{"id":82406,"date":"2024-03-09T01:15:28","date_gmt":"2024-03-09T09:15:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lenpenzo.com\/blog\/?p=82406"},"modified":"2024-03-12T13:37:41","modified_gmt":"2024-03-12T20:37:41","slug":"black-coffee-9-mar-2024","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lenpenzo.com\/blog\/id82406-black-coffee-9-mar-2024.html","title":{"rendered":"Black Coffee: The Miracle Worker"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"It’s time to sit back, relax and enjoy a little joe …<\/em><\/p>\n

Welcome to another rousing edition of Black Coffee, your off-beat weekly round-up of what’s been going on in the world of money and personal finance.<\/p>\n

I hope everybody had an enjoyable week. Without further ado, let’s get right to this week’s commentary …<\/p>\n

Ingenuity, plus courage, plus work, equals miracles.<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

– Bob Richards<\/strong><\/p>\n

Credits and Debits<\/strong><\/p>\n

Debit:<\/strong><\/span> Did you see this? New car prices in January were down 3.5%<\/a> compared with the same month one year ago; still, the average new car sells for an eye-raising $47,401. It turns out that prices have been trending downward since last September because inventories have climbed 49% over the same period. Wake us up when car insurance premiums, which have risen more than 25%<\/a> in the past year, start falling. Oh … and while you’re at it, wake us up when housing prices begin falling appreciably too\u00a0 …<\/p>\n

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Debit:<\/strong><\/span> Despite the falling prices, US car buyers now need an annual income of $100,000 to comfortably purchase car. The trouble is, the average income of an American household is far less than that. As a result, a new study has found that more than 60% of American households say they can’t afford<\/a> to purchase a new car, including cheaper models like the Toyota Corolla and Nissan Versa. Apparently, that\u2019s because they\u2019re not this<\/strong><\/em> guy:<\/p>\n