How can I determine the increased percentage of a dollar amount? I.e.: One dollar amount is $202 and another is $150, how can I determine the 5% increase from last year on the $202 dollar amount? I know this is probably elementary, but I'm the world's worst at math. I'm a parent, but this is just a question that was posed to me. My friend has to do rent calculations on her job, and she was asking if there had been a 5% increase, how, based on the amount she has would she figure out what the amount was before the 5% increase.
Debra
Hi Debra,
You are much better at math than you think, because you can state your problem very clearly. Not that many people can do that; in this age of disinformation, we hear much more exotic sounding buzzwords than clear explanations.
"Five percent increase" means "times 1.05", so your equation is
1.05 
(last year's amount) = (this year's amount) = $202,
so that
(last year's amount) = $202/1.05 = $192.38.
So the increase was $9.62, roughly ten dollars.
Claude