Can a family in Singapore live on 800 dollars a month?

Reply to Can a family in Singapore live on 800 dollars a month? on Thu, 28 Mar 2019 02:34:27 GMT

CalvinS — Thu, 28 Mar 2019 02:34:27 GMT

It depends on the size of your family and your lifestyle… if you live in a very simple lifestyle it can be enough but still there’s a lot of things to consider like the rent, bills, insurances, etc…

Reply to Can a family in Singapore live on 800 dollars a month? on Fri, 22 Mar 2019 03:14:14 GMT

janet88 — Fri, 22 Mar 2019 03:14:14 GMT

Ella455\" post_id=\"1901496\" time=\"1551857893\" user_id=\"165802:

If you don't have too much luxuries definitely it's doable.. a lot to consider as well specially if you will be renting a house but still depends on how you budget the money

it depends on how many kids there are.
there is insurance to pay for. unless one goes for the cheapest brand of groceries, otherwise $800 is definitely very tight.

Reply to Can a family in Singapore live on 800 dollars a month? on Wed, 06 Mar 2019 05:52:21 GMT

pinkydot1984 — Wed, 06 Mar 2019 05:52:21 GMT

Definitely can be done. Alot of things we consider essentials now, like cable TV, eating out, and even a helper, are actually luxuries. Alot depends on how much time and effort u wan to put in

Reply to Can a family in Singapore live on 800 dollars a month? on Tue, 24 Apr 2012 04:41:08 GMT

smurfymum — Tue, 24 Apr 2012 04:41:08 GMT

I dont turn on aircon and my bill already $150 on average.

Reply to Can a family in Singapore live on 800 dollars a month? on Thu, 12 Apr 2012 23:49:31 GMT

HAPPYH — Thu, 12 Apr 2012 23:49:31 GMT

Imami:
HAPPYH:
[quote=\"peapot\"]the rates are quite reasonable. How come mine so expensive?

It's time for you to do homework to find out the reason.

I told my DH about this thread and he asked whether the amount quoted here is only for electricity or electricity + water bills. May be just electricity. That is why so low like S$70. But I am not sure.

Not sure for others but for mine - $30+ in old home is all inclusive - water, electricity, refuse, water tax, gst etc. That is, the $30+ is what is deducted from my bank la. Same for now, my bill of $70-80 is everything all in. Even gst.

Very low meh?? I still feel very ex although I know mine is on the low side. I was complaining to my colleagues the other day and we shared about how much we were paying for our utilities. It turned out mine was the lowest. But me still finding ways to scrimp :d[/quote]Thank you for sharing. I think Yours is on the low side. Really motivated to look into this:) Once I manage to lower my PUB bill, I let you know. I sound very positive, right? Let's see how far I can go.

Reply to Can a family in Singapore live on 800 dollars a month? on Thu, 12 Apr 2012 13:50:40 GMT

BeContented — Thu, 12 Apr 2012 13:50:40 GMT

Imami:
HAPPYH:
[quote=\"peapot\"]the rates are quite reasonable. How come mine so expensive?

It's time for you to do homework to find out the reason.

I told my DH about this thread and he asked whether the amount quoted here is only for electricity or electricity + water bills. May be just electricity. That is why so low like S$70. But I am not sure.

Not sure for others but for mine - $30+ in old home is all inclusive - water, electricity, refuse, water tax, gst etc. That is, the $30+ is what is deducted from my bank la. Same for now, my bill of $70-80 is everything all in. Even gst.

Very low meh?? I still feel very ex although I know mine is on the low side. I was complaining to my colleagues the other day and we shared about how much we were paying for our utilities. It turned out mine was the lowest. But me still finding ways to scrimp :d[/quote]Hmmmm mine is kinda high, think I better relook at my usage.
Exec HDB, 3adult + 2kids, 1 aircon 10pm - 6am & 2 fans every night. $170 - $200 /mth. When FIL was around plus maid, we hit $280.

