The Inflation Calculation compromised?

Question

Why is the inflation only around 5%, but everything rated has increased about 30~40%.

Answer 1

Because most things have not increased 30-40%?

The single biggest cost in a family budget and in the computation of inflation is shelter:

http://www.bls.gov/cpi/cpifact6.htm

Before the sub-prime bubble burst, house prices were increasing at about 10% per year, and since then, they've come down significantly. Apartment rents never saw that kind of long term rise in the first place.

Other categories of expenditure include: education, communication, recreation, and apparel, and they haven't seen the kind of price that are all that high.

Some, like electronics, continue to see long term falling prices for the same quality or constant prices for improved quality.

The big increase items are food and fuel. (Even electricity hasn't gone up all that much.)

http://www.bls.gov/cpi/tables.htm