Today's Commentary · October 31, 2026

Halloween: Banks' role in mortgage; home equity & AI; Third party product rollouts; Saturday Spotlight: The Reno Gal LLC

By Rob Chrisman
For better or worse, alcohol consumption is part of most of the world. Statisticians, analysts, and economists follow the numbers. Household spending on alcohol in the United States is at a record low, with alcoholic beverages accounting for 0.77 percent of average expenditures in 2025, just $630 per household. The lowest since this state was first tracked in 1984, it surpasses the depths logged in 2020, when the pandemic led to a sharp curb in alcohol spending, accounting for just 0.78 percent of household spending....