{"id":97537,"date":"2026-04-19T14:17:24","date_gmt":"2026-04-19T14:17:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/all-news\/bad-news-for-south-africans-earning-under-r60000"},"modified":"2026-04-19T14:42:17","modified_gmt":"2026-04-19T14:42:17","slug":"bad-news-for-south-africans-earning-under-r60000","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/all-news\/bad-news-for-south-africans-earning-under-r60000","title":{"rendered":"Bad News for South Africans Earning Under R60,000"},"content":{"rendered":"

Africa-Press – South-Africa. <\/strong><\/span>South Africans earning R60,000 or less per month, which typically signals a relatively comfortable middle-class lifestyle, are now under significant financial pressure.<\/p>\n

This salary no longer guarantees financial stability and the expected comfort of a middle-class lifestyle in South Africa.<\/p>\n

Increasingly, individuals earning between R30,000 and R60,000 per month are turning to credit to try to maintain their middle-class lifestyle, National Debt Advisors\u2019 (NDA) data shows.<\/p>\n

NDA debt counsellor Samantha Moyana explained to 702 that these individuals have come under immense pressure in recent years as living costs have outpaced income growth.<\/p>\n

In particular, the prices of food and fuel, as well as other basic necessities, have eaten up a larger share of middle-class income, which has not grown much amid broader economic stagnation.<\/p>\n

While these individuals benefitted from falling interest rates, which eased debt-servicing costs, more of their income has been eaten up by basic needs.<\/p>\n

Worryingly, many are turning to credit to afford basic necessities rather than cutting back elsewhere.<\/p>\n

\u201cEven earning R50,000 per month in South Africa can feel very tight right now. Typically, people earning that amount spend 74% of their take-home pay on debt,\u201d Moyana explained.<\/p>\n

Much of this is made up by repayments on home and car loans, with an increasing share being taken up by credit cards and personal loans.<\/p>\n

\u201cWith high affordability, relatively speaking, these individuals qualify for a lot of credit, which is why many consumers find themselves in this situation,\u201d Moyana said.<\/p>\n

She said this is a symptom of a deeper problem, which is the lack of salary growth for middle-class individuals. As the cost of living rises, this squeezes disposable income, pushing many to use credit to maintain their lifestyles.<\/p>\n

In the short term, this strategy works in that their living standards do not drop, but it has disastrous long-term consequences as debt-servicing costs begin to eat up a larger share of their take-home pay.<\/p>\n

Flat salaries are to blame<\/b><\/p>\n

South Africa\u2019s middle class has borne the brunt of the country\u2019s economic stagnation over the past 15 years, with their salaries struggling to keep pace with inflation.<\/p>\n

The middle class falls between the rich, who have benefited from the strong appreciation of asset prices since 2010, and lower-income individuals, who receive government support.<\/p>\n

This leaves the middle class largely reliant on wage growth to maintain their lifestyle while trying to build asset bases to supplement their income.<\/p>\n

Moyana described this situation as the \u201cflat salary squeeze\u201d, where an individual\u2019s salary does not grow at a fast enough rate to maintain their lifestyle.<\/p>\n

2026 was seen as one of the few years where this would not be the case, with income growth strongly outpacing inflation.<\/p>\n

As inflation steadily fell throughout 2025 and the Reserve Bank moved to a lower target point, wage growth began to outpace price increases.<\/p>\n

This was coupled with falling interest rates, easing the debt-servicing burden on South African individuals and freeing up more disposable income.<\/p>\n

Standard Bank chief economist Goolam Ballim explained that this was largely expected to continue throughout 2026.<\/p>\n

Ballim also noted that the JSE\u2019s exceptional 2025 created a wealth effect, with spending rising as South Africans felt richer on the back of rising asset prices.<\/p>\n

\u201cConsumers may not necessarily feel inclined to spend overwhelmingly, but when they have improving balance sheets, they become less defensive in their spending,\u201d Ballim said earlier this year.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is particularly true among middle-income and higher-income individuals, who dominate spending in South Africa. We think this will be one element that helps to spur discretionary spending.\u201d<\/p>\n

However, things have changed dramatically as 2026 has gone on, with the conflict in the Middle East sending oil prices soaring.<\/p>\n

This has translated into rising fuel prices, which will follow through into higher inflation and has eradicated hope of further interest rate relief for the next few months.<\/p>\n

As a result, living costs are once again growing at a much faster rate than wages, resulting in the pressure on the middle class ratcheting up again.<\/p>\n

For More News And Analysis About South-Africa<\/span> Follow Africa-Press<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Africa-Press – South-Africa. South Africans earning R60,000 or less per month, which typically signals a relatively comfortable middle-class lifestyle, are now under significant financial pressure. This salary no longer guarantees financial stability and the expected comfort of a middle-class lifestyle in South Africa. Increasingly, individuals earning between R30,000 and R60,000 per month are turning to […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":84,"featured_media":97536,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2,3],"tags":[275],"class_list":["post-97537","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-all-news","category-community","tag-south-africa-2"],"yoast_head":"\nBad News for South Africans Earning Under R60,000 - South Africa<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"South Africans earning R60,000 or less per month, which typically signals a relatively comfortable middle-class lifestyl ...\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/all-news\/bad-news-for-south-africans-earning-under-r60000\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Bad News for South Africans Earning Under R60,000\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"South Africans earning R60,000 or less per month, which typically signals a relatively comfortable middle-class lifestyl ...\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/all-news\/bad-news-for-south-africans-earning-under-r60000\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"South Africa\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/AfricaPressTunisiaa\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-04-19T14:17:24+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2026-04-19T14:42:17+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/sites\/31\/2026\/04\/sm_1776597092.977227.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1200\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"675\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"cfeditoren\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"cfeditoren\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"4 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/all-news\/bad-news-for-south-africans-earning-under-r60000#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/all-news\/bad-news-for-south-africans-earning-under-r60000\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"cfeditoren\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/#\/schema\/person\/068c7ab4e9634ae78ec5d54ec46598bb\"},\"headline\":\"Bad News for South Africans Earning Under R60,000\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-04-19T14:17:24+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-04-19T14:42:17+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/all-news\/bad-news-for-south-africans-earning-under-r60000\"},\"wordCount\":679,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/all-news\/bad-news-for-south-africans-earning-under-r60000#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/sites\/31\/2026\/04\/sm_1776597092.977227.jpg\",\"keywords\":[\"South-Africa\"],\"articleSection\":[\"all news\",\"community\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/all-news\/bad-news-for-south-africans-earning-under-r60000#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/all-news\/bad-news-for-south-africans-earning-under-r60000\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/south-africa\/all-news\/bad-news-for-south-africans-earning-under-r60000\",\"name\":\"Bad News for South Africans Earning Under R60,000 - 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