Families stung by fuel costs

[Outbackjack]

Sad thing is, when you have to feed your kids and pay all your bills, people do what they have to. And for some, once the numbers are crunched, they have more money to pay their way on the dole. I am not saying it is right, but put yourself in the position of a parent looking down at their 5 year old and trying to explain that they have to have vegemite sandwiches for dinner again and mummy and daddy cant aford to buy icecream for desert any more. Sounds a bit soppy I know, but it is happening more and more in this country. You will never know the pressures of being a provider until you have been one. So your first post was a bit confronting to us family people. BTW I have absolutely no financial woes and am doing a job that I love and that pays what is a slightly embarrasing amount of $$ But I care heaps for my fellow countrymen. I hate to see anybody go down the toilet.

Peace.

[ronwest]

Originally Posted by Outbackjack

no financial woes and am doing a job that I love and that pays what is a slightly embarrasing amount of $$

take the pressure off...let me help you out of that embarrassing situation....

[Outbackjack]

Originally Posted by ronwest

take the pressure off...let me help you out of that embarrassing situation....

I would mate, but I have a wife that just loves her credit card... :

[iCat]

I think what is really getting people about the cost of fuel is the issue of the excise and GST on it. The actual cost is not that bad, but the taxes are pushing it up to an exhorbitant high. The government could not have forseen this windfall, and so would not have based their budget on the ensuing billions extra they are raking in. Therefore, it would seem reasonable for the community to yell loudly about this situation. High petrol prices not only affect car usage, they will affect transport and haulage, which leads on to staples in life such as food, utilities, council rates, in fact, any little thing in life that takes money to move. I think it would be fair to cap the excise and tax to the initial budget forecast (that would have been under a dollar when they did the last budget) or to cap it at $1 per litre for their taxing purposes.

And consider not only the families doing it hard, what about those charities not part funded by the Government? What about volunteers in the community using their own vehicles, unpaid, for their free services? Fuel prices affect every single part of our lives, and that is why the government must give some relief.

[Bucknaked]

It takes me 20 minutes to travel 31 k's to work. Thankfully i have a focus. We also have limited free parking at work, so when the government decided to introduce paid parking, if we leave by 7 we make it to work in time for the free parking. If we were to catch the bus, it takes between 1 1/2 to 2 hours each day to get to work. While petrol prices suck, i think I would prefer to pay it that sit on a bus for 4 hours aday with other people.

[AUIII XR8 MAN]

Originally Posted by Bucknaked

It takes me 20 minutes to travel 31 k's to work. Thankfully i have a focus. We also have limited free parking at work, so when the government decided to introduce paid parking, if we leave by 7 we make it to work in time for the free parking. If we were to catch the bus, it takes between 1 1/2 to 2 hours each day to get to work. While petrol prices suck, i think I would prefer to pay it that sit on a bus for 4 hours aday with other people.

They wonder why poeple don't like to use public transport. It only takes me a extra 15min longer buy public transport & i even get it for free but still drive most days becuase it don't operate when my most of the shifts start or finish. The price of fuel will effect everything we need & use, plan & simple.

[Scott]

Originally Posted by 211

The actual cost [of fuel] is not that bad, but the taxes are pushing it up to an exhorbitant high.

I disagree, it think it is high.

[red_hotxr6]

Its vespa time. 50 klms to the ltr.lol

[brenx]

spot on 211 : Works milk has already shot from $1 -> $1.40 and my ICE break's have gone from $3.60 -> $3.95. Petrol/diesel costs are pushing up everything else. Gov't doesnt' care as it's more GST :(

[RG]

Originally Posted by ShockWaveXR6na

Yeh yeh, the cost of living goes up big deal, work harder and make more money is my moto..

Flame suit on, but im a true believer in the fact that you get what you put in, if your not earning enough income to live comfortibly then either gain a new skill and further your education so you are worth more money, or get another job that pays better.