Reply to Can a family in Singapore live on 800 dollars a month? on Thu, 12 Apr 2012 13:23:29 GMT

Imami — Thu, 12 Apr 2012 13:23:29 GMT

HAPPYH:
peapot:
the rates are quite reasonable. How come mine so expensive?

It's time for you to do homework to find out the reason.

I told my DH about this thread and he asked whether the amount quoted here is only for electricity or electricity + water bills. May be just electricity. That is why so low like S$70. But I am not sure.

Reply to Can a family in Singapore live on 800 dollars a month? on Thu, 12 Apr 2012 12:09:57 GMT

fightingmom — Thu, 12 Apr 2012 12:09:57 GMT

Wow! Now then i realise that my household bills is way too high already :yikes: !

Thanks for the tips ! got to start keeping a close watch else :moneyflies:

Reply to Can a family in Singapore live on 800 dollars a month? on Thu, 12 Apr 2012 00:02:40 GMT

HAPPYH — Thu, 12 Apr 2012 00:02:40 GMT

peapot:
the rates are quite reasonable. How come mine so expensive?

It's time for you to do homework to find out the reason.

I told my DH about this thread and he asked whether the amount quoted here is only for electricity or electricity + water bills. May be just electricity. That is why so low like S$70. But I am not sure.

Reply to Can a family in Singapore live on 800 dollars a month? on Wed, 11 Apr 2012 13:56:15 GMT

peapot — Wed, 11 Apr 2012 13:56:15 GMT

the rates are quite reasonable. How come mine so expensive?

Reply to Can a family in Singapore live on 800 dollars a month? on Wed, 11 Apr 2012 08:45:56 GMT

HAPPYH — Wed, 11 Apr 2012 08:45:56 GMT

jedamum:
HAPPYH:

Hmm. We get S$140 with air con (but switched on for the first two or three hours, after that use only the fan). Is this amount normal? After reading some of the posts here, I feel that I need to see where i am wasting electricity. Most probably, my refrigerator (6 years old) and my DH and DD don't switch off the lights?????

Appreciate any feedback or suggestions.

Thank you in advance
4rm flat, we get $140 for aircon for 1 room every night and fan in 2 other rooms.

Thank you jedamum.I thought S$140-150 is quite normal. I will look into this more carefully. Can seve $$$ as well as environment

Reply to Can a family in Singapore live on 800 dollars a month? on Wed, 11 Apr 2012 08:35:30 GMT

HAPPYH — Wed, 11 Apr 2012 08:35:30 GMT

krazy:
there are 5 of us : 4 adults and 1 child and we have 1 air con on every night from 10pm till 7am. There is a washing machine and 2 fridges and my in laws watches tv day in and out. our bill is about $130+ every month.

Wow! mine 3-room flat. 4 people (including the maid). I think I must change my refrigerator and lights. Mine is the high voltage bulbs as my DH prefers the bright place. Sigh. Will work on it. Thank you for all the mummies sharing their experience.

Reply to Can a family in Singapore live on 800 dollars a month? on Wed, 11 Apr 2012 03:11:13 GMT

Imami — Wed, 11 Apr 2012 03:11:13 GMT

hquek:
Energy guzzlers include fridge, hotpot, tv/computer that is never turned off. My MIL turned off her hotpot and was amazed by the dip in her electrical consumption.

For my place, we use energy saving bulbs as much as possible (no LED becos very pricey); appliances also energy saving type. We dun turn on aircon unless it's very hot - and even then, usually we'll turn it on at 10pm and off at 12am. Fans are in use mostly. we use piped gas and gas heated water.

Utility bills about $60-80 - 4 rm, 4 persons.

I don't use slow cooker, I use a thermo pot instead (which does not consume energy). We dont hv hot pot too. We were hardly on pc with electrical cord on. I am usually on my iPad (which is charged at office). When my hubby and I need to work at home, we work on the laptop batt pack to restrict the time spent on work so that we can spend the time with our child. Hp are charged at offices too. So in this aspect, we are almost zero consumption.

