Young family struggling to live-off one full-time wage reveals a grim 2024 reality

A young mum has revealed the “hard” reality of living off one full-time wage, a situation that used to be the norm but now seems almost impossible in 2024.

A family of four struggling to live-off one full-time wage has exposed just how much Australia has changed.

Stacey Grant, 28, lives in regional Victoria. She has two children under four and stays home with them full time.

Her partner works away from home doing manual labour and, despite earning a decent wage, the family is struggling.

Ms Grant said the cost of living crisis is “pretty hard” for her young family to manage and has become quite stressful.

“My partner works away and that is because that is the best we can do for money,” she told news.com.au.

Mum-of-two Stacy Grant said the cost of living crisis has been hard. Picture: Instagram/staceyygrant

She needs to stay home because her partner works away. Picture: Instagram/staceyygrant

Ms Grant always planned to stay at home while her children were still young, but her husband’s work away makes it impossible for her to work part-time.

“I can’t really go back to work because my partner works away,” she said.

She’s come up with a few side hustles to help contribute to bills. She resells anything her daughter grows out of and shops at second-hand stores.

The 28-year-old recently went viral after revealing she made $38 from recycling a whole wheelie bin of cans.

“We’ve been getting the cans and saving for a day out with the girls,” she said.

“My daughter loves to play minigolf and we are thinking of going to Melbourne and maybe the zoo.”

Surviving off one income now is really hard. Picture: iStock

Financial comparison website Finder’s money expert, Richard Whitten, said that in today’s “economic climate” a single income is tough.

“The traditional model of a single-income household is virtually unworkable, especially in the big cities,” he told news.com.au.

“Parents are finding it harder than ever to make ends meet with just one wage earner. Housing, healthcare, education, and groceries have become significantly more expensive, leaving less room for savings and discretionary spending.”

Mr Whitten said that it has become a “stretch” for a family to comfortably survive on one income.

“If you’re in a single-income house with a second parent taking care of the kids, then you can dodge childcare costs at least. But it’s still a stretch,” he said.

“Buying a home in most property markets practically requires a double income, especially when you need a place with multiple bedrooms.”

Ms Grant tries to save money where she can. Picture: Instagram/staceyygrant

Their rent has gone from $500 to $700 per week. Picture: Instagram/staceyygrant

She’s learned to be crafty because they’ve been hit hard. For instance, their rent has gone from $500 to $700 per week.

She said the family “pretty much” lives week to week these days, whereas three years ago, they were able to save.

“We had at least hoped to buy a house at this point,” she said.

The couple were saving for a house when they fell pregnant unexpectedly with their first daughter, which put their plan of buying a house on hold.

Ms Grant said times are so tough that she has to decide what they can afford at the supermarket each week.

“Whenever my partner gets paid we pay all the bills and see what is left for groceries, and sometimes it’s a tight week,” she said.

For Ms Grant, a tight week doesn’t mean not getting her nails done, it means cutting back on everyday items.

“I don’t get soft drinks,” she said.

“I just cut things out that we don’t need to have. I just buy, for example, the stuff for the girls first.”

She’s hopeful that they will be able to buy within the next ten years.

Homes where they live regionally tend to sell for between $400,000 and $500,000, and the repayments would probably be similar to what they pay in rent.

It’s hard to save for a deposit because the family of four is already paying a lot each week to keep their rental.

“We can afford to pay for a mortgage. It is just getting the deposit and surviving week to week,” she said.

Ms Grant occasionally feels disheartened that she grew up in a better financial situation than her children.

She said she wants to “give the girls what I had” growing up.

“Some days, I feel like we can’t give them that,” she said.