Net Worth at age 55

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How much do you anticipate your net worth will be by age 55?

  • Less than 2 million

    Votes: 19 6.6%

  • 2-4 million

    Votes: 64 22.4%

  • 4-6 million

    Votes: 79 27.6%

  • 6-8 million

    Votes: 54 18.9%

  • 8-10 million

    Votes: 22 7.7%

  • More than 10 million

    Votes: 48 16.8%
  • Total voters
    286
I use personal capital. Does a decent job to give a snapshot of what I need to see.

We don't budget. We just spend when we have to and when we want something bigger, we have a discussion and decide what to do. But life is expensive and getting more so. I just ordered door dash for office lunch for 4 people from Chipotle and it was like $120. Crazy.
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I used mint and loved it. Used it more for net worth tracking than budgeting as an attending, but did use the budgeting functions as a med student and residents Transferred things to credit karma when it shut down, and it’s terrible. Accounts never update, it’s just a means for hawking loans.
 
triggermaster said:
Yeah, cut back on welfare and Americans will do those jobs. If they have to pay more too, so be it. I’d rather pay the price it takes to employ Americans than to flood the country with people who can’t even speak the language.
Click to expand...
Welfare people who speak English don’t want wanna work. They feel entitled to be taken care of by the tanned ones. That’s D Trump tactic in the dumb ppl states.

Who collects the most welfare? Not Asians, not Hispanics. How about those …. It’s not blacks
 
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BLADEMDA said:
What would you all recommend for a Resident in terms of budget apps? Do you find the app you used in Residency to be adequate as an Attending?
Are you surprised at what things cost in 2024? I know I can't believe my budget these days and I don't have a mortgage or a car payment. My eating out costs seem much higher, my food bill is higher, and insurance costs are way up.
Click to expand...

No budget apps.

Just use a simple spreadsheet, Google sheets.
Track my net worth monthly. It's nice to see how far I've come over the last few years.

I keep a list of major expenses (mortgage, various insurance policies, property tax etc) and get a good Idea of my monthly costs.

The price of goods is ridiculous.

I mentioned it earlier in this thread and several gave me a hard time essentially saying that we as physicians can afford it. Or eat some beans.

No $h!t. I can afford the hit but I don't like paying more for groceries etc due to inflation. Even though my income has gone up, I've essentially kept pace with the ridiculous inflation rate over the last 4 years.
 
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anonperson said:
The price of goods is ridiculous.

I mentioned it earlier in this thread and several gave me a hard time essentially saying that we as physicians can afford it. Or eat some beans.
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The problem is that your analysis is dumb and anecdotal. Prices have gone up while wages (for most Americans) have gone up more.

Should we care what the actual number is people are paying for eggs OR should we care about whether or not it's generally easier for them to afford eggs?
 
BLADEMDA said:
Age 30 would be impressive as most are still in residency or fresh out. So, I assume that money is from a side hustle, bitcoin, nvidia stock or most likely a gift from parents.
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Young doc optioned nvidia stock. That’s how the real (and risky) money is made. Options trading. Over 2 million made in a short period of time.

He’s the little guy. Crooks like sac capital Mets own and plotkin game stop trader take it to the the next level 1000x.

U just have to get lucky with one big bet.

We are pawns in the game hoping for 10-20% returns on investments
 
rowsdower88 said:
The problem is that your analysis is dumb and anecdotal. Prices have gone up while wages (for most Americans) have gone up more.

Should we care what the actual number is people are paying for eggs OR should we care about whether or not it's generally easier for them to afford eggs?
Click to expand...
From my perspective of a near-Retiree, I can tell you that my "Net Worth" needs to be 20% higher today than in 2020. In just 4 years I need 20% more money for the same purchasing power as 2020. We all view the world through our own lens and that includes me. Is my Net Worth up 20% since 2020? not quite but close because I continue to work, save and invest. What this means to me personally is my new "number" for full retirement is much higher than in 2020.

