With another year coming to a close, another round of annual price increases is waiting to greet you in the new year. Everything from what you do and what you eat to where you go and how you get there is all expected to cost more in 2020. Here's a look at the biggest and costliest projected price hikes.
Cable television rates climb about 3% to 4% per year, according to Consumer Reports, but cable companies are in a particular crunch now that they're being pulled from both ends — hemorrhaging subscribers while facing increased programming costs. The solution? The cable giants are increasing advertised prices only modestly while quietly raising fees, such as the kind that aren't hidden in small print by the streaming services that continue to pilfer their subscribers.
Cord-cutting has its benefits for sure, but live TV packages are getting pricier. Hulu, for example, is raising the cost of its Live TV service by $10, to $55 annually, starting Dec. 18. And if you subscribe to more than one platform, such as the new Apple TV+ and Disney+ services in addition to Hulu, Netflix, HBO, Amazon Prime, the legacy network services, and even niche services such as Criterion and Shudder, monthly payments stack up quickly.
Annual home price growth will rise by 5.4% by the middle of summer in 2020, according to a recent report from real estate data firm CoreLogic. That's thanks to a perfect storm of factors that includes rising incomes, low mortgage rates, and low for-sale inventory in many markets.
Related: What You'll Pay for a Square Foot of Real Estate Across the Country
The cost of mailing a letter through the USPS will remain 55 cents in 2020 — but all seven flat-rate shipping options are going up. FedEx is raising rates across the board, as significantly as 6% for some services. The cost of UPS Ground, Air, and International services is going up by an average of 4.9%.
At least a dozen teams across all major sports are "running out of fans," who are leaving stadium seats empty in droves in large part because of high ticket prices, USA Today reports. In many cases, teams won't respond by lowering the price of entry because they make so much from lucrative TV deals that they can afford to absorb the hit. Most teams raise their ticket prices every year, and 2020 is shaping up to be no different despite lackluster attendance.
Drug prices are, once again, set to rise, this time by 4.5%, according to major studies with nearly identical projections. The U.S. House of Representatives introduced a bill that would reduce prices, but to take effect and give relief within the year, the bill would have to pass both houses of Congress and be signed into law by the president with remarkable speed in an era of crippling political polarization.
Medicare Part B will be more expensive in 2020, with premiums and deductibles set to rise. Standard premiums will rise by $9, to $145, and are annual deductibles will go up $13, to $198. About 70% of Medicare beneficiaries will be affected.
A statewide soda tax is on the ballot in California in 2020. Since Philadelphia achieved a 38% drop in soda sales in 2019 after instituting a similar tax, others across the country are considering taxing sugary drinks — to raise revenue, and to grapple with the ever-growing obesity epidemic.
So-called "food at home" prices — of retail grocery store food — are going to rise by between 0.5% and 1.5% in 2020, According to the USDA Economic Research Service. That's actually low compared with historical averages. "Food away from home" prices, on the other hand, are set to rise by between 2% to 3%.
Big employers expect the cost of their health plans to rise by 5%, to an average $15,375 in 2020, a recent study shows. Employers will cover about 70% of that cost, but the average employee will now pay $4,500 a year to stay covered.
Related: 15 Countries Where Americans Can Save Big on Medical Care
New vehicle prices rise naturally year over year, but outside forces are converging that might contribute to an extra degree of sticker shock in 2020. First of all, more manufacturers are adding advanced technology as standard features. Also, more and more people are opting for bigger, more powerful, and more expensive SUVs and trucks.
Related: 10 Futuristic Changes Coming to Our Cars (and One That Isn't)
The cost of global travel, both for business and pleasure, is set to rise in 2020. International airfare is projected to increase by 1% to 2%. The cost of staying in a hotel is expected to rise by between 1% and 3%.
In 2018, the National Park Service announced sweeping increases in entrance fees to raise funding for park maintenance. The increases are only $5 to $10, depending on the park, with some proposed hikes much higher. The increases were done incrementally, and several of the remaining holdovers from the old pricing structure are due for an increase in 2020.
The cost of college for the academic year ending in 2020 is $11,260 for state residents at public colleges, $27,120 for out-of-state students attending state schools, and $41,426 for private colleges. That's an increase of 4% from the previous academic year. The cost of in-state tuition rose by 63% over a 12-year period between 2008-12.
Related: The Cost of College Around the World
The phenomenon of inflation gradually reduces the buying power of a dollar over time. This affects the price of almost every product and service — and 2020 will not be immune. Total inflation is expected to rise by about 2%, which, historically speaking, is actually fairly modest.
