How has inflation changed your expense/spending strategy?

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willthrill81
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Re: How has inflation changed your expense/spending strategy?

Post by willthrill81 »

Ivygirl wrote: Sun Nov 21, 2021 8:37 amI regard stocking up on food and consumables as a "one-percenter." If I can "up my game" it is pure profit which helps offset inflation. Naturally having to think constantly about little things is annoying and I'd rather not, but now considering inflation if I want to retire I will have to.
I think that such forward purchasing can be wise on many levels. It offers a better real yield than any bank account (via inflation), can be used in conjunction with buying in bulk when items are on sale, and leaves one with a significant larder. As long as space isn't an issue, it's a win-win-win. Frankly, I've long wondered why it isn't more popular with BHs, many of whom will move heaven and earth to save 2 basis points on an expense ratio.
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Re: How has inflation changed your expense/spending strategy?

Post by willthrill81 »

Fat-Tailed Contagion wrote: Sat Nov 20, 2021 7:29 pm Eating less food.

Driving car less.
Our daughter is eating more and more all the time, especially bacon, which is now $16/pack for pre-cooked bacon at Costco, up from $12 this time last year. :shock:

And we're going to buy about 800 gallons of gasoline this year for two very long trips in our motorhome. But that will be the single largest expense of both trips by far, so that's still not bad.
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Re: How has inflation changed your expense/spending strategy?

Post by Bogle7 »

We will just spend more.
We will go from spending 2.5% of retirement funds to spending 2.7%.
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Re: How has inflation changed your expense/spending strategy?

Post by Normchad »

The most expensive thing I buy is more shares of VTSAX, and those went up by about 25% in the last 12 months. I’m still buying, just not getting as much as I used too….

Everything else in my life, the impacts of inflation have been minor.
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Re: How has inflation changed your expense/spending strategy?

Post by jebmke »

willthrill81 wrote: Sun Jan 09, 2022 8:10 pm
Ivygirl wrote: Sun Nov 21, 2021 8:37 amI regard stocking up on food and consumables as a "one-percenter." If I can "up my game" it is pure profit which helps offset inflation. Naturally having to think constantly about little things is annoying and I'd rather not, but now considering inflation if I want to retire I will have to.
I think that such forward purchasing can be wise on many levels. It offers a better real yield than any bank account (via inflation), can be used in conjunction with buying in bulk when items are on sale, and leaves one with a significant larder. As long as space isn't an issue, it's a win-win-win. Frankly, I've long wondered why it isn't more popular with BHs, many of whom will move heaven and earth to save 2 basis points on an expense ratio.
I suppose it depends on how much of the total dollar spend is on consumables with long shelf life. For us it isn't that much. I would guess large families would be a different situation.
Don't trust me, look it up. https://www.irs.gov/forms-instructions-and-publications
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Re: How has inflation changed your expense/spending strategy?

Post by willthrill81 »

jebmke wrote: Sun Jan 09, 2022 8:19 pm
willthrill81 wrote: Sun Jan 09, 2022 8:10 pm
Ivygirl wrote: Sun Nov 21, 2021 8:37 amI regard stocking up on food and consumables as a "one-percenter." If I can "up my game" it is pure profit which helps offset inflation. Naturally having to think constantly about little things is annoying and I'd rather not, but now considering inflation if I want to retire I will have to.
I think that such forward purchasing can be wise on many levels. It offers a better real yield than any bank account (via inflation), can be used in conjunction with buying in bulk when items are on sale, and leaves one with a significant larder. As long as space isn't an issue, it's a win-win-win. Frankly, I've long wondered why it isn't more popular with BHs, many of whom will move heaven and earth to save 2 basis points on an expense ratio.
I suppose it depends on how much of the total dollar spend is on consumables with long shelf life. For us it isn't that much. I would guess large families would be a different situation.
Cereal will easily last a year in an unopened box. Cans of anything except dairy will last almost indefinitely. Frozen meats will last at least six months, and we've kept some for nearly a year. Hard cheeses can go for months at least, maybe years. Gasoline stored properly will last a minimum of a year. Unworn clothing can last for many years. Many gifts will last for many years. And so on. It's not just groceries we're talking about here.

Beyond that, as I alluded to above, having a deep larder can be more valuable than money in the bank on several levels. 2020 demonstrated that when certain food items at least became hard to find. Heck, local grocery stores have had a lot of bare shelves just this past week due to unprecedented winter storms shutting down major highways in every direction for almost a week.

Many here are worried about 'lost decades' for stocks and bonds but probably don't have more two weeks of food in their home. IMHO, that's quite ironic, but maybe it's more a symptom of first world problems.
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Re: How has inflation changed your expense/spending strategy?

Post by HomerJ »

pokebowl wrote: Sun Jan 09, 2022 8:00 pm Starting to see increases in groceries for the same monthly line items. Looking at my last couple of store runs from November through the current month, it looks like the cost has increased ~20% for my household, and this is with bulk discounts and rewards card spending. :annoyed

Not going to break the budget, but the dollar value has indeed diminished for goods and services I consume.
Inflation is only up 6%. Why would your costs go up 20%? Maybe you should do a better job looking for deals or switch stores.
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Re: How has inflation changed your expense/spending strategy?

