So I asked the all-knowing internet, "How much does it take to raise a child?" The internet came back with a rather staggering answer. According to a study by the U.S. Department of Agriculture middle income couples who had a child in 2013 will spend an average of $245, 340 by the time that kid turns 18 years old. Of course, lower income families will spend less because they HAVE to and richer people, I assume, will spend way more because they can.
Thank GAWD you don't have to pay all that money up front because that would suck. I'm glad it's sort of an installment payment kind of thing, but I can't help but wonder what I could do with $245,000 if I had it burning a whole in my pocket. I mean just think of all the things that are cheaper than raising a kid nowadays.
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Here are five things that are cheaper than raising a kid:
1. Oh about eight trips around the world. If you give yourself a year to take the trip and budget each year at about $30,000 for your expenses. Bon voyage!
2. About 224,770 bean and cheese burritos from Taco Bell before taxes.
3. You could get around 122 vasectomies, that is if you are a man. A vasectomy can cost anywhere between $300-$2,000. I did the math based on the higher end of the price range, but you could get more if you get a cheaper doctor.
4. You could get about 16,333 six ounce jars of Vicks VapoRub, but you wouldn't have any kids to put it on.
5. Over 612 ounces of really good weed from what I gather on the internet. I'm sure you would be using it for medical purposes only, right?
The good news is that your first kid is the most expensive. All subsequent children are cheaper because you can force them to play with old toys, wear hand me downs and eat the scraps left by your eldest, most expensive kid. I'm kidding! But only a little bit.
Image via Corbis Images
