Why is our economy so bad (US)?

[Anonymous]

I just came back from Canada. And it was so nice because I could actually afford stuff. And then I come back to the states, and I’m reminded of how bad our economy has gotten. Like I tried telling my girlfriend who lives in Canada, that yeah, though we make more. We also spend so much more on everything! Like 10k is realistically 1k in the US. That’s how bad our economy has gotten!

[Syntosi]

This graph is probably the easiest visual explanation for this:

Of course, this is just one symptom of the overall problem. What has basically happened is that right wing politics has completely failed America. Right now the country is pretty much exclusively for the benefit of rich people, which is doing better than ever before as a result of this. The rich people are fucking loving the current state of the country and they will make sure that you have no power to change it. That did not change under Biden, that will not change under Trump. You need someone to actually implement left wing policies to wring out the wealth from the rich people and have them start contributing to society again before you will see a major improvement.

[DrPepper12]

Excellent analysis @Simslover92!!!

[DrPepper12]

Sorry!! @Syntosi.

[lightbulb27]

CA didn't have biden for 4 years inflating 100-200% and they haven't been funding wars and all kinds of BS globally. In fact they have a trade surplus so they are doing somewhat better.

that is all changing...

Maybe the answer is all that maple syrup... boundless energy?

[Anonymous]

Lol the guy saying we had a decimated energy sector can't even lie well.

https://www.eia.gov/dnav/pet/hist/leafhandler.ashx?n=pet&s=mcrfpus2&f=m

[bellicose]

I don't know, maybe you're just retarded and don't know how to count money. Generally the cost of living in Canadian cities are reasonably higher than American cities of comparable size. That said if you're comparing a city of 2 million people in Canada like Toronto to some much larger Democrat shit hole like Los Angeles that has 18 million people in the greater metro area, then America will be slightly more expensive due to the damage the Democrat governments have caused. Flip it around and go to a mid sized city in Florida and cost of living will be significantly lower than Canada. If you go out into the Midwest, then it would be way cheaper than Canada.

[Asker]

It doesn’t matter. The fact everything has gone up. Everything is a shit hole. Car insurance, health insurance, mortgage rates, new car loans, groceries, etc…. You really missed the whole thing lmao

[bellicose]

Prices have been dropping for me here in Florida.

[Asker]

Really? Gas prices? insurance? Mortgage rates (probably because very few people can actually afford homes, so to make money they have to lower it)? New car prices (it’s the same everywhere in the United States). Car insurance? Health insurance? Groceries? Subscriptions (same everywhere)? Dining? Interest on loans (same everywhere)? Inflation?

[bellicose]

Gas prices have begun to decline. Construction costs have begun to decline, Mortgage rates are technically declining, but nothing major yet to spark the real estate market. I haven't been car shopping for a while so I'm not up to to date on that. I don't have subscriptions, water bills, or electric bills. My internet bill has been pretty stable. I live off grid. Food is about the same as it's been since the middle of Biden's term, but I've been getting tons of free food from my neighbors because charities seem to have an excess at the moment (maybe due to illegal allien deportations. Maybe due to reduced demand for local produce) and a lot of that ends up with my neighbors who volunteer, which gets passed around the neighborhood for free.

[Asker]

BS! Gas prices are almost a dollar higher since 2019. www.eia.gov/.../LeafHandler.ashx

Average home price is 385k. That’s pricy. Source: https://www.zillow.com/home-values/14/fl/

Were you hit on the head? It’s 6.7 percent interest. www.bankrate.com/.../

[Asker]

I will say that living off grid is good. But you’re out of touch on reality for the average person.

[bellicose]

Prices for gasoline were $0.75 higher 6-8 months ago. They are on the decline now that Trump has reduced regulation on oil and gas drilling. The Biden regime drove price up close to two dollars a gallon above Trump's first term.. Building costs have definitely declined. I was going to construct a new building near the end of Trump's first term. Withing a couple months of Biden taking office, quotes on constructing that building went up $150K so I pauced the project for 4 fucking years. Leading up to the election prices were the same and not worth building. After the first month of Trump being in office, the price on the same building construction has declined roughly $125K. I'm now into a contract to move forward with construction and permits of being pulled. So prices have defeinately declined regardless of how hard you want to try to shill propaganda.

