never am really getting ahead, despite having a pretty solid income (almost 80k/yr) and no dependents.
The one place where I really see excessive spending is socializing. I'm in my late 20s in a high cost of living city, and all my friends want to do is go to dinner/drinks or maybe see concerts or movies. I'm also actively doing online dating and always offer to split the check (I'm a woman) and while a lot of guys insist on paying, going Dutch even half of the time gets expensive (I feel for you gentlemen who feel pressure to pay the full bill!).
I'm wondering if any of you PFers with similar lifestyles have found ways to cut out on this spending without finding a whole new group of miserly friends? I feel like if I had a significant other, it would be easier to just hunker down and stay in, but if I don't go to the group dinner / party / concert, I could easily spend the entire weekend without human contact. And yes, sometimes I suggest activities like cooking in or going to the park, but that doesn't always work. I'm just looking ahead to this evening and the rest of the weekend filled with expensive activities and wondering if I will have to become a hermit if I ever want to buy a condo or retire.
Submitted April 21, 2017 at 05:48PM by lomo6 http://ift.tt/2oSxkg8
