The Average American Spends Almost $18,000 a Year on Nonessentials

[CitizenVectron]

There is no ethical consumption under capitalism, bitches!

[Xbob42]

1 hour ago, mclumber1 said:

 

It's because a lot of what we consider essentials are not essentials at all.  It's not that hard to grasp. 

I mean what the fuck is actually essential, though? You can forage for berries/hunt and drink from a river. Living in a home is not essential. Literally spending money at all or existing in a society are not essential.

[Anathema-]

I doubt the editors care that the gross inaccuracy has anything to do with the amount of clicks these articles get.

[sexy_shapiro]

Anyone who thinks alcohol isn’t an essential hasn’t worked in education.

[ort]

Is paying women on Fiver to fart on you considered essential? Asking for a friend.

[Anathema-]

I wonder what the essentials list would look like exclusively for financial industry mooks.

[Remarkableriots]

https://www.msn.com/en-us/money/retirement/opinion-these-16-money-wasters-are-why-so-many-americans-can-t-save-for-retirement/ar-AAB5U7o?ocid=AMZN

Quote

 

1. Tattoos. They’re an admitted obsession of mine. What will they look like when you’re my age? From what I’ve heard, a good tattoo artist charges $200 an hour.

2. Vacations. Hey, everyone needs a break. But you don’t need to go into tuition-level debt to have a good time. Your kids will survive if they never visit the Magic Kingdom.

3. College. Picking a college involves many factors. Affordability is one that’s often overlooked. If the cost of the school you choose will land you in debt, you’d better have a plan for paying it off. Don’t mortgage your future, just so you can have a prestigious decal on your car window.

4. Restaurants. Eating out, or buying $4 designer coffee, is expensive and—wait for it—it’s also a luxury. Skip that daily $4 coffee and after 30 years you’ll have more than $121,000, assuming a 0.5% monthly return.

5. Opportunities lost. We do it every day by failing to grab the employer match on our 401(k) plan, not investing in a tax-free Roth IRA, failing to fund a flexible spending account to pay medical costs with pretax dollars, and withholding too much from our paycheck, so we’re essentially making an interest-free loan to the IRS.

6. Transportation. You don’t “need” an SUV or $40,000-plus pickup truck to get from A to B. My four kids grew up riding in our 1972 Duster. Now they, too, all have trucks or SUVs.

7. Credit cards. When people say they live paycheck to paycheck, does that include purchases put on credit cards that aren’t paid off that month? In that case, they’re spending more than their paycheck—and what they buy will cost them the purchase price, plus a hefty interest rate.

8. Lottery. The lowest-income groups spend the most on lottery tickets, wasting hundreds of dollars a year—about the same as that $400 emergency fund they don’t have. Not to worry: 60% of millennials think winning the lottery is part of a wise retirement strategy.

9. Clothing. My new condo has two bedrooms and three walk-in closets, two of them larger than the bathroom in my old 1929 house. The average adult spends $161 a month on clothing. We are obsessed with keeping up with the latest fashions and ensuring nobody sees us in the same clothes twice.

10. Shoes. Surveys suggest the average American woman owns more than 25 pairs of shoes, which they admit they don’t need. So why buy so many pairs? It seems shopping and wearing trendy stuff makes us feel good.

11. Tchotchkes and stuff. Clean out a house after many years—which my wife and I just did—and you often hear the words, “Where did we get that?” Though relatively inexpensive per item, tchotchkes and similar stuff cost money—and it all adds up.

12. Failing to look ahead. Henry Ford said, “Thinking is the hardest work there is, which is the probable reason why so few engage in it.” I still marvel that people spend so little time thinking about retirement. After working 30 to 40 years, they reach retirement with no plan and are shocked they can’t live on Social Security alone. Planning for retirement early in your career is essential for financial security—and it isn’t that hard.

13. No backup plan. I like to think ahead about “what ifs” and how I’ll deal with them. In my head, I have backups for the backups. I recently took out a large mortgage to buy a condo. Now I’m thinking, “What if I can’t sell the house to cover the mortgage? What if I must do some upgrades to sell the house?” I temporarily stopped reinvesting my tax-free bond interest, so I can build up more cash—just in case.

14. Holidays. Somehow, every December, financial caution goes out the window and we pay for it the following year. But my pet peeve are those inflatable characters on lawns that cost hundreds of dollars. Talk about blowing money.

15. Toys. One study shows that U.S. parents spend $6,500 on toys during a child’s upbringing. The spending is even higher for millennials, who favor “smart” toys—toys that do the thinking for the child. There’s something wrong with this picture. Hey, I’ll challenge anyone to a contest dropping clothespins into a milk bottle.

