Home Family Financial Planning

[plantationcatt]

To those of you out there with the real life answers: What kind of financial considerations should be included when planning to start a family? What (if anything) did you overestimate? What suprised you that you didn''t plan for? How did your household budget change?

I''ve been all over the internet and seem to find the same canned answers!

Any help would be appreciated!

 

[DivaDiamond007]

Here is my advice: if you wait until you have enough money to have a baby then you''ll never have one...so don''t overthink it.

Unless you will be a SAHM then look into the cost of childcare in your area because that''s usually the biggest expense that you''ll be paying once the two of you become three (or more!). Check out center-based care, home-based care, nannies, etc. to get a good idea of how much you''ll be shelling out.

Most other things that go along with having a baby can be cheaper or expensive depending on how much money you want/can spend. You''ll have to buy certain things like a crib and carseat but may be able to forego others - like a pricey stroller or formula if you are able to breastfeed.

My household budget didn''t change too much when we welcomed our son in July 2008. He was formula fed since I didn''t produce enough milk and that was around $100/month and we got into a childcare situation with my mom so we are paying an in-home provider for part-time care. Otherwise it hasn''t been too bad. We got tons of clothes from my two showers and got a barely used Peg Perego high chair from a relative. Our parents split the cost of the nursery furniture as a gift, and a friend got us a glider and travel system as a gift. We purchased our two carseats new by ourselves (an Evenflo and a Britax). Babies grow fast so it''s not necessary to spend a lot on clothes at first - at least not until they are mobile and capable of making a mess of themselves. Diapers can also go either way - we like Pampers or Huggies, which are more expensive than a store brand or Luvs - but you can always experiment to see what you like and what fits your budget. Good luck!

 

[MustangGal]

Remember to check into the cost of adding the baby to an insurance plan, and at how much you''ll have to pay out of pocket for pre-natal care/delivery. The costs can vary widely. As mentioned above, daycare is the biggest expense. We also made sure we had a few months worth of expenses in savings so that we would be OK if a job was lost. A vehicle might be another issue if you would have to get a family friendly car. For us, we planned on about 10K per year for everything baby related. To offset that, Tgal mentioned in another thread that you''ll save other places, like not as much traveling and less eating out. Add to that tax savings since you''ll be able to claim the baby and ususally the daycare expenses as well. I''m an over planner, and it took us about 2 years to save up, pay off debt, take a nice vacation (or 3 as it ended up!), and mentally prepare for a baby. Thankfully, you get 9 months warning to get it all in order

 

[MustangGal]

And as much as you plan, things can change! I planned on breastfeeding, and ended up switching to formula at 5 weeks. But, we received so many diapers as shower gifts that I didn''t have to buy any until he was 5 months old! You can plan all you want, but in the end it''s easier to go with the flow and don''t stress over every little thing.

 

[somethingshiny]

Ditto on the advice of "you''ll never have "enough" money!"

But, in trying to answer your question. The only thing that took me by surprise and was a financial difficulty was my little boy needing to come out c-section and having crappy insurance and then when he was 2 he had to have a tonsillectomy and adenoidectomy. I don''t think many people plan financially for surgeries at such a young age.

But, for me, good insurance would have been all I needed.

The budget only changed in terms of food and diapers.

I really think you can raise a child on whatever funds you have. I''m sure DH and I fall into the lowest end financially on PS, and we raise our son within our means.

 

[DivaDiamond007]

Date: 8/10/2009 4:21:42 PM
Author: somethingshiny
Ditto on the advice of ''you''ll never have ''enough'' money!''

But, in trying to answer your question. The only thing that took me by surprise and was a financial difficulty was my little boy needing to come out c-section and having crappy insurance and then when he was 2 he had to have a tonsillectomy and adenoidectomy. I don''t think many people plan financially for surgeries at such a young age.

But, for me, good insurance would have been all I needed.

The budget only changed in terms of food and diapers.

I really think you can raise a child on whatever funds you have. I''m sure DH and I fall into the lowest end financially on PS, and we raise our son within our means.

+1. If you have a good head on your shoulders you can make it work. My DH and I are not rich by any means but we''re doing it because we chose to have our son and his needs come before anything.

 

[plantationcatt]

Thanks for the responses--I searched for a similar thread...only to find it after I posted my question. Sorry!

Diva, quite a few people have said not to wait until we can afford it! Our biggest and most difficult decision will be childcare...for emotional and finacial reasons. Glad that you didn''t have to purchase nursery furniture, that seems to be a biggie. The only things I won''t skimp on are safety issues--like a safe crib, carseat... Re. the diapers, someone I know swears that the Walmart brand was the only kind that fit her daughter. Hope I''m that lucky!

MustangGal, I''m so glad I''m not the only overplanner! Whew! My job title is PLANNER and I do tend to overanylze on and off the job. I guess the pain of the cost of formula was eased by the diaper gift, haha. Did yall save up the money over a couple of years with extra income or just scrimping more? We''re trying to get rid of my (already family friendly car) payment ASAP and will be done by Christmas, but my husband''s student loans are hanging over my head like a black cloud...

somethingshiny, Yeah, surgery costs would not have been in my budget! Having to deal with medical costs as well as the actual medical problem is a compounded nightmare. Hoping he''s doing well now! A good reminder that health insurance is key for not only the parent but the child!

somethingshiny & Diva, It''s nice to know that we don''t have to be rolling in the dough to provide a stable home for our children. I''m sure we''ll figure it all out financially once we have to....in the meantime I''m making sure that "good head on my shoulders" is filled with as much knowledge as possible! I should have been a girl scout. And PS is like my troop leader!

 

[MustangGal]

We already had some savings going, and never had much debt. So between spending less on "extras", and raises, we met our goals. And we actually ended up with much more saved up than I "required". I think a big part of my goals was also to allow me time to get my head around the whole idea of having a baby. I was on the fence, it was DH that really wanted chidren. So setting goals helped to get me in the right mind-set for motherhood.

We did the less expensive route, and bought baby furniture from Walmart. $500 got us a crib and a dresser/changing table that look decent, are safe, and should last plenty long enough. Same with carseats and strollers. You don''t have to buy the top of the line things to be safe and happy. And we do use WalMart diapers

. They''re the least expensive I''ve found, so he wears those during the day and Huggies at night.

All of the baby things can be as inexepensive as you''re willing to do. It''s daycare that''ll bite you. From what others have mentioned, I must be in one of the lowest priced daycare areas. We pay $125 per week. And once you sign up for daycare, even if you go on vacation, you still pay if the kid is there or not.