With college on the horizon for many high school seniors, it’s expected for many to worry about the cost of attending a quality university. Universities publish numbers that include dorm costs, meal plans, tuition and fees.  What these universities fail to report is the cost of life.  Schools tell potential applicants the minimum necessary dollars required to live without acquiring an avalanche of student debt.  However, it’s at this point in life where many people begin to see that the American Dream costs quite the pretty penny.  And for some who are not attending college, those realities must be born in hand immediately after shaking Mrs. Morris’ hand at commencement.

USA Today published what they believe to be the estimated annual cost for the average American family of four (two adults, two children). Life’s basic necessities including, median housing expenses, groceries, car expenses, medical expenses, education expenses, apparel, and the household utilities all cost around $58,500 dollars yearly. Note that this is merely for the essentials to live as an average family based on the research of the media outlet.  Can this be done cheaper?  The answer is yes.  Are you going to be supporting a family of four at the age of twenty?  Likely not.  But millennials with foresight are seeing some daunting numbers on the horizon.  Besides, USA Today’s numbers suppose cost for mere essentials.

So, let’s throw in a couple of extras that makes a family healthy. Family summer vacation, entertainment, restaurants, cable, satellite and cell phone, can all add up to be a whopping $17,000 dollars a year.

And let’s not forget about our taxes, college savings and necessary retirement funding tool the 401k (without which our generation will be at the mercy of savings and social security when we come to retire).  These figures can tack on some $55,000 dollars a year.

Added up, the average American household of four needs to have an average income of $130,500 dollars per year.  Again, these are median numbers provided by USA Today and many will argue that we can live more cheaply.  The question for those entering the workforce is “Will we?”

Now let’s take a look at how many Americans actually make that much money a year. According to a CNN article published August of this year, the mean income of the typical American household is $53,891.

But let’s give our average family the benefit of the doubt and assume that maybe mom and dad both are educated and work, both making the family income themselves.  Let’s say mom and dad both make $53,891 a year. Between the both of them that still adds up to being just shy of $107,000 dollars. …Just short enough to cut summer vacation into a drive over to Disney World.

On the opposite end of the spectrum, the poverty line, as published by federal government, in 48 contiguous states for a family of four is $23,850. That number doesn’t seem to turn many heads until someone says that 50,000,000 Americans make less than that per year.

Locally, we need only turn to the weekly sales flyer from our local supermarkets to see that the financial crunch hits very close to home.  At Publix, chicken breasts are $4.69 a pound, Deli meats are eclipsing the $10 a pound mark.  An apple bought loosely will cost you more than a dollar.  And ground beef, the elixir of working class family for decades, is approaching the $5.00 a pound mark and far more than that for leaner options.

When asked if he’s ever paid attention to how much he’s spent on a trip to pick up groceries, Dean Lagututta said, “I personally have never noticed. I think it’s because we don’t pay attention to how much we spend when it comes to necessities and things we use every day, and it becomes more accepted and less questioned.”