Affording Stay-At-Home Parenting Vs Working

When you have a child, the big decision is how soon, or if at all, to return to the workforce. Of course, there are plenty of personal factors involved here, but one major influence is often the financial situation. But make sure you take into account all the costs before deciding whether or not returning to work makes sense from a financial viewpoint:

• Calculate child care costs: This can quickly reach into the thousands of dollars. Unless you’re really career-focused, you want to make sure you’re earning significantly more than you’re paying to put your child into child care. And in this case, more children make it more expensive.
• Calculate extra costs of being at work: For example, the quick coffee that you buy on your lunch break (even if you are frugal enough to bring your lunch from home); and the extras you need to be able to be at work, for example, work-style clothing. On top of that, factor in the costs of transport or commuting both to the child care center and to your place of employment.

Once you’ve gathered this information accurately, compare that to the income you will receive by returning to work - this makes at least one aspect of the decision a little more grounded in reality, because it’s not an easy decision for many parents to make.