Post by AnnetteLouisan »

I’m getting the small size of M&Ms.

Just kidding. So far it hasn’t affected me much or changed my consumption patterns, I just notice items are out of stock more often. Bottled water increased but not too much.
Last edited by AnnetteLouisan on Mon Jan 10, 2022 9:16 am, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: How has inflation changed your expense/spending strategy?

Post by HomerJ »

willthrill81 wrote: Sun Jan 09, 2022 8:11 pm
Fat-Tailed Contagion wrote: Sat Nov 20, 2021 7:29 pm Eating less food.

Driving car less.
Our daughter is eating more and more all the time, especially bacon, which is now $16/pack for pre-cooked bacon at Costco, up from $12 this time last year. :shock:
How much bacon does she eat at at time? A pound of precooked bacon is like 80 slices at Walmart... I guess, looking at Costco, it's only 50 slices there... must be thicker. Still, that's a lot of meals.
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Re: How has inflation changed your expense/spending strategy?

Post by willthrill81 »

HomerJ wrote: Sun Jan 09, 2022 9:13 pm
willthrill81 wrote: Sun Jan 09, 2022 8:11 pm
Fat-Tailed Contagion wrote: Sat Nov 20, 2021 7:29 pm Eating less food.

Driving car less.
Our daughter is eating more and more all the time, especially bacon, which is now $16/pack for pre-cooked bacon at Costco, up from $12 this time last year. :shock:
How much bacon does she eat at at time? A pound of precooked bacon is like 80 slices at Walmart... I guess, looking at Costco, it's only 50 slices there... must be thicker. Still, that's a lot of meals.
Right now, she eats 3 slices every morning, so a pack at Costco only lasts her about 3 weeks. She's always been a little carnivore. Rare steak has been her favorite food for a long time now.
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Re: How has inflation changed your expense/spending strategy?

Post by marcopolo »

pokebowl wrote: Sun Jan 09, 2022 8:00 pm Starting to see increases in groceries for the same monthly line items. Looking at my last couple of store runs from November through the current month, it looks like the cost has increased ~20% for my household, and this is with bulk discounts and rewards card spending. :annoyed

Not going to break the budget, but the dollar value has indeed diminished for goods and services I consume.
I buy fresh Ahi and Salmon at Costco and make my own Poke at home to save a lot on food prices. :beer
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Re: How has inflation changed your expense/spending strategy?

Post by Ivygirl »

willthrill81 wrote: Sun Jan 09, 2022 8:30 pm
jebmke wrote: Sun Jan 09, 2022 8:19 pm
willthrill81 wrote: Sun Jan 09, 2022 8:10 pm
Ivygirl wrote: Sun Nov 21, 2021 8:37 amI regard stocking up on food and consumables as a "one-percenter." If I can "up my game" it is pure profit which helps offset inflation. Naturally having to think constantly about little things is annoying and I'd rather not, but now considering inflation if I want to retire I will have to.
I think that such forward purchasing can be wise on many levels. It offers a better real yield than any bank account (via inflation), can be used in conjunction with buying in bulk when items are on sale, and leaves one with a significant larder. As long as space isn't an issue, it's a win-win-win. Frankly, I've long wondered why it isn't more popular with BHs, many of whom will move heaven and earth to save 2 basis points on an expense ratio.
I suppose it depends on how much of the total dollar spend is on consumables with long shelf life. For us it isn't that much. I would guess large families would be a different situation.
Cereal will easily last a year in an unopened box. Cans of anything except dairy will last almost indefinitely. Frozen meats will last at least six months, and we've kept some for nearly a year. Hard cheeses can go for months at least, maybe years. Gasoline stored properly will last a minimum of a year. Unworn clothing can last for many years. Many gifts will last for many years. And so on. It's not just groceries we're talking about here.

Beyond that, as I alluded to above, having a deep larder can be more valuable than money in the bank on several levels. 2020 demonstrated that when certain food items at least became hard to find. Heck, local grocery stores have had a lot of bare shelves just this past week due to unprecedented winter storms shutting down major highways in every direction for almost a week.

Many here are worried about 'lost decades' for stocks and bonds but probably don't have more two weeks of food in their home. IMHO, that's quite ironic, but maybe it's more a symptom of first world problems.
In response to inflation I have tried to "up my game" not just by buying things, but by rethinking how I store and use them. I purchased a pantry can rack that holds 36 cans in a 17" x 13" x 14" area - very compact. Newly-purchased cans go in the back and slide down, the oldest can is always in the front ready for use, no need to rummage shelves and no losing things in the back to get out of date. Fruit, evaporated milk, pumpkin, green beans, blackeyed peas, tomatoes, chickpeas, coconut milk, and V-8 juice. I never have less than 4 of anything, and always know how many replacements to buy. Shelving in the closet holds pickles, tuna, salmon, bone broth, sugar, cat food, pasta and sauce.

I buy ahead paper goods, dish detergent, laundry detergent and sanitizer, large refills of hand soap, trash bags, cat litter, bottled water, and zipper-style food storage bags.

