Scots computer expert earns good wage but just can't keep 'head above water'
dailyrecord.co.ukMark Perrie has a daily struggle to keep his head above water. Mark, 26, earns £36,000 a year and has a take-home pay of about £2200 a month.
He said most of that is taken up paying his rent, council tax, food, clothing and other daily expenses. The computer programmer moved into a one-bedroom flat in Dalry, Edinburgh, two years ago and has seen his rent rise from £625 to £660.
However, he expects the next increase to make it over the £700 mark, which he cannot afford. Mark is thinking of moving back to Motherwell and commuting to work to save on accommodation costs.
His flat uses an electric fire and his monthly bill has risen from £50 to £110.Food costs have doubled from £60 a week and his usual lager is now more than twice as much.Mark said it is now cheaper to buy fast food than cook from fresh and he has stopped going to restaurants.He said: “I am struggling and the cost of living really began to bite in the last two months.“When you meet other people who are in the same situation, you can see anxiety about the future.“When I moved to Edinburgh, the rent on my flat was the cheapest I could find.
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