This is a sponsored guest post.
Your parents didn’t have to save for the insane tuition that you’re facing and they didn’t get gouged at the gas pumps the way you do. In fact, they didn’t have to deal with cellphone bills at all. However, there are a few items that are cheaper for you.
Even when you factor in inflation rates, our generation is actually getting a pretty good deal on some of the items that broke our parent’s banks.
Here are a few items that have surprisingly come down in price over the years.
1. Long Distance Calls
Can you remember your parents yelling at you for being on the phone too long on a long distance call? Or, you had to run extra fast to catch a long distance call ring, because it was most likely important.
However, today it’s hard to imagine a phone package that doesn’t include unlimited calls to the US and across Canada. The words “per minute” are not something we really have to worry about unless we’re calling overseas.
… That said, your mom and dad didn’t have to deal with data overages.
3. Televisions
TVs are getting smarter, but they’re also getting cheaper! And we’re not just talking about Black Friday sale prices.
Mid-level TV sets have actually grown more affordable in relation to inflation than most appliances or household items.
A Sony 61 inch TV was $1,799 back in 1999. Today, you can get a Sony 65″ 4K UHD HDR LED Android Smart TV for the same price or less, 20 years later.
3. Bed Mattresses
This has only recently changed as online shopping has disrupted the mattress world. So, your mom actually paid more for her bed than you should be paying today. Shop online and don’t overspend on your mattress by going to a major department store.
Mattresses have gone up in price about 5% per year for the last 20 years. However, that’s for a store-bought mattress. You can get a quality memory foam mattress online for half of what retail stores are charging.
4. Flights
The addition of more flights and bargain airlines, coupled with bargain vacation sites, has made both domestic and international flights more affordable over recent years. So, if you’re looking to take the whole family on a trip, it’s not going to set you back as much as it would have for your parents.
Seasonal and flash sales have made it far easier for the whole family to fly.
5. Music
This is an easy one to calculate. One $17.99 CD in 1999 is now enough for a family plan with Apple Music, Google Play, or Spotify. And streaming sites don’t scratch or skip when you jog.
Yes, we know it’s hard to get any sympathy from a modern mother about how much people used to pay for things. But, it is interesting to see that these 5 things were actually more expensive for our parents. And it’s safe to say that the quality of beds, phone calls, televisions, airplanes and music playing technology has improved over the last 20 years.
However, we’re pretty sure you wouldn’t mind paying 1999 gas, housing, or tuition prices.
