Enough money for a baby?

fernliebee

I put less than £500 as I read it as how much just for baby, ie over and above what you will be paying anyway. As others have said biggest costs are loss of wages and childcare, then consumables ie milk and nappies and 'big' one off expenses.

However, we budgeted for the middle ground on everything, then got as much as poss second hand, from freecycle, hand me downs etc so had more than enough, so the left over money we over paid all our utility bills rent, gas, elec and water, so we had less to worry about on maternity. I use washable nappies and breastfeed, I very rarely have to buy anything specifically for DD as she eats what we eat for dinner, doesn't have bottles. dummies, don't use any baby lotions or shampoo etc (though do buy fairly expensive bum cream as no petrochemicals etc)

Another thing that worked for us, as I knew I would be staying at home with DD, was we lived on DH wages and used maternity to get set up with things we needed that would last ie decent car, re-useable nappies in bigger sizes, clothes up to 1 yr etc.

Also we were cheeky and presents we got when DD was born, were exchanged for identical item but in a slightly bigger size, as we had so much newborn stuff second hand which was pristine, and we wanted her to get wear out of the beautiful gifts, I did ask them all first and no-body minded.

Spendless

Years ago, I read a report where they gave where the most cost went from babyhood to 18. From memory it went something like this
upto 12 months - baby equipment
1-5 years - childcare
5-11- bit vague on this one but poss activities/childcare/clothing
12+- food/clothes

angelicmary85

That was quite a good read!

I put under £500 as I didn't go in for the fancy gadgets and gizmo's that you can get for babies, my cot was a 2nd hand freebie, travel system was only £180 (Britax Voyaga so big wheels for snow and it came with a rain cover, car seat is to be used for 2nd baby) as it was on sale in Mothercare and we got loads of clothes given to us so all we paid for that was un-necessary was the Bounty photos when DD was born!

I couldn't breastfeed (boobs didn't work the way they should have!!) so had to use formula but we only went through 3 tins a month as DD was never a big eater/drinker - whichever you prefer to call it! Our wee one never had dummies or a fancy bouncy chair so I think it's all to do with how much you want to spend rather than how much you need to spend.

I think we've forgotten aswel that people on benefits can get a £500 grant (aswel as the HIPG) so that's £690 they have to spend on 'the big stuff' before the baby comes along.

debtfreein4years

we have budgeted a grand for the initial set up, cot, mattress, bedding, buggy, car seat, bouncer, high chair, baby moniters, thermometer and reusable nappies - they are the essentials as i see i it.

i want to buy a new wardrobe and chest of drawer as there is just a clothes rail in there but i dont see that as an essential.

im not working at the moment anyways and after all household bills we have 700 a month left (once car paid off 950 a month) so more than enough i think as babys can be as cheap or expensive as you want them to be.

stardoman

Way, way, way less than £500 a month. The biggest expense is either childcare or loss of an income (depending on what you decide to do).

And don't forget that you will get child benefit regardless of household income which I think is more than £16 a week. And depending on income, child tax credits may be received as well. For those families earning up to £55K you can get £40 a month.

We also found that we socialised less (too tired!) and saved money that way. As DS1 got older I cooked more which reduced out food costs. We expected to struggle as I earnt the same as my husband. Yet somehow we managed just fine.

Mandy.

TotallyBroke

debtfreein4years wrote: »

we have budgeted a grand for the initial set up, cot, buy secondhand, scrub the wood then wash over with milton cost £25mattress, buy new cost £80 bedding, can be bought second hand and boiled cost £15 buggy, car seat, travel system approx £200 although I bought second hand off a family member and it cost me £50 bouncer not needed, high chair not needed until they are sitting up and eating solids so 6months plus again can be bought second hand cost £20, baby moniters, not needed you'll hear baby cry infact sometimes you'll wake before baby does cry thermometer not needed you can tell how hot the water is by dipping your elbow inand reusable nappies - they are the essentials as i see i it. again I got these second hand but would guesstimate they would cost £200 so in total that is £590

i want to buy a new wardrobe and chest of drawer as there is just a clothes rail in there but i dont see that as an essential.

im not working at the moment anyways and after all household bills we have 700 a month left (once car paid off 950 a month) so more than enough i think as babys can be as cheap or expensive as you want them to be.