16. Haircuts. The average haircut reportedly costs $28.30 in a barber shop. Many men pay a lot more. Nowadays, nearly a third prefer a “salon.” I pay $12 at my local barber. But I’m still annoyed: My hair is disappearing, but the price is inching up.

 

[Mercury33]

Lol Cable at $90? I spend close to $250 a month on cable/internet

[b_m_b_m_b_m]

Better theory: incomes are largely stagnant in real terms and have been for for decades, while the costs,in real terms, of medical insurance/care and housing have shot up dramatically. Surprise! People can't save.

[Firewithin]

On 5/6/2019 at 3:06 PM, sexy_shapiro said:

Anyone who thinks alcohol isn’t an essential hasn’t worked in education.

 

[RedSoxFan9]

 

[mclumber1]

6 minutes ago, b_m_b_m_b_m said:

Better theory: incomes are largely stagnant in real terms and have been for for decades, while the costs,in real terms, of medical insurance/care and housing have shot up dramatically. Surprise! People can't save.

 

Sure, but that doesn't change the fact that consumers are paying for non-essential services/products more so today than they were even 10 years ago. 

[b_m_b_m_b_m]

Just now, mclumber1 said:

 

Sure, but that doesn't change the fact that consumers are paying for non-essential services/products more so today than they were even 10 years ago. 

Where's your proof there? 

 

How an average household spends it's money: https://www.usatoday.com/story/money/personalfinance/budget-and-spending/2018/05/08/how-does-average-american-spend-paycheck/34378157/

[mclumber1]

1 minute ago, b_m_b_m_b_m said:

Where's your proof there? 

 

How an average household spends it's money: https://www.usatoday.com/story/money/personalfinance/budget-and-spending/2018/05/08/how-does-average-american-spend-paycheck/34378157/

 

10 years ago, most people had a pretty basic cable package with high speed internet.  Now in addition to that, people are subscribed to things like Netflix, Amazon Prime, HULU, Youtube Music, etc.  

[b_m_b_m_b_m]

3 minutes ago, mclumber1 said:

 

10 years ago, most people had a pretty basic cable package with high speed internet.  Now in addition to that, people are subscribed to things like Netflix, Amazon Prime, HULU, Youtube Music, etc.  

You're just saying things, with no proof that they're spending more of these types of things than before. It's all the same entertainment bucket, and doesn't really come at the expense of Personal savings rate from ten years ago.

[Guest]

Viewing non-essentials as essential is a major hurdle people have to climb over to reorient their finances. 

[RedSoxFan9]

 

[RedSoxFan9]

35 minutes ago, mclumber1 said:

 

10 years ago, most people had a pretty basic cable package with high speed internet.  Now in addition to that, people are subscribed to things like Netflix, Amazon Prime, HULU, Youtube Music, etc.  

 

wtf

[mclumber1]

1 minute ago, RedSoxFan9 said:

 

wtf

 

I don't know how to take your response.  Are you saying people don't subscribe to those things?  Are you saying they are essentials?  WTF back to you!

[RedSoxFan9]

How can that be your evidence

[mclumber1]

1 minute ago, RedSoxFan9 said:

How can that be your evidence

 

https://www.statista.com/statistics/250934/quarterly-number-of-netflix-streaming-subscribers-worldwide/

 

World wide numbers, but you get the idea.

[RedSoxFan9]

53 minutes ago, mclumber1 said:

 

Sure, but that doesn't change the fact that consumers are paying for non-essential services/products more so today than they were even 10 years ago. 

 

3 minutes ago, mclumber1 said:

 

https://www.statista.com/statistics/250934/quarterly-number-of-netflix-streaming-subscribers-worldwide/

 

World wide numbers, but you get the idea.

 

This does not back up the claim that “consumers are paying for non-essential services/products more so today than they were even 10 years ago”

[mclumber1]

1 minute ago, RedSoxFan9 said:

 

 

This does not back up the claim that “consumers are paying for non-essential services/products more so today than they were even 10 years ago”

 

wut

 

Netflix is a non-essential service.  There are more subscribers (WAY MORE) today then there was 10 years ago.  Put down the crack pipe buddy. 

[b_m_b_m_b_m]

So maybe people are using Netflix and Hulu and not going to blockbuster. Doesn't mean the overall $ figure is changed, or % of a budget

[RedSoxFan9]

You are acting like cord cutters don’t exist

 

1 minute ago, mclumber1 said:

 

wut

 

Netflix is a non-essential service.  There are more subscribers (WAY MORE) today then there was 10 years ago.  Put down the crack pipe buddy. 