I truly feel empathy for the newly minted Resident whose salary is not up 20% since 2020; or other people who must live on $65,000 per year. I honestly couldn't survive for long on that number and my budget is much higher. I encourage everyone to use a spread sheet (that's what I used for a decade) or an App (that's what younger people use these days) to track your expenses for a year or two.
 
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www.heritage.org

Bidenomics Is Postponing Americans’ Retirement Dreams for Years

Americans trying to retire for the last two years have felt like Charlie Brown ready to kick the football. They think their nest egg is large enough, but then another round of monthly inflation data shows the cost of living has risen once again. That’s when President Joe Biden yanks the football...
www.heritage.org www.heritage.org



It’s the persistent inflation really hurting those who were hoping to retire.

If you were a prospective retiree, planning to leave work with $1 million in savings and investments, you’ve had to radically adjust that calculus because prices have risen about 17% on average since Biden took office.

That means you need an extra $170,000 in savings to have the same real value in your nest egg.

Higher inflation will eat away retirement savings faster, so you need a larger portfolio to cover your cost of living.
For would-be retirees, there’s just no escaping the financial pain of Bidenomics.
 
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rowsdower88 said:
The problem is that your analysis is dumb and anecdotal. Prices have gone up while wages (for most Americans) have gone up more.

Should we care what the actual number is people are paying for eggs OR should we care about whether or not it's generally easier for them to afford eggs?
Click to expand...


If you want to be braindead about this go ahead.

Feel free to compare the purchasing power of $1000 from four years ago to now. It's over 20% difference from inflation. This is from the US governments own CPI calculator.

If that's not concerning to you, good for you then.
Wages have gone up but even if ones income went up 25% (which is a huge amount), your actual benefit is much smaller because of this massive cumulative inflation just in the last 4 years.

But this definitely will change how aggressively/how much someone has to save for retirement etc.
 
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BLADEMDA said:
From my perspective of a near-Retiree, I can tell you that my "Net Worth" needs to be 20% higher today than in 2020. In just 4 years I need 20% more money for the same purchasing power as 2020. We all view the world through our own lens and that includes me. Is my Net Worth up 20% since 2020? not quite but close because I continue to work, save and invest. What this means to me personally is my new "number" for full retirement is much higher than in 2020.

I truly feel empathy for the newly minted Resident whose salary is not up 20% since 2020; or other people who must live on $65,000 per year. I honestly couldn't survive for long on that number and my budget is much higher. I encourage everyone to use a spread sheet (that's what I used for a decade) or an App (that's what younger people use these days) to track your expenses for a year or two.
Click to expand...

As a near-retiree, you should be happy the S&P is up over 50% from 2020 then. Should we be happy about "stock inflation"?

I'm not too concerned about resident salaries for the most part. They're making about median American wages and have obvious massive earning potential later which most Americans don't.
 
I live in Florida. A true middle class home was around 300k. 1900 sq foot. In 2019. That same home is 450k. It’s nothing fancy. Not gated. 45 years old

You really need to make 100k a year to be comfortable and live in a 450k home. Assuming u get a 400k mortgage at 6.5%.

Average income in Florida is lower than many parts of USA. Around 55k. So you need a two income family to afford a 45 year old home (if u didn’t own a home before 2020).

Most of us are out of touch (like my wife) who thinks nothing about blowing 20k on a vacation
 
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anonperson said:

If you want to be braindead about this go ahead.

Feel free to compare the purchasing power of $1000 from four years ago to now. It's over 20% difference from inflation. This is from the US governments own CPI calculator.

If that's not concerning to you, good for you then.
Wages have gone up but even if ones income went up 25% (which is a huge amount), your actual benefit is much smaller because of this massive cumulative inflation just in the last 4 years.

But this definitely will change how aggressively/how much someone has to save for retirement etc.
Click to expand...

Let's take your argument seriously. You're arguing that Americans are worse off today than 4 years ago because of inflation (and think wage increases greater than inflation are meaningless).

Per your CPI calculator, $1000 in 1960 would be over $10,000 today! Crazy right!?

Is it your position that an average American today is worse off than in 1960 because the dollar inflated so much since then?
 
rowsdower88 said:
Let's take your argument seriously. You're arguing that Americans are worse off today than 4 years ago because of inflation (and think wage increases greater than inflation are meaningless).