We can all whinge forever about the cost of petrol and every other cost as they go up, but they will never come back down, its called inflation, live with it.

I work 120 hours most fortnights as it is, or isn't that enough?

[Citric GT]

I'm just glad that I only live 5km from work... I use about $8 a week in fuel if I don't drive anywhere else.

I reckon theres gonna be a few young families out there with thier houses on the market soon if interest rates go up combined with the fuel prices... might be a good time to buy a house soon.:

[EA2BA]

Originally Posted by Citric XR6

I'm just glad that I only live 5km from work... I use about $8 a week in fuel if I don't drive anywhere else.

I reckon theres gonna be a few young families out there with thier houses on the market soon if interest rates go up combined with the fuel prices... might be a good time to buy a house soon.:

I reckon the large car market will become cheap as everyone trades in for a smaller car that uses less petrol first.

If fuel prices are high then people cant spend money, so that brings spending under control and reduces the likely hood the RBA will increase rates, so I don't think the housing market will get flooded too soon.

[djjase]

Come on guys, fairs fair. There are so many families out there who say they are struggling but really should look at themselves. I know of heaps of families who are very low income earniers with 3 or 4 kids thinking they are doing it tough. Yeah so tough they can still afford to smoke and buy alohol, afford to buy tim tams and a whole load of crap like chocolate milk and lollies and dvd's etc. Ohh life must be so hard. What people really need to do is to take a good look at what they spend their money on. Create a real budget. Yeah Yeah there might be some families out there who are struggling and not wasting 1 cent on junk and I feel sorry for those. How many struggling families really need 2 cars ? thats double the rego, insurance, maintenance, petrol. At the end of the day we will all have to make a sacrifice in something. I myself might mean not been able to buy a 50" Plasma now or to spend $1500 on a new exhaust for the BA. I am 36, never been married and have no kids that I know of. Does that make me the same as the 20 year old ? I think not, I like everyone has had my share of life's experiences. Just because your in you 30's or 40's or later doesnt mean that your lifes experience is any better or worse than someone else. We all make decisions in our lives that put us where we are. I made a decision to get into IT, so I am extremely well paid, but I put in all the hard work to get where i am. Don't discredit the 20 yo bloke who's having a go. good on him for at least trying and not been like so many other young people who just drink, do drugs and crime. Everyone needs to wake up - thats all of us because things are just going to keep getting worse. You think it is hard now, wait to when Iran is attacked see what the fuel prices will be like then.....

[Casper]

Originally Posted by djjase

Come on guys, fairs fair. There are so many families out there who say they are struggling but really should look at themselves. I know of heaps of families who are very low income earniers with 3 or 4 kids thinking they are doing it tough. Yeah so tough they can still afford to smoke and buy alohol, afford to buy tim tams and a whole load of crap like chocolate milk and lollies and dvd's etc. Ohh life must be so hard. What people really need to do is to take a good look at what they spend their money on. Create a real budget. Yeah Yeah there might be some families out there who are struggling and not wasting 1 cent on junk and I feel sorry for those. How many struggling families really need 2 cars ? thats double the rego, insurance, maintenance, petrol. At the end of the day we will all have to make a sacrifice in something. I myself might mean not been able to buy a 50" Plasma now or to spend $1500 on a new exhaust for the BA. I am 36, never been married and have no kids that I know of. Does that make me the same as the 20 year old ? I think not, I like everyone has had my share of life's experiences. Just because your in you 30's or 40's or later doesnt mean that your lifes experience is any better or worse than someone else. We all make decisions in our lives that put us where we are. I made a decision to get into IT, so I am extremely well paid, but I put in all the hard work to get where i am. Don't discredit the 20 yo bloke who's having a go. good on him for at least trying and not been like so many other young people who just drink, do drugs and crime. Everyone needs to wake up - thats all of us because things are just going to keep getting worse. You think it is hard now, wait to when Iran is attacked see what the fuel prices will be like then.....

