Unaware of the financial burdens their parents bear, children often take for granted the lifestyle they enjoy. Only as we mature and embark on our own independent journeys do we grasp the true cost of maintaining such a standard of living.
A user asked the forum, “What’s one item you didn’t realize that would be expensive until you became an adult?”. Here are the top responses.
QUALITY CLOTHING
“Quality clothing. I was raised on hand-me-downs and thrift store clothes. Nothing wrong with that, mind you, but going out into the world as an adult to buy clothes shocked me.”
DAYCARE
“Daycare….that is ridiculous.”
LEGO SET
“Lego.
As a kid, I never understood why my parents were so strict about buying new Lego sets. I thought the saying “it’s expensive” was some made-up adult lie because adults don’t like us having fun.
Now, as a grown-up walking by the Lego sets, I can’t help but frown at those prices and apologize to my mom in my head.”
QUIET TIME
“The peace and quiet provided by alone time.”
GASOLINE
“Gasoline. It was just over a buck a gallon in the 90’s and then shot up to over $2 just a few years after I started buying it.”
A HOUSE
“I knew that houses were expensive, but not that you had to work your entire life to pay for them, and in some cases, you can work your whole life and not even own one.”
BABY FORMULA
“Baby formula. We basically spend $80-90 a week on either a powder or premixed bottle.
Usually, it’s more than all the rest of the food in our cart combined. Makes no sense.”
EGGS
“Eggs. I have them for breakfast every single day. Didn’t realize they got up to $3 at one point. I always assumed they just spawned in the fridge after airdropping out the chicken.”
LAUNDRY DETERGENTS
“Laundry detergents and fabric softeners. It was a complete shock for me.”
AC UNITS
“I mean, I didn’t expect them to be cheap, but did you know that a new A/C unit costs more than $10k?”
REPAIR AND MAINTENANCE COST
“Repairs and maintenance on a home. If I average it out, it’s easily $500-1000 a month.”
FURNITURE
“Furniture.
I never really understood why my retired grandma always complained about how awful her couch was and how much she’d want to replace it. At the time, I thought that an Adult should think a few hundred/thousand dollars was nothing, and why doesn’t she just “buy a better couch.”
CAR TIRES
“Car tires. Insurance of every variety.”
LABOR CHARGES
“Labor. Especially anything to do with fixing the house.”
HAVING TREES IN THE BACKYARD
“Having trees in your yard. We’ve dropped like $20k on tree work in the last five years.”
GOOD QUALITY COTTON KITCHEN TOWELS
“Good quality cotton kitchen towels. But fortunately, my favorite brand makes certain motifs for years on end, so I managed to collect two complete sets (38 total) in 6 months.”
CHEESE
“Cheese, I used to put that on everything, then I moved out and had to severely curtail my cheese habit.”
SHOES
“A decent pair of dress shoes are $300 minimum.”
LEMONS
“Lemons. We had a lemon tree in my backyard, so I never bought a lemon until I moved out. I went to buy lemons a week after moving out, and it was so pricey for such lower-quality lemons.”
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This article was originally published on Mrs. Daaku Studio.