Where possible, we use rechgable batt and hv them rechg in office.

Reply to Can a family in Singapore live on 800 dollars a month? on Wed, 11 Apr 2012 03:07:55 GMT

Dawnie — Wed, 11 Apr 2012 03:07:55 GMT

hokkiengirl:
Dawnie:

My family of 3 who does not use air-conditioning is getting a monthly bill of more than S$90.00!!!
Wow, really? My family's utility bill is around 100 bucks every month, and there are 5 of us, including a toddler. We don't use air-conditioning either. Is it because you have a dryer, Dawnie? I'm curious to know why your bill is comparatively higher than mine.

I am also curious why my bill is so high. I don't use dryer and I am staying in a 4-room flat. I used to on my air-con around 2-3 times a week at night only before my air-con broke down and I was getting a bill size of around $100. My air-con is down for almost a year, but my bill is only reduced by less than $10.

Reply to Can a family in Singapore live on 800 dollars a month? on Wed, 11 Apr 2012 02:59:41 GMT

krazy — Wed, 11 Apr 2012 02:59:41 GMT

there are 5 of us : 4 adults and 1 child and we have 1 air con on every night from 10pm till 7am. There is a washing machine and 2 fridges and my in laws watches tv day in and out. our bill is about $130+ every month.

Reply to Can a family in Singapore live on 800 dollars a month? on Wed, 11 Apr 2012 02:36:42 GMT

hquek — Wed, 11 Apr 2012 02:36:42 GMT

Energy guzzlers include fridge, hotpot, tv/computer that is never turned off. My MIL turned off her hotpot and was amazed by the dip in her electrical consumption.

For my place, we use energy saving bulbs as much as possible (no LED becos very pricey); appliances also energy saving type. We dun turn on aircon unless it’s very hot - and even then, usually we’ll turn it on at 10pm and off at 12am. Fans are in use mostly. we use piped gas and gas heated water.

Utility bills about $60-80 - 4 rm, 4 persons.

Reply to Can a family in Singapore live on 800 dollars a month? on Wed, 11 Apr 2012 02:31:59 GMT

jedamum — Wed, 11 Apr 2012 02:31:59 GMT

HAPPYH:
hokkiengirl:
[quote=\"Dawnie\"]

My family of 3 who does not use air-conditioning is getting a monthly bill of more than S$90.00!!!
Wow, really? My family's utility bill is around 100 bucks every month, and there are 5 of us, including a toddler. We don't use air-conditioning either. Is it because you have a dryer, Dawnie? I'm curious to know why your bill is comparatively higher than mine.

Hmm. We get S$140 with air con (but switched on for the first two or three hours, after that use only the fan). Is this amount normal? After reading some of the posts here, I feel that I need to see where i am wasting electricity. Most probably, my refrigerator (6 years old) and my DH and DD don't switch off the lights?????

Appreciate any feedback or suggestions.

Thank you in advance[/quote]4rm flat, we get $140 for aircon for 1 room every night and fan in 2 other rooms.

Reply to Can a family in Singapore live on 800 dollars a month? on Wed, 11 Apr 2012 02:10:14 GMT

HAPPYH — Wed, 11 Apr 2012 02:10:14 GMT

hokkiengirl:
Dawnie:

My family of 3 who does not use air-conditioning is getting a monthly bill of more than S$90.00!!!
Wow, really? My family's utility bill is around 100 bucks every month, and there are 5 of us, including a toddler. We don't use air-conditioning either. Is it because you have a dryer, Dawnie? I'm curious to know why your bill is comparatively higher than mine.

Reply to Can a family in Singapore live on 800 dollars a month? on Wed, 11 Apr 2012 01:42:29 GMT

lim72 — Wed, 11 Apr 2012 01:42:29 GMT

My monthly utility bill is between $60-75 without aircon usage and piped gas for a family of 3.But with the increase of electricity charges recently, I’m still waiting for my current bill.

