Cost of inflation

[cushman eagle]

Our custom farming company required,among other equipment,2 forage harvesters,and 2 mowers.
As these pieces have gotten old enough, there reliability has gotten unreliable,we priced new.
The forage harvesters we paid $660,000 for,are now $1,200,000,and the mowers were $75,000,and are now $150,000.
This massive inflation,along with losing 4 more workers is putting us out of business,and me out of work.
We can not pencil out $2,700,000 .
I will have to take a look at my finances, to see if I can retire.

[GrandpaDenny]

Oh no!

[Scott-(Altoona, PA)]

Loren, start your Social Security, fill the tanks and make those odometers spin. Enjoy life my friend!!!!! Take Peggy for that long deserved vacation, a month on the road or a cruise or just a flight to a destination you both well deserve!!!!!

[Nails]

That price increase is a helluva lot more than average US inflation (currently about 3.2%, https://www.reuters.com/markets/us/us-c ... 023-11-14/) or average global inflation (currently about 6.9%, https://www.statista.com/statistics/256 ... ious-year/), both year-over-year.

There's some weird stuff going on in the "agriculture sector", especially international. But the nation hasn't been very kind to family farms, either.

I sincerely wish you the best of luck with a comfortable retirement ... with thanks for the food I've eaten.

(BTW, I thought of you driving between Mansfield and Ashtabula recently, but honestly didn't have time to stop by. It was part of 11K miles in the last two months, mostly dealing with family obligations. Those Ohio legs were long days.)

[cushman eagle]

Loren, start your Social Security, fill the tanks and make those odometers spin. Enjoy life my friend!!!!! Take Peggy for that long deserved vacation, a month on the road or a cruise or just a flight to a destination you both well deserve!!!!!

Hi, Scott,I did start my Social Security at age 70[when it maxes out] 5 years ago.
I do not yet know what to expect to receive after the equipment auction,after the bills and taxes,etc.

[cushman eagle]

That price increase is a helluva lot more than average US inflation (currently about 3.2%, https://www.reuters.com/markets/us/us-c ... 023-11-14/) or average global inflation (currently about 6.9%, https://www.statista.com/statistics/256 ... ious-year/), both year-over-year.

There's some weird stuff going on in the "agriculture sector", especially international. But the nation hasn't been very kind to family farms, either.

I sincerely wish you the best of luck with a comfortable retirement ... with thanks for the food I've eaten.

(BTW, I thought of you driving between Mansfield and Ashtabula recently, but honestly didn't have time to stop by. It was part of 11K miles in the last two months, mostly dealing with family obligations. Those Ohio legs were long days.)

Hi,,Nails,I live about 40 miles east of Mansfield,about 6 mile North of route 30 on route 94.
We found that medium size tractor tires went from $2500 up to $5000,I had one blow out this fall,and large went from $5000,to $10,000.
It is getting really hard to pencil a profit,unless you are in a niche market.

[Nails]

I do not yet know what to expect to receive after the equipment auction,after the bills and taxes,etc.

Sounds like selling might be better than buying right now. Sure was for my grandpa when he sold out, 30 years ago. And lease your farm?

And then there's always that cherry Cushman Eagle. (Enough right there to leave anyone broke and busted. )

[cushman eagle]

I do not yet know what to expect to receive after the equipment auction,after the bills and taxes,etc.

Sounds like selling might be better than buying right now. Sure was for my grandpa when he sold out, 30 years ago. And lease your farm?

And then there's always that cherry Cushman Eagle. (Enough right there to leave anyone broke and busted. )

Yes,Nails,we are thinking of leasing the farm ,That will be discussed after the sale of the custom farming equipment.
No,I am not going to put all the proceeds into trying to make the Cushman reliable

[Scott-(Altoona, PA)]

No,I am not going to put all the proceeds into trying to make the Cushman reliable

I kind of thought maybe you would be the newest Cushman dealership in Orville OH!

[Nails]

I'm looking forward to seeing pictures after the full fairing, saddlebags, and top box treatment. (With a radio, of course.)

[cushman eagle]

Yes,Nails,and Scott,I already have more in the Cushman than I paid for the Voyager
And I have 86,900 more miles on the Voyager than the Cushman ,which I guess, could mean the Cushman is inflationary

[GrandpaDenny]

Funny thing about the "consumer price index" which they use to show the rate of inflation. They don't include everything, such as "highly volatile priced items" as in food and gas, and they don't include commercial items.

So they don't include the things we spend money on every day, and they don't include stuff like farm equipment. That's how we can have, for instance, single-digit inflation whilst food, gas, and farm equipment have doubled in price in a couple of years.

[Nails]

Yeah, some things are too volatile to use as metrics for inflation.

But gas prices have definitely been going down (https://www.finder.com/gas-prices, citing AAA):

Nobody seemed to notice.

Grocery prices are still going up, but slower than inflation (https://www.cnn.com/2023/10/12/business ... index.html): "In the year through September, not adjusted for seasonal swings, grocery prices rose 2.4% — less than inflation overall, which was 3.7%." (IIRC, Congress recently called in Tyson Foods execs to explain their windfall profits last year. I doubt Loren saw any of it.)

And some commercial prices, like say equipment made in Germany, can be subject to "externialities" that don't really reflect inflation.

I'm not saying nothing's wrong, and I'm truly sorry over Loren's struggles.

I am saying that good news goes unnoticed -- we're gluttons for our doom. Besides, I'm generally one of the glass-half-full kind anyway.