Living like a billionaire costs more and more

A kilo of caviar, a Rolls Royce Phantom: Forbes has tracked the cost of the good life for 40 years.

It is expensive to live rich—and it’s only gotten more expensive over the past year. Forbes has been keeping an eye on the cost of the good life since 1982, following a basket of ultra-luxurious items – think of thoroughbred yearlings, bespoke shoes and a property manager to oversee multiple homes – to calculate our Extremely Good Cost of Living Index (CLEWI).

This year, CLEWI is up 10.1%, the biggest jump since 2008. This is almost twice the US consumer price index, which rose 5.3% over the past year. same period. Rising prices are the usual suspects: increased demand (despite the pandemic), rising costs of raw materials and manufactured goods, and labor shortages (thanks to the pandemic). It is a combination of these three factors that has driven the cost of an Olympic-size swimming pool by over 50%, from just over $ 2.1 million in 2020 to $ 3.25 million today. hui. Not that Forbes 400 members have anything to worry about: Their average net worth of $ 11.1 billion is up 39% this year, more than triple the price increase.

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HOW THE EXTREMELY GOOD COST OF LIVING INDEX COMPARES

Over the past four decades Forbes followed the CLEWI, the price of ultra-luxury living has exceeded inflation but has risen much more slowly than the fortunes of Forbes 400 members.

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Entertainment and toys + 6.1%

_{(ITEM 1 OF 6)}

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OPERA

$ 5,760 / 0%

Two tickets, six Saturday night performances, Premium Center Parterre seats, Metropolitan Opera, New York

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PIANO

$ 187,100 / + 3.0%

Ebonized Model D concert grand piano, Steinway & Sons, New York

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MOTOR YACHT

$ 6,855,000 / + 1.2%

Viking boat 75, New Jersey

•

SAILING YACHT

$ 3,400,000 / + 30.8%

Oyster 595, United Kingdom

•

SPORTS RIFLES

$ 336,620 / + 3.9%

Match pair of James Purdey & Sons 12-bore side by side, Griffin & Howe, New Jersey

•

OF RACE

$ 421,444 / NEW

Average price for a yearling, September sale Keeneland, Kentucky

•

TRAIN SET

$ 200.00 / 0%

Thomas and Friends Lionel Christmas set with Bluetooth, North Carolina

•

Cigars

$ 877.50 / 0%

25 Davidoff Dominican Aniversario Double ‘R’, New York

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MAGAZINE

$ 20.00 / 0%

To bes, one-year subscription, New York

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Fashion / + 10.8%

_{(ARTICLE 2 OF 6)}

••

COAT

$ 87,000 / 0%

Russian sand, Nieman Marcus

••

SHOES

$ 6,803.40 / + 12.8%

Mens black calf wing tips, custom made, John Lobb, UK

••

DRESS

$ 2,7000 / 0%

Black jersey with horsebit trim, Gucci, Italy

••

SHIRTS

$ 9,360 / + 12.2%

12 bespoke cotton, Turnbull & Asser, UK

••

LOADERS

$ 790 / + 5.3%

Horsebit leather, Gucci, Italy

••

PERFUME

$ 340 /NEW

No. 5, 1 oz, Chanel, France

••

LOOK

$ 23,900 / + 34.3%

Royal Oak by Audemars Piguet, stainless steel case and bracelet, Switzerland

••

HANDBAG

$ 9,050 / NEW

Hermès 2002, calfskin, 20 cm, France

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Food and drinks / + 12.2%

_{(ARTICLE 3 OF 6)}

•••

DINNER CATERING

$ 9,800 / + 16.7%

Meal for 40 from Ridgewells, Maryland

•••

CAVIAR

$ 12,900 / 0%

Kilo of Petrossian Special Reserve Ossetra, California and New York

•••

CHAMPAGNE

$ 2,639.40 /NEW

Case of 2010 Dom Perignon, Sherry-Lehmann, New York

•••

CHATEAUBRIAND

$ 910 / + 30%

7 pounds of fillet, Lobel’s, New York $ 629.86 / 8.4%

•••

HAVING DINNER

$ 413 / + 2.1%

La Tour d’Argent tasting menu, per person, excluding wine and tip, France

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Household / + 15.7%

_{(ARTICLE 4 OF 6)}

••••

FLOWERS

$ 9,262 / + 10%

Seasonal arrangements for 6 bedrooms per month, Jerome Florists, New York

••••

SHEETS

$ 3,200 / + 8.5%

Cotton satin ultimate queen size, Frette, Italy

••••

SILVER CUTLERY

$ 13,980 /NEW

Tassel motif, 5 piece dinner service for 12, Georg Jensen, Denmark

••••

SAUNA

$ 19,500 / + 2.7%

8 x 10 x 7 foot, eight person at Nordic Spruce, Finnleo Sauna, Minnesota

••••

POOL

$ 3,250,000 / + 52.9%

Olympic size, Mission Pools, California

••••

TENNIS COURT

$ 58,960 / + 4.4%

Har Tru (crushed stone), Putnam Tennis and Recreation, Connecticut

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Services / + 11.5%

_{(ARTICLE 5 OF 6)}

•••••

SCHOOL

$ 59,140 / + 1.5%

Year of schooling, room and board at Groton School, Massachusetts

•••••

UNIVERSITY

$ 78,568 / + 3.0%

Year of tuition, room and board, fees and insurance at Harvard, Massachusetts

•••••

FACE-LIFT

$ 32,500 / + 51.2%

Experienced plastic surgeon, New York

•••••

PROPERTY MANAGER

$ 380,000 /NEW

Minimum wage, San Francisco area, British American Household Staffing, New York

•••••

PSYCHIATRIST

$ 450 / + 12.5%

45 minutes Upper East Side Doctor, New York

•••••

LAWYER

$ 1,250 / 0%

Hourly rate for estate planning by partner, Schlesinger Lazetera & Auchincloss, New York

•••••

SPA

$ 9,950 / + 1.0%

Mixed weekly rate, Golden Door, CA

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Travel / + 4.1%

_{(ARTICLE 6 OF 6)}

••••••

HOTEL

$ 4,850 /NEW

One Bedroom Suite, Central Park View, The Carlyle, New York

••••••

AIRPLANE

$ 9,900,000 / 0%

Learjet 75 Liberty, Bombardier, Canada

••••••

CONCIERGE

$ 180,000 /NEW

One-Year Custom Membership, Pure Entertainment Group, Canada

••••••

AUTO

$ 545,000 / + 1.9%

Rolls Royce Phantom 2021 with extended wheelbase, United Kingdom

••••••

TRAVEL BAG

$ 2,100 / + 10.5%

Louis Vuitton Keepall Bandouliere 55 with strap, France

_{Image credits: Getty Images / Jack Vartoogian / Vittoriano Rastelli / Corbis / Art Zelin}

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SEE THE 2021 FORBES 400 LIST

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