12/30/2014

High cost of living undermining family formation

Childcare fee is now averaging around $800 and would be $1,000 next year. Some childcare centres are quoting $1,500 per child. This means a two child family with children in childcare centres would need to cough out $3,000 just for the basic childcare fees. How much more would the family need to provide for the living expenses of two children in a household. And how much would the family need for the full household expenses of two working adults, to provide a roof over their heads, not mentioning a family car.
 

An average two child family would still be trying to make ends meet with a $6,000 monthly income. It is time to stop listening to fools who are claiming that $1,000 income can buy a 2 rm HDB flat or enough to live on. Stop spreading lies as the total living cost for a family is much more than $1,000 and this sum is unbearable, below subsistence or poverty level in this most expensive or one of the most expensive city in the world.
High cost of living is not a joking matter. Even an average family with a $6,000 household income would be greatly stressed and in debt if misfortune hits, like a major illness for one member of the family, or if one member loses his/her job to a foreigner.
 

How could an average family afford to live comfortably with anything less than $5,000, without financial worries like a blade hanging over their heads, to even dare to have two children? And all the cocks are yelling at the Singaporeans to have more babies to help the economy, to provide workers for the economy. Is this a reasonable call? Are they going to provide for the living expenses of the children? Just childcare fee is enough to break a family’s small income.
 

How many parents are so irresponsible to think of having more than one baby if they have a household income of less than $6,000? What kind of life would they be living when more than 50% of their hard earned income would go straight to paying childcare and much more to bring up two children? And there are people complaining that $100k a month income is not enough for their family to live well. And can they expect people to live decently with less than $5,000 and to have two children to raise?
 

What is going on? For the super talents with more than $10k or $20k income or more, paying $3,000 monthly for childcare is bearable when there are a lot of spare cash for other things of comfort. For many average Singaporeans, please, they are not daft and they know the sums. Not having baby is the logical and responsible choice when the cost of living is so high.
 

Did I hear the cocks crowing? $1,000 or $2,000 is enough to raise a family and have children to contribute to the economy?

Kopi Level - Green

22 comments:

  1. Irresponsible are those kiasu parents who send their children at such age.
    Garmen never say must send toddlers to childcare .
    Be a responsible parent and send them direct to primary school when time to come instead of being lazy and leave babies with strangers to take care.
    Who to blame?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. love your children WISELY

      Delete
    2. Are u a parent yourself?
      Main reason for the average family parents send their child to childcare centres as both are working parents, other advantages - early childhood learning, social skills (interaction with other kids), be more independent etc. Yes, there are less privileged and unable to provide their child early learning and their children will have huge difficulties in P1. To encouage and increase birth rate, gov should heavy subsidize child care and early child hood learning. Of course, some will ask "where the money come from?" - what do u think?

      Delete

  2. $1,000 income can buy a 2 rm HDB flat?

    $1,000 income can buy a 2 rm HDB flat?

    Ha Ha Ha...................

    Happy 2015!

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  3. Agongkia, when both parents are working and no one at home, who to look after the kids? Not every grandparent is free to look after grandchildren. Not everyone can afford to have one income.

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  4. This comment has been removed by the author.

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  5. In those days our Ah Kong use to say Boh bee chia harn cher therng.Your Ah never say to you meh?
    One income not enough can go for 2 or like me 3 income. Work longer hours.
    Its a man who should work hard for the family. Wife is to stay home produce babies and take care of them including parent in law.
    A sad state that we are seeing both parent working and neglecting their responsibility.
    Pls lah.You never see those young couples having trend of buying new car and travel holidays leaving their children with stranger and worst still some leave children with stranger because they feel their parent are not hygiene enough to care for grandchildren.

    Be responsible. Dun be lazy and daft to pay 1.5k to stranger plus 1 k to maid when your salary is 2.5k.
    And its not the duty of grandparents to look after babies. Its a bonus if they want to.



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  6. Sin Ministers tell their citizens that with $1000, they can own HDB Flats.
    They oso wish that Sinkies make as many babies, blaming their low fertility for causing the Low Population.
    They went further to import aliens and even had the Audacity to announce a 6.9 million figure which will consequently and surely make the NATIVE SINGAPOREANS A MINORITY.

    THEY PROCLAIMED THAT TO HAVE PRESTIGE, HONOUR AND RESPECT, THEY NEED TO BE PAID MILLIONS SIN DOLLARS.

    FUCK THE RULERS, FOR THEY LIKE TO TALK COCKS AND ARE DETACHED FROM THE PROBLEMS THEY HAVE CREATED FOR THE PEOPLE. AND THEY ARE STILL AT IT.

    @Agongkia

    Yoi must have been eating too much burgers and sushi and know not the Prices of 'han zi/sweet potato and 'qiu zi/tapioca', they cost more than rice nowadays.

    PM Lee Hsirn Loong is reported in MYPAPER today that Singaporeans must be mindful of the Generation Gap that is affecting Japan.
    This shows how unfamiliar he is with his people.

    The Generation Gap has been growing fast and furious since his father Lee Kuan Yew killed the Vernaculars 3 decades ago and has now comprehensively wrought its dsmages.
    Is he even familiar with Japanese Culture which is Confucian and Oriental in nature and Japan a homogeneous country.

