Cost of living

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Visualisation of Numbeo's 2023 cost of living index by country. Visualisation of Numbeo's Cost of Living Index by Country in 2023.jpg
Visualisation of Numbeo's 2023 cost of living index by country.

The cost of living is the cost of maintaining a certain standard of living for an individual or a household. Changes in the cost of living over time can be measured in a cost-of-living index. Cost of living calculations are also used to compare the cost of maintaining a certain standard of living in different geographic areas. Differences in the cost of living between locations can be measured in terms of purchasing power parity rates. A sharp rise in the cost of living can trigger a cost of living crisis, [1] where purchasing power is lost and, for some people, their previous lifestyle is no longer affordable.

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The link between income and health is well-established. [2] Cost of living pressures may lead to household energy insecurity or fuel poverty as well as housing stress. [2]

Definition

Cost of living is the cost of maintaining a certain standard of living. Changes in the cost of living over time can be operationalized in a cost-of-living index. Cost of living calculations can be used to compare the cost of maintaining a certain standard of living in different geographic areas. Differences in cost of living between locations can be measured in terms of purchasing power parity rates.

Major components of the cost of living include food, housing costs and energy. [1] Energy costs include heating, light and cooking costs. In the United Kingdom, about 18% of an average home's energy costs relate to the cost of heating water. [3]

Cost-of-living adjustment (COLA)

Employment contracts and pension benefits can be tied to a cost-of-living index, typically to the consumer price index (CPI). A COLA adjusts salaries based on changes in a cost-of-living index. Salaries are typically adjusted annually. They may also be tied to a cost-of-living index that varies by geographic location if the employee moves. In this latter case, the expatriate employee will likely see only the discretionary income part of their salary indexed by a differential CPI between the new and old employment locations, leaving the non-discretionary part of the salary (e.g., mortgage payments, insurance, car payments) unmodified.

Annual escalation clauses in employment contracts can specify retroactive or future percentage increases in worker pay which are not tied to any index. These negotiated increases in pay are colloquially referred to as cost-of-living adjustments or cost-of-living increases because of their similarity to increases tied to externally determined indexes. The cost-of-living allowance is equal to the nominal interest minus the real interest rate.

Consumer Price Index (CPI)

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M2 % change from a year ago
Consumer price index Inflation M2 CPI.webp
   M2  % change from a year ago

When cost-of-living adjustments, negotiated wage settlements and budgetary increases exceed CPI, media reports frequently compare the two without consideration of the pertinent tax code. However, CPI is based on the retail pricing of a basket of goods and services. Most purchases of that same basket require the use of after-tax dollars—dollars that were often subject to the highest marginal tax rate. Consequently, the COLA will necessarily have to exceed the CPI inflation rate to maintain purchasing power. [4]

The widely recognized problem known as bracket creep can also occur in countries where the marginal tax brackets themselves are not indexed — COLA increases simply place more dollars into higher tax rate brackets. Only under a flat tax system would a percentage gain on gross income translate into a comparable inflation-offsetting gain at the after-tax level.

Some salaries and pensions in the United States with a COLA include:

Pensions in Canada with a COLA include:

Social security benefits

United States

Social security benefits in the United States receive cost-of-living adjustments (COLAs) to match increases in the Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers (CPI-W). They can also receive funds from public charities for specific issues. The COLAs are made at most annually and are calculated based on the value of the CPI-W in the third quarter of the year (averaging the values from July, August, and September). COLAs can only increase benefits, so in deflationary years when the CPI-W drops there is no COLA. [6]

Worldwide survey

The Economist Intelligence Unit produces a semi-annual (twice yearly) worldwide cost of living survey that compares more than 400 individual prices across 160 products and services. They include food, drink, clothing, household supplies and personal care items, home rents, transport, utility bills, private schools, domestic help and recreational costs.

