Say I want to retire 20 years from now, and I'd like to be able to spend 40k/year in "today's money." (I currently rent, and that amount is sufficient today for buying pretty much whatever I want, within reason. I will hopefully own a home in the future and won't be spending $9500/year in rent, so 40k will be an even more generous amount.)
If we're estimating 3% annual inflation, I'd be needing $70,140.24/year in 2038 money for the same lifestyle, right?
But that seems insane! Can that really be real?
My rent (biggest expense) has gone up only $25/mo in the past ten years. My cell phone bill has gone down 50% from five years ago (switched to a different provider). Honestly, my expenses (other than what I've allowed due to lifestyle creep) haven't changed that much in the past decade. Can I *really* expect them to be 1.75 times more in 2038?