The ideal amount of £ for having kids?

skintchick

I was made redundant then found out I was PG so no maternity pay for me! I will get MA which I think is around £400 a month, and you also get child benefit of £18 a week.

We have over 6k in savings but need to spend some on baby stuff.

OH earns 36k.

We are buying all new and so far have spent:
£530 on travel system (pram and car seat)EDIT I just wangled £40 off so it was £490!
£45 in tesco on toiletries like muslins and a baby bath seat thing as well as breast pads and stuff like that
Washable nappies including nappy bin and liners £243
Car sun shade - free with magazine
Baby towels - given free but also bought posh one for £23
Baby monitor - borrowed off friend

Spends to come:
Crib £180
Mattress £80
Sling £40
Sheepskin £60 (not something you have to have!)
Baby clothes - hoping to be given these
Sheets for crib £60 (for three I think)
Thermometer £40

Which adds up to £1300 and we haven;t done it MSE at all, so you could do it loads cheaper. The nappies are a big saving though as if you have disposables that adds up to a LOT over the years.

We're lucky though cos we have savings and OH earns a good wage so we can live fine on that even without the Maternity Allowance although that will be very helpful obviously!

ginvzt

You sound just like me - when we got married, and all the plans. We bought the house, started saving for a baby and trying for one. 20+ months later, we are still trying, sold the house, changed jobs and moved to a different area in the country. We had (still have) Baby fund account, which was growing nicely, but as it is not happening and getting depressing, we have just bought ourselves holiday to Seychelles with the Baby Fund savings. Of course, there is still some left, and will be added to it soon.

When we started, we calculated, that to live the same standard as have been, we would need to have extra £800 a month, when I go on maternity leave. Of course, we could do without many things, but to continue as we are, that is the amount we would need. It included travels to see both our families at least once a year, possibly 2, each family (both live in different countries).

Also, don't forget, that once you do get pregnant, you still have quite a bit of time to increase those savings!

Tigsteroonie

I do applaud people that can save and plan for these things - I used to be like that! But due to various life changes, I didn't plan this time ....

So, I'm pregnant, out of work, surviving on low income (his pay) and we have zero savings. The moses basket, cot and a bundle of clothes came at low cost from eBay; other stuff will be hunted for on Freecycle.

But we'll manage somehow!!!

li'l_p

I'm 36 weeks pregnant, and we have got no savings behind us for this baby!

I got £1500 two months ago claiming PPI insurance back on a loan, so that has been banked and will go towards paying my personal debts/expenses (car insurance, loan, etc) while I am on mat leave, so I won't have to worry too much.

But other than that, we've not gone wild getting baby stuff, and like another poster we got a lot handed over to us or paid very little from car boot sales, ebay and freecycle. The only things I have bought new are the travel system, cot mattress, bottles and baby monitors (and even then I only got the monitors new because we had vouchers from work) otherwise they would have been 2nd hand too. You have got to remember that babies aren't in clothes and the like for very long. We got given about 6 bin bags full of baby clothes and have bought a few bits ourselves, and we're not even sure the baby will even get to wear half of them - there's that much stuff. But it has saved us a fortune, and has meant we can put the money we 'saved' towards the things we would not have 2nd hand.

There are some great bargains and freebies to be had out there, and babies can be as cheap or expensive as you want. It's all down to personal preference. Don't be lulled into thinking you have to have everything that the catalogues advertise. My OH was ready to pay out around £100 for a baby change station from mothercare but I didn't want to as I wasn't sure whether we would even use it! A few weeks later I missed out on a solid pine Mamas and Papas one on ebay locally for £30, but the very next day got the exact same one from a car boot sale for £15. I don't care if we don't use it now, as I didn't pay too much for it.

patchwork_cat

It all depends on what you want. If you are happy to go second hand you could probably pick up everything you nedd adn then some for £200. If everything had to be designer or top of the range then probably £20 000 would see you still needing some things!

Realistically I would work out how long you want to be off on maternity and save however much you need to cover bills for this time. Then realistically whether you would settle for second hand, cheap first hand , or only the best. Price up a layette based on this.

Few things that we managed without and found great - No moses basket - baby is fine sleeping foot to bottom of cot. Don't think we used the plastics much (bath,top and tail etc.) but they aren't expensive so probably fine to have. Microwave steriliser is good.

Spendless

Skintchick- CB is now £20 a week for eldest child and from what you've posted of your OH's salary I think it's likely you'll qualify for the family element of child tax credit (roughly £10 a week) plus the baby element for 1str year of babys life (an additional £10 a week), so you'll be looking at an extra £40 a week once baby is here. Also have you considered asking any friends who ask what you'd like as a gift to contribute to the items you have yet to buy. I know I'd have rather had a themometer from someone, than another slepsuit, though it depends on how many clothes you've got. Also how good are your (or granny's) sewing skills. MIL made a lot of my bedding from ordinary sheets.


OP-I do know of an mse'r who worked out their bills, deduced her husbands salary and what was needed to make up the difference she saved 3 years equivalent of it, so she could stop at home until child went to nursery if need be.

FairyElephant_2

Spendless wrote: »

OP-I do know of an mse'r who worked out their bills, deduced her husbands salary and what was needed to make up the difference she saved 3 years equivalent of it, so she could stop at home until child went to nursery if need be.

I'm not alone then! That wasn't me, but I have done similar (mind you, we have been TTC a LONG time!). Unfortunately it's been eaten-into by having to pay for our fertility treatment, as we don't get any help from the NHS:mad: but I still reckon we could just about manage as long as DH wages don't drop, and I haven't included any family tax credit (mainly 'cos I couldn't get my head around calculating it! LOL).

I agree that babies are basically as expensive as you want them to be. Sadly it is doubtful that I'll be able to breastfeed, so I'll have bottles & formula to pay for, but I intend to do the 'natural nappy' thing for most of the time (disposables for days out & hols) and I already priced up lots of stuff on ebay (but thankfully hadn't 'won' any major items) before we MC'd the first time, so I know what I expect to pay for stuff.

The only thing I would say is don't give in to the temptation to buy too much stuff until you are a way into the PG - if things go wrong it is heartbreaking to have the things around, and if you at all superstitious (like me!) you'll find yourself getting rid of everything and starting again anyhow.

skintchick

FairyElephant wrote: »

The only thing I would say is don't give in to the temptation to buy too much stuff until you are a way into the PG - if things go wrong it is heartbreaking to have the things around, and if you at all superstitious (like me!) you'll find yourself getting rid of everything and starting again anyhow.

I agree with this, although I took it a bit far and now at 32 weeks am rushing round trying to buy everything and get it delivered (lead times can be excessively long for stuff).

Took me till after 28 weeks to feel comfortable buying even one thing for the baby after losing the last one.

patchwork_cat

You are not alone not buying things until after 28 weeks - been there! Although these days you could be quite OK after just over 24 weeks!

skintchick

patchwork_cat wrote: »

You are not alone not buying things until after 28 weeks - been there! Although these days you could be quite OK after just over 24 weeks!

My friend who used to work on a preemie unit gave me my chances every week at church! I didn;t feel safe till 28 weeks as a result!