Per your CPI calculator, $1000 in 1960 would be over $10,000 today! Crazy right!?

Is it your position that an average American today is worse off than in 1960 because the dollar inflated so much since then?
Click to expand...
The average American "feels" much worse off today than before Biden got elected. Biden spent way too much money but so did Trump. The difference is we were already recovering from the pandemic when Biden spent trillions more unnecessarily adding fuel to the inflation fire. What we need is Biden to cut spending by a trillion dollars not keep the budget at pandemic levels.

Again, the average American is quite unhappy with Bidenomics and it will hurt him in November.
 
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BLADEMDA said:
The average American "feels" much worse off today than before Biden got elected. Biden spent way too much money but so did Trump. The difference is we were already recovering from the pandemic when Biden spent trillions more unnecessarily adding fuel to the inflation fire. What we need is Biden to cut spending by a trillion dollars not keep the budget at pandemic levels.

Again, the average American is quite unhappy with Bidenomics and it will hurt him in November.
Click to expand...

Vibes based on politics not reality. So long as you admit it that's fine. Just like Fox News you're intent on pushing a narrative that the economy is bad, when most indicators suggest the opposite.
 
rowsdower88 said:
Vibes based on politics not reality. So long as you admit it that's fine. Just like Fox News you're intent on pushing a narrative that the economy is bad, when most indicators suggest the opposite.
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No. I don't think the economy is bad at all. I think the "average" American has a biased view of the economy based on 20% inflation. I think the Polls show most Americans are negative about Bidenomics. The wealthy Americans like me are doing just fine. Now, the average American feels very differently about the US economy.
 
BLADEMDA said:
No. I don't think the economy is bad at all. I think the "average" American has a biased view of the economy based on 20% inflation. I think the Polls show most Americans are negative about Bidenomics. The wealthy Americans like me are doing just fine. Now, the average American feels very differently about the US economy.
Click to expand...

Your position is that the economy is good and that most Americans are doing good, but that isn't being recognized because of sticker shock.

There's probably some truth to that. I could just as easily say that relentless attacks by Fox News and their parrots on this forum that paint inflation as a boogeyman are why Americans don't recognize it as a good economy.

Objectively, poorer Americans are doing better now than mid-pandemic 2019-2020 - which you agree with. When you look at polling for how individuals feel about themselves economically they feel markedly better than how they feel about the economy broadly because those broad views are shaped by media consumption. There is also a sharp partisan divide on the issue for obvious reasons.
 
Is the economy better today than it was 4 yrs ago? Hell ya.
 
Splenda88 said:
Is the economy better today than it was 4 yrs ago? Hell ya.
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I dunno. Alotta people were getting money to just do nothing. Now they have to work. Also liquor stores were killing it.
 
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BLADEMDA said:
From my perspective of a near-Retiree, I can tell you that my "Net Worth" needs to be 20% higher today than in 2020. In just 4 years I need 20% more money for the same purchasing power as 2020. We all view the world through our own lens and that includes me. Is my Net Worth up 20% since 2020? not quite but close because I continue to work, save and invest. What this means to me personally is my new "number" for full retirement is much higher than in 2020.

I truly feel empathy for the newly minted Resident whose salary is not up 20% since 2020; or other people who must live on $65,000 per year. I honestly couldn't survive for long on that number and my budget is much higher. I encourage everyone to use a spread sheet (that's what I used for a decade) or an App (that's what younger people use these days) to track your expenses for a year or two.
Click to expand...

What have you invested on?
 
Dr. Rude said:
I dunno. Alotta people were getting money to just do nothing. Now they have to work. Also liquor stores were killing it.
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Good, the need to work.

The economy was in the toilet May 2020. This is not even up for debate.

Are most people feeling good about the economy right now? Probably not.
 
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The 3.9% unemployment rate is fake, but it will be real once Trump is in the white house. Lol

 
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BLADEMDA said:
The average American "feels" much worse off today than before Biden got elected. Biden spent way too much money but so did Trump. The difference is we were already recovering from the pandemic when Biden spent trillions more unnecessarily adding fuel to the inflation fire. What we need is Biden to cut spending by a trillion dollars not keep the budget at pandemic levels.