Question? When was the last time you went on holidays away somewhere?

[jspec_sti]

Originally Posted by djjase

I am 36, never been married and have no kids that I know of. Does that make me the same as the 20 year old ?

It obviously makes you really qualified to comment on family life and what they spend their money on...

[brenx]

Originally Posted by djjase

Come on guys, fairs fair. There are so many families out there who say they are struggling but really should look at themselves. I know of heaps of families who are very low income earniers with 3 or 4 kids thinking they are doing it tough. Yeah so tough they can still afford to smoke and buy alohol, afford to buy tim tams and a whole load of crap like chocolate milk and lollies and dvd's etc. Ohh life must be so hard. What people really need to do is to take a good look at what they spend their money on. Create a real budget. Yeah Yeah there might be some families out there who are struggling and not wasting 1 cent on junk and I feel sorry for those. How many struggling families really need 2 cars ? thats double the rego, insurance, maintenance, petrol. At the end of the day we will all have to make a sacrifice in something. I myself might mean not been able to buy a 50" Plasma now or to spend $1500 on a new exhaust for the BA. I am 36, never been married and have no kids that I know of. Does that make me the same as the 20 year old ? I think not, I like everyone has had my share of life's experiences. Just because your in you 30's or 40's or later doesnt mean that your lifes experience is any better or worse than someone else. We all make decisions in our lives that put us where we are. I made a decision to get into IT, so I am extremely well paid, but I put in all the hard work to get where i am. Don't discredit the 20 yo bloke who's having a go. good on him for at least trying and not been like so many other young people who just drink, do drugs and crime. Everyone needs to wake up - thats all of us because things are just going to keep getting worse. You think it is hard now, wait to when Iran is attacked see what the fuel prices will be like then.....

I know a lot of families need two incomes to maintain their mortgage. When two people work in 2 different locations they'll need two cars provided public transport isn't available.

If I was cut back to 1 income, I'd have to declare backruptcy. Why? My job requires a substaincial amounts of driving due to varying workplaces but same employer. Which destroys my cars. I need to replace them quite frequently which means I have car loans that minimise $ that I could be putting into my mortgage. I have to continually update my cars to minimise the chance of breakdown and downtime for repairs. It's very annoying putting no less than 40,000k's per car on 2 of my cars each year due to work. Once they get to 5 years or over 200,000k's they tend to require a substancial cash injection for varying things. For me it's cheaper to get another car than repair the existing one. Although my EL might be one I have to repair instead of trade in? Not quite sure yet. My 32yo XB is a far better car maintanence wise. I can name many others too.

I used to drive old cars. I got sick of breaking down for trivial reasons. My last one was a Ford Telstar. It'd stop for no reason, the fire up and drive for many hours.

[OLDFORDNUT]

shockwave,your statements astound me with there ignorance.
im on a disability pension after a work place injury and get $470 a fortnight,heres a few things that you have ignored
1,due to house prices more than doubling in the last 3 years anyone who rents has to come up with an average of $260 a week($520 per unemployment payment)up from average of $160 3 years ago,
2, petrol double what it was 2 years ago,
3, my local woolworths grocery bill has gone from $80-$110 3years ago
to $140-$180 this year and last year.
so you must realise by these figures that im in the red by over $200 a fortnight already,luckily for me i have always been into buying and selling whatever i can find cheaply at auctions , garage sales and local tips.
but now ive just been told that the government in its wisdom has started looking at charging tax on profits from things like Ebay, my main selling place,
you live at home and have an investment property at only 20 years of age
oh i just bet you did not get help from mummy and daddy for that one heh.
your comments arn't only silly and unrealistic they are a downright insult to everyone ,
do you think for one minute if you came from a poor family ,or a fractured one that could not ,or (would not) let you stay at home.that you would have been able to go to University and save your earnings to fund a house on the assumption that maybe daddy and mummy did not help out with deposit.
either way with or without that help there is no way you could have

[Smoke Pursuit]

Originally Posted by brenx

I know a lot of families need two incomes to maintain their mortgage. When two people work in 2 different locations they'll need two cars provided public transport isn't available.

