It's my anecdote, which is every bit as valid as your anecdote. I don't know or really care how much my employer pays for the health insurance. My pay went up,

It's my anecdote, which is every bit as valid as your anecdote. I don't know or really care how much my employer pays for the health insurance. My pay went up, not down, when they started paying 100% of health insurance. I skip most car and house insurance, getting it only for liability. I'll take a risk on the cars or house needing to be replaced. I pay $266 per month for property taxes. The house is a nice upgrade too. Over the years I have gradually upgraded from living near a heroin dealer and hearing gunshots at night, to a really peaceful street near the beach. I'm just not seeing the inflation. Even if I look around town at the cheap apartments, those are affordable. They go for $800 to $1200 per month here, which is not much more than I was paying 20 years ago. They can go for half that in many locations, such as near Dayton, OH.