Again, the average American is quite unhappy with Bidenomics and it will hurt him in November.
Click to expand...
Lol. Ok for Trump to spend but not Biden because things were ok once Biden took power. Gotta love partisan politics.
 
Splenda88 said:
Lol. Ok for Trump to spend but not Biden because things were ok once Biden took power. Gotta love partisan politics.
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Trump spent too much money and used the pandemic as the excuse. Biden got into office and double down on spending when the US was recovering from the pandemic. The COMBINED Spending led to high inflation in the USA. Biden was supposed to be the adult in the room, responsible and moderate, he was neither.
 
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BLADEMDA said:
Trump spent too much money and used the pandemic as the excuse. Biden got into office and double down on spending when the US was recovering from the pandemic. The COMBINED Spending led to high inflation in the USA. Biden was supposed to be the adult in the room, responsible and moderate, he was neither.
Click to expand...
Both guys are big spenders. Both should not be near the white house. Biden has cognitive impairment. Trump is a lunatic.
 
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As a "near retiree" I am calling BS to these "near retirees" saying their expenses are up 20%. If you are "near" retirement you should NOT have a mortgage at this stage of the game. The only thing that is going to significantly affect your monthly expenses is insurance and taxes. My other monthly expenses are food, gas, utilities which are not a lot compared to a mortgage so an increase of 20% really isn't that much. If it is for you, keep on working. I believe both Trump and Biden did what they could to avoid a full on depression post Covid. Did they dump too much cash into the system? Yeah probably, but I think it was the only option to avoid catastrophe. Too much money -too much inflation. At least people are working and not starving.
 

Figure 1: Growth of Real Earnings since Pre-Pandemic Across Income Distribution​


1714849819871.png


 
Homeowners insurance rates have risen dramatically, according to an analysis by Bankrate.

The average premium in February 2024 is about $141 a month for a home with $250,000 worth of dwelling insurance. That represents a 23% increase from January 2023.

Find out why rates are going up, which states are being hit the hardest and how you can keep your premiums down.
 
BLADEMDA said:
Homeowners insurance rates have risen dramatically, according to an analysis by Bankrate.

The average premium in February 2024 is about $141 a month for a home with $250,000 worth of dwelling insurance. That represents a 23% increase from January 2023.

Find out why rates are going up, which states are being hit the hardest and how you can keep your premiums down.
Click to expand...

If we're just going to cite random cost increases, then I'll cite the cost of a TV. A $500 TV in 2020 costs ~$400 in 2024.

There's a reason we use a basket of goods to measure inflation and cost of living. Insurance prices have gone up, TV prices have gone down along with other things. The general trend has been inflated prices but presenting isolated costs as representative of the impact of inflation is misleading.

www.in2013dollars.com

Televisions price inflation, 2020→2024

This calculator uses the official Consumer Price Index for Televisions from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Televisions costing $500 in 2020 would cost $400.20 in 2024.
www.in2013dollars.com www.in2013dollars.com
 
BLADEMDA said:
Is the economy better than 2019? Hell No. The voters will decide.
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Trump presidency ended in January 2021.

Again, I don't vote on the economy. I only vote on social issues, but one thing I have realized since I have been watching politics (Bush father/son and then Trump) is that the economy always got wrecked under republicans, and then they complain about the dems not fixing it fast enough.

.
 
rowsdower88 said:
If we're just going to cite random cost increases, then I'll cite the cost of a TV. A $500 TV in 2020 costs ~$400 in 2024.

