Unless you're filthy rich, you've probably noticed that movie theater popcorn costs an arm and a leg. Still, countless consumers shell out the big bucks for this greasy flick food.
Of course, movie theater snacks aren't the only budget busters. Just think about the exorbitant cost of greeting cards, printer ink and bottled water. The sky-high prices on those products are enough to send today's strapped consumers spiraling into debt. Yet we continue to cough up the cash for these absurdly expensive items.
Here are six outrageously overpriced products that consumers can't seem to live without:
1. Movie popcorn
At the grocery store, microwave popcorn runs about $3 per box, and each box includes three 3.5-ounce bags.So why would consumers even consider paying a whopping $6 for a single medium-sized bag of popcorn at a movie theater? No one knows exactly why, but for some reason, moviegoers continue to drain their wallets to crunch on a bag full of those greasy little nuggets.
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2. Greeting cards
Since when does a folded-up piece of paper cost $2.99? Since someone slaps a precious kitty picture and a cleverly written message on it and then stamps the back of it with a logo. That's right -- we're talking about those pricey greeting cards.Many consumers spend hours poring over the neatly arranged stacks in the greeting card aisle, searching for the perfect message for a sister's birthday, their parents' anniversary or "just because."
The average greeting card costs between $2 and $4, and consumers don't seem to think twice about paying that precipitous price. The markup is between 100% and 200%, which is not quite as shocking as movie theater popcorn, but it adds up. When you consider how many of those paper jewels you buy each year, it's enough to send you running for the construction paper and markers. After all, it costs only a few cents to create a homemade card.
3. College textbooks
In 2010, the annual in-state cost for the typical state university soared to more than $15,000, and private colleges now charge an average of $35,600 a year. As if college kids (and their parents) aren't financially drained enough, there's yet another inflated price they face: college textbooks. College students spend an average of $900 a year on textbooks and other supplies.College textbook prices have skyrocketed 186% since 1986, and these expensive volumes of knowledge now account for an increasing portion of the overall cost of college. Unfortunately, broke college students are required to purchase these costly books for their classes. At least they can try to sell their books back to a local bookstore at the end of the semester -- for a few measly bucks.
wink) of theater security. But Red vested goons(RVGs) caught up with me at the curtain entry. The RVGS scanned me with x-men rays then I had to submit to a full jewel strip search! The guard dogs got my Gummy Bears and the guards humiliated me with their slurs about the size of my homemade pop-corn balls
! I rent movies now from Netflix.