 

If this what you meant, it’s absolutely meaningless point to make.  It’s about as useful as saying average American spent less on horses once cars hit the mass market

[Joe]

Do people go to the movies less or more now than they used to? I always see that these record-breaking movies would not be record-breaking if you adjusted for inflation, but I dont know what the overall moviegoing numbers look like. 

[PaladinSolo]

Just now, Jose said:

Do people go to the movies less or more now than they used to? I always see that these record-breaking movies would not be record-breaking if you adjusted for inflation, but I dont know what the overall moviegoing numbers look like. 

I'm pretty sure people go less often, i know i don't really go anymore, it seems they're breaking records because of the global market for movies has expanded exponentially.

[RedSoxFan9]

Entertainment is a big category and Netflix is extremely cheap when you compare hours of entertainment per dollar.

[SaysWho?]

1 hour ago, mclumber1 said:

 

10 years ago, most people had a pretty basic cable package with high speed internet.  Now in addition to that, people are subscribed to things like Netflix, Amazon Prime, HULU, Youtube Music, etc.  

 

39 minutes ago, mclumber1 said:

 

wut

 

Netflix is a non-essential service.  There are more subscribers (WAY MORE) today then there was 10 years ago.  Put down the crack pipe buddy. 

 

What RSF and others are saying is:

 

More people are subscribed to Spotify, Hulu, Netflix, Sling, Vue, whatever.

 

But many of them buy fewer DVDs/Blu-Ray, go to the movies less (ticket sales are way down from 10 - 20 years ago even as money continues to increase), don't go to Blockbuster, cut the cord on cable or satellite, buy fewer CDs/digital music, etc.

 

The way you make it sound, people have a basic cable package, internet and many subscription services, too. I have Hulu for $5.99 a month, whereas 5 years ago I was paying around $100 for Dish. Video game expenses remain the same despite making more, so my overall entertainment expenses have decreased. I'm probably consuming more entertainment despite paying less, though.

 

I'm just not seeing where people are paying more for "non-essential" stuff.

 

25 minutes ago, Jose said:

Do people go to the movies less or more now than they used to? I always see that these record-breaking movies would not be record-breaking if you adjusted for inflation, but I dont know what the overall moviegoing numbers look like. 

 

Less.

 

 

Keep in mind that 2005 was considered a down year and 2012 an up year despite the lower ticket sales for 2012. Same with 2018.

 

The opening weekend records are getting more people, though. More people went to see Jurassic World and Dark Knight opening weekend than Jurassic Park 1 and Batman 89, for example. These are opening records by tickets sold:

 

[Guest]

To those saying that cable at $90 MUST include internet, I just got billed $70 and change for my DirecTV Now + HBO sub, and that’s the cheaper option compared to satellite based DirecTV. The $90 actually seems low as my unadjusted bill with satellite DirecTV was like $170/month.

[Guest]

Just now, Man of Culture said:

 

I helped my in-laws setup an Optimum Online base package w/ subscriptions to Hulu + Live TV, Netflix and Amazon Prime Video. They get to watch everything they had normally watched with their cable subscription and are saving something in the order of just over $1,600 per year. It was ridiculous as to how much they were overpaying for channels they never watched and services they had never used.

Yup. Standard cable/sat is *crazy* expensive. And they all have automatic price increases built in that most customers don’t notice because it’s only a few dollars a month here and there, and it’s auto drafted from their account. One day they actually look at the amount and it seems like all the sudden they are paying $150 a month for something they barely use!

[PaladinSolo]

7 minutes ago, sblfilms said:

Yup. Standard cable/sat is *crazy* expensive. And they all have automatic price increases built in that most customers don’t notice because it’s only a few dollars a month here and there, and it’s auto drafted from their account. One day they actually look at the amount and it seems like all the sudden they are paying $150 a month for something they barely use!

My standard cable/internet package is $100, no special deal or anything. 

[Guest]

18 minutes ago, PaladinSolo said:

My standard cable/internet package is $100, no special deal or anything. 

I just looked at Comcast. Their cheapest TV package with no discount is $71+tax. That doesn’t include renting the cable box(es).

[PaladinSolo]

12 minutes ago, Man of Culture said:

For that you might as well just do Hulu + Live TV. The service is seriously good.

The problem is once I drop the cable my internet portion increases like 15 dollars.  Other than that i have HBO through prime, which i have because of the shipping more than the streaming, so all in all i'm in for about 125 a month.

[PaladinSolo]

4 minutes ago, sblfilms said:

I just looked at Comcast. Their cheapest TV package with no discount is $71+tax. That doesn’t include renting the cable box(es).

I have spectrum, NY is currently giving them a hard time since they took over Time Warner so they could just be playing nice for now. TWC used to pull that rate increase crap till you called and threatened to leave and they'd give you the better rate again.