Encomium
THE cost of living is increasing daily – from house rent to utility bills, school fees, clothings, food items, the list is endless.
Bread winners have continued to dig deep to the bottom of their pocket in order to meet up with the ever increasing bills. It is difficult to see a bread winner in Nigeria today who doesn’t have a stream of income, yet most struggle so hard to keep up with their expenses.
In this second part, ENCOMIUM Weekly sampled the opinion of more bread winners about the skyrocketing cost of living…
HOPE AGHA
It’s very expensive to live in the city. Lagos is one of the most expensive cities.
I spend N600,000 on house rent and N30,000 on petrol. My daughter is three months, so she hasn’t started crèche, I am already planning for that. We spend about N3,000 on entertainment, that is, going to the cinema, hang out with friends, dinner at a good restaurant. Utility cost is about N20,000.
PASTOR OLAOLUWA
The cost of living is high. It is also relative as well, it depends on how you cut your cloth. Some people live flamboyant life while some live above their earnings. Some live according to their earning.
I pay N320,000 a year for accommodation. I pay N3,000 monthly for electricity. I contribute N2,000 to pay the cleaner that takes care of the premises. I pay N1,500 for security. I pay a tuition fee of N98,000 for my child. Transport and feeding daily is N1,000.
KABIRU USMAN
Yes.
The main problems are accommodation, school fees, transport. Feeding is on the good side because I prefer to eat at home because it’s healthier, tastier and cheap. Transport system is a problem in this country. I spend about N30,000 on transport.
ADELANI ADEOTI
Yes, it is sky rocketing.
I spend about N20,000 monthly on transportation. For utility bills, we pay about N10,000 monthly. My daughter’s crèche costs N5,000 every month and I spend over N20,000 on miscellaneous expenses.
KIKELOMO BELLO
Sure, it is.
Transportation alone is killing, the cheapest you can get fuel now is N100 per litre and that is after a long queue. That alone has spoilt one’s calculation. The issue of house rent in advance is killing too in Lagos. House rent varies. In Alagbado, it is N350,000 upwards. For food, my family is not the type that buys stuff weekly or monthly, we stock the house with food at once and restock when it is getting finished. Miscellaneous expenses is N20,000.
MALEEK SHEHU
Yes, very high and getting higher.
I don’t live in a rented apartment but my house. Food in Lekki is very expensive. Our power supply is generated from a private source which is why we have 24 hours power supply. I spend almost N80,000 on electricity. Water supply is N10,000 per month, service charge per house in my estate is N16,500. DSTV N16,700. Cooking gas is N3,500 and grooming of garden twice a month is N4,000.
OLAMIDE HAMZAT
Yes.
I spend N450,000 on house rent per year. My child’s crèche is N10,000 per month. Feeding is about N30,000 per month. Utility and miscellaneous is about N20,000 every month. Lagos is too congested and more people come in every day.
TEMITOPE AUDU
Generally, cost of living is skyrocketing.
I give my wife N8,000 for food for a week. For transportation, at least I spend N700 per day without my wife’s own. We pay N6,000 monthly for electricity while other miscellaneous expenses cost us N2,000 every week.
ALEX MAKINDE
I will say the standard of living is going high in Lagos. Everything is high, from foodstuffs to house rent, everything keeps increasing in price daily.
I pay N250,000 annually as house rent. I try as much as possible to give my wife N12,000 to stock the house with food. I take my car to work once a while and I make sure I pick passengers anytime I take the car. I use the money to fuel my car. So, I cannot pin point the amount I spend on transportation.
FEMI ADEBISI
Yes, it is.
Food is N50,000 per month, transportation is N40,000, utility N3,000, fuel N15,000, house rent N350,000.
OLAOLU ONI
Yes, it is skyrocketing. Cost of living is so high in Lagos.
Where should I start? My house rent increased by N30,000 this year. I pay N6,000 for electricity bill monthly. Maintaining the children cannot be estimated as well. I cannot estimate how much I spend fuelling and maintaining the car. Other miscellaneous expenses is about N10,000.
FEYISARA ADERIBIGBE
Yes, it is.
Rent is about N850,000 per annum, to fuel my car costs me about N30,000 every month. I pay close to N30,000 on utility bills every month, this includes electricity bills, security bills, water bills and cleaning bills. My daughter’s school fees is about N100,000 per term. Our feeding every month plus provisions for my daughter amounts to almost N50,000 in a month
EKANG JOY
The cost of living is very high, it is on the increase every day. I would not want to be negative but to be honest, things are getting really hard.
I pay about N350,000 on accommodation per annum. I live in a 3-bedroom flat. I pay about N3,000 for electricity every month, the cleaner gets N1,500 monthly. I also pay N1,500 for security. All in all, I pay close to N70,000 for utility bills yearly. My son’s school fee is about N70,000 per term. Transportation for myself and feeding at work on a weekly basis is about N5,000.
MCLAN OLANREWAJU
Yes, the cost of living in Lagos State is skyrocketing. The cost of renting an apartment in Lagos is crazy and the so-called agents are not making things easy. Buying of land and building the house, transportation and other miscellaneous expenses are intimidating.
I pay N400,000 for my apartment annually. Transportation to the office costs N30,000 monthly. I cannot estimate how much I pay for food. I use to stock my house and I also eat out. I pay N4,000 monthly for electricity bill, LAWMA takes N250 in a month and I pay N2,000 monthly for the upkeep of our estate.