The survey itself is an internet tool designed to calculate cost-of-living allowances and build compensation packages for corporate executives maintaining a western lifestyle. The survey incorporates easy-to-understand comparative cost of living indices between cities. The survey allows city-to-city comparisons, but for the purpose of this report all cities are compared to a base city of New York City, which has an index set at 100. The survey has been carried out for more than 30 years.

The most recent survey was published in March 2017. Singapore remains the most expensive city in the world for the fourth year running, in a rare occurrence where the entire top five most expensive cities were unchanged from the year prior. [7] Sydney and Melbourne have both cemented their positions as top-ten staples, with Sydney becoming the fifth most expensive, and Melbourne becoming the sixth. Asia is home to more than five most expensive cities in the top twenty but also home to eight cheapest cities of the cheapest ten.

Rising cost of living

The Histadrut worker's union in Israel holding a cost of living protest in 1980. The Histadrut workers union, organized a anniversary against the low wages of the workers and the high cost of living (FL62936306).jpg
The Histadrut worker's union in Israel holding a cost of living protest in 1980.

Larry Summers estimated in 2007 that the lower 80% of families were receiving $664 billion less income than they would be with a 1979 income distribution, or approximately $7,000 per family. [8] Not receiving this income may have led many families to increase their debt burden, a significant factor in the 2007–2009 subprime mortgage crisis, as highly leveraged homeowners suffered a much larger reduction in their net worth during the crisis. Further, since lower income families tend to spend relatively more of their income than higher income families, shifting more of the income to wealthier families may slow economic growth. [9] [ specify ]

The 2022 World Inequality Report, a four-year research project organized by the economists Lucas Chancel, Thomas Piketty, Emmanuel Saez, and Gabriel Zucman, shows that "the world is marked by a very high level of income inequality and an extreme level of wealth inequality". [10] According to the report, the bottom half of the population owns 2% of global wealth, while the top 10% owns 76% of it. The top 1% owns 38%. [11] [12]

Other uses

Stipends or extra pay provided to employees who are being temporarily relocated may also be called cost-of-living adjustments or cost-of-living allowances. Such adjustments are intended to offset changes in welfare due to geographic differences in the cost of living. Such adjustments might more accurately be described as a per diem allowance or tied to a specific item, as with housing allowances. Employees who are being permanently relocated are less likely to receive such allowances, but may receive a base salary adjustment to reflect local market conditions.

A non-taxable cost-of-living allowance is frequently given to members of the U.S. military stationed at overseas bases if the area to which a service member is assigned has a higher cost of living than the average area in the United States. For example, service members stationed in Japan receive a cost of living allowance of between $300 and $700 per month (depending on pay grade, years of service, and number of dependents), in addition to their base pay.

See also

Specific:

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Inflation</span> Devaluation of currency over a period of time

In economics, inflation is a general increase in the prices of goods and services in an economy. This is usually measured using the consumer price index (CPI). When the general price level rises, each unit of currency buys fewer goods and services; consequently, inflation corresponds to a reduction in the purchasing power of money. The opposite of CPI inflation is deflation, a decrease in the general price level of goods and services. The common measure of inflation is the inflation rate, the annualized percentage change in a general price index. As prices faced by households do not all increase at the same rate, the consumer price index (CPI) is often used for this purpose.

Purchasing power parity (PPP) is a measure of the price of specific goods in different countries and is used to compare the absolute purchasing power of the countries' currencies. PPP is effectively the ratio of the price of a market basket at one location divided by the price of the basket of goods at a different location. The PPP inflation and exchange rate may differ from the market exchange rate because of tariffs, and other transaction costs.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Consumer price index</span> Statistic to indicate the change in typical household expenditure

