baby help please!

SKIPPY

I always say if you wait until you can 'afford' to have a child no-one would ever have one!! Everything always works out in the end.

karenx

Some people say babies are expensive some say they are not. Depends on their upbringing. If you breastfeed it may be cheaper as you arent buying milk all the time. I have a 7 week old and he goes through 1 tin of sma a week, at £7.19. Theres always deals on nappies and wipes also, so stock up when they are on.
Newborns always recieve presents too, so if people ask if you need anything you could ask for 3-6 6-9 month clothes etc so you arent left with tons of newborn. I done this but I still received alot of newborn or 0-3 so I asked the person who gave me it if they minded if I took it back to get a bigger size so they could get some use out of it.
Good luck but Im sure you wont need it

csh_2

Its not really the baby thats expensive, its covering the short fall in income if the mother works then only receives SMP. Most peoples mortgages/rent is affortable based on both incomes but becomes more difficult when down to one wage.
I suggest putting away enough money for short fall in wages, for the 9 mths (or whatever you take) on SMP, before you start trying to conceive.
Good luck!

csh_2

alwaysonthego wrote: »

TBH babies do not cost much and on your income you should manage just fine.

Sorry, but how on earth can you possibly know that??? Unless of course I missed the post where the OP gave a full SOA?

viktory

Molly41 wrote: »

Money is the last thing you should be thinking of when considering a baby.

Totally disagree with this. Money is definintely something that should be considered before bringing a child into the world. If one needs to depend on means tested benefits (not suggesting that this is the case with the OP considering the earned income) then they should consider getting a job/better paid job before conception occurs. Raising a child is the responsibility of both parents - not the tax payer.

There is definitely a disturbing rise in the number of people who are coming on here and asking what they would be entitled to re benefits as they cannot afford a child but if benefits are generous enough they can....One woman said that she had wanted a child 'for ages' but still had considerable debt. A child is not a right but a privilege - and like all privileges it has to be paid for and can be very expensive.

Certainly, it would be prudent to ensure that one is debt free and has some savings before having a child.

smallwren

Thanks for all your responses.

Whilst we do seem to have a good salaries yes we do have debts that need clearing. Its certainly not a 'smoke screen' or us being scared of making 'lifelong committment and sacrifices to a child'. By asking these questions we feel we are being as responsible as possible and trying to make an informed decision on if we should try now or wait till we are in a better financial situation.

Childcare is a concern and i think we will start to pay into my companies childcare scheme as soon as i am officially 'up the duff' as they say . Hopefully this will give us a head start on the childcare costs although some of the information

Is it not better that we are trying to asses the cost before the happy event rather than going in blind?!

Thanks again for all your responses, your help is much appriciated.

smallwren

p.s - i've never made the mistake of confusing a baby with a dog. Does that mean i've passed the first test?

flea72

i dont think money does come into the equation, if you didnt have kids, you would just spend your money on other things

everyone is entitled to child benefit and £20 a week should cover all the basic expenses of a child, beyond that, its up to you whether you want to spend more on the child. even a tin of formula and a pack of nappies doesnt cost £20 a week, so you still have money left for other incidentals

The only consideration when having kids, is the drop in income that might occur from only having one working parent. But then again, that could always be worked around by moving to a cheaper house, buying less fancy food, not going out, etc

However back to the OP, based on your wages, you wouldnt be entilted to any financial help other than child benefit

if returning to work though, based on your incomes, you would be better off using childcare vouchers, through salary sacrifice, rather than declaring it for CTC purposes

Flea

redstararnie76

flea72 wrote: »

i dont think money does come into the equation, if you didnt have kids, you would just spend your money on other things

Flea

I disagree entirely. Money tends to be a big decision maker into whether or not you return to work after having the baby and under what circumstances. We couldn't afford our rent and debts on just my husband's income, so I had to continue to work full-time. When you also have to factor in childcare - in my area at around £175 per week, money is a HUGE consideration.

It is surely better to consider your financial position before deciding to try for a baby, because then you can weigh up your options and be clear about whether it is the right time. My first child was a surprise and I will never regret her, but I certainly could have made life less stressful by planning a little more! This time around, my pregnancy is planned - and I have most definitely taken financial matters into consideration. I've deliberately waited until my daughter will be due to start school while I'm on leave so that we don't have to pay for two lots of childcare at the same time (which would cripple us!). There's no guarentees and either my husband or I (or both!) could still be made redundant, but at least we've tried to be as prepared as possible. While I agree, having a baby can be a big decision and it is easy to put it off, you need to find a balance, and for me that involves thinking how it will effect you emotionally AND financially.

eklynne

Molly41 wrote: »

Money is the last thing you should be thinking of when considering a baby.

Absolute codswallop. I am hoping that as a midwife you are an intelligent human being and I don't need to dig out the figures on child poverty in this country?
I can only commend people who think about all aspects of rearing a child before going ahead, and this does include money. Far too many people in this country are unaware just how much of a lifelong financial commitment having a child is.
Hats off to the OP.

daska

The decision to try for a child should never be taken lightly but we can none of us predict exactly what the future holds. My first was a shock as we'd given up trying after 6 years and resigned ourselves to great holidays and a luxury lifestyle; my youngest was an 'if we don't go for it now we won't get another chance'. Both times I was in a financially and emotionally stable relationship when I fell pregnant. Both relationships subsequently failed. Having had a higher than average income I'm now officially well below the poverty threshold as failures on the parts of the DWP, HMRC and local council have left me with insufficient funds to pay for rent and food let alone heating. My point is, if you do your best to ensure that you can provide what the child needs, which is to be warm, dry, fed and loved (with all that this entails such as providing them with a good education), then that's all any parent can ever do.

I think you're doing exactly the right thing OP and I wish you all the best.