How to Cut the Cost of Raising your Newborn

Make no mistake about it, bringing a child into the world is an expensive process and the UK government recently estimated that the current cost of raising a child is 217,395 or $328,114!

With this in mind we thought it would be appropriate to look at various ways that you can trim those costs yet maintain the quality of life that you and your baby deserve. If you’re also wanting additional information on various costs of raising a child, pages such as https://www.gofundme.com/c/blog/cost-of-raising-child and others can go more in-depth into various costs such as education and healthcare, as well as providing options to cut down on those costs too.

#1 – Sometimes more expensive can be cheaper

As a new parent myself this is something that I found out the hard way. Living on a budget, and with a reduced family income now that my partner is a full time mum, when our child was born we opted for some cheaper items.

In particular we went for middle of the range bottles, pacifiers and similar items. However, what we found was that these items weren’t of the greatest quality, meaning that before you know it they needed replacing. When you add up the cost of buying something twice it’s often cheaper to buy the most expensive product that you know will last.

This isn’t the case for every item but in our experience we would definitely recommend buying some top-of-the-range items, you just need to figure what’s right for your personal circumstances. For example, buying good quality pushchairs is important as your baby will be in that a lot of the time, so you need to make sure it can handle your baby and is comfortable for them. Items like this should not be bought cheaply.

#2 – Keep baby outfits to a minimum

In the build up to the birth of your child you will find yourself always looking at cute little outfits that you think your child will look perfect in. However, for the first few months of their lives all they really want is baby grows.

So rather than splashing out on lots of designer outfits try to keep it simple. Opt for simple white baby grows and sleep suits, then jazz their outfit up with some brightly coloured cardigans, jackets and blankets.

By doing this you will avoid having to spend a fortune on lots of outfits that they will only wear once or twice and instead purchase a couple of nice pieces of clothes that can be used several times.

#3 – Stock up on essentials

You will find that there are certain items that your baby will absolutely fly through. Not only will you feel like you are buying nappies every day but you will also need a regular supply of formula if you’re bottle feeding, baby wipes, cotton wool, towels, baby wash… the list goes on!

So when these items are on offer why not stock up? You are guaranteed to need them at some stage so when there are coupons or special offers buy as many as you can afford, it may be an expensive up front cost but you should see longer term savings in the weeks ahead.

This article was written on behalf of Ashley Park Debt Solutions who specialise in consolidation loans, online debt management plans and other financial solutions.