If I was cut back to 1 income, I'd have to declare backruptcy. Why? My job requires a substaincial amounts of driving due to varying workplaces but same employer. Which destroys my cars. I need to replace them quite frequently which means I have car loans that minimise $ that I could be putting into my mortgage. I have to continually update my cars to minimise the chance of breakdown and downtime for repairs.

I used to drive old cars. I got sick of breaking down for trivial reasons. My last one was a Ford Telstar. It'd stop for no reason, the fire up and drive for many hours.

So do you ever waste money? Do you buy alcohol or smoke? Where does your income go?

[Smoke Pursuit]

Originally Posted by nicholas

shockwave,your statements astound me with there ignorance.
im on a disability pension after a work place injury and get $470 a fortnight,heres a few things that you have ignored
1,due to house prices more than doubling in the last 3 years anyone who rents has to come up with an average of $260 a week($520 per unemployment payment)up from average of $160 3 years ago,
2, petrol double what it was 2 years ago,
3, my local woolworths grocery bill has gone from $80-$110 3years ago
to $140-$180 this year and last year.
so you must realise by these figures that im in the red by over $200 a fortnight already,luckily for me i have always been into buying and selling whatever i can find cheaply at auctions , garage sales and local tips.
but now ive just been told that the government in its wisdom has started looking at charging tax on profits from things like Ebay, my main selling place,
you live at home and have an investment property at only 20 years of age
oh i just bet you did not get help from mummy and daddy for that one heh.
your comments arn't only silly and unrealistic they are a downright insult to everyone ,
do you think for one minute if you came from a poor family ,or a fractured one that could not ,or (would not) let you stay at home.that you would have been able to go to University and save your earnings to fund a house on the assumption that maybe daddy and mummy did not help out with deposit.
either way with or without that help there is no way you could have

As for your comments thank you for insulting me. I saved 40,000 from the time i was 14 till dec last year to buy my investment property, I was lucky that I had a contact as Westpac who got me a great deal which meant my upfront deposit was quiet low providing i paid for mortgage insurance. My parents didn't fund a cent of the property but thanks for your great insight into my life.

[brenx]

Originally Posted by ShockWaveXR6na

So do you ever waste money? Do you buy alcohol or smoke? Where does your income go?

Paying continual car loans, mortgage, childcare, petrol, food, phone bills * 3, gas, electricity, water, rates. I'm sure there is more. My bills per fortnight total between $2500-$3000 per fortnight.

We need mobiles due to the work we do. No mobiles = no work. I don't smoke, my last slab of burbon was 1 month ago. The slab I had prior to that was 4 mths ago. I guess you could say I practically don't drink. Can't afford to.

nb : I am married with two children (7 and 3).

The only money I have to waste is unexpected income. IE long service leave or a tax cheque.

[jabba]

Originally Posted by RspecAU

It's people like you who make the cost of living go up like it cause you want is more money and don't buy australian made items..

Well,,, That would have to be the biggest load of shyte I have read to date..

By any chance, was your brain disengaged when you wrote that dribble????

[Stingray]

Looking at it objectively the price of fuel was about 1 dollar at the beginning of the year.Now at around 145 we are talking about an increase of 45% in the the fuel bills of all consumers.
As a business which is mobile we are considering not starting our working day until 10am due to the excessive build up of traffic gridlock between 730 am to 10am. The cost of fuel at 2 tanks full is 190 dollars per week.
The consumer price index is going up and will drag the prices of all consumer goods .This can be seen with the airlines already raising there prices.

[djjase]

Originally Posted by Casper

Question? When was the last time you went on holidays away somewhere?

