After two and a half years of trying and spending over $10k in fertility treatments, my husband and I finally had our first child. We always had planned on having a second, but now, when asked, “When’s the next one?” We answer with a shrug.
Fears about our financial future and the economy have us rethinking our plans, and we’re not alone. A recent survey of nearly 1,500 full-time employees found that 71% of Millennials and 84% of Gen Z say “economic factors” (inflation, the cost of living, and job security) influence their decisions to have children or expand their family.
Rising costs to raise a kid
Inflation is lingering, and JPMorgan recently raised the risk of a global recession to 60% (up from 40%). That makes decisions about expanding our family really tough. What if prices keep going up? Will we go into debt? Are we jeopardizing our first kid’s future for a second?
But the dream of a second child is hard to give up. My husband and his brother are extremely close, and he wants our son to grow up with a sibling of his own.
My husband says it’s “priceless,” but is it? LendingTree recently crunched multiple data sets from the BLS, IRS, MIT – and six other agencies. The online loan marketplace concluded that the annual costs of raising a small child jumped from under $22,000 to nearly $30,000.
Plus, the cost of IVF meds (which we’ll likely need) has risen by 84% over the past 10 years, according to GoodRx’s List Price Index. The company, which offers discounts on prescriptions, says the list price for all prescription drugs rose by just 37% over the same time period for comparison.
We can’t rely on wishful thinking
When seeking advice from family, everyone says, “You’ll figure it out.” This is not exactly helpful.
What would be helpful? Real support from employers. Securian Financial conducted the previously mentioned survey. It’s a company that sells life insurance and retirement solutions but occasionally surveys Americans on how money impacts their life.
When child-bearing-aged participants were asked what they were looking for from employers, the majority said “family-building benefits.” What does that mean? Here are the most commonly selected responses…
- Paid sick days
- Flexible schedules
- Parental leave
- Childcare assistance
A VP from a financial services company raises an alarm about employers’ failure to consider working parents’ needs.
“They risk losing both talented new and existing employees to competitors,” says Lydia Jilek, a vice president at Securian Financial. “As they think about what is next with their benefits packages, employers also need to be aware of emerging employee needs when it comes to family building.”
I know this factors into my husband and my decision because while we may say we’re not sure about another, the truth is, we are.
Do you know why? If money weren’t an issue and we had more support from work, we’d have a second child in a heartbeat.