[Asker]

Have you thought of construction prices going down because no one has any money? And Biden did suck as president. But Trump is making it even worse. Like I said. You’re out of touch from reality. Also, did you not look at the chart. Inflation.

[bellicose]

My view on declining construction prices are that they are a result of supply and demand. 1) There is a high supply of labor for construction in Florida being that we have been one of the fastest growing areas in the country, but due to high interest rates by the Fed over the past several years demand recently for that construction labor has declined as old cheaper money borrowed at lower interest rates runs out. Thus construction labors must provide competitive bids for labor in order to land a job and keep their company afloat. 2) As construction declines in the real estate market nation wide, there is reduced demand for construction materials. As demand declines for construction materials, the companies that produce said materials may choose to sell materials for lower prices to avoid overstock. 3) As fuel prices decline, transportation costs for materials decline as do fuel costs for heavy equipment operation that is used in construction work. This can lead to lower quotes for earth moving as an example. 4) Trump has introduced policies to increase locally produced construction materials such as south pine which leads to reduced prices in framing lumber and plywood, bring down over all construction costs. So by increasing supply and reducing demand, prices are forced to tumble.

[bellicose]

*bringing

[Asker]

This says the complete opposite of what you just said; www.census.gov/construction/nrs/pdf/price_uc.pdf

[Asker]

www.census.gov/construction/cpi/pdf/descpi_uc.pdf

[Asker]

https://fred.stlouisfed.org/series/PCU44414441

[Asker]

enrcostdata.com/cost-indexes

[Asker]

edzarenski.com/category/inflation-indexing/

[bellicose]

Well then I guess you need to look into the waste, fraud, and abuse of the census department, because I'm currently in a contract to build a new structure on my land with a reputable company that has been in business for over 20 years here in Florida at $125K less than 6 months or so ago. I was about to build at the end of Trumps first term but was trying to put together a little more cash so that I didn't have to take a loan. Then pretty much over night the cost of construction went up $100K, and then it gradually increased for several years until along with construction loan rates under biden and made it not worth building in that economy.. It was about $150K over initial estimates back in 2019 about 6 months ago. Now it's pretty much back down in the 2019 range for me. While it is about $25 more than it would have been in 2019, I have to move forward with my project. I don't think they're doing charity work... They have a business to run.

[bellicose]

* $25K

[bellicose]

That said when it comes to raw land prices, the asking prices are still quite high. In comparison to 2019, raw land is nearly double the price. Real estate prices in Florida in general have slid downwards slightly over the past year as demand has waned due to high interest rates. In my area I've observed about a 10% decline in asking prices of finished homes over Biden era highs. Land does contribute a lot to the end price of a home. Being that I already own many aces pre-Biden era, it's the actual construction cost I am concerned about, not the current finished home prices on new plots of land.

[Asker]

https://youtu.be/6frcm2NlN3I?si=8xtJI6VPamtz-JSY

[exitseven]

We had 4 years of spending money that we did not have then printing more to cover the shortfall. We had decimated the energy sector and had to start buying oil from foreign countries again.

[RedInnocent69]

The President is batshit crazy and doesn’t understand, or rather doesn’t care about, macroeconomics

[trumpetplayerforlife]

Because the country is in so much debt

[seeyounexttuesday]

this is weak and lame trolling

[Asker]

It’s not. My bills alone are 3200 a month. That’s without food. And buying things I want. It’s a sh$t storm in prices.

[seeyounexttuesday]

You need $1,44 Canadian to equal $1. You're factually incorrect.

[Asker]

You got to be joking me. I was there for three weeks. I only spent 1k in US dollars. And that was with eating out everyday and going on tourist trips. 1k in US dollars doesn’t give you sh$t in the US

[Asker]

It’s one thing to compare the US dollar to Canadian. But in terms of living. It’s far different

[seeyounexttuesday]

supply and demand

[Asker]

If that was the case then cars would be cheaper. Because we’re facing the most repossessions ever right now. And dealers have cars that been sitting for more than a year.

