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In January 2024, the average benefit amount for a retired individual was $1,907.
In times of high inflation, cost-of-living adjustments (COLAs) may be made.
What this means is that $100 in 2010 would only buy $80 worth of goods today.
In January of each year,Social Security recipientsreceive a COLA.
But in eight of the past 15 years, inflation has outpaced COLAs.
Since 2010, COLAs have increased benefits by a total of 58% or 3.9% per year.
During this time, the cost of everyday goods and services rose by approximately 73% 4.9% annually.
These are the big ones.
In fact, they cost 301.5% more today than they did in 2010.
This is a 4% decrease from what it was last year.
Its also a 217% increase from 2010.
KBB also found that new cars cost an average of $47,401.
This is an 81.2% increase from 2010.
Bread
Bread is a staple in many U.S. households.
Its gone up by 146.7% in the past 15 years.
Veterinary Services
For retirees with pets, veterinary care is almost inevitable.
But its also largely unaffordable compared to what it was.
The cost of veterinary services has gone up by 89.7% since 2010.
Housing
Since 2010, the average home price has gone up by 88.6%.
Home rentals havent gone up quite as much, but theyve still risen by 66.4%.
Thats about a 4.43% increase if you were to take it by year.
Many retired homeowners have to juggle additional costs, such as home maintenance, repairs, insurance and taxes.
Property taxes have also risen by 88.6% since 2010.
Since 2010, prices of ground beef have gone up by 73.1%, or 4.87% a year.
In 2000, it was $1.483, according to theU.S.
Bureauof Labor Statistics (BLS).
Other types of meat have also gone up in price.
Bacon, for example, now costs $6.883 per pound.
This is a 10.4% increase from just a year prior.
Some meats, likeboneless chicken breast, have actually dipped in price.
This is potentially good news for those living on Social Security.
Transportation Services
Transportation services have also gone up by 64.2% over the past 15 years.
But its not just this the cost of gasoline has also risen quite substantially.
In July 2024, the average cost of gasoline all grades was $3.60 per gallon.
In 2020, it cost a little over $2, according to theU.S.
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