Retirement, savings take a hit among parents struggling with child-care costs

It’s no secret that raising a child is expensive, but a new survey shows doing it during the cost of living crunch is having an impact on the ability of young parents to save and invest for their retirement.

Cost of living pressures are mounting on Canadian couples with kids, as around half (50.5 per cent) said they’ve made financial trade-offs to have children, while 39 per cent said they struggle to plan ahead with rising costs, a new survey from fintech platform Wealthsimple shows.

The data is even more stark for single parents, with 58 per cent saying they made financial trade-offs and 40 per cent saying its been harder to plan.

Retirement plans and long-term savings take a hit as the cost of raising a child remains high, data shows. Among couples with kids, 57 per cent reduced or paused investing, 52 per cent reduced or paused saving, and 35 per cent reduced contributions to retirement savings, the survey showed.

Solo parents are even more likely to have paused saving (62 per cent) and 40 per cent have taken on more debt to cope with the pressure of child rearing, it added.

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The cost of raising kids is taking a toll on relationships, the data shows, with 87 per cent of couples with kids saying finances have caused tension or conflict in their household.

The biggest trigger for household tensions was day-to-day expenses (30 per cent), the survey said.

Nearly one in five (19 per cent) of couples with kids said finances and money had been hidden from partners, nearly double the rate (10 per cent) of couples who don’t have kids.

The average cost of raising a child from birth to age 17 was around $300,000, a recent RBC analysis shows.

On average, families spend roughly $17,000 per year per child, with food costs alone at $3,000 a year.

Child care is often the single greatest cost and can be as high as $6,500 a year, the RBC report said.

The cost of raising a child from age zero to five can vary from $12,000 to $21,600 per year, with diapers alone costing $90 a month.

However, costs peak between ages six and 12 and can range between $13,200 to $22,500 a year.

Raising a teenager can cost between $9,000 and $14,000, but food, clothing, technology and transportation costs can take a toll on parents with teenagers.