Rethinking food, I buy bigger instead of smaller now. I'm single. A package of bacon when I want to eat bacon means I overeat it, then don't want the last bit. Now I buy the biggest package of bacon, fry it all at once, then portion it into snack-size plastic bags, put these in a gallon zipper bag, and stash it in my refrigerator's freezer. I have one of these for ham also and one for turkey. What's for dinner? Why, a baked potato and one of the tiny packages of ham; or, two fried eggs and a little bacon; or, a can of beans and bacon; or, turkey soup. Frozen meals are unappealing to me but a fresh meal made with a bit of something from the freezer in the exact amount I need will hit the spot.

Warm wool socks, wool long ski underwear, gloves, outerwear, and winter boots - I stocked up on those last spring. (Never again will I go through 14 days without power in winter without ski underwear!) Availability of those things is not so good now, backordered or higher priced.
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Re: How has inflation changed your expense/spending strategy?

Post by HomerJ »

willthrill81 wrote: Sun Jan 09, 2022 9:22 pm
HomerJ wrote: Sun Jan 09, 2022 9:13 pm
willthrill81 wrote: Sun Jan 09, 2022 8:11 pm
Fat-Tailed Contagion wrote: Sat Nov 20, 2021 7:29 pm Eating less food.

Driving car less.
Our daughter is eating more and more all the time, especially bacon, which is now $16/pack for pre-cooked bacon at Costco, up from $12 this time last year. :shock:
How much bacon does she eat at at time? A pound of precooked bacon is like 80 slices at Walmart... I guess, looking at Costco, it's only 50 slices there... must be thicker. Still, that's a lot of meals.
Right now, she eats 3 slices every morning, so a pack at Costco only lasts her about 3 weeks. She's always been a little carnivore. Rare steak has been her favorite food for a long time now.
Heh, 3 weeks is pretty good. I have a teenage son home for Christmas break, and he is eating me out of house and home.
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Re: How has inflation changed your expense/spending strategy?

Post by ray.james »

I think the biggest saving one can make is not storing groceries but buying those items that were deferred. Large purchases like home remodels, cars, grills, furniture. While grocery can be stored to some extent, it is tiny percentage of one's budget and is amortized over months. These other categories are amortized savings over years.

However, inflation is here. The sectionals at Costco went from 800 to 1200 and those 1200 ones are 1600. That is a substantial raise. Mattress are up by 15%. Garden items are up by 30% (pellets, stones, sand , landscape items. Its crazy inflation. I am not sure if I save by buying now. However tomorrow they might be another 15% up.
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Re: How has inflation changed your expense/spending strategy?

Post by Chip »

willthrill81 wrote: Sun Jan 09, 2022 8:11 pm Our daughter is eating more and more all the time, especially bacon, which is now $16/pack for pre-cooked bacon at Costco, up from $12 this time last year. :shock:
A potential solution here is to buy raw bacon instead of pre-cooked and have her cook it. Raw bacon is a bit cheaper and the effort involved in cooking might result in a reduced frequency of consumption.
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Re: How has inflation changed your expense/spending strategy?

Post by poker27 »

I hardly ever monitor grocery prices, but while at Costco, I noticed their 3lb can of coffee increased 3 bucks (30%+) from the last time I purchased it maybe a month ago. I won’t be quitting my 12 cup of coffee a day habit anytime soon, so no changes here.
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Re: How has inflation changed your expense/spending strategy?

Post by dcabler »

Really nothing specifically due to inflation. But quite a bit due to the pandemic which, it turns out, also helps out with insulating against our personal inflation. Nothing new that hasn't been mentioned elsewhere, but significantly cut back on eating out though we do sometimes do curbside pickup. Been working from home since March 2020 and between that and eating out less, there's less driving around so gas consumption greatly reduced. At some point my wife's car needs to be replaced, but it's still running and so it can wait.. So far, our total expenses are actually down from where they were in 2019, so there's that...

Cheers.
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Re: How has inflation changed your expense/spending strategy?

Post by Ivygirl »

ray.james wrote: Mon Jan 10, 2022 12:09 am I think the biggest saving one can make is not storing groceries but buying those items that were deferred. Large purchases like home remodels, cars, grills, furniture. While grocery can be stored to some extent, it is tiny percentage of one's budget and is amortized over months. These other categories are amortized savings over years.

However, inflation is here. The sectionals at Costco went from 800 to 1200 and those 1200 ones are 1600. That is a substantial raise. Mattress are up by 15%. Garden items are up by 30% (pellets, stones, sand , landscape items. Its crazy inflation. I am not sure if I save by buying now. However tomorrow they might be another 15% up.
Grocery is a meaningful percentage of the budget (average of 9.7%) and is one of the first places to look for savings. It might seem like too small to bother but I mentioned in another post in this thread that a small alteration in the way I do laundry yielded over $200/year in savings. $200 is meaningful to me in the quest to get $7,000 to fund my Roth IRA. If I can save another say $300 on grocery/pet supplies and look in other places for inefficiencies I can pull inflation's teeth. It's only going to last a couple of years I predict. (Shortages will last longer and may well worsen.)

