What has sticker shocked you?

[Scanner]

I was wondering, since this is a forum of um, ahem, "frugal" people, if you went to shop for something and were sticker shocked by anything.

I'll confess. . .kitchens.

My jaw drops at what kitchens cost to make improvements (my kitchen is pretty run down). Floors, tiles, backsplashes, counters. . .easy to spend a LOT of money.

It's one of those things I don't think SHOULD cost that much but do. (thus the shock part).

Any other things?

[bjl584]

I'm currently planning a vacation.

It's shocking to see what plane tickets, condo rentals, and rental cars cost.

It's my first real vacation in a while, so I must be out of touch to how much everything costs.

[disneysteve]

Funny that you mention kitchens. We took delivery today on our new refrigerator. We were surprised when we went shopping at how costly they have gotten. My wife was expecting to spend $600 or so. I was figuring $1,000. We were lucky to get away for $1,200.

The problem isn't so much that refrigerators have gotten more expensive but rather that they've gotten fancier and fancier with more bells and whistles: ice maker, filtered water, LED displays, multi-level doors where you can open just one section or the entire door, and numerous other things. Plus almost everything is stainless steel which costs more. We really had to search to find one that was white, not stainless, and had no unnecessary extras. We got one with no ice maker, no water dispenser, no fancy stuff. Had we gotten what apparently is a "normal" fridge today, we would have spent closer to $2,000.

[disneysteve]

I'm currently planning a vacation.

condo rentals

I'm surprised by that. We find condo rentals to be a great alternative to hotels which have gotten a lot more expensive. Relatively low end hotels like Fairfield Inn, Holiday Inn Express, etc. used to be $69 or $79. Now it's tough to find a room for under $100.

Bridge/Highway tolls: We were driving home from vacation the other day and came to a toll and my wife noticed that it was $8.00. She was shocked. We have EZ Pass so tend not to even think about the cost but it has really gotten expensive in a lot of places.

[Green43]

The cost for the four of us to eat at Mcdonalds..

[hamchan]

Most produce prices have gone up where I live, and the only things they put on sale are things that are normally super expensive anyway, like organic raspberries. The cheaper produce rarely goes on sale.

[Scanner]

DisneySteve,

I just bought a fridge yesterday for initial cost $663, but cubic feet was on the small side, 18 cubic feet. No ice maker. Just a basic black (dishwasher and stove are black). That was with a $70 delivery charge.

$50 Energy Star rebate through NJ.
$50 recycling rebate cause old fridge was barely working.

TOTAL COST: $553

But yeah, the nook it goes in my house is pretty small so that's why I HAD to get a lower end fridge. Most people have some room to play with that.

[Scanner]

@ BJ:

Ya know. . .I am thinking of a cruise, and that's just the opposite. You see 4 day Caribbean cruises on carnival for $169.

But, then. . .you have to about double that for this tax, this port fee, this and that.

Tickets to Miami from Atlantic City were about what I expected, about $180 by the time you add in all of their fees beyond "fare." (oh, but the fare is only $93, lol)

So, really a cruise for 2 per person ends up breaking down like this:

$400 for cruise (sharing cabin obviously but they still charge you per person)
$200 for plane ticket
$250 for incidentals (tips, land tours, etc.)

So, more like $850 per person.

[wjcalderon]

Beef!
I just bought a roast for $3.99 a pound and that was a great sale. Not too long ago, it would have been $1.99.
Ground beef for over $4.00?
Outrageous!!

[jIM_Ohio]

Funny that you mention kitchens. We took delivery today on our new refrigerator. We were surprised when we went shopping at how costly they have gotten. My wife was expecting to spend $600 or so. I was figuring $1,000. We were lucky to get away for $1,200.

The problem isn't so much that refrigerators have gotten more expensive but rather that they've gotten fancier and fancier with more bells and whistles: ice maker, filtered water, LED displays, multi-level doors where you can open just one section or the entire door, and numerous other things. Plus almost everything is stainless steel which costs more. We really had to search to find one that was white, not stainless, and had no unnecessary extras. We got one with no ice maker, no water dispenser, no fancy stuff. Had we gotten what apparently is a "normal" fridge today, we would have spent closer to $2,000.

