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Gold for house
(lemmy.ca)
wood for sheep?
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this post was submitted on 28 Jan 2024
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Memes
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In 1920, the average price of gold per troy ounce was $20.68USD[26.2 kB pdf]; 1 Kilogram = 32.15075 Troy ounces. Average house price in the 1920's was $6,296.
$20.68 USD * 32.15075 oz t = $664.87751 USD * 10 = $6648.7751 USD
In 2023, the average price of gold per oz t was $1,940.54 and the average home price was $495,100.
$1,940.54 USD * 32.15075 oz t = $62,389.81641 USD * 10 = $623,898.1641 USD
This meme is credible, excepting errors in my assumption that 1 kilogram of gold is equivalent to 1 kilogram of common material.
At the same time, it picks and chooses its dates. Gold has been volatile, with the price oscillating between $2,100 USD in 1980, $470 USD in 2001, and back up to $2,200 USD in 2011.
The meme may be true, but it is less meaningful than you might assume at first glance. The obvious comparison is those memes comparing wages or dollar values with house prices, where obviously inflation has made a huge difference in 100 years. However, you should compare it to other types of investment, so does a stock index grow as fast as home prices or not?