Can you really afford a dog?

If your usual resolutions are “go to the gym” or “eat healthy,” don’t forget that a mindful approach to money is also a ticket to improved wellness. We asked listeners in their 20s and 30s some basic personal finance “hygiene” questions when it comes to credit scores, tracking expenses, writing wills, spending on food and first home savings accounts.

Is a $100,000 salary enough for a comfortable life any more? Where are mortgages headed next? Are you electric car curious? Rob and Roma chat with the reporters who wrote some of the best-read personal finance stories from The Globe and Mail this year.

Many Canadians have become first-time pet owners since the pandemic. But with the price of pet food and vet costs soaring, owners are struggling to afford their COVID companions. In this episode, Roma speaks to Shawn Morey, the executive director of the Peterborough Humane Society. We’re also joined by two people that became first-time pet owners in their 20s.

During the pandemic, employees had the upper hand in the job market. But the balance of power has shifted back to employers. They’re more hesitant to hire, less willing to offer remote work and less generous with what they are offering. We hear from a recent grad who applied for more than 100 jobs before landing a role, and a recently laid off tech worker with over a decade of experience. And Rob talks to Jermaine L. Murray, a Toronto-based tech recruiter and career coach.

The urge to splurge is universal. After the bleakness of the pandemic, people are spending more on the big and little things that bring them joy. But there are healthy ways to manage splurge-spending that don't leave you buried in debt. In this episode, we hear from a Swiftie with a “Taylor Swift" concert obsession. And Roma speaks with Shannon Lee Simmons, a certified financial planner and founder of the New School of Finance.

First, home owners with variable rate mortgages felt the pain of soaring interest rates. Then, people with fixed rate mortgages began to renew at sharply higher rates. In this episode, we hear from first-time homebuyers in Vancouver and Kingston who are now spending more than half their income on housing. And Rob talks to Victor Tran, an Ontario-based mortgage broker.

The appeal of the DINK lifestyle – that’s double income, no kids – might seem obvious. But having more control over your life and finances comes with questions about your social safety net in retirement. We spoke to two women who are embracing the DINK life, along with Jay Zigmont, the founder of Childfree Wealth, a financial planning firm that serves people who don’t have kids.

A growing number of Canadians are living with roommates longer than they ever expected. What once was seen as a short chapter in life is turning into a long-term way to find affordable housing. Soaring house costs has people searching for roommates well into their 30s and beyond. We spoke to three women in Vancouver, Toronto and Halifax about how living with roommates is helping them make ends meet.

What does the “new normal” look like these days? In a period of soaring costs and rampant uncertainty, it means spending a larger chunk of your income on housing—whether that’s high rent or supercharged mortgage payments. Here to help you make sense of it all, join hosts Rob Carrick and Roma Luciw for another season of Stress Test, The Globe’s personal finance podcast for Gen Z and millennials. Also coming up this season: how to talk to your family about inheritance, the economics of child-free couples, and the splurges that are bringing you joy.

After years of soaring home prices, there was hope that rising interest rates would lead to lower prices in 2023 and give young Canadians an entry point into the market . And while they did go down, higher mortgage rates have left housing as unaffordable as ever. For those without family help or oversized paycheques, buying a home is just not financially realistic. We’re dedicating the last episode of this season of Stress Test to exploring why people are giving up on homeownership and how they see their financial future.