    See how our leaders are so used to talking cocks?

    patriot

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  7. The price of oil has gone down by an awful lot which translate into awful lot of savings for buses and cabs owned by so called Temasek hlds controlled the govt link companies. These companies have the audacity to ask for higher fares and for more profits now INSTEAD of passing the savings to us the commuters.

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  8. Let's urge the CEO of Temasek Holdings Mdm Ho to press these companies to pass the savings to us instead. Please give us the rebate in bus /train fares that we rightly deserve instead. PTC can't do it, the Minister of Transport can't do, the Minister of State for Transport can't do it, the Perm sec for Transport can't do it, the bosses of sbst/delgro won't do it ONLY the CEO of Temasek has the power to do it right.

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  9. Todate the Spore Power has not announced to lower the tariffs despite the dramatic drop in fuel cost. Why the relevant agency did not remind the Spore Power to cut the tariffs so as to reflect the enormous savings by the Spore Power ?

    We need more people to speak up for our rights as a consumer.

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  10. @patriot.
    I said our ah kong said so but that does not mean you have to eat hantzu today.
    Can eat instant noodles , jagong or angkukueh etc selling at 1 dollar .
    Sinkies are spoilt.Must drink expensive kopi or eat susie and go aircon foodcourt.
    Wedding oso must go 5 star hotel. Phua kay kia are the one that cause higher prices in everything.


    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Seriously? U expect ppl to eat instant noodles everyday? It is not even a proper meal.
      I think u meant sushi, there is also $1 plus sushi...for kopi is personal preference, if one can afford stark bucks kopi why not? Anyway is a different kind of kopi (ang mo vs kopi tiam) and It is gd for economy.

      Delete
  11. /// We need more people to speak up for our rights as a consumer. ///
    December 30, 2014 12:23 pm

    That's why we must vote opposition.

    Can CASE help?
    - we have to ask the President of CASE
    - PAP MP Mr Lim Biow Chuan, CASE President

    Do you think CASE is PAP linked?

    ReplyDelete
  12. Sinkies will go ''pokkai' if they take Agongkia's absurd suggestion.
    However, having said that, there are that we can learn from him; like procreate at other countries to ensure that there are bases to seek refuge and spread ones' seeds.
    But, do not make babies to suffer in Sin, if the Parents are not able to care for their own offsprings personally.
    Entrusting ones' own creation to non family member is irresponsible.

    patriot

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Sori;
      'there are that' in my above comment to read as 'there are things' we can learn......

      My apology.

      patriot

      Delete
  13. Agongkia, today hangtzu is an appetiser and not cheap too. I enjoy eating hangtzu and still eating them every now and then. I like hangtzu tng.

    Many food items that were once cheap are luxury food today.

    Sweet potato leaves were the food for the poor during the Japanese occupation. Now it is also sold in restaurant.

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  14. @Patriot
    Its a sin to tell others not to produce or produce lesser babies.
    We should even encourage producing more babies by allowing Sinkies like me to marry more wives to meet the population target instead .No need baby bonuses.

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  15. I have to side with agonkia here.

    It is not so much the increase in the cost of living per se, but the main factor contributing to it: a decrease in purchasing power due to excessive money printing by every fucking central bank in the world.

    Where is my 20¢ kopi C siew tye or my $1.00 mee pok? Or my 10¢ bus fare, or $5 hair cut from Sri Dewa?

    Money printing and "stimulus" benefits those who already have money and can take advantage of "low cost loans" to augment their portfolios--i.e. they can buy stuff before the inflation-caused price rises kick in, and thus win very very big.

    However if you are a wage earner or on fixed-income, you are summarily SCREWED. Inflation is a form of HIDDEN TAX---where the issuer of the currency (the state's central bank) usurps your purchasing power which comes from your labour/ your life, and uses the "confiscated wealth" to bolster the state, and give a free-kick "unintentional bonus" to those already wealthy.

    Money printing is a "social welfare program" for the govt and the wealthy.

    Everyone has a degree of "entitlement mentality". However if you are the authority or wealthy, your "entitlement mentality" is any time far more "powerful" than the struggling wage earner, hanging on by a thread of hope to his J.O.B. (aka "Just Over Broke")

    Got "compassion" for poor billionaires? C'mon, give them a handout...oops, I mean a bailout!

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  16. P.S. Backing agongkia again:

    Yeah fuck the child care centres lah. One parent staying home to bring up the kids is tried and proven way which has worked for TENS OF THOUSANDS OF YEARS.

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  17. The gov must support a uber app for childcare. Only when child raising is not a liability but a joy, the fertility rate will improve. But of cos, the gov will not support because they like to see the extinction of local born n bred so they can rule forever this mini republic and no one will challenge their claim.

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  18. Allowing men to marry more wives will make the inequality gap widens and promote more wars and killing because the rich, powerful, ruling guy will want all the pretty ones and conspire, plan, resolve to kill the rest of the men. Even king david who was so wise committed such crime. THat lesson must be learnt.

    The way is for gov to legit allow stay home aunties (thru uber) to provide child care assistance so they do not need to work as cleaners lah. With more players, the costs will come down. Monopolising is a sin.

    ReplyDelete