Live For Today Regional News Copy

Online, July 5, 2011 (Newswire.com) - Over half of the population of East Anglia have a 'live for today' attitude and have little regard for the future, it has been revealed today, 16th June 2011.

Around three quarters of residents in East Anglia believe that life is for living as you never know when it is going to end and just under half would rather spend their hard earned cash rather than save for the future.

Over 35% spend every penny they earn, relying on finance deals and a quarter of people are going into their overdraft every month. These are just some of the ways people fritter money away.

And 34 per cent of people in East Anglia work purely to spend money and enjoy themselves.

Andy Lucas, spokesman for The Cambridge Building Society, which conducted the study of 3,000 Brits, said: "This 'Live for Today' attitude is easy to understand, as people would rather have fun in the here and now than sensibly plan and put cash away for the future.

"This means there is a chance that a huge percentage of people will find themselves with absolutely no money or savings when the reach their older years because they've spent it all in their youth."

The study shows that a one in five people in East Anglia go into their overdraft by more than £1000 every month.

And when it comes to buying things on finance, over 68 per cent of people in the area have bought a car on HP, while 43 per cent have treated themselves to a new sofa.

New kitchens or bathrooms, beds or bedroom furniture are some of the other things people buy on finance deals.

The research also reveals 57 per cent of people have no pension scheme set in place for a comfortable retirement and 18 per cent have absolutely no savings whatsoever.

When it comes to living life to the full, 44 per cent of people even admit to eating and drinking whatever they like instead of trying to maintain a healthy diet and 46 per cent claim that they don't worry about dieting and exercise.

Over the next 12 months, half of people in East Anglia plan to spend all available cash on a big holiday, rather than saving it for a rainy day.

And East Anglia came out as the region with the highest tendency to spend their disposable cash on clothes, presents for family and friends and computer games rather than depositing it somewhere safe for the future.

Andy Lucas continues: "Despite times being hard and many people having this live for today attitude there are "smarter savers" who plan for theirs and their family's future.

"The Cambridge Building Society makes it easy to save including online accounts that you can open in as little as 5 minutes.

"If people start saving now it's easier than they think and will make all the difference in the future."