72% of Americans Share This Financial Concern. Do You?

Many Americans aren't very happy with their finances lately. In fact, 72% of people responding to a Pew Survey revealed that they were "very concerned" about the prices of both food and consumer goods.

This was from a survey at the start of January 2024, but around the same number of Americans were also very concerned about these costs just a year prior. This suggests that the current prices for food and products have become a persistent, continuing source of financial worry for many.

Should you be concerned about rising costs of consumer goods?

Undoubtedly, as anyone who has been to the grocery store or any store knows, prices are definitely higher now than they were during and before the COVID-19 pandemic.

In the post-pandemic era, supply chain disruptions resulted in costs going up on many of the items consumers need the most, including food and gas. In fact, the inflation rate in 2022 was 8.00%, while the U.S. Federal Reserve normally targets an inflation rate of around 2.00%.

Unfortunately, inflation remains stubborn and persistent, coming in at 4.1% in 2023 and remaining above 3.00% so far in 2024, despite the Federal Reserve (the U.S. central bank) raising interest rates to try to stem the tide of surging costs.

After a period of stimulus payments and low interest rates during the pandemic, most people are now facing more costs with less support from the government, so it's no surprise that people are struggling and feeling the pinch.

It's also no surprise that the level of credit card debt has reached record highs, hitting $1.115 trillion in 2023, according to research conducted by The Motley Fool Ascent. Most people simply can't easily cope with prices rising as much as they have in a few years, especially if the trends don't turn around soon.

What should you do if you're concerned about rising prices?

Unfortunately, if you are concerned about how expensive food and consumer goods have become, there are limited options available to you to actually fix the problem. While you can vote for policymakers who you believe have the best ideas to fight inflation, you can't personally control the global economy or the supply chain, so you just have to deal with the rising prices.

You can, however, try to take steps to make sure they don't hit your own pocketbook as hard. And there are a few ways to do that, including:

• Buying products used when you can so you don't have to pay today's elevated prices for consumer goods. This could include hitting the thrift store for clothing and toys, or even going used for big purchases like vehicles and major appliances.
• Buying less prepared food and eating at home more, rather than dining out. This can help you stretch your food budget further.
• Using coupon apps and shopping grocery store sales flyers to try to reduce what you're spending on food.
• Look into creative solutions, like community gardening, co-ops, or community supported-agriculture. You might even consider buying half a cow (or a whole cow) from a local farmer to stock your freezer, rather than getting meat from the grocery store. (They process it for you, so you don't need to actually put an entire half of a cow in there!)

If you're one of the 72% of Americans who are very concerned with prices right now, these steps could give you a little bit of the wiggle room you need to cope with the difficult economic conditions we're all currently faced with.