$350k for 1 child?
-
HyperKiasu:
Hi HyperKiasu,raising a children is a \"project\"
it is a double entry
debit investment (child)
credit liability (urself)
....
You sounds like an accountant... :lol:
yeah.. I think 350k is underestimate too.. from pregnant to financially independent..
nowadays everything in hundreds.. tuition, piano/musically class.. enrichment class, and uni fee..
of course it will depends on how kiasu a parents is.. the more kiasu, will incur more expenses..
But i think by having a kid, it does give u more joy and somehow complete your life. And it also somehow 'force' you to work harder to earn more money.. to be more mature and able to take care of others.
I guess it is worth the money... -
kaitlynangelica:
I am chinese and don't have close malay friend, but I really hesitate to use one big pole to hit out at many pp. I also see chinese families who seem equally clueless - cannot cope but have one too many kids (re those appearing on TCS help shows). So it's not so much the race, but rather the person.
Also, I have always felt that they are living in their own world. They don't know how progressive the world has become and hence they are not kiasu. But that has its own blessing. As they say, ignorance is bliss.
On the contrary, I have a close malay friend who has done well for herself. She is equally KS about her two kids.kaitlynangelica:
Again, I say it's more how much the media plays up. I saw news reports of a british family who have 12 kids and parents don't work and live on welfare and the money that govt gives for the kids. I think it's so so wrong.And sorry to be offensive here. But they have big families, many kids but often, they are the ones that hit the headline in the newspapers for unpleasant things. I think because having many kids means having less time to guide them.
http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/news/article-23405477-jobless-couple-with-12-children-are-given-a-500000-home.do
In the end, this $350K to me is just a headline grabber. How to quantify the love and care we shower on our kids? Imagine a successful career woman who gives up her job to take care of kids full time - already 1 year may have foregone $350K. Then after 20 years??? wahhh -
worryfather:
ya, those intangible return is hard to quntify....
Hi HyperKiasu,HyperKiasu:
raising a children is a \"project\"
it is a double entry
debit investment (child)
credit liability (urself)
....
You sounds like an accountant... :lol:
yeah.. I think 350k is underestimate too.. from pregnant to financially independent..
nowadays everything in hundreds.. tuition, piano/musically class.. enrichment class, and uni fee..
of course it will depends on how kiasu a parents is.. the more kiasu, will incur more expenses..
But i think by having a kid, it does give u more joy and somehow complete your life. And it also somehow 'force' you to work harder to earn more money.. to be more mature and able to take care of others.
I guess it is worth the money...
no idea how 350k is arrived at......
$1 might be worth more than $10 in 20 yrs... -
junrahmat:
Hmm.. Interesting... I am Malay and blessed with 4 kids. I'm a SAHM and my kids get to attend enrichment classes, montessori kindergarten during their pre-sch years, breakfast at mc donalds during weekends, go for movies once a mth, holiday once a yr, eat out once/twice a week. My husband is not super rich, just an ordinary engineer.. I have a SAHM friend with 7 kids, the eldest in NUS and youngest in P3, and all of them are doing very well academically. I guess it is all in your mentallity. I have seen couples without kids and struggling with credit card bills etc, and never have enough..
You are one of the luckier and more progressive ones I suppose. Your husband is an engineer so he is earning quite a bit. -
hquek:
I am chinese and don't have close malay friend, but I really hesitate to use one big pole to hit out at many pp. I also see chinese families who seem equally clueless - cannot cope but have one too many kids (re those appearing on TCS help shows). So it's not so much the race, but rather the person.kaitlynangelica:
Also, I have always felt that they are living in their own world. They don't know how progressive the world has become and hence they are not kiasu. But that has its own blessing. As they say, ignorance is bliss.
On the contrary, I have a close malay friend who has done well for herself. She is equally KS about her two kids.kaitlynangelica:
Again, I say it's more how much the media plays up. I saw news reports of a british family who have 12 kids and parents don't work and live on welfare and the money that govt gives for the kids. I think it's so so wrong.And sorry to be offensive here. But they have big families, many kids but often, they are the ones that hit the headline in the newspapers for unpleasant things. I think because having many kids means having less time to guide them.