As willthrill said, there are prudent reasons for having a deep larder. You need food you can open and eat without means of cooking, sometimes for two whole weeks, as I found out last year.

I totally agree with you that much bigger gains come from the large purchases, I just don't need to remodel my house or buy a car this year, but I shop for food all the time.
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Re: How has inflation changed your expense/spending strategy?

Post by jebmke »

willthrill81 wrote: Sun Jan 09, 2022 8:30 pm Cereal will easily last a year in an unopened box. Cans of anything except dairy will last almost indefinitely. Frozen meats will last at least six months, and we've kept some for nearly a year. Hard cheeses can go for months at least, maybe years. Gasoline stored properly will last a minimum of a year. Unworn clothing can last for many years. Many gifts will last for many years. And so on. It's not just groceries we're talking about here.
Beef Jerky will last forever but I'm not stocking up on that either. None of this is a major part of our spending. Frozen meat is OK but not the same as fresh. Same for fish (although flash frozen is pretty close). And the last thing I want lying around the house is a bunch of gasoline waiting to burn my house down.

The majority of our spending is not on things that have physical existence. Our single largest expense item is income taxes and I'm not about to load up on those in advance.

As I said, it depends on the composition of your spending whether advanced buying is worth the trouble.
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Re: How has inflation changed your expense/spending strategy?

Post by stoptothink »

HomerJ wrote: Sun Jan 09, 2022 9:08 pm
pokebowl wrote: Sun Jan 09, 2022 8:00 pm Starting to see increases in groceries for the same monthly line items. Looking at my last couple of store runs from November through the current month, it looks like the cost has increased ~20% for my household, and this is with bulk discounts and rewards card spending. :annoyed

Not going to break the budget, but the dollar value has indeed diminished for goods and services I consume.
Inflation is only up 6%. Why would your costs go up 20%? Maybe you should do a better job looking for deals or switch stores.
You're smarter than that. While this topic is specifically about inflation, the current cost increase in food (especially in certain areas) is more complex than simply inflation - increased cost of labor in food sector, cost of gas, transportation bottlenecks, etc. A Tyson Foods plant opened in my area in August (my BIL works there), they have raised starting wages nearly 50% and are still having issues maintaining staff - that's obviously influencing the price of chicken. There is nobody who keeps more detailed records of food prices (at multiple stores) and comparison shopping like I do, food for us is up ~15% total in the past year and prices of some specific things we regularly buy have doubled (or more).

I don't have a crystal ball and we don't have a ton of space for storage, so our buying strategies haven't changed - yet.
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Re: How has inflation changed your expense/spending strategy?

Post by winterfan »

I'm not sure there's much to do. I've noticed the prices increasing on a few things I buy regularly. One thing off the top of my head are low carb tortillas that are up 50 cents a package. We get our meat from a butcher about 4-5 times a year and then store it in the freezer. These prices haven't increased too much (surprisingly), nor have there been shortages. Frozen vegetables are up a bit, but not enough to worry about.

Restaurants prices are definitely higher. I like eating out at a nice place, but I'm also a pretty good cook, so when the bill comes, I wonder if it was really worth the expense.
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Re: How has inflation changed your expense/spending strategy?

Post by lae1526 »

We are keeping our older vehicles longer; so far Honda and Toyota have been good for us.
We are traveling less, camping when we do go somewhere.
I have changed my grocery buying. We have always shopped sales and at Aldi, but I am doing more bulk buying and learning about Mormon food storage (we’re Catholic, not Mormon). New baby arriving soon will make us a family of 7, and my boys who are active in sports are bottomless pits.
I buy rolled oats in 50# bags (.50/# at Sprouts), and stock up on store loss leader whenever I can. We are fortunate to have two additional freezers, bought used. Just this morning I bought red and green tortilla chips, 90% off, and will freeze what my kids don’t eat as an afternoon snack this afternoon. I do a lot of baking. My kids will polish off a loaf of homemade bread as an afternoon snack, especially when given butter and (homemade) jelly or honey. Yesterday I used two loaves of bread from the bakery outlet and made them into peanut butter and jelly sandwiches for lunches this week. The peanut butter on both sides keep them from getting soggy. Short dated milk was .99/gallon, so I bought multiple gallons to freeze. Basically, although I am in my thirties, we live very frugally, probably how many of you were raised. But, we are happy and healthy with a simple life. Has restaurant food gone up? Maybe, but I am happier eating meatloaf at home listening to my kids and sometimes their neighborhood friends over dinner, or enjoying one on one time with them while we wash dishes together.
It helps that we live in Houston, a lcol area, and I only work part-time, giving me a lot of time to focus on keeping costs low.
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Re: How has inflation changed your expense/spending strategy?

Post by willthrill81 »

Chip wrote: Mon Jan 10, 2022 5:18 am
willthrill81 wrote: Sun Jan 09, 2022 8:11 pm Our daughter is eating more and more all the time, especially bacon, which is now $16/pack for pre-cooked bacon at Costco, up from $12 this time last year. :shock:
A potential solution here is to buy raw bacon instead of pre-cooked and have her cook it. Raw bacon is a bit cheaper and the effort involved in cooking might result in a reduced frequency of consumption.
We wouldn't feel good about a 6 year old who isn't very well coordinated frying bacon on a hot stove, but it's a good idea nonetheless.
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Re: How has inflation changed your expense/spending strategy?

