What's the cost of having children?

JeffUK_2

Hi Guys,

Doing some long-term budgeting, and kids are over the horizon but not far over it!

There's regular stories in the news about how much extra the 'average' person has to spend to raise children... but I'm not the 'average' person, I'm a money saving ninja, so I thought I'd ask you other money saving ninjas!

How much cost should budget for say the first 5,10,15 years? and what are the biggest factors that might influence it?

The numbers I've seen so far, are around £4000PA to £7000PA.


Ta!

Carl31

I reckon £4k is about right, thats £333 a month, factor in food, clothes, their share of the housing cost, trips out, school things, birthdays/xmas, friends parties

Add in holidays etc.. will be a fair bit more, £4k is probably right for the basics

duchy

Are you factoring in cost of moving to a bigger home, bigger car , loss of earnings or childcare costs , £333 wouldn't cover a week of childcare let alone a month for a lot of FT childcare place and they'd still need feeding and clothing.

Whatever figure you put on it though-it'll cost more than you expect

£4K LOL I wish !!!

somethingcorporate

Our childcare alone is around £12-14k p.a. (you can get cheaper depending on what you are will to compromise on) but unless you have a stay at home parent then the cost for the first 4 years will be way more than £4k pa.

This will tail off when she goes to school in a couple of years when £4k may become more realistic.

pendragon_arther

They'll cost you for the rest of your life, plus use you as a taxi service.

HappyMJ

JeffUK wrote: »

Hi Guys,

Doing some long-term budgeting, and kids are over the horizon but not far over it!

There's regular stories in the news about how much extra the 'average' person has to spend to raise children... but I'm not the 'average' person, I'm a money saving ninja, so I thought I'd ask you other money saving ninjas!

How much cost should budget for say the first 5,10,15 years? and what are the biggest factors that might influence it?

The numbers I've seen so far, are around £4000PA to £7000PA.


Ta!

In my area based solely on LHA rates (i.e the point at which 30% of properties are cheaper than this figure)...you'll need around about an extra £100 per month per bedroom. In reality though that's much harder to find. Of course if you are already in a 3 bedroom house then no extra cost is incurred but the calculations are made from the point of need. You only "need" a 1 bedroom flat if you are living as a couple. You'll "need" at least a 2 bedroom flat once a child comes along.

Food costs are around £100 a month per person. Yes kids don't eat much but they do tend to create a lot of waste and we do want to make sure they are offered lots of fresh fruit and vegetables whether they eat them or not. You can't just give them bread and noodles every day.

Clothes and shoes need replacing regularly so another £50 a month for budget clothing there and I think that's not much...that's almost your lower estimate of £4,000.

Gas, electricity, water and council tax (due to the higher banding of a larger home) all increase too.

What about travel? You might be fine on a bicycle or motorcycle which are both very cheap to own and run but having a child may require a car...A good safe reliable car. An old car falling to bits may not cut it.

You'll need insurance....what if one of you were to die? You'll both need life insurance so the other partner has enough resources to pay the rent/mortgage and can leave work and look after the child until they reach school leaving age. That's not cheap.

It's starting to look like £7,000 isn't much.

You've got to have day trips, weekends away, annual holidays. It's not going to be a great upbringing without getting away from home and learning. Holidays can be more educational than school itself...and the costs of schooling. Childcare places can be free but you don't get many hours for free. Top that up and it can cost thousands more. If you both work you'll have before and after school care. If you've got a stay at home parent who could have worked and earned even just minimum wage you've lost at least £13,000 of income.

Children are not cheap...but it depends on how you calculate it and if you factor in benefits they can cost nothing extra at all and you could even have more money left over than before.

Jagraf

Having children is like running a business and until people understand what is factored in to this there will always be debate. It includes everyday running costs (food, heating, clothing) but liabilities such as rent (or mortgage), time (childcare or your own time when you could be working), 24/7 commitment. Then additional costs for flexibility, unforeseen circumstances (illness, time off work) etc. the smallest part is the everyday stuff like clothes and food etc. when they are older the time part becomes cheaper but the material part becomes more expensive. I would factor in at least the average.

Jagraf

Carl31 wrote: »

I reckon £4k is about right, thats £333 a month, factor in food, clothes, their share of the housing cost, trips out, school things, birthdays/xmas, friends parties

Add in holidays etc.. will be a fair bit more, £4k is probably right for the basics

What about childcare costs or one parent not working?

FreddieFrugal

Remember you can take £80 off that (edit: per month) for child maintenance, possibly more if you're eligible for child tax credits.

Also some previous posts are factoring increased costs for housing, fuel, change of car.

But of course if you already drive a family size car, or already live in a three bed house then those aren't increases.

It will be the basics that are the most pricey, food and clothes, over time. Just make sure you look for good deals on the basic items.

We're lucky in that I work 3 days a week and we have both sets of parents nearby. So shouldn't need much in way of childcare. We also both work term time.

divadee

It's the old adage of 'if you have too much spare time and too much spare money then you are ready for kids'.

They cost what they cost. No one can put a price on it. It all depends on circumstances

Alikay

The biggest cost is someone to look after the child, whether that is loss of salary if a parent stays home to care for him/her, or childcare if both parents continue to work. Transport and accommodation costs are also a major factor, but things like clothes, food, entertainment, hygiene needs and education came be as high or low as you wish.

Having friends who've got horses and boats, I'd say our three kids have been a bargain!