Five million Australians have just pocketed their biggest pay increase in seven years. Age pensions and other social security payments are increased twice a year. From 20 September 2021, the maximum single age pension rate will rise by $14.80 to $967.50 a fortnight. Age pensioner couples will receive an extra $22.40 combined, taking their fortnightly payment to $1,458.60.
These are the biggest increases we had in a while but let’s be honest – these are not glamorous incomes.
How does the age pension compare with recognised benchmarks of what pensioners actually spend?
ASFA publish by retirement expenses for a modest and comfortable lifestyle for 67 year olds. It assumes they own their own home and have no debts. You can read more about what is included here.
| Single | ||
|---|---|---|
Age Pension (inc. supplements) | ASFA Modest Lifestyle | ASFA Comfortable Lifestyle |
$25,155 | $28,514 | $44,818 |
| Couple | ||
|---|---|---|
Age Pension (inc. supplements) | ASFA Modest Lifestyle | ASFA Comfortable Lifestyle |
$37,923 | $41,170 | $59,286 |
The full age pension for a single person covers just 88% of the ASFA modest lifestyle. Or just 56% of what is considered a comfortable lifestyle.
In other words, if the pension was paid as an annual payment on 1 January, a modest budget would see the money spent by 28th November. Hmmm. How do you think this would work for you?
