A few years ago I started a little Facebook group called "Frugal Family." The purpose of it was to share websites on saving money with a few of my coworkers instead of sending links in emails. There were only about 12 or 13 of us on the site which was fine. When Covid hit, a few other people asked to be a part of the site. Then Facebook decided to make all groups public and the little site started to gain more, some were scammers of course. So, I had to make it a private group and had to approve anyone who requested to join. Not an issue. I'd get one here or there and it was fine.
Suddenly I'm getting far more. On Saturday and Sunday I got almost 20. I look at each profile to try and see if I can tell if they are legit, and most seem to be. Many are members of some of the same frugal sites I have also joined. I was telling my DH I think people are struggling and looking for ways to save money where they can. I approved 5 new people this morning and within 3 hours, I have two more. It's not like this site is amazing. When I run across articles or suggestions, I share them.
Although DH and I are doing OK moneywise, I still have sticker shock when we visit grocery stores. I'm still trying to buy stuff on sale, on clearance, or finding a decent deal, although it seems to be getting harder. But I don't think this is the case for many; I think many are struggling. It seems like we get lots of emails from non profits asking for donations as families are feeling the pinch of higher prices.
So, I guess I'm wondering how you are seeing things in this economy? Are you seeing more people struggle? Or is it about the same as it was a couple of years ago?
June 29th, 2026 at 08:46 pm 1782765987
I am fortunate that I can afford anything I want, but I was looking at the price of steak for a July 4 meal and I just can’t justify it. Of all the things I cook, I find beef the most ‘iffy’ in results and a $30 ruined meal would make me sad…
On the flip side, there seems to be plenty of traffic at all hours of the day. It can’t all be people going to work.
I flew last minute at the beginning of June and finding 3 seats together - at any price point - was very hard. Planes seem to be full and there are plenty of flights. So some people are traveling. I read that tickets to the Obama library are sold out until the fall.
The FIFA stadiums seem full and the fans are spending - we ran out of beer in Boston! That is worldwide economy. But baseball parks have crowds too.
So is it all n plastic? A gap between have and have not? I don’t know.
June 29th, 2026 at 09:36 pm 1782768992
Regardless of what’s going on in the stock market, I think most everyone can agree the cost of living has gone up dramatically in the past several years or so. Therefore, for the typical household who is just living paycheck to paycheck, they are being hit especially hard by the sustained inflation, with little recourse as SNAP benefits are getting reduced for example.
Frankly, the economy feels like a house of cards right now, and between the tariffs to the Strait of Hormuz, the Trump administration seems to be putting in an out-sized effort at trying to pull us into a recession. On top of all this, Gerome Powell just stepped down and is getting replaced with Kevin Warsh, adding more uncertainty into the mix.
I have no idea how all this is going to end up. I don’t pretend to have a crystal ball on the economy and the stock market. All I know is if you are driving through heavy rain, on a dimly lit road, that’s winding near a cliff face, the smart thing to do is to slow down and make sure your seat belt is fastened. That’s what I think of the economy: Be careful right now, and don’t be surprised if all this falls apart into recession… or worse, stagflation.
June 30th, 2026 at 10:46 am 1782816377
I mean even friends I think are frugal still tell me the grocery store is out of control. The price of our electric in our state has gone up every month. Yeah not my using but the per kwh the bill keeps saying the price is going up. I just keep staring in shock. We can afford it but I question what are other families doing?
July 1st, 2026 at 02:34 am 1782873274
Although I do think people these days are also very wasteful...they buy so much then they change their mind on decor and get rid of it...we buy good stuff that will hopefully last a long awhile and use it till it breaks if i really like something I might buy 2 so when it breaks we still have one to use
unfortunately I only think things might get worse before they get better especially for the US...the money being spent not sure the US will ever recover and we all know that the trump family are all making their billions and then leaving the country why his daughter tried to buy an island why trump is clearing out gaza to build on he will take their billions and live a luxury life and the US will be in shambles