What Would It Cost Today...Or Blow That Dough in the 80s

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TrvlBug

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I am in the process of decluttering paperwork, a 2 foot section of medical file paperwork should become 2" if I'm lucky :dance:.

I came across 2 ER billings from the 80s and couldn't believe the costs...also couldn't believe I didn't take the hint and quit skiing after the first one. Athletically inclined I'm not.

Early 80s skiing accident in Reno resulting in a trip to the ER. Costs:

ER $31
ER Physician $51
Medical Supplies $79
Radiology $24
Total $185

Second one in the late 80s in Utah:

ER $30
ER Physician $36
Medical Supplies $64
Radiology $48
Total $178

Medical costs in Utah are definitely cheaper than those in Nevada!
 
I broke my wrist in 2015 and went to an Urgent Care place, since it was after hours.

They billed my BCBS over $1500 for physician, X-rays, and a temporary splint to help with my pain (was referred to an orthopedic surgeon for the cast). My co-pay was $35.

I forget exactly what the ortho surgeon charged for more X-rays, a cast, and 2 or 3 minutes talking to me, but I know it was over $1200. My co-pay was $40. I ended up, though, with further bills I had to pay totaling over $600.00. I forget why - everyone was within network, so it must have been accumulated co-pays.
 
If you watch the movie Love Story, you would be shocked. This guy’s wife is dying of cancer. In the hospital, he wants the best care for her. He cannot afford it so he ask’s his father for a loan. How much does he asked for? The amount will amaze you.
 
dasranger said:
If you watch the movie Love Story, you would be shocked. This guy’s wife is dying of cancer. In the hospital, he wants the best care for her. He cannot afford it so he ask’s his father for a loan. How much does he asked for? The amount will amaze you.
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Ok, found the amount. Love Story was from 1970. Twelve years later we bought a little sad house that was going to be a practice burn for twice the amount Oliver borrowed.
 
When I was a kid back in the 60's, $10K per year was considered Executive pay and a typical ranch style home was running about $15K.
In the 70's I remember a friend's parent's home sold for $90K. The catch is that it was a 25 room mansion with a carriage house on the nicest street in town and now would go for about $3MM.

If anything, this short thread (so far) should be a reminder on the dangers of inflation for retirees.
 
marko said:
When I was a kid back in the 60's, $10K per year was considered Executive pay and a typical ranch style home was running about $15K.
In the 70's I remember a friend's parent's home sold for $90K. The catch is that it was a 25 room mansion with a carriage house on the nicest street in town and now would go for about $3MM.

If anything, this short thread (so far) should be a reminder on the dangers of inflation for retirees.
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marko, are you remembering the 1860’s? :). I think your memory may be playing tricks on you. In the 60’s executive pay was much higher, definitely in the 6 figure range. Housing prices, as always, varied around the country, but in high density / economic activity areas were also higher - closer to mid 5 figures.
 
MichaelB said:
marko, are you remembering the 1860’s? :). I think your memory may be playing tricks on you. In the 60’s executive pay was much higher, definitely in the 6 figure range. Housing prices, as always, varied around the country, but in high density / economic activity areas were also higher - closer to mid 5 figures.
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Dunno! I do remember when I started working in 1972 an engineer with 10 years experience was making about $10,000 in the Rt 128 Boston area. Our company president at the time was making $90,000. I am lumping in 'executive' with general professional positions though.

Mom's SIL bought a new-built house in 1959 (3 bed ranch) in what they called a "development" for $14,900 again, just outside of Boston.

Some people don't lie, they just 'remember big'....in my case maybe I'm 'remembering small'. Then again, maybe I"m just older than I think and it was the 1860s!

Regardless, inflation is still a factor retirees need to keep in mind. I DO know that back in the day you could buy a week's worth of groceries for about $30.
 
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marko said:
Regardless, inflation is still a factor retirees need to keep in mind.
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Details may be a bit fuzzy, but no disagreement at all with your conclusion. :)
 
Concert tickets! I have collages of ticket stubs, tried to find out how to insert here but couldn't figure it out.

Bob Dylan 1978 $10.00
Grateful Dead 1974 $6.00
Paul McCartney 1976 $8.50
Bruce Springsteen in the 70s a few times-less than $10
I have tickets for Springsteen on Broadway in a few months -$$$
 
Disk for a PC in 1980's: $600-800

Today: $70.


Airfare: 1982: $2200
2018: $600
 
Early eighties. ex-wife and I had combined incomes of $320,000. House was valued at about $270,000 (now $785,000) health insurance was $500.00/mth for a family of three and I needed 3 million to retire!
 
marko said:
Dunno! I do remember when I started working in 1972 an engineer with 10 years experience was making about $10,000 in the Rt 128 Boston area. Our company president at the time was making $90,000. I am lumping in 'executive' with general professional positions though.

Mom's SIL bought a new-built house in 1959 (3 bed ranch) in what they called a "development" for $14,900 again, just outside of Boston.

Some people don't lie, they just 'remember big'....in my case maybe I'm 'remembering small'. Then again, maybe I"m just older than I think and it was the 1860s!

Regardless, inflation is still a factor retirees need to keep in mind. I DO know that back in the day you could buy a week's worth of groceries for about $30.
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Hey Marko. I grew up south of Boston, in Braintree, and can give you some additional numbers, similar to yours.

