Make your coffee at home, they said. You’ll retire sooner without a daily Starbucks run cutting into your 401(k) contributions. But small indulgences aren’t the thing standing between many Americans and a comfortable retirement. That would be structural problems like the high cost of housing, wages that haven’t kept pace with inflation, and a fraying social safety net.
Also, have you seen how much coffee beans cost? Coffee prices are up 18.5% year over year, according to the latest government data. Inflation has come for our caffeine fix, whether we brew at home or take it to go.
My household has started buying whatever coffee brand is on sale. Mind you, this is just to shave a few dollars off our grocery bill, not because it’s going to help us retire any sooner. For a fighting chance at that, you need the right kind of investments. Some pros like sectors of the stock market, such as real estate, that can raise their prices with inflation. Bonds and cash alone aren’t going to cut it.
Coffee prices are the least of our problems. We buy whatever is on sale at the Dollar General up the road in St. Leonard. If the cost of coffee is messing up your retirement, you didn't plan right.
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