Post by BogleFan510 »

We've deferred a new car due to tight supply, but otherwise no changes. Maybe pondered 80/20 instead of current 70/30 as equities seem to hold value better in higher inflation environments, but no actual changes (will wait for 3+ years of higher rates first).
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Re: How has inflation changed your expense/spending strategy?

Post by willthrill81 »

jebmke wrote: Mon Jan 10, 2022 7:31 amAnd the last thing I want lying around the house is a bunch of gasoline waiting to burn my house down.
I understand the general point of your thread. We defer so much income that income taxes aren't that big a line item for us.

Regarding the safety of gasoline, we store ours in military type metal jerry cans that don't vent anything at all. It certainly isn't 'waiting to burn our house down'. Americans have been rightly trained to fear gasoline fires, but it has gone overboard into people thinking that stored gasoline is an explosion waiting to happen, though they have no problem almost sitting on top of a 20 gallon gas tank moving at 70 mph. As long as the gasoline is stored properly (i.e., in a non-vented metal container away from heat sources and potential sparks), the risk is minute, smaller than the risk of not having it during an extended power outage, for instance, IMHO. But to each his own.
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Re: How has inflation changed your expense/spending strategy?

Post by Chip »

willthrill81 wrote: Mon Jan 10, 2022 10:02 am We wouldn't feel good about a 6 year old who isn't very well coordinated frying bacon on a hot stove, but it's a good idea nonetheless.
Makes sense.

Maybe she could bake it. :D
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Re: How has inflation changed your expense/spending strategy?

Post by willthrill81 »

Chip wrote: Mon Jan 10, 2022 10:15 am
willthrill81 wrote: Mon Jan 10, 2022 10:02 am We wouldn't feel good about a 6 year old who isn't very well coordinated frying bacon on a hot stove, but it's a good idea nonetheless.
Makes sense.

Maybe she could bake it. :D
With a saving rate over 50% and significant donations included in our spending, we believe that we're frugal enough for our own purposes and don't need more work added to our plate. But thanks for the ideas; baked bacon is very good, and I prefer it to fried.

However, having our daughter do an increasing number of increasingly involved chores is something we're actively pursuing.
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Re: How has inflation changed your expense/spending strategy?

Post by BrightEyes »

Willthrill81 and Chip,

What a tactful and civil exchange. ^^ Conversations like this are part of why this forum is such a pleasure to visit.

But also, the discussions of Bacon. One of my earliest and most memorable bits of education on investing for retirement came from the January 30, 2008 Dilbert comic strip (available here): https://dilbert.com/strip/2008-01-30

In case the link won't work, the strip shows Dogbert the Financial Planner, sitting with a client, who sits silently through the strip. Dogbert advises:

"With advances in healthcare, you could live to be 200.
If you have a good financial plan, only the last 120 years will be spent in squalor.
I recommend a diversified portfolio.
And bacon."



It took me a long time to get why he recommended the bacon... :oops:
Yummy bacon just always seems like a good idea...

Best,

Bright Eyes
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Re: How has inflation changed your expense/spending strategy?

Post by willthrill81 »

HomerJ wrote: Sun Jan 09, 2022 9:08 pm
pokebowl wrote: Sun Jan 09, 2022 8:00 pm Starting to see increases in groceries for the same monthly line items. Looking at my last couple of store runs from November through the current month, it looks like the cost has increased ~20% for my household, and this is with bulk discounts and rewards card spending. :annoyed

Not going to break the budget, but the dollar value has indeed diminished for goods and services I consume.
Inflation is only up 6%. Why would your costs go up 20%? Maybe you should do a better job looking for deals or switch stores.
I suspect that regional differences may come into play. Many here were talking about substantial food inflation early in 2021, but we didn't see any until Q4, and now we're seeing it in full force. Food categories could be another factor at work; inflation hasn't been even across all of them. Fresh meat has risen much more than most others, for instance.
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Re: How has inflation changed your expense/spending strategy?

Post by andypanda »

"baked bacon is very good, and I prefer it to fried."

Microwave it, it's faster and easier.

"But yes, you can cook bacon in the microwave in a matter of minutes, without any mess. When sandwiched between layers of paper towels, bacon cooked in the microwave comes out oh so crispy and delicious."
SGM
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Re: How has inflation changed your expense/spending strategy?

Post by SGM »

No real change because of inflation. We have not gone to shows or restaurants often because of the covid.

We may sell a vacation house at a large profit. Houses in the neighborhood have sold for very high prices. I never thought of the house as an investment.

Fortunately, we bought a new vehicle and enclosed a porch before inflation took off.

We live on a farm. Farmers look after one another. We get farm fresh eggs as a gift from a neighbor every month. We regularly make fried chicken for 5 individual neighbors. We get free seafood from the Chesapeake. Currently we are getting live oysters. I have learned to be a fast shucker of oysters. One elderly neighbor made us a thick soup full of meat from his cattle and vegetables from a greenhouse. We added water as it was more like a stew and it was too delicious to not stretch it out a few days.

