I think many people are moochers because they feel genuinely entitled to what you have. I had a friend who was a moocher. She and her husband kept their finances separate. He made twice as much money as she did, but only paid their mortgage. The rest of his money he spent on his airplane and race cars. Her paycheck paid for literally everything else in the household for them and their daughter. She constantly expected me to pay her way whenever we went anywhere. She manipulated every situation so that she paid little, if anything, and outright cheated people whenever she could. I had a second job that was fairly lucrative and I loved doing it. She would make comments about how I could afford things that she couldn't (because she refused to deal with her husband's not paying his fair share of household expenses) and since I would happily do my second job for free, I somehow owed her and should share the wealth. Not wanting to appear “cheap” I wouldn't ask for separate checks at restaurants and would actually pay for both of us when she wouldn't pull out her wallet at the end of a meal. It took far too many years for me to realize this woman was not a friend but a user. So, short answer is that some people feel that it's ok to mooch if you have more than they do, even if their lack is their own fault.