How the rising cost of living is affecting community members.

Food For Life founder Murray Harris said the demand for their affordable grocery hampers has gone through the roof in the past few months.

"We have had a shift in demographic in the type of buyers we are getting, lot more people with stable jobs and a good income coming in, too - and there's nothing wrong with that," Mr Harris said.

The general misconception within the community, he said, is that people think if they shop there they are taking away from someone struggling more than they are.

"It's not that, if they shop with us they actually help us stay afloat," he said.

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Food For Life sources its groceries from around the country and then makes hampers and sells them at a cheaper price as compared to the market.

"We have a range of hampers, for example a family hamper which can be used for four to five meals contains meats, treats, fresh fruits, veg bags, bread, fresh milk and that's $60," he said.

Mr Harris said if people are looking to make a donation they can buy a "pay it forward hamper".

"It allows us to help someone who may not have money to buy a hamper a particular week," he said

The Salvation Army's Community Fundraising and Public Relations coordinator Karen Walker said there was a range of support available for people looking for cost of living related assistance.

"We give out meals, we refer people to our helpline to get them assessed on their situation and what they need so that they can be supported in the best way," Ms Walker said.

"We also have psychologists we can refer people to and basically provide any day to day things that people might need."

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The continuing growth in the cost of living and yet another interest rate rise are putting financial pressure on households across the Illawarra and Australia.

The Mercury asked people on the street for their experiences managing the squeeze on their wallets.

"I'm retired, I'm reasonably well-off; I wouldn't say I'm rich, but I'm not poor.

"The main thing is food... that one's really over budget."

"It kind of sucks, it's expensive.

"My wife works every day during the week, I work weekends... We always ran everything cheaply - planning grocery shops, that kind of thing."

"Fortunately I'm in government housing, and I am on the pension, but I've had to cut back on my groceries about 50 per cent.

"When it comes to household products and other cleaning products, I have to go to places like the Salvos because I can't afford to get them at the shops... I'm going without food to feed my animals, and I'm not the only one in my building."

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