## Middle-Income Households Grapple with Rising Costs as Primerica Index Shows Slight Uptick
**DULUTH, Ga. – December 30, 2025** – The financial resilience of middle-income American families is facing continued pressure, as indicated by the latest Primerica Household Budget Index™ (HBI™). The index, which tracks the impact of inflation and wage trends on essential living costs for households earning between $30,000 and $130,000 annually, registered at 100.7% in November. This figure represents a modest 0.2% increase compared to the same period last year, signaling a persistent challenge in maintaining purchasing power.
The HBI™ data paints a nuanced picture when compared to broader inflation metrics. While the Consumer Price Index (CPI) for all U.S. households showed an annual inflation rate of 2.7% in November, the HBI™ adjusted for middle-income spending patterns reveals a more pronounced inflation of 3.2% over the past year. This divergence highlights how rising costs for necessities disproportionately affect this key demographic, which drives over 55% of U.S. consumer spending.
Examining the specific basket of goods and services tracked by the HBI™, middle-income Americans are experiencing a 3.3% year-over-year increase in the costs of essential items. This basket includes crucial expenses such as food, utilities, gasoline, auto insurance, and healthcare. The ongoing climb in these fundamental costs can strain household budgets, potentially impacting savings, discretionary spending, and long-term financial planning.
Developed by Dr. Amy Crews Cutts, chief economic consultant for Primerica, the HBI™ provides a focused lens on the economic realities faced by the middle class. Unlike the broad CPI, the HBI™ is specifically engineered to capture the inflation experienced by this vital economic segment by analyzing data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the U.S. Bureau of Census, and the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City. The index uses January 2019 as its baseline, set at 100%, to measure fluctuations in purchasing power over time.
Recent adjustments to the HBI™ methodology, effective with the December 2024 release, include updated expenditure weights based on Q1 2024 data and the addition of auto insurance to the core basket of necessities. These enhancements aim to ensure the index remains a relevant and accurate barometer of the financial pressures impacting middle-income families.
Primerica, Inc., a leading provider of financial products and services to middle-income households in North America, developed the HBI™ to address a perceived gap in economic reporting. The company’s mission is to help clients build more secure financial futures through education and tailored solutions, including term life insurance, mutual funds, and annuities. As of December 31, 2024, Primerica had insured over 5.5 million lives and managed approximately 3.0 million client investment accounts. The company was recognized as a top issuer of Term Life insurance in both the United States and Canada in 2024. Primerica’s stock is a component of the S&P MidCap 400 and the Russell 1000 stock indices, trading under the ticker symbol “PRI” on the New York Stock Exchange.
For further insights into the Primerica Household Budget Index™ and its implications for middle-income families, interested parties can visit www.householdbudgetindex.com.
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