Reply to Can a family in Singapore live on 800 dollars a month? on Wed, 11 Apr 2012 01:03:10 GMT

xueyan — Wed, 11 Apr 2012 01:03:10 GMT

I stay in a HDB five room flat. My utility bill is $140 per month for 3 of us. We do not switch on air-con, no dryer, seldom cook as both DH and I are working and Ds go to childcare. Its so ex, can I complain to SP services?

The only i use is the slow cooker to cook my boy’s soup during weekdays. Even that it cannot differs so much for you guys which is less than $100 right?

Reply to Can a family in Singapore live on 800 dollars a month? on Tue, 10 Apr 2012 20:29:26 GMT

hokkiengirl — Tue, 10 Apr 2012 20:29:26 GMT

Dawnie:

My family of 3 who does not use air-conditioning is getting a monthly bill of more than S$90.00!!!

Wow, really? My family's utility bill is around 100 bucks every month, and there are 5 of us, including a toddler. We don't use air-conditioning either. Is it because you have a dryer, Dawnie? I'm curious to know why your bill is comparatively higher than mine.

Reply to Can a family in Singapore live on 800 dollars a month? on Tue, 10 Apr 2012 13:49:04 GMT

Imami — Tue, 10 Apr 2012 13:49:04 GMT

Dawnie:

My family of 3 who does not use air-conditioning is getting a monthly bill of more than S$90.00!!!

Same here! We don't on the aircon almost 99% of the time and our bill comes up to $70-80 per month. There are only three of us at home.

Dawnie, do you happen to live in a 5room flat? Or condo? I hear the tariff rate is different for pte housing and hdb flats. And among hdb flats, 5rm flats seem to pay a higher rate. I used to stay in a 4rm and on the zircon occasionally. The utilities was about $30+ each month. When I moved to a 5rm, there was not much changes to our life style (except that, we no longer on the aircon nor use the vacuum cleaner. And we upgraded from a 29inch fat backside tv to a 45inch LCD tv) but the bill runs up to $70+!

I am also thinking, perhaps the tv also consume a lot of energy? A 32inch and a 45inch should need diff amount of electricity right? How about led, LCD or plasma tv (i.e. Do Different types of tv play a part)?

Reply to Can a family in Singapore live on 800 dollars a month? on Tue, 10 Apr 2012 10:08:52 GMT

Dawnie — Tue, 10 Apr 2012 10:08:52 GMT

hokkiengirl:
Do you think a family of 4 (for example, a couple with two kids, one pre-schooler and one in primary school) can get by on 800 dollars a month, assuming that CPF has already been deducted? I hope this does not become a political topic; that is not the point of the question. Rather, I'm hoping for fellow forum-ers to share the best cost-saving methods for food, utilities, education, leisure, etc, and to see if it really is possible to live on 800 bucks.

I'm going to assume certain things: that only one parent is working while the other one stays at home, or the family unit comprises a single parent with two children and the kids need to go to childcare / student-care. I'll deduct 50 as allowance to parents, another 50 for medical bills and 100 for the breadwinner's transportation costs. So that leaves 600 as cash in hand. Fair? This is up for discussion and tweaking, too!

I'll start the ball rolling.

1) Don't use air-conditioning; utilities should be around 70?
2) Entertainment equals free-to-air tv and the radio.
3) Meals are home-cooked. (how much would the family spend you think?)

What say you?

My family of 3 who does not use air-conditioning is getting a monthly bill of more than S$90.00!!!

Reply to Can a family in Singapore live on 800 dollars a month? on Tue, 10 Apr 2012 08:23:30 GMT

Canvas — Tue, 10 Apr 2012 08:23:30 GMT

I don’t think $800 is enough. Not even barely enough. In the 70s/80s where living standards were much lower, my late parents’ combined income was already a struggle for our family of 6.