It's hard to imagine being in the top 5% of earnings for an age-group, with the ability to afford single-occupancy dwelling, where the problem isn't outflows.
OP doesn't sound like they're describing a lack of money. They're describing depression. Lack of friends, lovers and community. Loads of miserly fucks are lonely as hell despite not spending a modicum of their millions.
I admit that did seem to be the case, but I hesitate to judge when so many people these days are isolated, especially post-Covid. You make a good point though, and if someone is at the point of seeking roommates for company, that's probably the point where they should take the plunge and see if it fills the gap.
Several come to mind off the top of my head just from personal experience:
- Debt
- Medical expenses
- Child care
- The cost of that single-occupancy dwelling
Like yeah, obviously the outflows are the problem, but not all outflows are avoidable, and it's pretty presumptuous to jump to the conclusion that this is some problem that can be fixed by better spending habits. No amount of cutting out avocado toast or whatever is going to make hospital bills go away.
On what information are you basing that assumption?