They are married with big student debt - why are they spending all this money on fun?
Other thoughts - Toronto has good public transportation, so why have a car at all? If they want to drive to their home town on weekends, they are old enough to rent a car with no problem. If they have Airmiles or Aeroplan points they can have "free" car rentals.
RRSP - the article mentions government pensions if they stay in their present jobs - so they may well not have much RRSP room, most pension room would be taken up by work pensions. But if they don't have much pension contribution room, they could be contributing to TFSAs instead. If they start them now, they each have $31,000 contribution room accumulated, plus another $5,500 for 2015. If they maxed them out they would have $73,000 next year for a down payment - keep going, and remember that money coming out of a TFSA is not taxed (coming out of an RRSP it is taxed as income), they could have a good down payment a few years down the road. But don't buy in Toronto unless you know you are staying, the market does go down as well as up.
Clothes - if they just got these jobs, I can understand that - almost all my first paycheque from my first job went to clothes. Mainly because as a grad student in Biology all I had were lab-worthy clothes (that means if they got stained/spilled on it didn't matter), nothing nice enough for work.
My advice would have been - make sure your apartment is in a good commuting location (no mention in the article where the apartment is or where their jobs are). Sell the car and pay off the car loan. Stop the fancy entertaining and other budget bleeds. Pay down the student debt fast (the advisor did look at it being paid down in 2 1/2 years). Re house down payment, you can also use TFSA money, and the payback rules are better. Too bad the government killed the separate RHOSP (Registered Home Ownership Savings Plan) years ago, it was how we saved our down payment separate from pension savings. And don't think 10% down payment for a house (advisor recommendation), get at least 20%. CMHC and the banks have totally different rules for over and under 20%. And for that clothes budget, shop classic, things that will look good at work for a long time, shop thrift stores in wealthy areas (cast-offs will be great). Ditch the clubs, and not only do they save money on that entertainment budget, they won't need the fancy clothes either. Same with the golf, it is super easy to spend a lot more than green fees (new driver, new putter, new glove, new shoes, all the little things that make the game better - and add up).
My advice does not include "live like you are still a student" because it looks like they spent while they were students. Although $45,000 in student debt for two graduates seems like a lot, if they went to grad school in disciplines that don't have stipends, it would be reasonable. If that is for B.A.s or B.Sc.s, it is a chunk.
Monthly disbursements: Rent $1,500; other housing $70; transportation $480; grocery store $600; clothing $420; line of credit $200; car loan $500; OSAP loans $435; gifts, charitable $120; vacation, travel $300; drinks, dining, entertainment $700; grooming $70; clubs $50; golf $150; sports, hobbies, subscriptions $50; miscellaneous $225; dentists, drugstore, $40; telecom, TV, Internet $200; RRSP $215; pension plans $1,150; professional association $115. Total: $7,590 .