[seeyounexttuesday]

so wait. You're claiming that car dealers are setting on a ton of inventory but won't lower prices to get them off their lot? Is that what you're going with?

[Asker]

Yes. An example.

[seeyounexttuesday]

Thanks for admitting you have zero clue how the economy works.

[Asker]

Another example is housing interest rates. Less people are not buying houses because of soaring prices yet more homes are still tripled in price compared to a few years ago. And interest rates high

[seeyounexttuesday]

bruh. you really don't get how it works, do you.

[Asker]

And you? You didn’t even explain anything. 0 clues to know you do

[Asker]

You do? What is it then? Huh Einstein?

[seeyounexttuesday]

Let's make this simple for you. A car dealership that doesn't sell any cars because they're "too expensive" makes no money. The employees of that car dealership don't make any money. They have to pay taxes on the inventory sitting on their lot. There's not a dealership on the planet that wouldn't lower prices if the lack of sales is truly what you describe it as.

Same with home builders.

This is 101 basic stuff.

[Asker]

You don’t know anything. Cars don’t sit in the lot for more than a year. They’re less likely to sell. Wasted space. Look at this: https://fred.stlouisfed.org/series/CUUR0000SETA01

[seeyounexttuesday]

Wait. You're stating, as a point of understanding reality, that car dealerships will let cars rot on the lot instead of dropping the price? You're dumber than I thought.

[seeyounexttuesday]

oh look. YoY auto sales are increasing.

www.marklines.com/.../automotive-sales-in-usa-by-month

[Asker]

You’re so stupid. It’s because of the car prices

[seeyounexttuesday]

ok retard.

[Asker]

www.economy.com/.../seasonally-adjusted

[Asker]

Dumbass you see.

[seeyounexttuesday]

you're maintaining that the dealers will just make $0 rather than lowering prices. The only dumbass is you

[Asker]

I never said that idio

[Asker]

Idiot* sorry typo lol

[Asker]

Why wouldn’t there be a single sale? That’s insane

[seeyounexttuesday]

You're claiming sales are down but prices aren't coming down. I'm explaining to you that this condition can not exist.

[Syntosi]

@seeyounexttuesday
You clearly do not understand how price manipulation works. There are plenty of examples where refusing to sell is economically beneficial to induce artificial low supply. Things like keeping apartments empty or holding cars is normal examples of this.

Your understanding of economics is naively childish.

[seeyounexttuesday]

@Syntosi We've established you're clueless on most things.

[Syntosi]

And yet here you are, thinking that reality works like a game mechanic or something. That supply and demand can't be manipulated or that it is some kind of force of nature.

Have you perchance been to New York? Have you walked the streets recently to see the lines upon lines of empty establishments lining its streets? Tell me something, why do you think the price for renting these locations has not dropped in years upon years of being totally abandoned? Why do you think that the market is not responding to the increasing supply?

[seeyounexttuesday]

@Syntosi I can tell you've never owned anything in your life. If you buy a building for $10,000,000 you need $X per square foot to make a profit. Assuming you paid a fair price for the building you can only lower the rent too much where you won't cover your variable costs, much less the loan. You can write off the losses on taxes, so if you have multiple buildings that can offset your tax burden.

[Syntosi]

"You're claiming sales are down but prices aren't coming down." - Some dickass in 2025

[seeyounexttuesday]

@Syntosi newsflash. Real estate is entirely different from consumer goods.

[Syntosi]

Uhuh? So you see no parallels with for example cars not being sold?

[seeyounexttuesday]

@Syntosi NO, but then again, I understand economics.

[Syntosi]

Sounds more like you are religiously fetizishing capitalism. Kinda creepy actually.

[seeyounexttuesday]

@Syntosi only because you're a sexual deviant so you try to project it on others.

[Syntosi]

More that I see the economy for what it actually is, a system, where as you are weirdly fixated on the ideology of it.

[seeyounexttuesday]

@Syntosi Right , a system you don’t understand.

