Frugal Living

5 Money Saving Tips For Expecting Parents

5 Money Saving Tips For Expecting ParentsPreparing for a baby doesn’t just mean having heartwarming ultrasound scans and buying cute baby clothes because it also involves a lot of financial planning. However, these financial preparations you need to put in place before baby arrives need not be daunting; and once they’re done, you can take peace of mind that the financial future of you and your family is secure.

Once your baby arrives you’ll be learning everything from how to change diapers to how to sneak in a little nap whilst they’re asleep! That’s why getting prepared for their arrival now is a great idea and here are just some of the little preparations you need to do before that little bundle of joy arrives:

Check Out Your Health Insurance

Even when you’ve got health insurance, having a baby can be very expensive. So it’s important that you prepare for these potential costs during the early stages of the pregnancy. Planning for things like labor and delivery as well as prenatal care will help you to stay on top of your finances.

Prepare for Maternity / Paternity Leave

Your household bills could be severely impacted depending on how much time you or your partner has off after the pregnancy and how much, if anything, you’ll get paid during this time. Make sure you’ve familiarized yourself with the law and your company’s policies so you’re not caught out during this period.

Put Together a Pre-Baby Budget

Once you’ve calculated what your income will be once your baby arrives and what the medical costs are, you need to plan a budget for the time until they arrive. Understand how much your income will be impacted by additional costs for your baby and set a limit on necessary items (e.g. cots, bedding and baby monitors) and optional buys (e.g. that Dodge Challenger you’ve had your eyes on!) and consider how you can make some savings to keep your budget under control.

Plan Your Post-Baby Budget

After your baby has arrived, you’ll also need to make allocations in your budget for regular items that your baby will need, such as diapers, food and child care. These are costs that are going to affect your household budget for many years so make sure you get on top of them straight away so you can control them going forwards.

Put Together an Emergency Fund

Life has a funny way of throwing things at us when we least expect, so it’s a good idea to be prepared for all eventualities. If you can, start putting together an emergency fund that you can fall back on if you need to so you can take care of any emergencies or you can afford your essentials if there are any problems at work. Putting together three to six months’ worth of your outgoings will help to give you a great safety net should the unexpected happen.

By putting all of these plans into place before your baby arrives, it’ll take the pressure off when they do arrive, so you can focus your time and efforts on your child, which is the most important thing.

Carolyn Smith is a keen article writer who focuses her efforts on parenting topics. As a Mom of five she thinks she qualifies!

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