Two surveys released Monday provide troubling insight into Americans’ cost of living and overall faith in the country’s economic system.
The first, based on Census data and information from the car shopping app CoPilot, reveals that the cost of a new car has become unaffordable for most Americans.
The conclusion was arrived at by examining the average cost of a new automobile, which has risen substantially since the COVID-19 pandemic. Supply chain issues and a shortage of chips shut down manufacturing in 2020. Pent-up demand surged the next year, driving prices sky high.
The price of a new car has reportedly increased by 30% since 2020 as automakers’ focus on more expensive vehicles with luxury amenities has also played a role in the rising cost. Americans in the used car market are also experiencing sticker shock as the average cost of second hand vehicles has risen 38%.
“Prices saw a substantial run-up in the spring, driven by confident consumers at the upper end of the market, and they never fully recovered,” said Pat Ryan, the CEO of CoPilot. “Across most brands and segments, car prices have barely moved from the levels at which they started the year. When you also factor in multiple interest rate hikes, there were not many deals to be had for car shoppers.”
Meanwhile a new poll finds that an overwhelming majority of Americans believe the so-called “American dream” is only a myth.
The survey asked respondents whether the statement “if you work hard you'll get ahead,” held true in the country in 2024. A full 69% of Americans said it did not.
Included in that number were 18% who said the “American dream” was always a myth.
The figure has changed substantially since the first time the polling firm asked the question in September 2010. Although the survey was conducted in the shadow of the housing crisis and the Great Recession, half of Americans at that time still said the American dream was a reality. Some 43% said it didn’t hold true, and only 4% said it never did.
Since then, much of the financial precarity that was commonplace at the time has become a permanent feature of the US economy, with so-called “gig work” – Uber driving, food delivery, etc. – taking the place of more traditional jobs.
Certain demographics are more pessimistic than others – only 21% of both Black Americans and people between the ages of 18 to 29 believe the American dream holds true. 18% of Americans in households making less than $50,000 annually say it does.
But even only a third of Americans making over $100,000 per year said the American dream is real. A belief in the notion was a minority opinion among every demographic group polled, regardless of race, income, education, or partisan affiliation.
In light of the negative economic picture, world powers are increasingly hedging their bets by ditching the US dollar in global trade and seeking expanded cooperation with countries like Russia and China.