There's a reason we use a basket of goods to measure inflation and cost of living. Insurance prices have gone up, TV prices have gone down along with other things. The general trend has been inflated prices but presenting isolated costs as representative of the impact of inflation is misleading.

www.in2013dollars.com

Televisions price inflation, 2020→2024

This calculator uses the official Consumer Price Index for Televisions from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Televisions costing $500 in 2020 would cost $400.20 in 2024.
www.in2013dollars.com www.in2013dollars.com
Click to expand...
But I buy a new TV about every ten years. It’s not a purchase that is that common for most people.
Electronics are different than many other items. The first DVD players that came out were $1000 or more. Same with Blu Ray, plasma screen TVs, flat screens, big screens etc. the early adopters pay huge prices and then the prices trend down over the next ten years. I’ve seen that all of my life, so to say the cost of TVs going down is a sign that inflation isn’t bad is not a valid example in my opinion. The true measure of the impact on people is measuring items that are essential and purchased on a regular basis or purchases that are so large that they must be financed and paid for monthly over several years (such as a home or car).
I have not seen my income grow 20% in the past couple of years. My salaried offspring have not seen 20% increases in income. I am not sure how young people are surviving. You truly need two incomes to make it work. Most people are seeing around a 3% cost of living adjustment and are losing ground with inflation rising by much more than their COLA.
I recall a few years back, if a person wanted to eat out for dinner, there were cheap options for someone on a tight budget. Those opportunities just really don’t exist any longer. The cheap options are now $10-12 a person.
 
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For many people, their thought process is very simple: Stuff is expensive now so the Biden economy is bad. Really nothing else matters to a lot of people. I will vote for Biden, but acknowledge that the financial pain of individuals (with incomes a fraction of most of us on this forum) may lead to another Trump presidency.
 
rick roller pump said:
For many people, their thought process is very simple: Stuff is expensive now so the Biden economy is bad. Really nothing else matters to a lot of people. I will vote for Biden, but acknowledge that the financial pain of individuals (with incomes a fraction of most of us on this forum) may lead to another Trump presidency.
Click to expand...
A vote for Biden is a vote for Kamala Harris. Biden will not be President 4 years from now, even from the most optimistic point of view. We should have better choices.
 
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cde said:
As a "near retiree" I am calling BS to these "near retirees" saying their expenses are up 20%. If you are "near" retirement you should NOT have a mortgage at this stage of the game. The only thing that is going to significantly affect your monthly expenses is insurance and taxes. My other monthly expenses are food, gas, utilities which are not a lot compared to a mortgage so an increase of 20% really isn't that much. If it is for you, keep on working. I believe both Trump and Biden did what they could to avoid a full on depression post Covid. Did they dump too much cash into the system? Yeah probably, but I think it was the only option to avoid catastrophe. Too much money -too much inflation. At least people are working and not starving.
Click to expand...
One of the more rational responses on this thread.
 
The polls state the economy is "bad" under Biden. The economy and immigration are top concerns for voters. If the election is today, Biden is toast.

"Only 22% of Black Americans, 13% of Hispanics, and 18% of young adults believe that they are better off financially today than they were a year ago.
Sixty-five percent of voters rate the economy as good during Trump’s presidency, compared to 38% under Biden"
How voters feel about the economy: 4 takeaways from the latest polls | Brookings.

Immigration, economy and inflation... Top 3 problems for Americans.

news.gallup.com

Most Important Problem

What do you think is the most important problem facing this country today? [Open-ended]
news.gallup.com news.gallup.com
 
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Gern Blansten said:
But I buy a new TV about every ten years. It’s not a purchase that is that common for most people.
Electronics are different than many other items. The first DVD players that came out were $1000 or more dollars. Same with Blu Ray, plasma screen TVs, flat screens, big screens etc. the early adopters pay huge prices and then the prices trend down over the next ten years. I’ve seen that all of my life, so to say the cost of TVs going down is a sign that inflation isn’t bad is not a valid example in my opinion. The true measure of the impact on people is measuring items that are essential and purchased on a regular basis or purchases that are so large that they must be financed and paid for monthly over several years (such as a home or car).
I have not seen my income grow 20% in the past couple of years. My salaried offspring have not seen 20% increases in income. I am not sure how young people are surviving. You truly need two incomes to make it work. Most people are seeing around a 3% cost of living adjustment and are losing ground with inflation rising by much more than their COLA.
I recall a few years back, if a person wanted to eat out for dinner, there were cheap options for someone on a tight budget. Those opportunities just really don’t exist any longer. The cheap options are now $10-12 a person.
Click to expand...

