Upgrading Your iPhone Really Costs $17K

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A recent article in the New York Times, The True Cost of Upgrading Your iPhone, discusses the opportunity cost of spending money on things versus investing that money.

Join Nick and Dave as they discuss this way of looking at spending and purchases. They both reveal some of their own personal spending habits that fall into this category.

Dave’s Sports Streaming

Dave has a monthly TV streaming service to watch a couple of sporting events a week.  It costs him $60/month = $720 for the year. Using the same assumption as the iPhone scenario,  if he invested that money instead, over 30 years it would result in over $12,563. Dave admits that looking at is this way makes him think about the money he spends every month a lot more.

Nick’s Gym Membership

Nick spends about $300 on his gym which = $3600/year. With the same investment calculation, this would = $62, 817. Is it worth it? Nick is one of those people who does actually use his gym membership regularly. So, how many health problems is he avoiding by staying in shape, and how many medical expenses?

Listen to the entire episode to find out more info on the real cost of owning a car and other purchases.

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