Financial consultant Montse Cespedosa urges young people to cut leisure and technology expenses to afford housing. She advocates buying over renting whenever possible.
According to El Periódico, financial consultant and mortgage expert Montse Cespedosa calls on young people to limit travel, dining out, and expensive devices while saving to buy a home. She made these comments on the podcast Tengo un Plan, at a time when access to housing has been, according to CIS surveys, the main concern for Spaniards for the past 22 months.
The expert attributes the problem to a lack of housing and prices that many people cannot afford. She states:
“People can no longer buy. People can no longer afford the prices that exist.”
Cespedosa argues that many individuals maintain a spending level incompatible with the savings required for a mortgage. She points out that she knows many young couples who cannot buy because their debt ratio has been affected, citing a trip to Bali as an example:
“If you go to Bali and spend 3,000 euros each.”
To illustrate, she recalls her own experience. When she bought her first home, she worked at a bank and took on jobs as a messenger and hostess on weekends, while her partner also took on extra work during weekends and Christmas. The expert criticises some young people for spending on cars, with high loan payments, rather than saving:
“Everyone has their car and their 300 euro car loan.”
Cespedosa insists on setting priorities and placing money without taking risks: “Don’t have that beer and put it in an investment fund, put it in deposits, there’s no need to take risks.” Regarding consumer spending, she summarises her stance as follows:
“Don’t go on holiday. Don’t spend on a thousand euro phone, why? There are phones for 150 euros.”
Despite the difficulties in the housing market, she believes young people should prioritise buying over renting whenever they can. When asked what she would recommend to someone around 30 years old wanting to become independent, she replies:
“To buy.”
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