Everything got more expensive and it never came back down. This keeps feeding consumer fatigue and eventually shows up in slower spending.
From coffee to home prices, costs are up everywhere
Here’s Yahoo Finance’s snapshot of how some everyday costs have ballooned.
A 16-item basket of groceries made up of staples like eggs, bread, and meat — no truffle cheese in our cart — rang in nearly 43% higher in March compared to the same month in 2019.
A few key categories are behind the rise: Coffee prices have more than doubled since the pandemic, while beef prices have soared more recently. Egg prices have dropped from 2025’s levels — but are still about $0.80 more by the dozen compared to March 2019.
Snacks are especially expensive. A one-pound bag of potato chips these days costs almost $7, a more than $2 hike from pre-pandemic levels.
Housing hardships
The single-biggest monthly expense for most people is housing. Whether you rent or own, you’re probably paying more now. Rental costs and home prices vary widely depending on location — generally, they’re higher on the coasts and lower in the Midwest and the Southeast — but median rent in the US is $1,895, a 41% jump from $1,343 in 2019.While rents have risen, the cost of homeownership has become even more bruising. The ongoing housing shortage has sent home prices rocketing higher, and mortgage rates north of 6% make monthly payments far more expensive for today’s buyers. What’s more, “hidden” costs of homeownership like taxes, insurance, and maintenance have also been increasing.
Surcharges Are Suddenly Everywhere—And Grumpy Americans Are Paying Up
The add-ons were a feature during Covid and are once again sneaking their way onto bills. ‘I feel like I need to be my own detective.’
An extra 3% for paying with a credit card. A 5% involuntary contribution to a restaurant’s employee wellness fund. $25 a month in addition to rent for trash collection.
Consumers already weary of rising inflation are now contending with a new crop of costs that are hidden in plain sight. New fees or surcharges are popping up everywhere as companies search for ways to recoup their own rising costs while blaming outside pressures.
In recent weeks, package-delivery companies and airlines have announced new or higher fees, citing increasing fuel prices. Economists expect more to follow unless oil prices rapidly fall.
More Americans are millionaires, but they don’t feel rich
There are more American millionaires than ever before, but many of them don’t feel rich.
Average net worth in the United States is over $1 million per household, Federal Reserve data shows, with roughly 1 in 6 families surpassing the seven-figure mark.
Yet, many of the country’s newest millionaires say that even with such wealth, they still feel undeniably middle-class. In many parts of the country, $1 million has become a starting point for the American Dream. The average entry-level homes cost $1 million or more in more than 200 U.S. cities — including parts of Kansas, Minnesota and Georgia — according to a recent analysis by Zillow.
“It’s a milestone, but having a million dollars doesn’t mean you’re super wealthy anymore,” said Nathan Winklepleck, 36, a financial adviser with Donaldson Capital Management near Indianapolis who recently passed the millionaire threshold with his wife. “It’s not quite what it used to be in terms of rarefied status.”
Rising costs have chipped away at the value of $1 million, according to Bureau of Labor Statistics data. That amount stretches about as far as $480,000 did 30 years ago.