Exactly. I really like the term “vibecession” coined by Kyla Scanlon, because it really hits this perfectly. People think things are bad, despite all evidence to the contrary.

From the numbers I’ve seen, the average household (i.e. making <$70k/year) is maybe paying a few percent more on net than they were 5 years ago. Wages tend to lag inflation, so it makes sense that people’s wages would still be catching up now that inflation is pretty much back to normal. It’ll probably take another year or two, but it’ll get there.