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This isn't a very easy question to answer as there are many "costs" that could be considered, such as additional housing and transportation costs that are subtle as well as hard costs like diapers and formula.
There are quite a few calculators out there that will tell you some crazy numbers, but taking the most common factors and neglecting a bigger car, house, etc. that we'll assume you already have AND assuming you don't need to pay for daycare:
Food: $1,525 per year.
Clothing: $600 per year.
Gifts: $330 per year.
Insurance: $600 per year.
Misc: $350 per year.
Total: $3,405 per year or $283.75 per month.
If you need childcare you can add in $4,300 per year or ~$360 per month.
Now, all of those numbers are nothing more than national averages from the USDA and can fluctuate based on region and lifestyle, but they are nice round numbers. Obviously you can poke holes in these 8 ways from Sunday, but I happen to think that the $283.75 per month not counting childcare is probably a pretty good number. If you can afford that, you can probably afford a kid. If you need childcare add on at least $360 a month and there you have it.
I think it really does depend on where you live before you can accurately estimate what having a child will cost you. And the type of employment the parents have can be a factor, too. For instance, some of the above estimates are nowhere near accurate where I live. Daycare costs for one child can easily be over $300 a week, never mind a month. And we pay $250 a month for health insurance for a child, not per year, and it covers very little. Many parents pay even more to lower their annual deductible. (ours is $10k) My dh is self-employed, and I'm a SAHM. Our oldest are in college, our youngest in elementary school. I think it is much harder today to have a family than it was years ago. Thankfully I don't need maternity coverage now, because companies don't even offer it to the self-employed anymore. I think a couple just needs to make sure they have adequate employment and health insurance, and enough money to cover childcare/SAHP, with a little left over for clothing, gifts etc. They should consider investing in a college fund, too. If a couple is already struggling, it might be best to put off starting a family for a few years.
I've been reading some threads lately that have multiple comments stating you should not have kids unless you can afford them.
It got me thinking - what does this actually mean to people in real terms, and what kind of income are we talking about?
I'm curious as to whether there are people that see kids of something as a luxury item, economically speaking, and where we draw the line as a society, in terms of folks that are never going to have the potential to be big wage earners and whether that negates their "right" (for want of a better term) to become parents.
Can you shelter them, feed them, clothe them, provide for their education, and get them healthcare without imposing on other people?
I knew people would say that. If I have to spell it out to make you happy, fine.
Having insurance too.
Though as a proponent of UHC, I think EVERYONE should have HC.
Why doesn't anyone I know who works hard for a living want UHC? Weird coincidence, I'm sure...
Just a bunch of lazos who want people to subsidize their existence...nice! Have more kids.
Why doesn't anyone I know who works hard for a living want UHC? Weird coincidence, I'm sure...
Just a bunch of lazos who want people to subsidize their existence...nice! Have more kids.
Well, prepare yourself cuz you are talking to a girl married to a guy that works 7 days per week sweetheart. We also HAVE HC. Both of us are HUGE proponents of UHC.
I shop at Goodwill for clothes and I love it. I don't consider it a sacrifice at all. I regularly find Gap, Old Navy and Hannah Anderson stuff for my dd in great condition. I'm glad that more people don't shop there. More good stuff for us.
Agreed! Kids grow out of their stuff so fast, it's almost pointless to buy it new. Neighbors, family, friends...all these people can be called upon to share clothing and other things as kids grow up. And it's environmentally friendly to recycle these items.
Can you shelter them, feed them, clothe them, provide for their education, and get them healthcare without imposing on other people?
Then you can afford kids.
And no one said you have a 'right' to kids.
If you'll notice, in my post I put "right" in quotation marks and then added "for want of a better term" directly afterward. Because I knew somebody would quibble over that particular word. Yet still...
But since you brought it up, unless you're living in a country where the government has put limitations on people's right to procreate how they wish, like say communist China, you do indeed have a "right" to kids, no matter how ill-conceived an idea it may be.
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