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The cost of living in 2026

I'm a food detective......it's more than just being frugal. It's about the hunt.....

Being BOGO is a good start, but not an end all.

I generally avoid Publix, but there are some rare exceptions.


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4Q Basket Case said:
Normally, you think of the parents as paying for the wedding.

For 20-somethings who pay for it themselves, I'm not at all sure about an average of $40K.

For parents of 20-somethings who pay for the wedding, it's a whole different story. They can blow $100K faster than you can blink an eye.

I'm friends with a couple whose child's wedding was called off after planning had started, but still several months before the erstwhile date. They forfeited over $20K in deposits.

No food, nowhere near full rent on the venues, not the band, no flowers, no rental of chafing dishes, chocolate fountains, no service, not the first beverage. No nothing but deposits -- and it wasn't super-fancy elite country club or Michelin-rated restaurants. Nice places, but you wouldn't think of them as extravagant.
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We're going through that right now, with a wedding venue on the SC coast. My stepson and daughter are on the hook, although all we attendees, my wife being part of the ceremony, are out a pocketful also...
 
4Q Basket Case said:
Just for folks who might not know what "dollar cost averaging investing" is:

It's investing a set amount each and every stinkin' paycheck, increasing the investment amount as your income increases.

The "averaging" part means that your set investment amount buys fewer shares when the market is high, and more shares when it's low. So your cost basis is an average of the market through the business cycle.

It's Warren Buffet's maxim of being more cautious when most other people are fearlessly greedy, and less cautious when most other people are fearful.

IOW a more academic way of saying, "Keep Calm and Invest On."
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Absolutely, the market being down right now is a moment to buy. It's down because of a war that won't be going on in six months. Oil will be flowing and the market will rebound. I'm all buy right now. I did the same in 2008 though I had less overall money to buy with, and did the same in 2020 when Covid hit. A downturn in the markets is the time to buy as long as you can hold the investment for several years. Just buy good companies stock, or solid mutual funds, ETF's, or index funds and ride it out.
 
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AWRTR said:
Absolutely, the market being down right now is a moment to buy. It's down because of a war that won't be going on in six months. Oil will be flowing and the market will rebound. I'm all buy right now. I did the same in 2008 though I had less overall money to buy with, and did the same in 2020 when Covid hit. A downturn in the markets is the time to buy as long as you can hold the investment for several years. Just buy good companies stock, or solid mutual funds, ETF's, or index funds and ride it out.
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I hear you. I just wish I had more funds in cash or other liquid investments in order to take advantage. I invested every bit of spare money I could find. Maybe I won't hit the exact bottom but there is a huge upside potential right now. I can see the Dow and the S&P 500 return in the next few months all it has lost so far this month.
 
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Bazza said:
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This dude is clueless. Most of the house purchases and sales I have done over my lifetime have been nightmares. I have had people show up to closings with no money, people demanding a new $18,000 roof the day before closing, lenders failing to wire the money at closing, lenders refusing to close because the house inspection said the HVAC was not working, etc.
 
This is the time of year (northern hemisphere) that refineries begin to switch over to a summer mixture of output favoring more gasoline compared to diesel and jet fuel. I would like to see them stay as is to favor diesel more than gas. We as consumers have some control over our costs by buying more efficient cars and trucks. Diesel costs effect nearly all consumer and industrial products. They are incentivised already to run effeciently already. I have little sympathy for the solo driver in a vehicle with a 30+ gas tank getting 20mpg or less. They should know better.
That can help keep our consumer goods prices down a bit.
 

For decades, Volkswagen Group’s North American strategy was built on a clear cost advantage: manufacturing vehicles in Mexico and exporting them to the United States. That model is now under serious pressure.

According to a report from Automotive News Europe, with U.S. tariffs on Mexican-built vehicles reaching as high as 27.5%, the economics that once justified cross-border production are rapidly eroding. Volkswagen exports roughly 70% of its Mexican output to the U.S., while Audi sends up to 90% of its production north or to other global markets, leaving both brands highly exposed.
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I have zero sympathy for VW. You build a business model around taking advantage of temporary labor cost differences and now it is blowing up in their faces. This type of arrangement should make every American mad. Sadly, most just want cheaper cars.
 
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