Theatre popcorn is an economic marvel. The microwave-at-home variety costs less than 10 cents an ounce. But buy it at the movies, and you can pay more than $1 an ounce.
Theatre popcorn has such an astounding mark-up that Richard B. McKenzie, an economics professor at the University of California, Irvine, wrote a book titled "Why Popcorn Costs So Much at the Movies: And Other Pricing Puzzles." McKenzie found that the average mark-up of an ounce of popcorn at the movie theatre is about 1,275%.
Event parking
Event parking has long been a pet peeve of readers. Some park kilometres away and take cabs or public transportation to avoid the cost of parking close to a stadium. Others say parking prices have kept them from away from certain venues.
But the recession appears to have raised the anger over such charges to road-rage levels. On July 9, a New Jersey man filed a class-action lawsuit against concert promoter Live Nation for automatically adding a $6 parking fee to his ticket price, regardless of whether he drove to the event. Live Nation has characterized the suit as "frivolous."
Printer ink
Much of the real cost of a home printer is the ink. In fact, refill cartridges can end up costing more than 500% of the cost of the printer itself over the life of the machine, according to a 2008 study by the American Consumer Institute, a consumer-protection group.
No wonder so many of our readers now refill cartridges at office-supply stores or print out only essential documents. And they're not alone. Hewlett-Packard executives recently acknowledged that fewer Americans are printing at home.
Ink is so pricey that some printer manufacturers discount their machines in order to sell more of the models with the highest ink expenses. The American Consumer Institute Center for Citizen Research found that consumers could save $6 billion a year if they opted for printers with lower ink costs rather than those with the lowest sticker prices. The center has a calculator on its site to help consumers estimate the cost of owning a specific printer.
Drinks at restaurants
Consumers have plenty of reasons to whine about the cost of vino and other beverages at restaurants. Beverages have among the highest mark-ups of any restaurant offerings. At least one New York-area restaurant marks up wine 575%, according to a report in Crain's New York Business, and many businesses have even higher mark-ups for soft drinks, juices and coffee.
Oddly, restaurants tend to mark up cheap wines substantially more than they do expensive ones, so if you're looking for a bargain, you might need to pony up for that really pricey bottle.
Bottled water
In flush times, the convenience of buying a bottle of water seemed to justify its $1-plus price. But some consumers are becoming more reluctant to cough up cash for something that comes virtually free from the tap -- especially because their bottled water may have originated there anyway.
In July, the U.S. government held hearings to evaluate whether bottled water is any better than what comes from many Americans' home faucets. Turns out, about 45% of the bottled variety comes from municipal taps, although companies usually do additional filtering before sealing it up in clear plastic bottles.
'Gourmet' coffee
Starbucks has lost some of its shine, apparently. Some MSN Money readers say they'd rather brew coffee at home or buy a regular ol' cup of joe instead of shelling out for gourmet beans and higher-priced espresso concoctions at Starbucks or other coffee retailers.
Coffee retailers' earnings statements are showing the change in consumption habits. Starbucks saw an 8% sales decline at its established U.S. stores (those open for more than a year) during its quarter ending in March.
Restaurant holiday specials
The food is the same. The décor is the same. So why are restaurant prices so much higher on holidays such as Mother's Day, Valentine's Day and New Year's Eve?
Demand is part of the story. More people want to go out on holidays, enabling restaurants to increase prices without ending up with empty tables. But restaurateurs are also banking that customers are willing to spend more for special occasions.
Restaurant owners may change their minds and menus this holiday season, however, and be more apt to offer holiday bargains in hopes of getting people in the door.
Movie tickets
When the going gets tough, the tough (and the not so tough) go the movies. Box office sales in 2009 are up about 11% from a year ago.
Movie theatres, it seems, are benefiting from folks trading down. Though many moviegoers complain of $10-plus ticket prices, a movie is still one of the most affordable dates around. It certainly costs less than a fancy meal.
Oil changes
Readers are doing more of almost everything themselves. Cooking at home instead of going out is one basic change. Another big project we're taking on? Oil changes.
Oil changes run from $15 to more than $40 at a retailer, depending on the package and the oil used. An at-home change can set you back about $10. (Plus, of course, the cost of your time, for all those economics experts out there.)
Airport food
Everyone knows that airport food costs extra. It makes sense. Unlike, say, the restaurants in the average food court, which have to compete with each other, nearby restaurants and the food in the average shopper's home pantry, airline retailers are partial monopolists with captive consumers. And they know it.
But what consumers may not realize is that the closer you get to your gate, the more the food generally costs. Daniel Hamermesh, an economist and a writer for The New York Times' Freakonomics blog, noted this in a recent post.
One reason, Hamermesh says, is that dining options tend to decrease farther from the main terminal areas. Another reason is that it's more convenient to eat closer to the attendant who will eventually call passengers for boarding. Convenience costs.
Ticketmaster fees
Some readers say they would gladly forgo the convenience of ticket sellers and buy directly from box offices if they could avoid the "convenience" fees. The charges vary widely, partly depending upon the venue. Often they amount to more than 20% of ticket prices.
For example, earlier this year a Metallica fan in Nashville could have spent about $69.50 for a concert ticket and $16.35 in fees. That's nearly 24% of the ticket price in fees.
Those fees threaten to climb even higher now that Ticketmaster is merging with concert promoter and ticket seller Live Nation. Opponents of the deal say the reduced competition will enable Ticketmaster and Live Nation to gouge consumers and hurt artists by making it more difficult for fans to see their shows.
ATM fees
Some readers don't want to pay banks a single penny to withdraw their money. But banks always seem to find a way to gouge us to access our own money. "Convenience fees," charges for using banks other than our own, overdraft fees... the list goes on. Is there any relief in sight? Not likely.
Fund management fees
It's understandable, given the performance of most investors' portfolios last year, that readers would be angry about paying money-management fees on their retirement savings. In the U.S., average 401k balances shrank 27% last year, according to Fidelity Investments. In retrospect, many investors were undoubtedly thinking they would have done better had they tucked their money under a mattress.
Airline baggage fees
When it comes to flying, readers say they're getting less but paying more. The free food is gone. Legroom costs extra. Some airlines charge for blankets and pillows.
But no fee has rankled readers as much as baggage fees. It just doesn't make sense to some readers. If airlines are assessing the fee because of the fuel cost associated with the added weight of a bag, then they should weigh everyone's luggage and charge by weight, readers say. As they stand, the rules seem to force folks with, say, a couple of small bags to subsidize
Hot dogs at sporting events
"Take me out to the ballgame. Take me out to the crowd. Buy me some . . ."
Stop right there, readers say. Many maintain they will never buy sporting event food because of the high prices.
The prices have risen steadily in recent years. On average, baseball fans will pay $3.70 for a hot dog and an additional $3.44 for a soft drink this year, according to ISM Media's annual fan cost index. In fact, despite the recession, fans will pay an average of 3.2% more on ticket and concession prices this year than in 2008. (New York Yankees fans will pay a whopping 49.4% more, due largely to increased ticket prices. That increase is, by far, the highest in the sport.)
hahahahaaa - What do you hate paying extra for?
