SINGAPORE: A frustrated 25-year-old mother took to Reddit to ask if anyone else in Singapore “feels like their monthly salary is just a ‘pass-through’ for expenses.”
On Thursday (Mar 12), the mother shared on the r/ChillSG forum that she and her husband have been doing everything they can to stay financially afloat. Both of them work, and they have also taken extra steps to bring in more income and cut costs wherever possible.
One of the biggest changes they made was renting out spare rooms in their home to help “offset their mortgage” and cope with the “rising costs of raising a child.”
“We started renting out our spare rooms a while ago,” she wrote. “It was a big adjustment for us to give up our privacy. Because we needed the rental income, we decided to take in two male tenants. I found myself spending most of my time in the master bedroom just to feel comfortable, and I always felt a bit self-conscious when I had to go out to the kitchen or living room in my home clothes (usually just loungewear).”
On top of that, the couple has been extremely careful with their spending. She said they have maximised their CDC vouchers and cut down on almost all personal expenses, trying to squeeze every bit of value out of their budget.
Despite all these efforts, she said it still feels like “they are running on a treadmill.”
“Between the housing loan, childcare, and basic groceries, our monthly salaries are just enough to cover the essentials. We don’t really have much left for savings or any ‘extra’ life,” she wrote.
“Even with our extra rental income, it feels like we are constantly just breaking even every month. I wouldn’t say things are tough in a tragic way, but it’s definitely a constant challenge to manage everything.”
Curious if others are going through the same thing, she turned to the community for some perspective.
“Does anyone else feel like they are just working to pay the bills and nothing more? How do you guys stay positive when the ‘leftover’ at the end of the month is basically zero?”
“You are already ahead of 90% of the folks.”
In the comments, one user asked the mother for more details about their expenses, particularly “how much their HDB loan is” and whether the family owned a car.
The mother replied candidly. “We just got our place not long ago, so we have a loan of S$350,000. Car, yes, monthly S$800…”
After learning that the couple owned a car, many commenters advised her to consider selling it and “get a car seat stroller for her kid and take Grab or a taxi.”
One user added, “I drove when I was younger, but ditched the car when kids came. Even now that income is higher, it’s still a stretch to be paying S$2-3,000 for a car when we are in such a small country and can get to anywhere under 1hr.”
Another explained, “I’d like to suggest something if you don’t mind. It is also about mindset. Once you let go of your car, you may not actually need to rent out your room anymore.”
“And once you have your privacy back, although the $$ may roughly still be the same, you would have reduced so much of the stress of living uncomfortably with male strangers under one roof.”
A few others, meanwhile, gave the struggling mother some words of encouragement. One wrote, “You are doing fine. Yes, you had a kid young, but in your 30s, your kid will be big already and you will still be young and strong enough to play with him. That is already a blessing. We cannot have everything but look for small joys in life and a child is definitely one of them!”
Another added, “Here’s how I see it. You are only 25. You have your own house. You have a family. You are already ahead of 90% of the folks. Yes, it is difficult to save because money is going into repaying loans (which is an investment only if you look at it that way). So long as you are not borrowing to meet your expenses, this is a decent situation.”
In other news, a woman took to social media to express her disbelief after her boyfriend asked her to pay for his mum’s birthday dinner.
Sharing the story on the r/askSingapore subreddit, she explained that although she and her boyfriend have been together for two years and are already discussing marriage, she has only met his Singaporean Chinese parents once and is far from being close to them.
Read more: Woman shocked after BF asked her to pay for his mum’s birthday dinner
