Last Updated on March 4, 2022 by Parentology
No gift will be more exciting than that of a pregnant mother’s nearing birth, regardless if you’re a husband, wife, or anyone personally relevant. Yes, it’s thrilling. But this excitement must not deprive you of financial planning ahead of the horizon.
The life of a parent who has a kid to support is hard, and not having sufficient ideas to do so would only make matters worse. Below are some key points to give you a few insights as you venture through this satisfyingly tedious path.
Start over
Living with no baby to worry about is, obviously, significantly different from having one. If you want to retain most of your streamlined budget or schedule, if there is, then it’s practical to do a general readjustment, except this time there’s a caveat – a baby.
For a start, anticipate every expense that can be associated with anything a baby will need. This could probably range from diapers, milk, to food. However thinking financially far ahead beyond this early stage is a smart move as well. As early as now, you can already start estimating tuition, school allowance, and your soon-to-be teenager’s personal savings.
Enlist for government financial support
Luckily, the Singaporean government provides initial financial support for up-and-coming children. To slightly lighten the financial demands of raising a child, sign up for the Baby Bonus Scheme, where you are disbursed with cash gifts through instalments in order to sustain much of what your child needs for his/her first 18 months.
You can now then integrate this fund to a Child Development Account (CDA), which you should sign up for as well. Looking for other supplemental banks that offer children’s savings accounts with great added benefits is an extra step that could prove extremely useful in the future.
Advanced items purchase
When taking into account the welfare of a baby, preparation is everything. And there’s no aspect as relevant to this as the suitable products to buy for him/her. Usually a huge sum of money is involved, so initiating this process early is most ideal.
Also, after or even before the baby arrives, you will notice that your home will change entirely. You’ll see that milk bottles, toys, baby high, together with baby chairs and onesies will now invade your kitchen and clothing cabinets, as well as the dining area, along with the rest of the house. And to think that this integration will at most take you a day, a week, or even a month is impossible.
As a financial responsibility, it’s crucial to buy items with the best quality with the most agreeable price as possible. You need to be able to pinpoint which products should be bought from whom, and which ones to avoid. In such a way, you’ll not only relieve yourself from stress beforehand, but probably save a significant amount of money.
Having an extensive purchasing knowledge on such matters also comes with the safety of your newborn child. Making sudden, unprepared decisions on such matters is a risk you don’t want to take.
Healthcare financial arrangements
During the initial stages of pregnancy, one of the first things you’ll probably be fully aware of is the costly demands of Singaporean healthcare. This comes as a surprise to a majority newly expecting couples, catching them off-guard.
However you can still be able to experience high-end accommodation and expect excellent facilities during labor without spending that much money. One practical way to mitigate the financial damage this could cause is by taking advantage of cheap yet outstandingly beneficial maternity packages.
A few packages you can resort to include KK Women’s and Children’s Hospital, National University Hospital, and Singapore General Hospital. But please do keep in mind that each of these vary in price and benefits. You have to do your own extensive inquiries to perfectly suit your budget and needs.
Job shifts and work schedule
It comes as an unsurprising fact that raising a baby will greatly turn your lives upside down. Especially with regards to you and your wife/husband’s jobs. This comes as a repercussion of the reality that tending for a baby is itself a more challenging job.
Given the case that you intend to streamline your job schedule as well as coming in for irregular work periods, you could ask your boss or supervisor in advance. Arranging matters in tending for your baby must also be taken care of.
The main point should always be that you will experience a massive shift in both your work schedules which could result in one or both of you quitting your jobs. However if you do so, make sure you are more than ready to financially sustain your baby and family.
