Any way you slice it, having a family can be quite expensive. In fact, it is estimated by experts that raising a child will cost hundreds of thousands of dollars. This makes sense when you consider the food, clothing, shelter and dozens of other things that you need to purchase for your children.
However, having a family doesn’t have to be a hugely expensive venture. With that in mind, this blog post is going to take a closer look at some tips to help your family save some money.
Shop Intelligently
Grocery shopping is one of the ventures that gets quite a bit more expensive with a family vs. without one. As a result, it is very important to look to save money where you can. This doesn’t mean you need to go crazy with couponing, but simply involves watching for deals and comparison shopping, to try save money where you can.
Only shop when you really need to, and only get what is on your list. If you don’t make a list or don’t stick to it, it can lead you to purchasing a number of things that you weren’t planning on. Also, if possible, you should try and shop without your children, as sticking to a list becomes much harder when they are begging for more snacks or toys than they need.
Get the Right Kind of Mortgage
If you are starting and/or growing a family, it is reasonable to believe you might need to move into a bigger or newer home at some point. While you will likely need to get a mortgage, you shouldn’t simply go with a conventional home loan by default.
Government home loans such as USDA home loans of FHA home loans can be a great alternative for those looking to enter the real estate market. These loans will allow those with a smaller down payment to enter home ownership and will often have more flexibility.
Buy Second-Hand
While buying previously owned and used items can be a bit different and hard to get used to at the beginning, but it can be worth it in the long run. Not only are most second hand items nearly as good as brand new ones, but they will cost a tiny fraction of buying new.
Books, movies and especially clothes are great to buy second-hand for your children. With how quickly children grow in terms of size and general interests, buying everything brand new only for it to be useless after a few months is just a waste of money. You would be shocked at how many great things you can find for reasonable prices by buying second-hand.
Participate in Free or Cheap Family Fun
Going out and doing things as a family is one of the greatest things about having a family. However, doing things like going to the movies or to a big family dinner can often cost you a ton of money for only an hour or two of fun. Instead, why not do something as a family that is still fun, but won’t cost you an arm and a leg.
There are many different things you can do with your family for pennies on the dollar, or free. These include things like going for a picnic, going to the park, going hiking or checking out the library. These types of activities prove that you don’t need to spend a lot of money to have a good time with your family.