We have noticed an increase in the price of groceries and gasoline. I have an old vehicle and use it locally. DW uses the newer vehicle which gets good mileage and has the latest safety features.

When the pandemic is over, we will start going out often. I especially miss live theater and opera.
fortunefavored
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Re: How has inflation changed your expense/spending strategy?

Post by fortunefavored »

Since 2021 closed out, I thought I'd look at my grocery spend. I'd say I'm 'aware' of prices, but I don't really coupon or shop super deals. Maybe I just subconsciously don't buy stuff as the price goes up and/or I have a lot of slop in the spend so it gets lost in the noise.

H2 2019: $3898
H2 2020: $3818
H2 2021: $3899

Note that is food only, I don't buy household supplies or paper towels or alcohol at the grocery store.

We'll see how 2022 shapes up! Service inflation is definitely there, but since no one will do work for me, I can't give them money!
invest4
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Re: How has inflation changed your expense/spending strategy?

Post by invest4 »

We are a family of 6 and I am acutely aware of the increase in groceries and restaurants. Due to the spottiness of availability for some items, we have been making additional purchases of some grocery items to bridge the gaps. We dine out quite a bit and I expect we will reduce the frequency there (holiday feasting was a bit out of hand in any case) :wink: :shock:

Beyond that...

How much stocking up is sufficient? We already have 2 refrigerators along with pantry, etc. Add a deep freezer (wife would sincerely welcome that), etc? I have always kept a few gallons of gas around (lawn mower, etc.)...but have not given any thought to more than that. We have not had our regular family vacation the past two years (more due to pandemic) and I am happy that we refinanced our mortgage (30 year @2.625) and no large purchases currently on the horizon. The rest is business as usual.

Perhaps I lack imagination about the extent things could deteriorate...
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Re: How has inflation changed your expense/spending strategy?

Post by jebmke »

invest4 wrote: Tue Jan 11, 2022 10:55 am We are a family of 6 and I am acutely aware of the increase in groceries and restaurants. Due to the spottiness of availability for some items, we have been making additional purchases of some grocery items to bridge the gaps. We dine out quite a bit and I expect we will reduce the frequency there (holiday feasting was a bit out of hand in any case) :wink: :shock:

Beyond that...

How much stocking up is sufficient? We already have 2 refrigerators along with pantry, etc. Add a deep freezer (wife would sincerely welcome that), etc? I have always kept a few gallons of gas around (lawn mower, etc.)...but have not given any thought to more than that. We have not had our regular family vacation the past two years (more due to pandemic) and I am happy that we refinanced our mortgage (30 year @2.625) and no large purchases currently on the horizon. The rest is business as usual.

Perhaps I lack imagination about the extent things could deteriorate...
yeah; I think some stocking due to availability issues can make sense. I don't see it as addressing inflation.
Don't trust me, look it up. https://www.irs.gov/forms-instructions-and-publications
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willthrill81
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Re: How has inflation changed your expense/spending strategy?

Post by willthrill81 »

invest4 wrote: Tue Jan 11, 2022 10:55 am We are a family of 6 and I am acutely aware of the increase in groceries and restaurants. Due to the spottiness of availability for some items, we have been making additional purchases of some grocery items to bridge the gaps. We dine out quite a bit and I expect we will reduce the frequency there (holiday feasting was a bit out of hand in any case) :wink: :shock:

Beyond that...

How much stocking up is sufficient? We already have 2 refrigerators along with pantry, etc. Add a deep freezer (wife would sincerely welcome that), etc? I have always kept a few gallons of gas around (lawn mower, etc.)...but have not given any thought to more than that. We have not had our regular family vacation the past two years (more due to pandemic) and I am happy that we refinanced our mortgage (30 year @2.625) and no large purchases currently on the horizon. The rest is business as usual.

Perhaps I lack imagination about the extent things could deteriorate...
If your refrigerators and pantry are kept pretty full, a stocked deep freezer is the next logical addition. I don't know how we would manage without ours. Like everything else, we stock up on frozen items or items that can be frozen (e.g., fresh meat) when they go on sale, and this really helps our total spending. By buying items in bulk when they're on sale, I'm sure that we save at least 20% on our grocery spending.

If you don't have a generator, storing significant quantities of gasoline makes less sense, although connecting an inverter to a vehicle may largely serve the same purpose, and that requires some gasoline. It's still not a bad idea to store a tank's worth of gasoline in metal jerry cans (5 gallon cans are available at Harbor Freight for around $50 each) and just empty the stored gasoline into your vehicle's gas tank every six months to rotate through it.
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invest4
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Re: How has inflation changed your expense/spending strategy?

Post by invest4 »

willthrill81 wrote: Tue Jan 11, 2022 11:42 am
invest4 wrote: Tue Jan 11, 2022 10:55 am We are a family of 6 and I am acutely aware of the increase in groceries and restaurants. Due to the spottiness of availability for some items, we have been making additional purchases of some grocery items to bridge the gaps. We dine out quite a bit and I expect we will reduce the frequency there (holiday feasting was a bit out of hand in any case) :wink: :shock:

Beyond that...

