“及时行乐”还是“量入为出”？

从今天这则“维州每星期57家庭被收回房屋”的新闻里可以看到一个比较有意思的现象：华人的平均收入并不高，但华人买房者还是比较多的，但在一些华人聚居区象Box Hill、Doncaster、Mount Waverley、Glen Waverley等区，房产被收回的比例却相对很低。

华人和本地西人的消费方式确实有些不同。一般而言，华人一直奉行“量入为出”、“积谷防饥”、“居安思危”等持家理财观念，那种“债多不愁，虱多不痒”，严重透支、入不敷出的现象在华人中倒是不算普遍。

而我每次在超市看到一些澳洲人的购物车里满满堆得跟小山似总觉得有些夸张，圣诞新年大减价时那种疯狂购物的景象也令人吃惊，澳洲的信用卡消费总是屡创新高，一些澳洲人竟然依赖10来张信用卡的透支额度“拆东墙补西墙”度日！

虽然这种及时行乐的消费观也许是一种生活方式，因为谁知道世界末日何时降临，但当下他们却要为房子免被银行收走而挣扎，甚至有一天下班回来竟然发现自家的房子已经被换了锁，真正被扫地出门，流落街头。。。

He came home from work to find the locks changed on his Croydon home.

The 40-year-old sales representative had fallen $3000 behind on his $170,000 mortgage and the NAB seized his home.

"It was embarrassing. I have a daughter and all the kids were hanging around asking what had happened," he said.