Real incomes, on average, have outpaced inflation for the past 4 years. See treasury source I cited in previous post. While you haven't seen your income increase above inflation, most Americans have, especially poorer Americans.

I feel like you missed my point. My point stands that we shouldn't cite individual costs when we should use a basket of goods instead to assess inflation. Of course the cost of a TV decreasing doesn't represent costs in general decreasing for most Americans, neither does the cost of insurance increasing in Blade's post represent the full picture either. If you just want to say CPI is a bad measurement, then there are others you could use instead to get a better idea of how inflation affects different sections of America.

Most Americans are more prosperous today than they were 4 years ago even adjusting for inflation.
 
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If only the republicans had someone like Romney or McCain running… the orange man is such a toxic person that I can’t vote for him - to me the economic semantic arguments aren’t important.

Also I hate that voting for Biden has Harris wound into the deal.

Bleh. Maybe it’s time to look into golden visas.
 
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ChiDO said:
What campaigning? Trump is going to be stuck in a New York courtroom and Biden will be locked in the basement of the White House.
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Well, at some point there'll be TV ads that'll be seen by ... I dunno, whoever still watches TV that has commercials. Old people, I guess.
 
rick roller pump said:
For many people, their thought process is very simple: Stuff is expensive now so the Biden economy is bad. Really nothing else matters to a lot of people. I will vote for Biden, but acknowledge that the financial pain of individuals (with incomes a fraction of most of us on this forum) may lead to another Trump presidency.
Click to expand...
Their thought process is simple, and certainly understandable. Depending on who you read, 66 to 76% of Americans live paycheck to paycheck. So the pack of chicken thighs which used to have 8 in it, now has 5 at the same price, the $3.90 gas in our area, clothes, etc.. significantly impacts their bottom line. They don't need anyone to tell them they are falling behind. I can only imagine what the weekly cost to feed 3 athletic teenage boys would be. Our diminished standard of living is multifaceted. Govt spending, currency manipulation so corporations can be competitive abroad, energy polices, healthcare costs,all factor into inflation and standard of living. It would be refreshing to have someone in govt show some leadership and say we did what we had to do during Covid and now have to tighten our belts to pay for the crisis. However, that would be political suicide.
 
rowsdower88 said:
This just isn't true. Most Americans are doing better financially now than they were 2019-2020.

Most Americans have improved their standard of living since then despite inflation.

Click to expand...


dude what world are you living in. are you really citing a government article that is put out by the current office about how people are doing better now. Pure propaganda. Everything is more expensive. it's blatantly obvious people are doing worse. I dont get why youre being ignorant to this fact.
 
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sevo00 said:
dude what world are you living in. are you really citing a government article that is put out by the current office about how people are doing better now. Pure propaganda. Everything is more expensive. it's blatantly obvious people are doing worse. I dont get why youre being ignorant to this fact.
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"Blatantly obvious" = my vibes told me

Get out of your bubble and look at what the studies are showing on real wage growth.

Even with this historically fast inflation, particularly in the immediate aftermath of the pandemic recession, low-end wages grew substantially faster than price growth. Nominal wages (i.e., not inflation-adjusted) rose by roughly 34% cumulatively since 2019. (Inflation adjusted its closer to 2-3% for low income workers.)

www.epi.org

Fastest wage growth over the last four years among historically disadvantaged groups: Low-wage workers’ wages surged after decades of slow growth

In stark contrast to prior decades, low-wage workers experienced dramatically fast real wage growth between 2019 and 2023, but many workers continue to suffer from grossly inadequate wages and middle-wage workers face significant gaps across demographic groups.
www.epi.org www.epi.org

www.americanprogress.org

Workers’ Paychecks Are Growing More Quickly Than Prices

Most workers’ wages are growing more quickly than prices, and the economic recovery following the COVID-19 recession has featured historically strong real wage growth.
www.americanprogress.org www.americanprogress.org

fortune.com

Surprise: Wage growth has actually outpaced the crushing inflation over the past 2.5 years, according to the JEC Democrats

"The economy appears to be doing better than a lot of people might realize or be willing to admit," one expert says.
fortune.com fortune.com
 
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rowsdower88 said:
"Blatantly obvious" = my vibes told me

Get out of your bubble and look at what the studies are showing on real wage growth.

