Having a baby or adding more children to the family is a big decision – and there are some major financial implications to this life milestone. Consider taking care of these financial planning to-dos for expecting parents.
We stepped away from the podcast for about a year. Why?
Because we had a baby! Our daughter was born at the beginning of October 2021, and we call her the G-BOAT for a reason: she’s truly the Greatest Baby of All Time.
She, like every other kid, also introduced a lot of complexity into our financial plan and expenses into our monthly budget.
So we thought we’d get back to the podcast by sharing what we thought through before we finalized our decision to grow our family. These are the financial planning to-dos expecting parents should think through ahead of time if they want to make intentional, mindful money moves ahead of having kids.
Today on the show, we explain the financial planning conversations and considerations you might want to go through before having a baby (or adding more children into your family). We cover:
- How we thought through the decision to have kids in the first place and why we waited
- Why it’s critical to know what you actually want first (and why you should turn to the financial considerations second)
- The importance of cash flow – and why that is even more critical than saving up cash before having a baby
- Financial planning to-dos, both before you’re expecting a new child and after they join your family
- Some upfront costs to expect and the ongoing expenses to consider (spoiler alert: “college savings” is going to be a line item in your budget for a LONG time)
- A strategy to stress-test your cash flow (and increase savings) before baby arrives
- Why you need to talk through your other goals and values, and acknowledge the changes or tradeoffs you may need to make if having a baby is a higher-priority event for you
Obviously, kids cost money. But with the right financial planning, you can make intentional decisions about how to use all your resources – including time and energy – to develop a strategy that gives you more control over your family’s financial situation.
Join the conversation to get insights from our personal experience and a quick list of important financial planning to-dos for expecting parents so you’ve got the money part of this whole parenting thing down.
Jump into the episode here:
Further Reading & Links from This Episode on Financial Planning for Expecting Parents
- Here’s the AP article Kali mentioned about how millennials and Gen Zers are increasingly speaking out about avoiding parenthood.
- Read our two blog posts on the kids-and-finances topic here: Financial Considerations Before Having Kids, and What to Save Before Having a Baby Might Be the Wrong Question
- Feel like you’re on the fence about the whole kids thing? This book is geared toward women, but is a useful resource for anyone who feels uncertain and wants to get clarity on their desires: Is Motherhood for Me?
- Get more tips on creating “wiggle room” in your financial plan with our guide to building a bulletproof balance sheet.
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