A family of 4 with a monthly income of 30 million is not enough to cover expenses.

My family has 4 people, 30 million VND per month is not enough to cover expenses, children's education takes up 2/3, even though we don't dare to dress fancy.

With many expenses, many families with an income of 30 million VND/month still do not have enough to live on - Photo: NHAT XUAN

That is one of many comments that readers have left in the article "A family of four in Ho Chi Minh City, how much income is needed to ensure spending?".

Earning 45 million VND but still don't dare to eat breakfast out

Specifically, reader Lam listed: "My family of 4, 30 million VND a month is not enough, the children's school fees take up 2/3, even though we don't dare to dress luxuriously. The English tuition for the two children is more than 10 million VND a month, then extra math, literature... not to mention milk, breakfast money".

Reader Long Khang thinks that with an income of 20 million VND, one must really pack up and study at a public school, because boarding school is unlikely to be enough.

According to reader Pham, the couple's expenses are only equal to the child's tuition.

Similarly, reader Le Thoai said that a family with two children under 18 years old and two working adults with a total income of 30 million VND is struggling to make ends meet and is under a lot of pressure.

"For a family with a small child in kindergarten, a month of tuition costs 8 million VND. Not to mention medicine, milk and sugar. Some months, the child has to go to the hospital two or three times. The younger child costs a small amount of money, the older child costs a large amount of money," said reader Nguyen Thi Thuy.

According to ledu****@gmail.com, there are many expenses that arise that cannot be paid for, such as weddings, birthdays, death anniversaries, funerals, housewarmings... Every time you step out the door, you need money.

Even though the couple earns 45 million VND/month, reader Van Man still has to be frugal: “One child is in 9th grade, one is in college. The wife doesn’t dare eat breakfast out, doesn’t say anything about holidays, Tet, and goes out on days off, then it’s just enough.

Not to mention parties, illnesses, etc. For Tet, each family only gives 5 million VND to both parents.

Reader voth****@gmail.com worries: “If we calculate that on average, a couple earns 25 million VND/month, having two children going to school is already difficult. If one or both of them are unemployed, I don’t know how to calculate.”

Spend as you like, know how much is enough!

According to reader Thuy Hien: "In reality, each family's expenses are different, depending on whether the children are young or old, have a home or not, whether family members are healthy or sick, whether they are able to work, whether their income is high or low, whether their job is stable or not, whether each year the family has many or few death anniversaries, birthdays, weddings, funerals among relatives, friends, colleagues..."

Reader Bom said: "Knowing how to save 20 million VND is more than enough. Spending as much as you want is enough, but no amount is enough.

300,000 VND per day is enough to feed the whole family. Each month tuition is 4 million VND, electricity is 2 million VND, Internet is 300,000 VND, breakfast is 3 million VND for the whole family. There is still 2 million VND left over."

In response, reader Huy listed in detail: "20 million VND for a family of 4 (166,000 VND/person/day), this number is only enough to survive.

Rent, monthly electricity and water bills, travel, food (not including holidays, New Year, birthdays, weddings, funerals, death anniversaries, and illness).

According to thie****@gmail.com: "With current prices, a family of four in Ho Chi Minh City, including two children still in school, if they have their own house, needs 25 million VND to spend. If they have to rent a house, it will cost 30 million VND. Of course, that is a fairly stable standard of living."

Most readers pointed out that expenses for children's education and rent take up the majority of their income.

Therefore, reader Cuong Pham suggested: The personal income tax law needs to calculate deductions for expenses such as education costs, rent...

Reader Cafe Owner thinks that income is like papaya, each person will feel "enough" differently.

“Like the variety of ways to eat papaya, some people peel and remove the seeds before eating, some people just cut it in half, remove the seeds and use a spoon to eat without peeling, some people have to cut the papaya into small pieces.

In short, eating papaya feels delicious enough," this reader expressed.

Never running out of money but not yet having enough money to do anything and quitting my job, reader Ngoc Thao shared: “I really don’t feel happy, I feel like I’m stuck in this bustling city.

Leaving home in the morning and coming home in the evening, everything just passes by blandly. "Empty" is the word that best describes my current life.

Meanwhile, reader Cong Thanh thinks that the higher the income, the greater the pressure.

“My wife works for a foreign company, there is a lot of work so she can’t come home on time. She is excited about the high salary, but every day she comes home exhausted. But there is no other way but to try hard for the sake of her children and elderly parents,” wrote reader Cong Thanh.

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Source: https://tuoitre.vn/nha-4-nguoi-thu-nhap-1-thang-30-trieu-khong-du-chi-tieu-20250219175508572.htm