A consumer price index (CPI) is a price index, the price of a weighted average market basket of consumer goods and services purchased by households. Changes in measured CPI track changes in prices over time. The CPI is calculated by using a representative basket of goods and services. The basket is updated periodically to reflect changes in consumer spending habits. The prices of the goods and services in the basket are collected monthly from a sample of retail and service establishments. The prices are then adjusted for changes in quality or features. Changes in the CPI can be used to track inflation over time and to compare inflation rates between different countries. The CPI is not a perfect measure of inflation or the cost of living, but it is a useful tool for tracking these economic indicators.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Progressive tax</span> Form of tax

A progressive tax is a tax in which the tax rate increases as the taxable amount increases. The term progressive refers to the way the tax rate progresses from low to high, with the result that a taxpayer's average tax rate is less than the person's marginal tax rate. The term can be applied to individual taxes or to a tax system as a whole. Progressive taxes are imposed in an attempt to reduce the tax incidence of people with a lower ability to pay, as such taxes shift the incidence increasingly to those with a higher ability-to-pay. The opposite of a progressive tax is a regressive tax, such as a sales tax, where the poor pay a larger proportion of their income compared to the rich.

Indexation is a technique to adjust income payments by means of a price index, in order to maintain the purchasing power of the public after inflation, while deindexation is the unwinding of indexation. It is often used to make sure regular payments, such as pension payments keep pace with inflation, so that they have the same value in real terms over time.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Affordability of housing in the United Kingdom</span> Housing affordability in the UK

The affordability of housing in the UK reflects the ability to rent or buy property. There are various ways to determine or estimate housing affordability. One commonly used metric is the median housing affordability ratio; this compares the median price paid for residential property to the median gross annual earnings for full-time workers. According to official government statistics, housing affordability worsened between 2020 and 2021, and since 1997 housing affordability has worsened overall, especially in London. The most affordable local authorities in 2021 were in the North West, Wales, Yorkshire and The Humber, West Midlands and North East.

In the United Kingdom, the Retail Prices Index or Retail Price Index (RPI) is a measure of inflation published monthly by the Office for National Statistics. It measures the change in the cost of a representative sample of retail goods and services.

In statistics, economics, and finance, an index is a statistical measure of change in a representative group of individual data points. These data may be derived from any number of sources, including company performance, prices, productivity, and employment. Economic indices track economic health from different perspectives. Examples include the consumer price index, which measures changes in retail prices paid by consumers, and the cost-of-living index (COLI), which measures the relative cost of living over time.

Per diem or daily allowance is a specific amount of money that an organization gives an individual, typically an employee, per day to cover living expenses when travelling on the employer's business.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Affordable housing</span> Housing affordable to those with a median household income

Affordable housing is housing which is deemed affordable to those with a household income at or below the median as rated by the national government or a local government by a recognized housing affordability index. Most of the literature on affordable housing refers to mortgages and a number of forms that exist along a continuum – from emergency homeless shelters, to transitional housing, to non-market rental, to formal and informal rental, indigenous housing, and ending with affordable home ownership.

A novated lease is a motor vehicle lease which has been novated, that is, the obligations in the contract have been transferred from one party to another.

United States military pay is money paid to members of the United States Armed Forces. The amount of pay varies according to the member's rank, time in the military, location duty assignment, and by some special skills the member may have.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">United States Consumer Price Index</span> Statistics of the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics

The United States Consumer Price Index (CPI) is a family of various consumer price indices published monthly by the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). The most commonly used indices are the CPI-U and the CPI-W, though many alternative versions exist for different uses. For example, the CPI-U is the most popularly cited measure of consumer inflation in the United States, while the CPI-W is used to index Social Security benefit payments.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Income in the United Kingdom</span>

Median household disposable income in the UK was £29,400 in the financial year ending (FYE) 2019, up 1.4% (£400) compared with growth over recent years; median income grew by an average of 0.7% per year between FYE 2017 and FYE 2019, compared with 2.8% between FYE 2013 and FYE 2017.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Middle-class squeeze</span> Decline in middle-class real wages and increase in economic inequality

The middle-class squeeze refers to negative trends in the standard of living and other conditions of the middle class of the population. Increases in wages fail to keep up with inflation for middle-income earners, leading to a relative decline in real wages, while at the same time, the phenomenon fails to have a similar effect on the top wage earners. People belonging to the middle class find that inflation in consumer goods and the housing market prevent them from maintaining a middle-class lifestyle, undermining aspirations of upward mobility.