[Syntosi]

Says the person who can't wrap their heads around sales going down without price coming down as well, even when they so magnanimously accepted that in relations to real-estate with the argument that "Real estate is entirely different from consumer goods."

[seeyounexttuesday]

@Syntosi You’re claiming the commercial real estate market is the same as a consumer good market, you’re dumber than I thought

[Syntosi]

I am claiming it is a capitalist system that works under the same rules as any other capitalist system.

[seeyounexttuesday]

@Syntosi Right and you’re incorrect. Blatantly.

[Syntosi]

Riight.

[seeyounexttuesday]

@Syntosi you really keep outing yourself as someone who has no idea how business works. Are you like a walmart greeter or something?

[Syntosi]

And you keep outing yourself as someone who believes they understand something but in reality becomes victim of the Dunning-Kruger effect.

[seeyounexttuesday]

@Syntosi I absolutely understand different industries operate differently and the laws of supply and demand are real. You fail to grasp these 101 concepts.

[Syntosi]

"Different industries operate differently". I literally dont care. We are not talking about industries here. We are talking about basic human behavior and math. Something that applies to every industry and market.

[seeyounexttuesday]

@Syntosi yeah, basic human behavior and math dictates that if a product isn't selling you don't keep the price higher than a consumer will pay.

[seeyounexttuesday]

A 10 year old with a lemonade stand gets this concept.

[Syntosi]

Do I have to bring up the real estates market again?

[seeyounexttuesday]

@Syntosi if you ran a lemonade stand and couldn't sell your lemonade for $2 a glass what would you do?

[Syntosi]

Depends on what my business strategy was. For example, if I lower the price then I also change the expectations of my customers as well as their perception of the quality of my lemonade.

[seeyounexttuesday]

@Syntosi Is your business strategy to lose money?

[Syntosi]

Lowering the cost would be losing potential profit. It would mean I had to work more and sell more to get the same amount of profit. As a business owner that is highly inadvisable.

[seeyounexttuesday]

@Syntosi What is your profit when your sales are 0?

[Syntosi]

There are other ways to improve sales than to hurt your profitability. In fact, lowering the price is by far the worst case scenario where I would consider even suspending the business for a long period of time to be preferable to lowering the price and by extension hurting the product.

[seeyounexttuesday]

@Syntosi So the money you invested in lemons and sugar is a negative on your bank account.

[Syntosi]

And if I lower the price then I would have to work harder and spend more money to make the same amount. Furthermore, my profit margin would be hit and I would have even bigger issues increasing the price in the future when inflation eats further into my profits. Also this gives my customers the impression that my lemonade is of lower quality and that my business is doing poorly.

I might continue to sell lemonade for a while longer by lowering my price but fundamentally it hurts my business and there are better ways to do it with a proper business strategy.

[seeyounexttuesday]

@Syntosi I’d almost like to see you open a business to see what a failure you’d be.

[Syntosi]

Likewise.

[Anonymous]

Lmfo what? Is the (US) economy bad?

[Asker]

Yes, it has been. I say we’re in a recession. But nobody wants to say it.

[Opinion Owner]

Many countries' economies are even worse than those of the usa. I think you should learn to thank god a little more. 🙄

[Asker]

I have family in Mexico, they’re all doing better than me right now. My uncle is poor but owns a business, and has a wife and kids. And has a house. I have a house, and no wife or kids. And can’t even imagine affording what he has. We’re f&cked

[Opinion Owner]

I understand. Then it seems more logical for you to go back to mexico. Instead of staying in the usa. and complaining about the high cost of living, you can at least make a small life for yourself in your own country.

[Asker]

I was born here. You can go back to any colonizing country you came from if you’re complaining about people having FREEDOM OF SPEECH

[Opinion Owner]

Thank God my country has never been COLONIZED by another country. 😏 I just gave you some advice. You are free to talk about whatever you want; it doesn't concern me anyway.

[Asker]

Nice of you to block my last message. Exactly, you don’t like freedom of speech

[GAGsucksballs89170]

Trumps tax cuts, for the rich