Going to Singapore on wednesday for 1 week actually. Went to Canada and LA last July - went to Disneyland, Hollywood,etc. Also went to Los vegas.
Ohh and my parents live in QLD, I drove there last Nov. So what about yourself then ?

[brenx]

Originally Posted by djjase

Going to Singapore on wednesday for 1 week actually. Went to Canada and LA last July - went to Disneyland, Hollywood,etc. Also went to Los vegas.
Ohh and my parents live in QLD, I drove there last Nov. So what about yourself then ?

I remember being simple. It was a great life. Ah memories.

[djjase]

Originally Posted by bladexr8

It obviously makes you really qualified to comment on family life and what they spend their money on...

Yeah it does mate. I have brothers and sisters with families, I have lots of mates with families, I use to live in Mt Druittt and had heaps of friends like single mums and friends doing it so tough.

My comment was about families I KNOW ABOUT !!!!! who state that they are doing it TOUGH.

Read it and understand it before you go off....................

[Smoke Pursuit]

Originally Posted by djjase

Yeah it does mate. I have brothers and sisters with families, I have lots of mates with families, I use to live in Mt Druittt and had heaps of friends like single mums and friends doing it so tough.

My comment was about families I KNOW ABOUT !!!!! who state that they are doing it TOUGH.

Read it and understand it before you go off....................

Mate dont even bother trying to make a point here, most of them cant seem to understand that its a fact of life and they are going to have to deal with it, for the time being neways. :

[djjase]

Originally Posted by brenx

I know a lot of families need two incomes to maintain their mortgage. When two people work in 2 different locations they'll need two cars provided public transport isn't available.

If I was cut back to 1 income, I'd have to declare backruptcy. Why? My job requires a substaincial amounts of driving due to varying workplaces but same employer. Which destroys my cars. I need to replace them quite frequently which means I have car loans that minimise $ that I could be putting into my mortgage. I have to continually update my cars to minimise the chance of breakdown and downtime for repairs. It's very annoying putting no less than 40,000k's per car on 2 of my cars each year due to work. Once they get to 5 years or over 200,000k's they tend to require a substancial cash injection for varying things. For me it's cheaper to get another car than repair the existing one. Although my EL might be one I have to repair instead of trade in? Not quite sure yet. My 32yo XB is a far better car maintanence wise. I can name many others too.

I used to drive old cars. I got sick of breaking down for trivial reasons. My last one was a Ford Telstar. It'd stop for no reason, the fire up and drive for many hours.

Just like everyone else, so many people live beyond their means. What are you going to do when Interest rates go up ? sell the house ? Your probably just like everyone else that got sucked into a home loan with 95% or even 100% loans, stretched your budget to meet it then and now that things are going up things are looking tough.

If you cant afford the mortage, sell it and rent or struggle through life and get no where.

Like I said you make choices in life - sometimes they are good sometimes they are bad !!!!

[jspec_sti]

Originally Posted by djjase

Yeah it does mate. I have brothers and sisters with families, I have lots of mates with families, I use to live in Mt Druittt and had heaps of friends like single mums and friends doing it so tough.

My comment was about families I KNOW ABOUT !!!!! who state that they are doing it TOUGH.

Read it and understand it before you go off....................

Agreed, but is it beyond the realms of possibility that there are some families you don't know about that just might be doing it tough?

[djjase]

Originally Posted by brenx

I remember being simple. It was a great life. Ah memories.

Not simple mate, maybe you meant SINGLE. I have a GF and she costs me millions. We are getting married next year so whats the difference ? I already pay for her plane tickets, i pay for the food, the rent, the bills, I have 4 cars, she doenst work at the moment.

[RG]

Originally Posted by ShockWaveXR6na

Mate dont even bother trying to make a point here, most of them cant seem to understand that its a fact of life and they are going to have to deal with it, for the time being neways. :

Try getting the silver spoon out of your mouth.