DM and DF bought their house in 1959 for $13,000 (3BR, 1BA, 2 story).

My first Co-op job while in college paid less than $2/hr (1974).

My first offer from the same large Boston consulting engineering firm where I Co-op'd, in 1978, was $13,000/yr. Ended up moving to STL for a different job at a whopping $16k/yr plus a $2k bonus.

In 1978, my company meal per diem was $15/day.
 
CardsFan said:
Hey Marko. I grew up south of Boston, in Braintree, and can give you some additional numbers, similar to yours.

DM and DF bought their house in 1959 for $13,000 (3BR, 1BA, 2 story).

My first Co-op job while in college paid less than $2/hr (1974).

My first offer from the same large Boston consulting engineering firm where I Co-op'd, in 1978, was $13,000/yr. Ended up moving to STL for a different job at a whopping $16k/yr plus a $2k bonus.

In 1978, my company meal per diem was $15/day.
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Thanks!

BUT!!! You can still get a good color TV for $300, just like back in 1970!
 
Some things are definitely cheaper. My millennial kids and those of my friends now routinely take overseas trips to places like New Zealand, Europe and Africa. When I remarked to a friend that we should have done the same, he reminded me that back then the inflation adjusted airfare was was far more expensive than today.

Another deal for the past decade has been Mortgage rates. Whenever some mileenial complains about SS taxes I remind him/her, that 3 and 4% mortgages were something to die for when I was their age. My first mortgage was 8 3/4%, the next one 12+%, the one after that 9 7/8%. While many were getting the benefit of 3-4% rates., savers were earning a massive 1-2%.

OTOH, in my area the cost of housing has far outstripped inflation. And taxes (property, sales and car tabs, etc.) go up, Up and UP, often because we-the-people vote to approve increases for things like parks, mass transit, etc.
 
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marko said:
Thanks!

BUT!!! You can still get a good color TV for $300, just like back in 1970!
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Funny you should mention that. The first TV that I bought was a 15" color Sylvania. Paid $329 in 1978. It lasted 15 years and was still working when we retired it. The last TV we bought, about 4 years ago, was a 40" LCD, for about the same price.
 
CardsFan said:
Funny you should mention that. The first TV that I bought was a 15" color Sylvania. Paid $329 in 1978. It lasted 15 years and was still working when we retired it. The last TV we bought, about 4 years ago, was a 40" LCD, for about the same price.
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Right. But back then that was a week's pay!
 
In the past, expectations were lower as well as costs. For example , back in the 1950s when I was born, most babies were typically born naked.
 
In ~1982 a Betamax VCR was $600 and I thought that was a decent but not great deal. A 1983 Buick Century was a tad over $10k. When it was clear I was getting a divorce in late 1983, the house sold for $90.5k, Zillow says it has a market value now of $381k. The ex kept the car and the payments on it.

The uncontested divorce itself, via a union attorney, was I think $200, one of my better deals.
 
My Atari 800 (no monitor or cassette deck) cost abt $900 in December 1982. I did save on the sales tax as I purchased it at the Ft Dix PX.

You can get a lot of computer today for $900, so inflation in reverse I suppose.

_B
 
Not quite the 80’s, but DW needed medical proof of her birth date to get her birth certificate corrected. MIL had the receipts from 1954 proving her birth date and $65 total for doctor and hospital bills.
 
marko said:
I do remember when I started working in 1972 an engineer with 10 years experience was making about $10,000 in the Rt 128 Boston area. Our company president at the time was making $90,000. I am lumping in 'executive' with general professional positions though...
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Dunno about 1972, as it was before my time, and I was not even in the country. But in 1980, when I started working full-time with a graduate degree, my FICA record shows that I made $25,049. And the job was in the backwater area of Phoenix, AZ (it was not as built-up as it is now).

Inflation was running rampant in the late 70s.


travelover said:
In the past, expectations were lower as well as costs. For example , back in the 1950s when I was born, most babies were typically born naked.
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+1

Now, they are born with a 24K gold spoon, not a passé silver spoon, in their mouth. And so, the hospital costs reflect that.
 
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In 1981 we bought a 5000 sq.ft. house on a one acre lot for $320k. Today it is worth $2.5 million! I feel sorry for young people working in Toronto today.
 
The large (~6,000 sqft.) house where I grew up was built in the 1920s...we had the original blueprints & invoices...cost ~$120,000 (main house, detached garage, stable)

Dad bought in 1980 for under $200,000 - said he couldn't not buy it, it was his best real estate deal ever.

After their divorce, Mom sold it about a decade later for ~$500,000.

And it just sold this year for ~$1.5 million

though that's after adding on a building w/ additional land, & after six figures worth of major renovations.
 
Ronstar said:
Not quite the 80’s, but DW needed medical proof of her birth date to get her birth certificate corrected. MIL had the receipts from 1954 proving her birth date and $65 total for doctor and hospital bills.
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Different, but my DM needed a birth certificate to go to the Virgin Islands back in the 70s. She was born in a hospital in 1917, but her DF didn't get a birth certificate as it cost 50 cents(think that was the number) and he couldn't afford it.
 
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