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Expenses You Have to Consider When Having Kids

Happy family in the park evening light. The lights of a sun. Mom, dad and baby happy walk at sunset. The concept of a happy family.Parents hold the baby's hands.

Did you know that more than a million Millennials are giving birth each year? If you’re about to be a first-time parent, you might be stressed about finances and what is to come in the future.

This guide aims to take some of the stress off your shoulders. Keep reading to learn about the expenses you’ll need to consider when having kids.

Calculating the Costs of Having Kids

Having kids can put an additional strain on an already tight budget. You can plan ahead to reduce the financial impact, despite the cost of raising children differing for everyone.

Calculating the cost of having kids will depend on your specific situation, but we’re going to pin down the expenses that you can expect.

Prenatal Care and Childbirth Expenses

Prenatal care, hospital stays, epidurals, and giving birth don’t come cheap. Without complications, the average cost of childbirth is over $5,000. With complications, childbirth can cost more than $10,000.

If the delivery results in a cesarean, these costs can triple in some hospitals. On average, a cesarean without complications will be over $8,000. If you have a c-section with complications, the price is almost $20,000.

Most insurance plans require that you meet the annual deductible before they pay for childbirth expenses.

Health Insurance

Adding a baby to the family means an increase in your health insurance costs. Health Insurance Plans help cover baby vaccinations, health check-ups, and play an important role in the overall health of your baby.

A baby is issued under their mother’s health insurance plan for the first thirty days of their life. After this, parents are responsible for adding their newborn to their health insurance plan.

Explore the cost of health insurance when calculating the costs of raising a child.

Having a baby is a qualifying life event so you can add a child to your current health insurance plan. Contact your insurance company to understand how your premium will be affected when you add a baby to your policy.

Maternity and Paternity Leave

U.S. employers must give 12 weeks of unpaid leave to parents that just had a baby under the Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA). During this time, you’ll need to ensure you have enough finances to cover costs.

You can save paid sick leave and vacation days if you have them to help you with budgeting after you have a baby.

To prepare for this leave of absence, limit your expenses ahead of time and put away extra money in an emergency fund.

Baby Stuff

One of the main expenses with kids is the baby stuff you’ll need to accommodate them.

You won’t need to spend a fortune on baby items, but you should splurge on the best stuff if you have the money. Plan room in your budget for the essentials so you will be ready the day you bring your baby home from the hospital.

These are some of the essentials you’ll need to purchase before the arrival of your child:

Car Seat

Buying a car seat is a necessity. You might have to buy more than one within the first year depending on how fast your baby grows.

Infant seats cost around $100 or more depending on the features and the brand.

You can reuse a car seat from a friend or buy a used one, but make sure that the car seat is not expired. This might sound silly, but heavy use puts a lot of stress on car seats.

Car seat technology is constantly improving, so it’s better to buy a new one when you have a newborn. These days, most car seats can last up to six years or more.

Diapers

Diapers are one of the biggest recurring expenses you’ll need to pay for when you have a baby.

Disposable diapers are convenient, but you’ll also have cloth diapers as a more affordable option. If you stick to disposable diapers, you’ll be paying up to $80 per month.

Keep in mind that some daycare centers only allow disposable diapers, not cloth.

Baby Food

Baby food is another ongoing expense when you have children. You can save some money by breastfeeding your newborn, but you’ll have to purchase a breast pump which can range from $50 to $250.

If you choose to go the formula route, you’ll be spending about $25 per can. A can of infant formula lasts around a week, but you can cut down on this expense by buying in bulk.

When your child ages and begins trying new foods, you’ll need to regularly buy baby food. You can opt to make your own and save a few bucks, but it’s more convenient to buy premade foods from the store.

The more your child grows, the more you’ll spend on food.

Clothing

Receiving hand-me-downs from friends with children or buying clothing from a consignment shop can save money when you need to buy baby clothes.

Expect to spend money on baby clothes year after year as your baby grows out of their clothes.

Clothing costs go way up as your child gets older and begins to develop a style of their own.

Entertainment

Keeping your child entertained does more than give you a parental break, it can also aid in their development!

Books, sensory toys, and even video games are great entertainment items you can expect to spend some cash on.

There are great ways to keep your child entertained without putting a major hole in your wallet. Consider involvement with low-cost community activities and join the local library for low-budget activities.

Expenses With Kids: What First-Time Parents Should Know

Having kids doesn’t come cheap. You’ll need to begin paying for an additional person, which could cause first-time parents to experience financial troubles.

With this guide, you can better understand the expenses you’ll have to cover when your baby is born. Take what you learned from this guide to create a budget and prepare for the birth of your child.

For more informative blog posts like this, check out the other articles on our website.

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