what has happened to the model industry?

Sorry that you have to give up the hobby that you love,sometimes decisions have to be made about how we spend our incomes all the time.I don't Golf anymore,the fees and time investment become too much.

Unless your totally put off,there are still some cheaper options like model show vendors,flea markets garage sales.Still some cheaper Revell and Monogram options still out there.

Hopefully you can work something out to keep building.

I'm not really prolific,and I still have 40 kit stash so I'll ride it out,maybe buy a new release here a day there.

Yup.  Inflation which leads to higher costs for everybody, including the people making, packing, and shipping the model kits from the various factories.  In most areas, the quality and detail available in model kits are leaps and bounds ahead of where they were years ago.  If someone wants more money for producing better products than they once did, I have no problem with that.

It's called inflation. You may have noticed that the price of everything has gone up, not just plastic kits.