Wednesday, August 05, 2009

THE HIGH COST OF PARENTING ….having kids has never been a wise economic decision!

from The LA Times National Briefings column

It's no secret that raising children can be expensive, but how about nearly a quarter of a million dollars?

A new government report says a middle-income family with a child born last year will spend about $221,000 raising that child through age 17.

The report by the Agriculture Department's Center for Nutrition Policy and Promotion identified housing as the largest single expense, followed by food and child care/education. The $221,000 in expenses rises to about $292,000 when adjusted for inflation.

 

Expenditures on Children by Families, 2008

Since 1960, the U.S Department of Agriculture (USDA) has provided estimates of annualexpenditures on children from birth through age 17. This technical report presents the 2008
estimates for husband-wife and single-parent families.

 

USDA’s Cost of Raising a Child Calculator [coming soon]

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