Channel: Epic Economist
Category: News & Politics
Tags: middle class jobsmiddle class debtconsumer sentimentjob openingseconomic growthinflationfood prices;home price growthhousing affordabilityus middle classrising pricesinflation crisisoil pricescredit card debtmiddle class crisisfinancial insecuritycost of living crisisus living standardsrising consumer pricesunemploymenthousing bubblehousing priceseconomic recessionmiddle class incomeconsumer spendingliving expenses
Description: The United States used to have the largest and strongest middle class in the entire world... but those times are long gone. Now, the American middle class is rapidly shrinking, and the current economic conditions are accelerating that process even further. We've never seen prices reach stratospheric levels so rapidly, and a series of economic trends show that this is just the beginning. Amid soaring prices for virtually everything, consumer sentiment plunged again last month, hitting its lowest level since August 2011, according to the University of Michigan. At this point, two-thirds of Americans say higher prices have been difficult or even a hardship, and they’re now forcing many to make cutbacks. According to Laura Wronski, the senior manager of research science at Momentive, “people making six-figure incomes are almost as worried about inflation as people making half as much —and they are just as likely to be taking steps to mitigate its effect on their lives. Inflation is a problem that compounds over time, and even middle and upper-income individuals won’t be insulated from the second and third-order effects of price increases,” she said. A new study by Wells Fargo discovered that the middle class is getting more financially squeezed by rampant prices than any other income group in the United States. And it is going to get “worse before it gets better,” according to Moody’s Analytics. Meanwhile, home prices are absolutely exploding. Over the past two years, they went up by a staggering 32.6%. The latest jump in mortgage rates has effectively put homebuyers in the worst position since 2007. At the same time, most people are barely scraping by from month to month, and the meteoric rise in the price of consumer goods is certainly not helping matters. And if you think things are bad right now, in a couple of months, they could be a whole lot worse. Even the White House is warning that consumers should brace for some painful price hikes in the coming weeks and months. It’s getting harder and harder for millions of middle-class families to keep their heads above the water as inflation eats up a larger share of their monthly incomes. That's compromising the purchasing power of hard-working Americans who dedicate their lives to building a comfortable lifestyle. As the price of everything reaches new record-highs, this situation is rapidly becoming unsustainable. We’re on the verge of another economic recession, and all of the facts we share with you in this video are proof of that. Americans have never experienced so much financial suffering since the 2008 Great Recession and the Great Depression of the 1930s. Unfortunately, as we're being told, a lot more pain is ahead, and given that our leaders continue to overlook our worsening problems, we should start doing whatever we can to protect ourselves and our families from the coming chaos because it is crystal clear now that we're on our own. That's why today, we compiled several stats that uncover the distressing effect of soaring prices in the lives of millions of middle-class families all across the country. Here are 15 Facts That Show Rising Prices Are Absolutely Eviscerating America’s Shrinking Middle Class. For more info, find us on: epiceconomist.com And visit: theeconomiccollapseblog.com