Make Ends Meet: Don’t let your morning boost deflate your finances

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WAVE) - There’s the old saying, “it’s the little things that matter.”

That saying is true even if people are trying to make ends meet. Every year, Americans spend so much money on nonessential items that it can add up to surprising amounts.

New research from Clever, a real estate data company, revealed the average cappuccino across the U.S. costs $4.36, which adds up to $1,134 for people who drink coffee five days a week. That’s 1.9 percent of the average annual income ($62,215).

Coffee is one of the most widely consumed beverages in the world. Over 50 percent of Americans 18 years or older drink coffee.

”Americans [in total] drink roughly 656 million cups of coffee per day,” exclaimed Taelor Candiloro from Clever. “The average resident in Louisville is spending $1,256 a year. If they’re buying a coffee every day of the week excluding Sunday and Saturday, that comes out to about 2.3 percent of their annual income.”

Coffee is certainly not the only spending habit that can keep people from their financial goals and end up costing more than the few bucks thought for each purchase. However, Clever was able to retrieve and review coffee data seeing where money was spent and how much.

“This is an expense that is affecting a lot of people,” explained Candiloro. “That could equate to some basic living expenses. That sum of money could mean an entire month’s rent. It could mean a month’s mortgage payment. That’s a small fortune on a quick treat that may be hindering your opportunity to save or even invest a bit more. Like any other purchase, just be aware of what you are spending and factor it into your financial goals. Cutting back in little bits can have a big effect long term.”

Just like people may track calories on a diet, try tracking what is spent for a month or more. It might be surprising where money goes and just how much total is spent.

“That’s a good way to get a little snapshot of what those little things are costing you in the long term,” Candiloro shared.

To see the cost of coffee habits and find out where WAVE Country falls in the least or most expensive cup of java, click here for the coffee calculator.

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