Everything is so expensive these days! But some things should be cheap and affordable, says Netizens. Some things should be cheap and affordable because they are a necessity and don’t cost much to make or provide. Capitalism makes it expensive.
Absurdly Overpriced
There are so many things in this world that are severely overpriced. After someone searches the internet for the best examples, these are the top-voted responses.
1. Living Life
We get up, go to work to make money, then use that money to put a roof over our heads and food in our stomachs. The process is the same every day, so when do we get to live?
It is a question many people in this Reddit thread are asking themselves. One shared, “Brought here against my will and then have to work every day to keep my head a little above the water.”
Related: Living Your Best Life: Practical Tips To Live Your Best Life
2. Feminine Products
“They should be free. Bleeding is involuntary,” replied one. “Plenty of doctors’ offices and clinics give out free condoms. They should do the same with period products.”
Not everyone would agree. While it is an involuntary bodily function, one could argue that other toiletries should also be complementary. But the question isn’t whether it should be free. The question was, shouldn’t it be cheaper?
3. Therapy
Therapy can be beneficial for some—a way to work out depression, anxieties, etc. However, many noted, “But it can be costly, and many of us can not afford it.” So we must find other ways to cope or alienate our friends trying to work out our issues with them.
One user confessed, “My psychiatrist reluctantly prescribed me meds with the intention I seek therapy. I keep telling him I’m too poor and maybe this summer. But I’ll never be able to afford $200 a session to talk to someone.”
4. Education
Some in the thread wondered if getting your degree is even worth going into debt, especially with the information at your fingertips for free. One user said, “Online, you have all the best experts in each field online. For example, I can now listen to a lecture from Stephen Hawking for free.”
But everything you learn online will not get you the degree you need. And if you want a higher education, you’ll spend even more money. Another added, “It’s more difficult and expensive to get an elite MBA or something.”
5. Housing
Housing can be expensive compared to wages and all the bills that come with it, power, sewer, etc. So we are told to make more money or move to the city’s outskirts. But this is not practical advice.
Someone asked, “Am I supposed to live in the middle of nowhere and commute daily?” Another inquired, “If it were so easy just to make more money, wouldn’t a person already be doing that?”
6. Having Children
Children are a blessing. They bring so much joy and enrich your life. But the care a mother needs during those nine months, from prenatal vitamins, ultrasounds, and birthing, can be pretty costly.
One Redditor semi-jokingly said, “Doctors be like Congratulations! It’s $20,000!” With a total cost ranging from $20,000 to $50,000, a person must have excellent insurance to avoid debt before their child is even born.
Related: 78 Free Kid’s Activity Ideas: Affordable, Educational and Fun
7. Healthcare
In several countries, healthcare can be expensive and out of reach for many people, especially those without insurance or limited coverage. Many employers offer insurance, which helps, but with coverage of 60%, some needed procedures can still medically bankrupt you.
8. Healthy Food
When watching your budget, the grocery bill is usually the first place a person will start cutting costs. For example, an organic fruit can be as high as 82% more expensive than a non-organic one. So it’s easiest to get the non-organic, to save some money.
But what about on those busy nights, you’ve worked late, and you don’t have time to go home and cook a meal for the family, so you stop at the fast food place? One volunteered, “I stopped at a burger joint, and I could buy three $1 burgers and spend $3, or three $5 salads for $15.”
Related: 5 Ways To Eat Healthy Food on a Budget
9. Life-Saving Medicine
Some illnesses, like diabetes, severe allergies, cancer, etc., require medicine that you need to survive. Unfortunately, in some parts of the world, you would not be able to afford those medications without excellent healthcare coverage.
One explained, “I had to buy an epi-pen for my daughter. I settled for the generic one for $350 because I didn’t have the $700 to cover the cost of the name brand.”
10. Happiness
One user wrote, “I’m not sure happiness is that expensive. I’ve had the good fortune to travel, including places where people do not have much money, and I’ve seen happy people who get by the whole month with what most of us would spend on a coffee in a day.”
“And I have met people who are miserable and stressed who make more money this month than I’d make in a year. So measuring your happiness in monetary terms is a sure way to be unhappy no matter how much money you have.
Still, determining if this even belongs on the list because does money buy happiness? Of course, it can help buy things that make you happy, but one can be happy without money.”
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We hope you enjoyed this Reddit discussion about things that should be cheap and affordable.
This post originally appeared on A Dime Saved
A Dime Saved
Hi! I am a millennial mom with a passion for personal finance. I have always been “into” personal finance but got inspired to start my blog after a period of extended unemployment. That experience really changed the way I viewed my relationship with money and the importance of accessible personal finance education.