Every now and then he indulges and buys/does something expensive. John thinks he's mental cos as far as he knows they can barely pay the rent. Sure, he doesn't have to be a genius to know Sherlock is old money, but didn't Sherlock need a flatmate to split the rent? John was the only one to literally say so (in tv canon).
John & Sherlock, Sherlock is richer than John thinks
Yeah, just that.