Not trying to be political at all. Just wondering how you rate the US Economy from 1 to 10 with 10 being the best and 1 being the worst.
I think I am in 6-7 range myself.
1 Like
6-7 definitely. Lack of biotech investment and mass layoffs in the sector are what makes it less than perfect 10 for me.
I’d say about an 8. Inflation is still too high, but the market is doing well, my retirement income is secure, both my kids and DILs are gainfully employed, all of our houses have appreciated in value. Life is good.
8 Likes
I agree that it is a 6-7. Inflation is too high and in my area gas and groceries continue to go up.
1 Like
8 for me. Other than food costs, the market is doing really well for our family.
6 Likes
Between an 8-9 for me. By every metric, the economy is roaring along. Literally the best on the planet right now.
Inflation isn’t fun, but mass deflation would indicate a depression so while I would love prices to go down for me…if they go down for everybody, it would be bad for the economy.
5 Likes
I guess I’m positive at a 7.
It’s not as bad as the 2008 crash. I sold mortgages during that time, and it was ugly! But I feel lied to much more about the state of the economy. A couple years ago my daughter could’ve walked into any retailer and she would have a job. Now, she’s been looking for more than a month. She got a second interview at In 'n Out Burger, but it’s for 10 hours a week. She’s starting college in the fall and needs to save. I give it a 3.
6 Likes
My business is essentially recession and pandemic proof, but our sales numbers aren’t great right now.
I give the economy a 6, or D-.
I paid $12.47 yesterday for 3/4lb. of deli turkey, and I just put 14.5 gallons of gas in my truck for $64.50.
3 Likes
For the general economy, it is 6-7.
The ‘haves’ who have invested are doing well and the ‘have-nots’ are doing poorly.
8 Likes
Count me as another feeling we are at 8. Grocery prices are starting to decrease (thanks, Target), more gas being released from petroleum reserve will push price per gallon down, and I heard NPR reporting another downtick in mortgage rates as I was running errands this morning. Still lots of things that are problematic like my new insurance premium on condo - up 37.5% based on weather related damage in my area of TN. I do worry about climate change related costs for my wallet and for my grandkids’ future.
7 Likes
It’s not just your area. Property insurance everywhere is way up.
2 Likes
For the group of people in this site (CC), it appears that the lowest rating is around 6 to 7. Generally, this group comprised primarily of white collared workers, two income families with kids in or aspiring to attend college. For the hourly wage workers, families struggling with low income, little savings or retirement savings, how much to spend on the next meal, gas costs, whether they will have a paycheck next month, etc., the rating would be much lower, say in the 1 to 4 range. For myself, the rating is 7 or 8, no mortgage to pay, 2 kids done with college and 1 left in college.
6 Likes
Costs for every day things - stuff you need to survive - still seem very high. Gas and groceries are just two examples. They don’t need to be low, per se, but when wages don’t keep up that’s a problem. Perhaps white collar is doing okay, but it’s tough for a lot of people.
The working poor are out there.
7 Likes
There are just under 25,000,000 millionaires in the United States.
There are just under 38,000,000 Americans living at the poverty level, or below.
On CC there are a lot of millionaires ranking the current economy.
5 Likes
Wage increases have kept up/increased in lots of areas tho. Especially in the lower income sectors.
How people feel and the facts on the ground often don’t intersect the way the people might expect.
4 Likes
For me, an 8 or 9.
3 Likes
The rich get richer and the poor poorer. Not good.
4 Likes
I’ve never understood these types of 1-10 scales without definitions of what 1-10 means.
For example, I once was in the hospital for a shattered humerus. I was asked to rate my pain on scale of 1-10. I had no idea how to do so. What does a 5 mean? Is it something that is unpleasant, but not unpleasant enough to disrupt daily activities? It is a severe pain, but far from the worst pain I have felt in my life? Is it the minimum threshold for which we need to intervene and use pain meds? I chose to call my current level of pain 5, so we had a reference of whether pain went up or down from current.
It’s a similar idea of 1-10 scale of the economy. What does a 5 mean? Does a 5 mean continue to have strong economic measures like GDP and employment, inflation rate largely stabilized, and strong stock market gains; but unaffordable housing, higher prices for most things than previous years, and a growing disparity between wealthy and typical families? This touches on a growing disconnect between macroeconomic measures and consumer sentiment. Looking at macro measures, an economist might say, the US economy is great. However, a young person trying to buy their first home is likely to have a different opinion, with home unaffordablity being a record high, high gas/food prices, etc.
I guess I’ll call the current economy a 5 as well, like my earlier pain scale.
So is auto insurance. I switched because my company jacked up my rates. When I went to shop around, the prices were the same or higher everywhere. I found a company that gave me a lower quote…meaning about 5% lower than the atrocious quote my original company gave me. And that was on a special promotion. It’s anyone’s guess how long this rate is going to last. 