There is an economics term for this- forgot what the term is, but basically its adding technology increases the cost where as the technology to build the widget is actually cheaper.

Cars, for example. The automotive companies charge more even though they can actually build cars for less, and they add new technology to car, even though the new technology has less value added to the experience.

I get sticker shock looking at restaurant menus, appliances, remodels and much more.

I look at the cost differently though

Cost is what you PAY
Value is what you RECEIVE

when I focus on the value of remodeling my bathroom, that easily justified the cost to do it.

[disneysteve]

There is an economics term for this- forgot what the term is, but basically its adding technology increases the cost where as the technology to build the widget is actually cheaper.

Cars, for example. The automotive companies charge more even though they can actually build cars for less, and they add new technology to car, even though the new technology has less value added to the experience.

This is so true. It's great when they add safety technology like ABS, traction control, etc., but when they load the car up with crap just for the heck of it, all it does is boost the price. There is no reason why there can't be a $10,000 new car on the market today.

[disneysteve]

hotels which have gotten a lot more expensive.

I was reminded by this again last night. We left our house because of no heat and went to a hotel. I searched for a while before I found something reasonable. I was either finding lower end nice hotels (Fairfield Inn level) at $120- $140/night or sleazy motels (Motel 6, Super 8) for $60/night. I finally found something in between and booked a couple of nights at a Comfort Inn for $85 but that mid-range price point seems to be harder and harder to find.

[jIM_Ohio]

I was reminded by this again last night. We left our house because of no heat and went to a hotel. I searched for a while before I found something reasonable. I was either finding lower end nice hotels (Fairfield Inn level) at $120- $140/night or sleazy motels (Motel 6, Super 8) for $60/night. I finally found something in between and booked a couple of nights at a Comfort Inn for $85 but that mid-range price point seems to be harder and harder to find.

They key is to know the brands and what they stand for-

Residence Inns always have a sitting room, frig and stove, and they are often similar in price to a Fairfield Inn, yet the Residence Inns also have a breakfast and happy hour. Holiday Inn Express also has a free breakfast- so knowing what comes with certain higher end brands can help stretch a dollar a little.

Granted $40 extra for free food is not quite where value is.

[Scanner]

Well, you CAN get a car on the cheap or not loaded up, but the problem is this:

A. Dealers make their money on "packaging". . .we'll load all the cars on the lot up with the Sports Package upgrades that come with doo-hickeys. And make their profit on that. So car cost don't really go down.

B. Dealers rarely carry a car that's basic or basic bones (manual shift for instance, which I would be willing to buy)

which leads to

C. My plight. The fan blower on my 2003 Chevy Venture broke yesterday so I am driving around without heat/defroster on Jan 14th in damp, cold NJ. I need a car now. I am not sure sinking $500-800 into to fix it makes sense.

I can't factory order (which does mean paying over invoice) to just get a stripped down new car.

So I go used and try to deal. yeah, you always lose, but the system does conspire against the consumer.

The internet has helped some.

[Scanner]

I was reminded by this again last night. We left our house because of no heat and went to a hotel. I searched for a while before I found something reasonable. I was either finding lower end nice hotels (Fairfield Inn level) at $120- $140/night or sleazy motels (Motel 6, Super 8) for $60/night. I finally found something in between and booked a couple of nights at a Comfort Inn for $85 but that mid-range price point seems to be harder and harder to find.

This is essentially a microcosm of our economy.

Some consultants in my profession of chiropractic, which to a large extent is discretionary to a family's budget (sometimes discretionary, sometimes not when acute) have advised this - to mimic other retail:

WHO'S DOING WELL IN 2015

a. Dollar General
b. Family Dollar (lower class/poor/EBT cards)
c. Walmart

d. Nordstroms
e. Tiffanys (rich, upper class)

WHO'S NOT DOING WELL

a. JC Penny
b. Sears (middle class)
c. Macys

they are advising us to pick your poison - cater your financial policies to the poor, or to the very rich. There is no middle class anymore.

So, DisneySteve. . .it's either Residence Inn or Ritz Carlton or Motel 6 (I must not keep great co., because I have always thought Motel 6 fine, lol)