Latest / Wages and Prices with Fexingo: Cost of Living, Pay Raises, and Workers' Purchasing Power
How Your Raise Vanishes Into Rent Before You Feel It
Lucas and Luna dig into a surprising finding: the biggest share of average wage gains in 2025 and early 2026 has been absorbed by rent and imputed owner-equivalent rent, not gas or groceries. Using April 2026 CPI data (332.4) and the latest average hourly earnings figure of $37.40, they show how shelter inflation—running at 5.8% year-over-year—has quietly consumed over 40% of the typical raise. They break down why the Fed's preferred core PCE measure (129.6) misses the full rent effect, and why even workers with 4% wage bumps feel no richer. The episode closes with a look at what would…
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