Personal Finance

CDC? What CDC Vouchers? My Groceries Ate It

They say your CDC vouchers are supposed to help you manage cost of living.So how come I finished spending all of my January vouchers in one go? It only managed to plug the gap of expenses for 1 week. Although I am already thankful to be able to receive subsidies from the government, but it is honestly not enough for my family of 6. There are elderly staying with us and there are needs that include adult diapers and cleaning materials. We also have two young children who require milk powder and healthier greens. Even just a bundle of toilet paper (10 rolls) costs around $10 and I am not even talking about 4 ply, but 3 ply. Just a quick walk through the supermarket and bam all that adds up to over $150. A can of milk powder costs $70, that already sets me back by half. Just a few months ago it was $68, then the prices were raised to $70. I couldn’t even find better deals elsewhere as the price adjustment was reflected in all the shops I visited. All these small value increases do add up. With the prices of everything increasing, my grocery shopping budget has increased by $40 to $150 a week, instead of $110 last year. I don’t even upgrade my items; I continue to buy the same products with a mix of house brands. I also don’t shop at artisanal supermarkets like Little Foods. It blinds my eyes just taking a walk in those places because of the eye watering staggering prices. I am just your everyday Singaporean working on a budget to manage my household costs. To save money, we cut down on other areas, such as eating out less and also being more careful about unnecessary purchases. This helps to plug the increase in costs, for now. I do hope that inflation will ease soon. But then again what is the real effect of prices easing? Last time a bowl of noodles at the hawker centre cost $2, and today it is $6. Prices can only go up and have never gone down, so now what? This article is part of TSS Confessions, a weekly column where we delve into personal finance topics that are unscripted and genuine real accounts from people.