A decent chunk of Americans feel wealthy at the moment.
You may be one of them.
The stock market is, after all, booming. That portfolio of yours might look pretty damn lucrative.
But you and I both know how fickle the market can be.
Instead of salivating over our 401(k) balances, let’s take a look at what’s really happening.
Consumer prices have jumped sharply in 2021, climbing 5.4 percent in September from the prior year.
Take a look at some of these numbers. The following goods and services have soared in price year-to-year:
Used cars and trucks +24.4%
Uncooked beef steaks +22.1%
Gasoline 42.1%
Laundry equipment +19.1%
Hotels and motels +19.8%
Car and truck rentals +42.9%
In addition, the U.S. government said Wednesday it expects households to see their heating bills jump as much as 54% compared to last winter.
It doesn’t stop there.
The price of rent is climbing at the fastest pace in 20 years.
This is all a recipe for disaster.
If you’re like many Americans, you have more saved right now than usual. That’s because you probably socked away all or some of the stimulus money.
You might be thinking, “Shit, with my portfolio rocking and all this money saved, it’s time to splurge.”
As outlined above, this would be a mistake. Now is the time to hunker down and double down on your savings.
Winter is coming.
Frugal Tip: People throw “losing” lottery tickets on the floor/ground all the time. A lot of them are actually winners. Cash those babies!
The Frugal Fight 