Click here: to donate by Credit Card
Or here: to donate by PayPal
Or by mail to: Free Republic, LLC - PO Box 9771 - Fresno, CA 93794
Thank you very much and God bless you.
Posted on 10/12/2026 5:53:13 PM PDT by anthropocene_x
The cost of the American dream is rising at a faster pace than household earnings, driven by notable increases in the cost of homeownership, raising children and paying for college, according to a new report.
An analysis by Investopedia finds that the lifetime cost of the American dream rose 4.1% from 2025 to 2026, with the cost increasing by more than $208,000 from $5.11 million a year ago to $5.32 million this year.
That cost has risen faster than wages and salaries, as the Bureau of Labor Statistics data for private sector wages and salaries in the past 12 months through June increased 3.1%.
Investopedia's analysis of Census Bureau data found a full-time worker with a bachelor's degree earns about $3.6 million from age 25 to 64 without accounting for income taxes, while 20 years of the average Social Security benefit increases that total to about $4.1 million – about $1.2 million short of the American dream's cost.
Homeownership costs rose the most in dollar terms, with the lifetime cost rising by over $91,000 from $1.184 million in 2025 to $1.275 million in 2026. That rise amounts to a 7.7% increase year over year.
That figure includes a 20% down payment on a median-priced single-family home of $420,000, with a 6.32% 30-year mortgage that brings the total cost with interest to about $837,000, as well as $3,057 a year in insurance costs, property taxes and 30 years of upkeep and utilities which adds another $438,000 to the price tag.
The cost of raising children and paying for college saw the fastest increase year over year, rising 8.9% from $876,092 in 2025 to $953,763, Investopedia found.
Lifetime retirement costs rose 2.2% to $1,205,119 based on the estimated spending of a retired married couple over 20 years. The cost of a wedding increased by 1.6% to $38,800.
The cost of buying two new cars for the household, and covering costs for insurance, maintenance, registration and fuel rose 0.5% to $1,205,627 in lifetime costs.
|
|
Click here: to donate by Credit Card Or here: to donate by PayPal Or by mail to: Free Republic, LLC - PO Box 9771 - Fresno, CA 93794 Thank you very much and God bless you. |
As if college is still an unquestioned requirement.
Their definition of “The American Dream” is different than mine.
Fox News pushing headlines that help the Dims. Why, I’m shocked!
The United States Debt Cult, 40+ Trillion of it.
And it’s not home ownership, it’s mortgage binding.
This is American Capitalism (TM) brought to you by the Federal Reserve system. In a few more years it will be indistinguishable from the Soviet system, with its own surveillance, gulags and bread lines.
“We pretend to work and they pretend to pay us.”
“That’s why they call it the ‘American Dream’, because you have to be asleep to believe it.” - George Carlin
Casa Griffin is a concrete block house. The front wall is 48 feet long, the longest side wall is 32 feet long. The concrete block walls are 160 feet long.
An 8”x8”x16” concrete block was $2.17 at Lowe’s when I checked.
My Florida house would be built on a slab with integrated poured footings nowadays. That means stacking those blocks 12 high for 8’-foot ceilings.
To run 16” blocks 160 feet means 120 of them.
Leaving out windows which are more costly than blocks, that would mean 12x120 blocks or 1,440 blocks which at $2.17 each would cost $3,124.80 for concrete blocks to build Casa Griffin.
Casa Griffin is L-shaped and its front wall is 48 feet long and its longest side wall is 32 feet long and the shortest side wall is about 27-feet long.
Its slab areas are a 10’x10’ lanai slab plus the main slab of 48’x32’[1,532 sq. ft.] less roughly 34’x5’[170 sq. ft.], with the garage being on a lower slab, for a total of 1,452 sq. ft., for about 18 cu. yds. of concrete 4” deep.
Adding in concrete of about 1.5 cu. ft./linear foot to form a footing for what would be the main slab would add about 240 cu. ft.
Adding in concrete of about .75 cu. ft./linear foot to form a footing for what would be the lanai slab would add about 30 cu. ft.
Together, the slab concrete if Casa Griffin was to be built in 2025 would be about 28 cu. yds.
To add in footing concrete for a lower garage slab would add about 60 cu. ft., for about 30 cu. yds.
To fill an 8”x8”x16” concrete block would take about 1/3th of a cubic foot of concrete. To fill 1,440 of them would take about 480 cu. ft. or about 18 cu. yds.
That’s about 48 cu. yds. of concrete to build Casa Griffin. At $180 per cu. yd., the concrete would come to $8,640.
Its driveway is 10 feet wide and 60 feet long. Its sidewalk is 3 feet wide and 25 feet long. At 4” thick, that would come to 8⅓ cu. yds. of concrete and about $1,500.
The cost of the concrete would sum to about $10,140.
[That would not include the webs, reinforcing bars or their supports.]
“The cost of a wedding increased by 1.6% to $38,800.”
Agreed. It looks like what the political class wants us all to dream for, and be unhappy if we don't get it.
$38,000 is plenty for the down payment on a house. Spending that much money on a wedding unless you are independently wealthy is ridiculous. People can get married in a church and have the reception in the church hall. It is supposed to be about love between the two people and having their friends and family witness their marriage. If the couple does not go to church, then they can get married in someone’s backyard.
“The cost of a wedding ... $38,800.”
For those who are more into the dress and the cake and the presents, rather than the sacrament of marriage.
You think the wedding is expensive, just wait for the divorce.
“The cost of a wedding increased by 1.6% to $38,800.”
Mine cost just a few yen . Got married at a ward office in Tokyo and signed paperwork at American Embassy . We had a party with about 50 in attendance about a month later . We got the venue free through my wife’s boss’ connections and the guests paid a minimal fee to attend ( food , drinks , etc ) with no presents rule . So we paid zero . Many of the guests said it was the best wedding party they’d ever been to .
Because it’s worth it.
Correct. And the ‘show’. For the younger crowd, it’s gotten out of control. Attended the wedding of a young professional couple last summer. Holy Crap. Over the top in every respect. I would guess it was easily a $70k affair, not counting the Engagement Party (which was also over the top), and getaway weekend parties in deluxe resort style homes for both the bride and groom and their pals a few weeks prior to the event. So maybe $100k for the whole high-strung shebang. My favorite weddings have, by way of contrast, been held in living rooms (2) and the forest (4). Low budget, classy, great food, and a relaxed atmosphere.
Two new cars.
Why not one new car and one decent 5 year old used car?
Why not two 5 year old decent used cars.
Pumping the newest Demorat propaganda: Affordability!!
I've heard of weddings where the bride demands a four horses-drawn carriage, Cinderella style.
There are a lot of millionaires in America.
As of 2025, there were at least 23.8 million people who fit that description, according to UBS’ latest Global Wealth Report (2). That means 7% of the country’s total population (presently sitting at 341.8 million) or 8.8% of the adult population (269.7 million) is in this elite club, based on the U.S. Census data (3).
But 93% of Americans wish they had one million net worth.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.