It is certainly possible to argue that Sherlock has a trust fund or some other income becyond his earnings as a detective (especially as it is canon that he is unpaid for police cases) but even then, a flatmate would be a boon.
Sherlock wears expensive, dry-clean only clothes. He takes black cabs *everywhere* and I know people on 6-figure incomes who only take black cabs when they can claim it on expenses. He may simply figure that he has better things to spend his money on than central London rent.
My 2-bed flat in a not-very-good area, half an hour from Liverpool St, cost £850 pcm in 2008. 221B Baker St may well rent for twice that, and even with Mrs Hudson's "deal" could be over £1000 pcm. And that's without council tax (probably over £120 pcm) and utilities (a winter quarter gas bill can easily be £400, then there's water and electric and mobile phone contract and internet...)
Even before cabs and other luxuries, Sherlock and John probably need about £2,000pcm between them to live. London is very much Not Cheap. (If you do a job with a set income, such as government/teaching/NHS, there's a London weighting to the salaries, offical acknowledgement of how expensive it is to live in, or within commuting distance of, London.)
And dividends from shares, income from savings etc etc has all been hard hit by the recession/financial crisis.
Even if relatively flush, Sherlock could need a flatmate to ensure that he doesn't need to start budgeting or cutting back on luxuries, you know?
ETA: As discussed in comments over in my John-meta, soldiers get strep throat too. RAMC staff have to deal with men in their late teens and earliy twenties being men in their late teens and early twenties as well as everything the enemy can throw at them. Stress has an inhibitory effect on the immune system, too, and in Afghanistan British troops are in a very different environment from Blighty. Our boys are going to pick bugs up, get Delhi-belly (even if they aren't actually in Delhi) sprain and twist things having a kick-about in camp etc etc.
Not everything a base camp/field hospital sees will be injuries caused by bullets and bombs.
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branchandroot
no subject
Date: 2012-06-19 07:56 am (UTC)It is certainly possible to argue that Sherlock has a trust fund or some other income becyond his earnings as a detective (especially as it is canon that he is unpaid for police cases) but even then, a flatmate would be a boon.
Sherlock wears expensive, dry-clean only clothes. He takes black cabs *everywhere* and I know people on 6-figure incomes who only take black cabs when they can claim it on expenses. He may simply figure that he has better things to spend his money on than central London rent.
My 2-bed flat in a not-very-good area, half an hour from Liverpool St, cost £850 pcm in 2008. 221B Baker St may well rent for twice that, and even with Mrs Hudson's "deal" could be over £1000 pcm. And that's without council tax (probably over £120 pcm) and utilities (a winter quarter gas bill can easily be £400, then there's water and electric and mobile phone contract and internet...)
Even before cabs and other luxuries, Sherlock and John probably need about £2,000pcm between them to live. London is very much Not Cheap. (If you do a job with a set income, such as government/teaching/NHS, there's a London weighting to the salaries, offical acknowledgement of how expensive it is to live in, or within commuting distance of, London.)
And dividends from shares, income from savings etc etc has all been hard hit by the recession/financial crisis.
Even if relatively flush, Sherlock could need a flatmate to ensure that he doesn't need to start budgeting or cutting back on luxuries, you know?
ETA: As discussed in comments over in my John-meta, soldiers get strep throat too. RAMC staff have to deal with men in their late teens and earliy twenties being men in their late teens and early twenties as well as everything the enemy can throw at them. Stress has an inhibitory effect on the immune system, too, and in Afghanistan British troops are in a very different environment from Blighty. Our boys are going to pick bugs up, get Delhi-belly (even if they aren't actually in Delhi) sprain and twist things having a kick-about in camp etc etc.
Not everything a base camp/field hospital sees will be injuries caused by bullets and bombs.