5 Things Getting Cheaper in 2024

3. Home heating oil

Like airline tickets, the cost to warm your home is also getting a little cheaper, which means you may want to fill your tanks ahead of the winter. As of July oil was down 0.3 percent compared with last year. When fuel is down, “it provides relief for things like home heating, airline fares and goods,” Rossman says. 

4. Cars

Prices for new and used cars have fallen for months, and that continued in July. New vehicle prices are down 1 percent compared with a year ago while used cars are 10.9 percent cheaper, based on July’s CPI. Driving the trend is that pandemic supply chain issues are over, which means there is more inventory on showroom floors and used car lots. Also, rising interest rates make it costly to borrow money to buy a new car. That has pressured sellers to resist raising prices in 2023 and continues in 2024.

“The supply chain has healed and many people are postponing larger purchases due to high prices,” says Rossman.

5. Certain foods at the grocery store

After declining for a couple of months, food prices at the grocery store as of July are increasing again, up 1.1 percent year-over-year, according to the July CPI. Nonetheless, some categories continue to see declines in prices including breakfast cereal, potatoes and apples. Breakfast cereal is down 1.6 percent year-over-year, potatoes are 4.7 percent lower and apples are down 14.7 percent. “Grocery bills have gone up substantially,” Rossman says. “If it levels off and even declines slightly, that could be a welcome change.”