How much stocking up is sufficient? We already have 2 refrigerators along with pantry, etc. Add a deep freezer (wife would sincerely welcome that), etc? I have always kept a few gallons of gas around (lawn mower, etc.)...but have not given any thought to more than that. We have not had our regular family vacation the past two years (more due to pandemic) and I am happy that we refinanced our mortgage (30 year @2.625) and no large purchases currently on the horizon. The rest is business as usual.

Perhaps I lack imagination about the extent things could deteriorate...
If your refrigerators and pantry are kept pretty full, a stocked deep freezer is the next logical addition. I don't know how we would manage without ours. Like everything else, we stock up on frozen items or items that can be frozen (e.g., fresh meat) when they go on sale, and this really helps our total spending. By buying items in bulk when they're on sale, I'm sure that we save at least 20% on our grocery spending.

If you don't have a generator, storing significant quantities of gasoline makes less sense, although connecting an inverter to a vehicle may largely serve the same purpose, and that requires some gasoline. It's still not a bad idea to store a tank's worth of gasoline in metal jerry cans (5 gallon cans are available at Harbor Freight for around $50 each) and just empty the stored gasoline into your vehicle's gas tank every six months to rotate through it.
I think they are pretty full...yet the kids constantly tell us "there is nothing to eat". :) :?
jebmke wrote: Tue Jan 11, 2022 11:01 am yeah; I think some stocking due to availability issues can make sense. I don't see it as addressing inflation.
Certainly not enough impact for me to take more significant actions...as of now. It is interesting and instructive to see how things are unfolding and how people are responding to changing conditions (real and / or perceived).
Dottie57
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Re: How has inflation changed your expense/spending strategy?

Post by Dottie57 »

Cutting back on takeout which is my biggest discretionary item. Will go to the store to stock up on some staples.
Along with food takeout , cutting on lattes (coffee house and nespresso) and making a plain cup of coffee (melita).
Restraining myself from ordering adding a streaming source in addition to xfinity internet.
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ray.james
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Re: How has inflation changed your expense/spending strategy?

Post by ray.james »

we bought Ninja cp-301 during thanks giving sales and haven't been to a coffee shop since! May be we will make that retun on investment sooner. :happy
When in doubt, http://www.bogleheads.org/forum/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=79939
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Re: How has inflation changed your expense/spending strategy?

Post by pokebowl »

HomerJ wrote: Sun Jan 09, 2022 9:08 pm
Inflation is only up 6%. Why would your costs go up 20%? Maybe you should do a better job looking for deals or switch stores.
No problem happy to explain the possible delta, I believe you are referencing the weighted national average, where myself I am referencing a local inflationary price change for one specific category. :wink:
LeftCoastIV
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Re: How has inflation changed your expense/spending strategy?

Post by LeftCoastIV »

No day-to-day change but we will likely need to buy at least one and probably two cars this summer. This won't be offset by selling cars, so we are "fully exposed" to car inflation for these purchases.
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Re: How has inflation changed your expense/spending strategy?

Post by jebmke »

LeftCoastIV wrote: Wed Jan 12, 2022 4:48 am No day-to-day change but we will likely need to buy at least one and probably two cars this summer. This won't be offset by selling cars, so we are "fully exposed" to car inflation for these purchases.
Repatriating expat? That was us in 2007. Unhedged purchases of two cars and a house.
Don't trust me, look it up. https://www.irs.gov/forms-instructions-and-publications
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Re: How has inflation changed your expense/spending strategy?

Post by LeftCoastIV »

jebmke wrote: Wed Jan 12, 2022 6:00 am
LeftCoastIV wrote: Wed Jan 12, 2022 4:48 am No day-to-day change but we will likely need to buy at least one and probably two cars this summer. This won't be offset by selling cars, so we are "fully exposed" to car inflation for these purchases.
Repatriating expat? That was us in 2007. Unhedged purchases of two cars and a house.
Yep. We kept the house and one car, but we will also be adding a new driver in the family shortly.
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winterfan
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Re: How has inflation changed your expense/spending strategy?

Post by winterfan »

lae1526 wrote: Mon Jan 10, 2022 9:53 am We are keeping our older vehicles longer; so far Honda and Toyota have been good for us.
We are traveling less, camping when we do go somewhere.
I have changed my grocery buying. We have always shopped sales and at Aldi, but I am doing more bulk buying and learning about Mormon food storage (we’re Catholic, not Mormon). New baby arriving soon will make us a family of 7, and my boys who are active in sports are bottomless pits.
I buy rolled oats in 50# bags (.50/# at Sprouts), and stock up on store loss leader whenever I can. We are fortunate to have two additional freezers, bought used. Just this morning I bought red and green tortilla chips, 90% off, and will freeze what my kids don’t eat as an afternoon snack this afternoon. I do a lot of baking. My kids will polish off a loaf of homemade bread as an afternoon snack, especially when given butter and (homemade) jelly or honey. Yesterday I used two loaves of bread from the bakery outlet and made them into peanut butter and jelly sandwiches for lunches this week. The peanut butter on both sides keep them from getting soggy. Short dated milk was .99/gallon, so I bought multiple gallons to freeze. Basically, although I am in my thirties, we live very frugally, probably how many of you were raised. But, we are happy and healthy with a simple life. Has restaurant food gone up? Maybe, but I am happier eating meatloaf at home listening to my kids and sometimes their neighborhood friends over dinner, or enjoying one on one time with them while we wash dishes together.
It helps that we live in Houston, a lcol area, and I only work part-time, giving me a lot of time to focus on keeping costs low.
The milk was a really good find. It sounds like you have a nice home life/family.
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Re: How has inflation changed your expense/spending strategy?