http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/news/article-23405477-jobless-couple-with-12-children-are-given-a-500000-home.do
In the end, this $350K to me is just a headline grabber. How to quantify the love and care we shower on our kids? Imagine a successful career woman who gives up her job to take care of kids full time - already 1 year may have foregone $350K. Then after 20 years??? wahhh
Having kids involves sacrifices in the first place. But it makes life fulfilling and joyful. However, if you feel that you can't give up your lifestyle, then I don't think one should have kids. I have friends who sadly after having kids complain that they can't afford their retail therapy or branded bags anymore. But if one is filled with the joy of having a child, then all this will not be sacrifices at all. Not sure if I am making sense here. -
Since kindergarten is not compulsory, it is actually possible to spend only on food and clothing and nothing else before the child enters primary school. It is not that such parents are ignorant about how progressive the world has become. Parents with university education are more than capable of teaching their own kids below the age of 7, it is just a matter of whether they want to learn to do so or not. For those parents who are not willing to put in the effort to learn how to teach, and are so willing to spend their money on enrichment classes to teach everything, then they should not complain that raising a child is expensive. If they at least try to put in some effort to teach, and do some research to find out what are the effective methods, then they will realize how easy it is. I find it surprising that so many highly educated parents do not have the confidence to teach kids below 7 years of age. In fact kids who are taught by their parents before primary school may be much more advanced than those who attend many enrichment classes.
As for those parents who think that teaching should be left to the professionals, note that unless you are prepared to pay a lot of money, it is not easy to find teachers who are really good at their jobs.
Note that school fees in primary schools are less than $10, and for secondary schools its less than $20 a month in all schools except independent schools.
Raising a child does not have to be so expensive, it is all a matter of choice. Many parents of low income (less than $2K a month) have managed to send their kids to university. -
if $350 is not picked from air, then every family with 3 and above kids are millionaire .... :!:
this coincide with the other thread why there are so many millionaire in SG
-
tamarind:
I do agree with Tamarind.. but i think the bulk of the 350k not necessary come from kindergarten or enrichment classes only.Since kindergarten is not compulsory, it is actually possible to spend only on food and clothing and nothing else before the child enters primary school. It is not that such parents are ignorant about how progressive the world has become. Parents with university education are more than capable of teaching their own kids below the age of 7, it is just a matter of whether they want to learn to do so or not. For those parents who are not willing to put in the effort to learn how to teach, and are so willing to spend their money on enrichment classes to teach everything, then they should not complain that raising a child is expensive. If they at least try to put in some effort to teach, and do some research to find out what are the effective methods, then they will realize how easy it is. I find it surprising that so many highly educated parents do not have the confidence to teach kids below 7 years of age. In fact kids who are taught by their parents before primary school may be much more advanced than those who attend many enrichment classes.
As for those parents who think that teaching should be left to the professionals, note that unless you are prepared to pay a lot of money, it is not easy to find teachers who are really good at their jobs.
Note that school fees in primary schools are less than $10, and for secondary schools its less than $20 a month in all schools except independent schools.
Raising a child does not have to be so expensive, it is all a matter of choice. Many parents of low income (less than $2K a month) have managed to send their kids to university.
I believe the 350k include university course fee. I think the course fee per annum for local uni will be at least 15k. 4 years will be around 60k.
But of course, there is loan, grant or scholarship available.
And assuming your kid per day spend 10 for meal, very conservative.
10 x 365 x 24 (age) = 87,600
Adding these two figures together, will be around 150k already.
If to include other expenses like transport, entertainment, education related, 350k is really under-estimated. -
i agree that tuition fee/enrichment courses can be saved if u choose to invest in tons of books/story reading rather than tons of tuitions....
the U tuition fee shall also be excluded from the calculation if u choose to apply study loan (interest free, if i m not wrong)....parents' role is guarantor only... the children themselves are supposed to repay the liability after graduation....
thus if u believe:
Invest Smart
Dont Spend Hard
u won't be so appalled by the numbers.... -
Our CPF can also be used to pay for the university fees.
After my A levels, I taught private tuition full time for 7 months before entering university. I earned $1200 a month and saved enough for my own pocket money throughout the 4 years of university. I only ate lunch in school on weekdays, all other meals at home. In fact, I continued to teach a few hours of tuition a week, even when I was in university. That was many years ago. I think young people should be able to earn a lot more teaching tuition nowadays before entering university.
Parents should not think about paying for everything for the child. After 18 years old, young people can work and earn their own money. If parents insist on paying for everything, then kids may even ask parents to buy them an apartment when they get married !
Hello! It looks like you're interested in this conversation, but you don't have an account yet.
Getting fed up of having to scroll through the same posts each visit? When you register for an account, you'll always come back to exactly where you were before, and choose to be notified of new replies (either via email, or push notification). You'll also be able to save bookmarks and upvote posts to show your appreciation to other community members.
With your input, this post could be even better 💗
Register Login