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Pinch being felt in higher income bracket

By Marlene Naanes | mnaanes@am-ny.com

1:43 PM EDT, May 20, 2008

Sam Saunders stopped buying organic food and started shopping around when his grocery bill jumped $25 almost overnight.

"When I had my first $100 grocery bill I started making changes," said the Midtown East resident, 30. "A couple bucks here and there is helpful."

He also now scouts out better buys for items like his favorite Swiss-made yogurt. His usual store sold it for $2 a container, but when he found another shop selling it for $1.50, he started going there.

Saunders, who makes more than $100,000 a year as an equity researcher, is one example of how the economic downturn is being felt alike by most New Yorkers, even those with a hefty income.

Since January, Saunders said he has slightly modified his purchasing, becoming a more conservative spender "just in case." He also stopped paying for a MetroCard and began biking to work to save money.

The rising price of gas and other economic factors also curbed his desire to buy a car.

"I figured, 'Do you really need something like that when there are massive layoffs in the financial industry?" he said, adding he noticed the escalating gas prices on his drive upstate for snowboarding trips.

Saunders said many of his colleagues have not changed their spending habits much, although one friend decided to downgrade his plasma TV and sound system purchase from a $6,000 package to a $2,400 one.

And while he's edited some of his spending habits, Saunders said at his pay level, he's mostly felt the economic pinch in groceries. After all, he said, he just bought a new TV and Sony PlayStation.