15 Everyday Things The Middle Class is Having Issues Affording
They used to say “there’s no such thing as a free lunch.” With inflation heading the way it’s heading, we can now safely say, “there’s no such thing as a five-dollar lunch, or even a ten-dollar lunch.”
Most in the middle class have never asked for much, perhaps a Lexus or fancy watch after decades of hard work. Now, the middle class would merely like to be able to afford the essentials without taking out a personal loan.
While you might already know that many of these items are becoming increasingly unaffordable—you’re likely purchasing them—it can help to know you’re not the only one struggling to keep pace with these indefinitely inflating everyday purchases.
1. Housing
It’s no wonder why Americans are at wit’s end with leaders who continue to inflate their currency with endless money printing. It’s not like the middle class is pining for Rolexes and Bentleys. They can’t even afford a roof over their heads.
Renters have seen rising credit card balances and delinquencies, and you can blame rising rents (at least partly) for that. Homeowners aren’t much better off, with high interest rates draining new homeowners and rising insurance costs sapping those who purchased their homes when rates were lower.
2. Dental Care
Learn to love that cavity. That gap in your teeth makes you just like Michael Strahan. Root canal? More like root can’t afford it!
An estimated 92% of Americans say they would consider delaying dental care if they perceived it to be unaffordable. If you haven’t noticed, dental care is unaffordable for most, meaning once-routine cleanings and fillings have now become problems for the future to worry about.
3. Weddings
It’s safe to say a wedding happens in the United States every day, so we’ll count the official coronation of newlyweds as an everyday expense. While weddings are expensive by nature, they have become more costly than many middle-class spouses (and fathers-in-law) can stomach.
The average wedding cost surpassed $30,000 in 2023 for the first time on record. Guests are getting cut and some weddings are even being postponed for a time of greater financial security that may never come.
4. Streaming Services
Streaming service providers lost significant segments of their streamer bases in 2023, and that trend will only continue as life becomes increasingly unaffordable.
Hulu was down 4.6% last year, while YouTube Premium, Apple+, Netflix, and Amazon Prime also suffered drop-offs in weekly users. Call it cord-cutting redux, if you will; just don’t call streaming affordable anymore.
5. Insurance Coverage
While insurance coverage might not be an “item,” we’ll include it because it’s something we can’t go without. Every day of your life, you are mandated by law and the threat of million-dollar medical bills to pay for insurance. With certain insurance companies abandoning states like California and Florida, policyholders are paying more and more for less and less.
Unlike many items on this list, most cannot cut back on or cut out their insurance premiums. Whether because your state legislature forces you to have auto insurance or the risk of a severe accident or illness compels you to keep that healthcare plan, the middle class (and many others) are at the mercy of rising insurance costs.
6. Coffee
Economists might say we’re not in a depression or recession. When Americans can’t even afford Starbucks anymore, wouldn’t you say that’s pretty darn depressing?
The five-dollar cup of coffee was never reasonable nor sustainable. At some point, Folgers would become the only choice for those who don’t relish debt slavery.
7. A Babysitter
It’s a darn shame that many middle-class parents are no longer hearing the words, “Mom, the babysitter’s dead.” That’s because, for many who struggle to find affordable childcare, the babysitter was never there to begin with.
Parents say they simply can’t afford daycare, yet the essential nature of this service means many families go into chronic debt so somebody will watch their kid. Parents have to work to feed their children but can’t afford the cost of the babysitter. What a sad state of affairs.
8. Concerts
Those sold-out Taylor Swift and Beyonce shows you see headlines about? Yeah, those fans are in debt and likely paying 30% per year for the nosebleed seats and overpriced T-Swift T-shirts.
Most in the middle class long ago determined that the concert budget would be among the first sacrifices to go as inflation shows no signs of slowing. This is a critical reason why acts like Jennifer Lopez and the Black Keys have canceled entiretours. The money simply isn’t there.
9. A Nice Meal Out
Those who found their spouses before 2020 should count their blessings. While even married couples should dine out occasionally, they dodged a bullet by avoiding the cost of a dinner date in 2024.
The rate of inflation for restaurant dining was more than four times the inflationary rate of grocery prices year over year. Eating out is now officially a luxury, and luxuries are simply not in the budget for most middle-class households.
10. The Gym
As middle-class households see their bank accounts stagnate and dwindle, they review their budgets with a fine-tooth comb. Increasingly, former gym rats are deciding that jogging and push-ups are perfectly fine forms of fitness.
Foot traffic in major fitness chains stagnated between February 2023 and 2024, and it stands to reason that they could see a decline in memberships if inflation doesn’t reverse course.
11. Gasoline
Consumer spending is undershooting expectations, and those figures include essentials like gasoline. May saw just a .1% increase in consumer spending, which was two-tenths of a percentage point less than forecasted.
It’s no mystery that Americans would drive less as a means to saving money. What are the alternatives? Eating less?Going without air conditioning in the summer heat? Staying home is one of the most predictable outcomes of these inflationary times.
12. Flights
Flying is the most efficient way to get from Point A to Point B, unless Boeing has anything to say about it. Even so, consumers are cutting back substantially on flights (as well as related expenditures like hotel rooms) in response to the dollar’s value eroding.
When mortgage payments and grocery bills are eating more and more of your budget, flights to Cancun quickly become expendable.
13. Kids
Inflation doesn’t discriminate by age. When the parents suffer, the kids suffer too.
As parents report struggling to afford back-to-school essentials, new dirt bikes, Air Jordans, and the latest Call of Duty game become pipe dreams. Hand-me-downs will be back in vogue soon if they’re not already, and you’ll not say a word about it, Timmy.
14. Clothing
Looking hot has never been so expensive, and new clothing is the number one non-essential item Americans have done away with because of inflation.
Hopefully, retailers’ loss has been caused by thrift stores’ gain. Even if not, many Americans have probably found that friends and family don’t notice when you wear the same shirt three gatherings in a row.
15. Going to the Movies
Between the bottomless streaming catalogs and the obvious conclusion that going to the movie theater is a non-essential activity, it’s no surprise that movie theaters worldwide (with the exception of China) have taken a beating.
There are exceptions, with Oppenheimer, Dune 2, and Barbie coming to mind. Still, the rare film compels viewers to get off the couch and shell out hard-earned cashola to AMC and their ilk.
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