3 Money Mistakes That First-Time Parents Make

The addition of your first baby always seems to mean less of everything. Less sleep, less quiet, and less money.

New parents can read all of the baby books and blogs they want. But a certain number of lessons will still be learned the hard way. And this certainly applies to their finances.

To help ensure that you’re starting off on the right foot and able to save for your child’s future, today we will cover a few very common mistakes that new parents make.

1. Not Talking About Money

We certainly understand that both partners will be tired and on-edge. You may not want to waste a quiet moment by bringing up something potentially stressful like money.

However, couples need to talk about money. And they need to do that as soon as possible. The sooner a couple starts having open discussions about money, the sooner that a couple can align their spending habits and work toward common goals.

The last thing you want is one partner to be secretly hiding debt from the other while they’re dating. Next thing you know, an unexpected pregnancy changes things. Now they’re thinking about a new house, but the hidden debt results in them having to live with their parents.

2. Thinking They HAVE to Buy a House

There is a big misconception that parents are irresponsible if they don’t buy a home, or that renting is throwing their money away. This can be dangerous thinking.

First of all, 40 million Americans are House Poor right now. That means they’re overextended on their house payments and it’s hurting their ability to save money or spend money elsewhere.

Being house poor makes having a baby that much more stressful. You’re dealing with your day-to-day worries, while feeling trapped by your mortgage payments and worried about big picture things like retirement or saving for education.

Don’t feel trapped by the house buying myth. If the opportunity to save money by staying in an affordable apartment (or even with the parents) presents itself, you should probably take advantage of it and secure a better financial footing.

3. Buying Name Brand Everything

Of course, you want the best for your new baby. But the best doesn’t always mean the most expensive stuff.

A lot of parents insist on buying their kids nothing but high-end and big-name brand clothing. This can be incredibly wasteful, as these expensive clothes are just going to be outgrown and/or stained faster than they may realize.

Also, we don’t have to tell you how expensive things like cribs, furniture and baby monitors can be. Your best bet is to start looking online as soon as you can, so you can track prices and find deals. If you’re not in a hurry to buy something, you can save a lot of money.

Your new baby is likely going to turn your life completely upside down. However, the more good financial habits you build before the baby arrives, the better off you will be down the line.

Make sound financial decisions right now so you don’t have to trust yourself to do so when you’re exhausted and running on 3 hours of sleep.

An observer of the human condition. Endlessly curious about how and why the world works.