5 THINGS TO CONSIDER FOR CHILD PLANNING

Just became a parent? Having sleepless nights taking care of the newborn and also thinking of your finances ahead? Well that is obvious that once you become a parent your focus automatically shifts on to addressing the financial issues unlike in the past.  According to Chunk, a business relations professional, “It was not until I was pregnant that I realized the various expenses related to childbearing and delivery.” So, what are the expenses she is talking about? Let’s take a look-

1. Child Delivery Expenses

Maternity charges are on the rise. Starting from expenses related to regular health checkups to myriad vaccinations and eventually to the fees of a modest nursing where one is billed anything between INR 80,000 to a few lakhs, expenses are humongous. Hospital bills also vary depending on your room and food preferences, neonatal care and medical expenses. One is lucky if the child is delivered in good health, otherwise Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) charges can get very taxing.

2. Post-Delivery Expenses

If you are a corporate or government employee, you are lucky that you’ll still be covered by your salary. But if you are a private firm employee with limited privileges, then it gets difficult. It even gets worse in case the new mother doesn’t belong to a well off family and she’s financially dependent on the spouse. No matter how loving one’s partner is, financial implications always make one nervous. Post-delivery expenses include essential stationery, baby food, medicines, immunity care, vaccinations etc.

3. Traditional Expenses

Childbirth calls for a huge celebration. It is a moment of joy for friends and relatives to receive a new member in the family. Parents take hit on their personal finances to ensure the child is received with gold and other expensive gifts and toys. Parties are thrown, a huge list of guests are invited. Depending on family traditions there are miscellaneous expenses associated with the welcoming of the new child who may include offering feast to the Brahmins and a number of deities.

4. Growing Up Expenses

As the Best Child Insurance Plan grows, it is always important to have an emergency fund because till a certain age, the child is likely to fall sick while trying to adjust with the environment. An emergency fund secures a lot of uncertainties and ensures you are able to consult a doctor regarding your child’s health. You can also consider a family floater for health insurance to take care of recurring medical expenses. Apart from health issues, when the child is around 2 or 3, getting him or her into a good crèche/school is the biggest investment that parents contemplate on from the very beginning.

5. Upbringing for the first child

Are you already nervous after reading the above expenses? Well, the estimation of finances is not over yet. While you think of all these expenses for you’re your second child, you cannot ignore the expenses related to your first child.  That’s exactly what Sasmita, a middle income HR professional had to say, “Although the stress wasn’t as much when we had planned for the first baby, but as we plan for a second baby, we can see how difficult it can get to ensure we do not compromise a bit on the expenses related to our first child”. Indeed, as parents, it is our responsibility that before we plan for a second child, we ensure that we aren’t compromising a bit on giving our first born a good upbringing.

Source: http://blogs.rediff.com/childplans/2016/06/24/5-things-to-consider-for-child-planning/