Posted by Maneesh Sethi :: September 12, 2007 @ 10:41 am

Designer coffee is expensive. All of us know it, but oh my, it's so delicious. I'm not a huge coffee drinker, but I don't have a problem shelling out quattro dolari every once in a while to get a white chocolate mocha with hazelnut. However, some people drink it much too regularly; for example, my friend from Seattle has 2-3 cups of (expensive) coffee a day. Why would people spend this much every day for a drink?

The price for a cup of coffee wasn't always $4 — it used to be much closer to $1. But the boutique coffee places don't just sell coffee, though — many of them sell an experience. Most coffee shops don't have happy workers, comfortable chairs, hip music, and Internet access — Starbucks and other establishments have brought these amenities to the masses and made drinking coffee a lifestyle. By making coffee so fun and so cool, they created an addiction. This addiction isn't just to caffeine; it's to the coffee experience.

Unfortunately, the price of this addiction can be very high. A $4 cup of coffee is $120 over the course of a month, and almost $1,500 over the course of a year. That's more than the price of an iPhone and service! Small, individual costs can quickly add up to become very expensive.

At Lending club, we aren't recommending that you get rid of your coffee enjoyment altogether. Just take it in moderation. Cut down from 7 days a week to 2 days a week, and the yearly cost will be reduced from $1,500 to $416. Much more reasonable. Take some time and look at the small expenses you have — is there a way for you to reduce and replace them? You might find that, like cutting back on caffeine, not only is the result better on your wallet, but also better on your health.