You could always ask people to buy you mothercare vouchers for baby instead of clothes, I did and it went a big way to buying the mattress for the cot once my lo had outgrown the moses basket. Although it turned out to be a complete waste of £80 because he would not sleep in it. His head touched it twice, I'm so glad I bought the frame for £25.

debtfreein4years

I dont want all second hand things though thats why i have budgetted carefully for the things i want new. if family and friends are offering things that their baby has grown out of and will not be using then i dont have a problem in accepting what is offered. all what i have considered my essentials plus others like stair gates and bottles etc will cost me £750 max leaving a couple of hundred to sort out clothes.

i do need a bath thermometer though as i like my bath water hot and warm water to me feels cold so i dont want to take the risk of potentially scalding a baby.

its each to their own, i think my budget is very reasonable considering i could go mad and spend 10 times that quiet easily, but i still dont want to waste our savings as we are currently in rented and are saving as much as we can to buy our own house once the contract is up on this place.

gxx

lostinrates

I think its possible to have a baby very inexpensively. (I'ma little confused about the comment somewhere that there is no choice in having a baby sometimes though).

I think though, one needs to look ahead to the costs of children, and later teens.

We'd want enough to put money aside now for university costs. We'd personally (although I don't consider it by any means a necessity) want to be able to cover the costs of private education and. something I consider more important, lots of extra curricular activitiesto expand a child's non academic knowledge, and enjoyment. I think the world is unlikely to become a place where employment is easier to get: so a well rounded person with skills for a job are important.

We have family abroad: we'd want a child to vist and meet them, and appreciate its mulitcultural background (DH and I are british passport holding mongrels).

I'd personally, bar mattresses, have no issue with second hand baby stuff, clothes etc.

So, while I think the first few years can be done cheaply I think it would cost more later, and while I think some of these costs aren't need, they would be very high priority in our household. For a baby I'd say under £500, for a young child more, for an older child, a lot more.

TotallyBroke

debtfreein4years wrote: »

I dont want all second hand things though thats why i have budgetted carefully for the things i want new. if family and friends are offering things that their baby has grown out of and will not be using then i dont have a problem in accepting what is offered. all what i have considered my essentials plus others like stair gates and bottles etc will cost me £750 max leaving a couple of hundred to sort out clothes.

i do need a bath thermometer though as i like my bath water hot and warm water to me feels cold so i dont want to take the risk of potentially scalding a baby.

its each to their own, i think my budget is very reasonable considering i could go mad and spend 10 times that quiet easily, but i still dont want to waste our savings as we are currently in rented and are saving as much as we can to buy our own house once the contract is up on this place.

gxx

Your budget is very reasonable, I was trying to highlight the things that people think they need and what they actually do need.
Just one thing with regard to the water, when you dip your elbow in you should feel nothing, no warmth or coldness. This is because the water will then be body temperature and perfectly safe for your baby. People 100s of years ago did not need thermometers. But it is personal choice to buy one and I am not knocking you for doing so. If I had the money when lo was born I probably would've spent £1000s but I didn't so couldn't.

galvanizersbaby

lostinrates wrote: »

I think its possible to have a baby very inexpensively. (I'ma little confused about the comment somewhere that there is no choice in having a baby sometimes though).

I think though, one needs to look ahead to the costs of children, and later teens.

We'd want enough to put money aside now for university costs. We'd personally (although I don't consider it by any means a necessity) want to be able to cover the costs of private education and. something I consider more important, lots of extra curricular activitiesto expand a child's non academic knowledge, and enjoyment. I think the world is unlikely to become a place where employment is easier to get: so a well rounded person with skills for a job are important.

We have family abroad: we'd want a child to vist and meet them, and appreciate its mulitcultural background (DH and I are british passport holding mongrels).

I'd personally, bar mattresses, have no issue with second hand baby stuff, clothes etc.

So, while I think the first few years can be done cheaply I think it would cost more later, and while I think some of these costs aren't need, they would be very high priority in our household. For a baby I'd say under £500, for a young child more, for an older child, a lot more.

I took it to mean maybe an accidential/unplanned pregnancy but then again I could be wrong

I think you have a good point with the last part of your post - while it doesn't actually cost much to keep a baby in the first few years (unless you are losing a wage of course which most people to take in to account)
It's more the long term cost of the things you've mentioned in your post uni etc...

Also I guess what's high priority for one household may not be for another so it's also a case of when planning ahead - do you want to survive (in which case most can do this on very little) or do you want to be able to afford the things you consider important (this varies from person to person obviously)

I can't decide what to answer on the poll!:D