SURVEY RESULTS: The cost of living in the Lowveld

Lowvelder recently did a survey which saw almost 400 participants share their cost of living.

October 9, 2018

Stefan de Villiers 1 minute read

The results are rather interesting. Via a questionnaire Lowvelder ran the past week, more than 350 people have spoken about how much living in the Lowveld costs.

“Rent in Mbombela is absolutely ridiculous – there are so many single mothers out there who are battling to make it from month to month and the biggest expenditure is rent with water and electricity. To get a decent place, you will be paying about R6 500 – more than half of most of our salary,” one of the participants said.

One thing is certain, the Lowveld is not exactly a cheap place to stay.

Here are the results:

**The majority of Lowvelders (248) said that they pay between R50 and R110 for a basic lunch and a drink.**

**A total of 198 people say that a daily visit to the shop would cost nothing less than R200-R400.**

**Only 55 of the 350 people say that they only stay for one drink. 121 people, however, say that a few drinks would cost between R200 and R400.**

**The average rent, according to 126 of the participants, is R10 000 or more for a 2-4 bedroom house.**

**A total of 256 people agree that this costs more than R900, while only 6 people pay between R100 and R300.**

**Internet costs 171 users more than R600.**

**For a domestic worker, the majority of people pay between R150 and R180. 10 people cannot afford to pay them the minimum wage.**

**People do not spend a lot on clothing. The majority spend between R200 and R500 per month.**

**113 people pay between R4 000 and R8 000, while 63 agree that it costs them between R8 000 and R16 000.**

**Almost all participants agree that personal care costs you more than R1 600.**

**186 people spend R400 or more on entertainment.**

**259 people will change their driving habit due to the increase in fuel price.**

**147 people say that they are only willing to spend, either no money, or a maximum of R200 for hobbies like mountain biking, hiking, camping etc.**

**The majority of participants say that it costs between R100 and R200 per person for dinner.**

**School fees, according to 144 people, are between R2 000 and R4 000.**

**Maintenance on a vehicle per annum costs more than R4 000 according to the majority of the voters. Only 22 people pay between R500 and R1 000.**

“Take the above costs and divide it by the number of family members, this should give you the ‘cost per unit’. My opinion: it is much more expensive to be single in this town when you look at the ‘unit’ cost,” one of the participants said.

“Clothing expenditure is actually my account instalments. Can’t afford to buy clothes any other way and also don’t buy clothing monthly, I buy the odd piece as needed. We also don’t eat out at restaurants because it’s too expensive. If we have to go out I order the cheapest thing on the menu I can get away with and the kids almost always share a meal. Entertainment is usually a braai at friends because going to the cinema or to a show is just not within our budget,” another participant said.

“The Lowveld is very expensive, with poor service”

In the “other expenses” section, consumers agreed that the following are also leaving a huge void in their budget:
• Gardener
• General maintenance
• Insurance
• Security
• Tithing at church
• Savings
• Rates and taxes on property
• Cellphone contracts
• Holidays
• DStv
• Debt
• Beauty/spa/hair salon/treatments
• Retirement annuity
• Levies
• Pest control
• Caring for parents
• Education
• Unforeseen costs