Even with this historically fast inflation, particularly in the immediate aftermath of the pandemic recession, low-end wages grew substantially faster than price growth. Nominal wages (i.e., not inflation-adjusted) rose by roughly 34% cumulatively since 2019. (Inflation adjusted its closer to 2-3% for low income workers.)

www.epi.org

Fastest wage growth over the last four years among historically disadvantaged groups: Low-wage workers’ wages surged after decades of slow growth

In stark contrast to prior decades, low-wage workers experienced dramatically fast real wage growth between 2019 and 2023, but many workers continue to suffer from grossly inadequate wages and middle-wage workers face significant gaps across demographic groups.
www.epi.org www.epi.org

www.americanprogress.org

Workers’ Paychecks Are Growing More Quickly Than Prices

Most workers’ wages are growing more quickly than prices, and the economic recovery following the COVID-19 recession has featured historically strong real wage growth.
www.americanprogress.org www.americanprogress.org
Click to expand...

lol you call that real data. Yeah you and I have gotten raises. Healthcare workers are doing well. Google just laid off a bunch of people. McDonald’s stores where the minimum wage was raised just ended up getting rid of workers and replacing them with self kiosks. Your biased data won’t tell you that. Two exactly same prices house with one now having thousands more in mortgage payment due to higher interest rates. These are all out in plain sight.
 
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sevo00 said:
lol you call that real data. Yeah you and I have gotten raises. Healthcare workers are doing well. Google just laid off a bunch of people. McDonald’s stores where the minimum wage was raised just ended up getting rid of workers and replacing them with self kiosks. Your biased data won’t tell you that. Two exactly same prices house with one now having thousands more in mortgage payment due to higher interest rates. These are all out in plain sight.
Click to expand...

Real wage growth has been highest in lowest income quintiles. Not you and me. Adjust your vibes accordingly.

If you think the treasury department or other sources are fudging the numbers then I don't know what to say man.

Edit: Apparently "real data" to you looks like a quick appraisal of how Google, McDonalds and house prices are doing? C'mon man. The economy is more than just Google and McDonalds, and not everyone is in the market to buy a home.
 
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rowsdower88 said:
Real wage growth has been highest in lowest income quintiles. Not you and me. Adjust your vibes accordingly.

If you think the treasury department or other sources are fudging the numbers then I don't know what to say man.

Edit: Apparently "real data" to you looks like a quick appraisal of how Google, McDonalds and house prices are doing? C'mon man. The economy is more than just Google and McDonalds, and not everyone is in the market to buy a home.
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Yeah I do think the govt fudges numbers to make themselves look better. Are you that naive? I don’t the department that has been printing trillions of dollars and getting us further into debt to tell me the truth. Sure you can believe them. Or you can look outside and talk to real people
 
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sevo00 said:
Yeah I do think the govt fudges numbers to make themselves look better. Are you that naive? I don’t the department that has been printing trillions of dollars and getting us further into debt to tell me the truth. Sure you can believe them. Or you can look outside and talk to real people
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Alright. Your go-to source for how inflation and wage growth have affected different sectors of the economy over the past 4 years is a street survey.

Cool.

Fwiw, even during the Trump administration I still generally believed government bodies and the ancillary organizations that assisted them when they put out numbers. For example, I didn't think the CBO was pushing out garbage analysis on minimum wage effects or the CDC was falsely claiming fewer covid deaths. If your personal skepticism leads you in this direction though, that's fine, I do think we as Americans should have more trust in our institutions. The Department that is "printing trillions of dollars" is doing so at the behest of Congressional action (the annual budget). These are, for the most part, civil service employees doing a complicated job taking in reams of data for analysis. They don't deserve the scorn you heap on them nor do they deserve a blanket denial of their work. I didn't just cite the Treasury Department in any case.
 
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