Columnists

The rates for Childcare Subsidy and OSCAR (Out of School Care and Recreation) Subsidy have regularly increased from October 2004 until April 2008.

Working for Families is making housing more affordable for those on low to middle incomes through the Accommodation Supplement.

We all love tax credits, especially at the moment when is getting hard to make it all work each month. If you have children under the age of 18, Working for Families Tax Credits can put more money in your pocket to help you with the costs of raising your family.

Given the tough times we are in, its important to ensure we maximise every opportunity we have to increase our incomes. Working for Families is a package designed to help make it easier to work and raise a family. It puts more money in the pockets of thousands of New Zealand families.

Given how tough it is out there at the moment and the rising cost of living, including the cost of electricity, its important to relook at where your dollars are going. So many of my friends are now cutting back on their general spending and looking at ways to cut costs, whereas a year ago it was almost the opposite.