Cost of Living Allowance (COLA) is an entitlement given to military servicemen and women United States military living in high-cost areas or stationed overseas. It is intended to compensate service members for the high cost of living at certain duty stations. COLA is also given to other US government employees living abroad, dependent upon agency.

According to the law, the term adjustment may appear in varied contexts, as a synonym for terms with unrelated definitions:

The United States Chained Consumer Price Index (C-CPI-U), also known as chain-weighted CPI or chain-linked CPI is a time series measure of price levels of consumer goods and services created by the Bureau of Labor Statistics as an alternative to the US Consumer Price Index. It is based on the idea that when prices of different goods change at different rates, consumers will adjust their purchasing patterns by purchasing more of products whose relative prices have declined and fewer of those whose relative price has increased. This reduces the cost of living reported, but has no change on the cost of living; it is simply a way of accounting for a microeconomic "substitution effect." The "fixed weight" CPI also takes such substitutions into account, but does so through a periodic adjustment of the "basket of goods" that it represents, rather than through a continuous adjustment in that basket. Application of the chained CPI to federal benefits has been controversially proposed to reduce the federal deficit.

Since late 2021, the prices for many essential goods in the United Kingdom began increasing faster than household incomes, resulting in a fall in real incomes. The phenomenon has been termed a cost-of-living crisis. This is caused in part by a rise in inflation in both the UK and the world in general, as well as the economic impact of issues such as the COVID-19 pandemic, Russia's invasion of Ukraine and Brexit. While all in the UK are affected by rising prices, it most substantially affects low-income persons. The British government has responded in various ways such as grants, tax rebates, and subsidies to electricity and gas suppliers.

References

  1. 1 2 "What the cost of living crisis looks like around the world". International Rescue Committee. 7 May 2024. Retrieved 15 July 2024.
  2. 1 2 Broadbent, Philip; Thomson, Rachel; Kopasker, Daniel; McCartney, Gerry; Meier, Petra; Richiardi, Matteo; McKee, Martin; Vittal Katikireddi, Srinivasa (27 April 2023). "The public health implications of the cost-of-living crisis: outlining mechanisms and modelling consequences". The Lancet Regional Health - Europe. 27. doi:10.1016/j.lanepe.2023.100585. PMC   10068020 . PMID   37035237.
  3. Yorkshire Water (2024), Summer of Saving
  4. "CPI Home : U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics". www.bls.gov. Retrieved September 30, 2019.
  5. 1 2 Flanagan, Tammy (September 8, 2006). "COLA Wars". National Journal Group. Archived from the original on October 5, 2008. Retrieved September 23, 2008.
  6. "Cost-of-Living Adjustment (COLA) Information". Social Security. Social Security Administration. Retrieved August 11, 2021.
  7. "Singapore Maintains Top Spot as World's Costliest City". Bloomberg. March 3, 2015.
  8. Larry Summers. "Harness market forces to share prosperity" . Retrieved September 21, 2015.
  9. Mian, Atif; Sufi, Amir (2014). House of Debt. University of Chicago. ISBN   978-0-226-08194-6.
  10. Elliott, Larry (December 7, 2021). "Global inequality 'as marked as it was at peak of western imperialism'". The Guardian . Retrieved December 8, 2021.
  11. Kaplan, Juliana; Kiersz, Andy (December 7, 2021). "A huge study of 20 years of global wealth demolishes the myth of 'trickle-down' and shows the rich are taking most of the gains for themselves". Business Insider . Retrieved December 8, 2021.
  12. "World Inequality Report 2022" . Retrieved December 8, 2021.