Post by punkinhead »

invest4 wrote: Tue Jan 11, 2022 10:55 am
How much stocking up is sufficient? We already have 2 refrigerators along with pantry, etc. Add a deep freezer (wife would sincerely welcome that), etc?
A deep freezer gives you the opportunity to go through once a year and throw out freezer burned food that is over a year old.
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Re: How has inflation changed your expense/spending strategy?

Post by investnoob »

I enjoy reading about personal finance and investing. But I don't really put a lot of the info into action.
My spending strategy for the last 20 years or so has been to keep the "non-discretionary" budget items low so that I do not have to think about the small stuff.

At 43, I've never owned a car. That hasn't changed.
In my 20s I bought the cheapest freehold townhouse that I could find (that wasn't in the burbs).
I recently sold that house and moved "downtown" into a relatively inexpensive two bedroom apartment (was about 200 to 800 dollars cheaper than other places). It is in a well managed and maintained building.

So I don't really know if inflation has had an impact on my spending. My spending strategy has not changed, so I guess you could say inflation has not affected it.

The pandemic has definitely affected my spending. I do not go to restaurants/bars anymore. And now that I work from home, I spend way less on breakfast and lunch (used to eat this at work a lot). If I had to go into the office my spending on eating out would definitely increase.
Last edited by investnoob on Wed Jan 12, 2022 10:05 am, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: How has inflation changed your expense/spending strategy?

Post by jebmke »

punkinhead wrote: Wed Jan 12, 2022 8:02 am
invest4 wrote: Tue Jan 11, 2022 10:55 am
How much stocking up is sufficient? We already have 2 refrigerators along with pantry, etc. Add a deep freezer (wife would sincerely welcome that), etc?
A deep freezer gives you the opportunity to go through once a year and throw out freezer burned food that is over a year old.
When my aunt died in the 1990s, my sister and other nieces helped clear out the house. They couldn't save the 1967 broccoli that was grown in the garden and frozen that year.
Don't trust me, look it up. https://www.irs.gov/forms-instructions-and-publications
Patzer
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Re: How has inflation changed your expense/spending strategy?

Post by Patzer »

No changes.
At my grocery store the regular price of meat went up 20-50%, but I actually paid less for groceries in 2011, because I started shopping in person again and getting more sales, where as in 2020 I did a lot of deliveries.
The only thing I spent significantly more on was travel, and my price per day was actually lower, but I did a lot more travel.

The only thing I think I could have theoretically change was that if I had been planning on buying a car, I would have pushed it back two years.
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Re: How has inflation changed your expense/spending strategy?

Post by brawlrats »

My 2021 costs for our family of five (three boys under 11) were down from 2020 as I’ve continued to refine my shopping to buy everything at the store where it is cheapest. I know where things are the least expensive and check the sales ads every week to see if there are any deals. I rarely go to the main grocery store in town anymore as it’s prices are quite high (and always have been).

I have seen prices creeping in the last few weeks, so we’ll see how 2022 goes.

Aldi has been a great resource for high quality and reasonably priced food. For all of the talk about the price of milk a few months ago, I’m still paying $1.89 per gallon at Aldi. The produce at our Aldi is higher quality than the main grocery store and is quite a bit cheaper. I definitely recommend checking it out if there is an Aldi in your area.

I also do a lot of shopping at Walmart. I know that’s a touchy subject in some circles, but their prices are so much better for a lot of items.

We have a full basement, so I always way stock up on household essentials when on sale, including detergent, paper towels, Kleenex, toilet paper.

Lastly, we invested in a deep chest freezer 10 years ago and it has been a huge source of grocery savings. We routinely stock up on meats and other frozen items when on sale.
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grogu
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Re: How has inflation changed your expense/spending strategy?

Post by grogu »

Just to add a breakfast beverage to the bacon discussion, the most astounding (of many) inflationary increases I noticed over the past 6-12 months has been apple juice. Before the inflationary spike, I could get a store-brand 64-oz container for $0.99. The price now is $2.29. To a lesser extent, I have seen substantial (but not 131%) increases in almost all of my liquid beverages--soda, bottled water, gatorade, red bull, etc.
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Re: How has inflation changed your expense/spending strategy?

Post by spammagnet »

We buy less higher quality steak, but that's about it. We stock up on some BOGO items but only if they're higher value (coffee, olive oil, meat), and that's not a change of behavior. We also don't buy more than a few weeks' supply.

My hedge against inflation is a very low interest mortgage. Even that won't mean much. I don't expect rates like we had during Paul Volcker's term as Fed Chair.
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