My employer would hire the new rookie and the first thing they (rookie) would do is go buy a new pick-up truck. Likely it was the first real job for them and they felt they had the cash. Most lived at home still with mom and dad. Within the first year they got engaged, then married. The new wife worked. Most were nurses. Then they bought a new home, and in a year or two had their first child. The rookie also worked a part-time job on his day off. But now they were far in debt (she had to have a car, too). Then there was child care and a host of other expenses. Their three incomes were required to pay the bills.
Me? I lived in a dinky little house, but my wife was a stay at home mom to our kids. We drove used vehicles. I used to shake my head as the rookie drove his gleaming new truck into the parking lot, parking next to my ten year old beater. I worked part-time, too. But I never went into debt beyond what my base full-time pay could cover…. ever!
It boils down to the choices we make. Life has enough stresses. I didn’t want the additional stresses that overwhelming debt brought.