The Real Cost on a Pensioner's Life.

Over the last 18 months I've been keeping records of all expenses on a van I recently bought, namely one HOLDEN SHUTTLE '85 model 1 tonner.
These are noted below.
This became important after "moving" to the larger vehicle, from a HOLDEN GEMINI '79 MODEL STATION WAGON, home for the previous five and a half years, as the fuel costs rose with the increase in size and thus "carrying capacity" of my home.
On a pension (aside from the other political complications of my life which kept me "on the road" for that time and to now) life is very frugal, unless one is blessed with their own "freehold" title of their home.
Rental assistance is vital if one is to occupy usual accommodation, ie., apartment, flat or free-standing house, etc, and I dread to think how a mortgagee copes with rent assistance to help pay the "death-pledge" if they are forced onto social security benefits.
So! With the above complications to life, I had no option, for the Sake of the Cause I was Fighting for, but to "go on the road".
However, a conundrum arose after a while, where I saw that I was spending a larger amount of money on petrol as would be spent on accommodation. This limited by mobility.
Then there was the ongoing upkeep of the old girl, which became a lot after the several thousand miles I'd done since '98, from Melbourne to Darwin and many points in between.
THEN there was the expense to myself, in time and fuel, in the business of upkeeping what IS my home. My "place of usual residence", as Centrelink might put it.
Well, as far back 1999-2000 I'd discussed this with an officer at Box Hill Centrelink.
She saw my case, as well as the macro-implications to the "system" and all connected, were the case to be put that I should qualify for rental assistance for the "Rent" or "upkeep and provision" of my principle residential abode - the van.
So, 'til a few days ago, this had always remained an undocumented theory, with no stats etc.
Then...., after 18 months of keeping receipts and "outgoings" for the "upkeep and provision" of my recently purchased van, of fuel and parts (inc tyres, oil & filter etc), I had the bright idea of accounting for all my living expenses, and how much the car/accommodation cost me, annually and weekly.
This I have come to know intrinsically, after "a practiced period" on social security, roughly enough, but was surprised when my "outgoings" figures came to the very same dollar as the pension payment($235.30 weekly expenses. $235.00 weekly pension!) Cross-my-heart, they're not rubbery.
Then I had the idea that I could account in dollar and hourly terms for the effort I expend "upkeeping" my accommodation, including how much fuel I used in that upkeeping.
What these figures actually say, I've not concluded yet, other than some mysterious feeling that there is a landmine in there, in regard to what a pesnioner's real cost of living is, and that there is an unnaccounted-for dollar figure in the lives of not just we "nomads", but perhaps in the "statics" as well.
PENSION: $235.00/week = $12220/year
Hypothetical hourly rate, at 38 hours-a-week, of $235: $6.18/hr
Hypothetical hours worked, at $10/hr on $235/wk: 23.5 hours

Cost of Living: Per Week Per Year
A - Food, $ 90.00 $ 4680.00
B - Cooking Gas, $ 1.75 $ 90.00
C - Petrol, $ 45.00 $ 2500.00
D - Van maintenance, $ 23.70 $ 1300.00
Da - Shed-au-Mobile (Trailer) $ $
E - Van & Trailer Rego, RWC, Insurance, $ 9.15 $ 476.00
F - Clothing & footwear, $ 2.30 $ 120.00
G - Medicine, $ 60.00 $ 3000.00
H - Herbal Oils, $ 0.76 $ 40.00

COST of LIVING subtotal: $ 235.30 $12236.00

J - "Hobbies": Politics, Pampleteering, internet, $ 5.80pw $ 300.00pa
K - computing, journalism, $ 2.90 $ 150.00
L - other consumables, $ 1.92 $ 100.00

Personal "extra-curricula" work subtotal: $ 10.62 $ 550.00
So, including my "extracurricula" activities, my average weekly expenses are $245.92
whereas my pension is $235 weekly. The "difference" is averaged over the year remember, so the extra $10.62 I average each week beyond my income, comes from "skimping" for several weeks on whichever of the above costs I can do without or with less of for however long it takes to save the money.
As well, recently I sold my bar fridge and drawing board for $150 in total.

NOW!
Here come the unnaccounted-for figures, expenses in fact, I believe, to the pensioner's life.
I called them "Fuel & unpaid Labour Costs"
Per Year Per Week
a: A to L "Cost of fuel": $ 2046 $ 39.35
b: A to L "unpaid work hours": 1196 hrs 23 hrs
c: A to L "unpaid labour cost": $15,180 $ 291.92
a & c: Cost to me to maintain Life: $17,226 $ 331.26
(I'm uncertain the "c: A to L unpaid labour cost" figures above are correct, and haven't the time to fix it yet. I'll get around to it asap.)
C,D, Da & E equate to "rental accommodation" costs:
$ 5,985 $ 115.10

Of these "Fuel & Unpaid Labour Costs", the fuel is paid for at purchase, but the Labour Costs are evaluated while working on an hourly $ rate of $10.00, and are what I would charge myself were I to follow a tax department regime of income and deductions assessment.

Perhaps the $1709 figure of "Fuel & Unpaid Labour Cost" could be called "bond" on my accommodation..........


to be continued.......

Friday 3rd September '04

The figures a: A to L "Cost of fuel": $ 2046 $ 39.35
and c: A to L "unpaid labour cost": $15,180 $ 291.92

are what it costs me to acquire the goods and services listed in the top table A to L.

Naturally I DO NOT pay for nor am I paid for the labour I exhert to "get me bits and pieces", but, that the average time I spent working for myself, but without being paid, is on-average 23-point-5 hours a week, a considerable amount of time, which must place restrictions on other areas of one's life, suggests it perhaps should be considered in the business of social security payments.

Hopefully I'll be able to clean this blog up over the next weeks..........


This is unaccounted-for by such as Centrelink.