How to Save Money for Children

If you are planning to have a baby, news of your pregnancy is always welcome. Initially, you will no doubt be full of excitement and experience the joy of sharing this great news with your friends and family. But after the excitement has passed, you and your spouse will have to focus on more practical matters like the choice of a name, the health of the mother, and of course, the cost of having and raising a child.

For new parents, the first few months can be quite overwhelming. So, it is important to plan well in advance about how you are going to keep your finances in check and save money for your child’s present and future.

Wondering how to save money when you are going to have a baby? Well, we have some great news for you. Check out the section below.

5 tips to save money when you are going to have a child

Saving money is always a priority. But when you are about to have a child, it becomes even more important. Raising a child can be quite expensive, because you have a whole new set of costs to budget for. And it can be a challenge to save money when there are so many expenses to take care of.

Fortunately, you are not alone in this. Parents from generations before yours, parents from your own age group, and parents all over the world have all been through this experience. And over the many, many years that have gone by, there are some tips and hacks to save money that can be trusted to deliver results.

Here are the top 5 tips on how to save money even as you are celebrating the milestone of becoming a new parent.

1. Start planning well ahead of time

You have roughly around nine months to get things in order before your baby arrives. In this window of time, you need to plan smartly and get a headstart. This is because if you are going to take out some unpaid leave time, you may have less income to rely on for a few months. So, before you reach that point, make sure you close off any small debts or high-interest loans as much as possible. The less debt you have when your child arrives, the more money you can save.

If you don’t have any major debts draining your income,use this time to actively save money. A high-interest savings account can help you grow the money you save up over the months till your baby arrives.

2. Buy essentials in bulk

When your baby is born, there will be a ton of different things to shop for. Baby food, diapers, baby clothes, soft toys, books and so much more. Whenever possible, opt to buy things in bulk. Many supermarkets and stores may have exclusive offers and deals on baby products if you are buying several of them.

Look for deals like these and make full use of them. It helps you cut down the costs of buying baby products, while simultaneously allowing you to stock up on these items that you will anyway use. And a penny saved is a penny earned, is it not?

You can also use this technique to save money on the things that you and your spouse may need, or on groceries and other provisions. That way, you will have everything you need right at home for quite a while, leaving you with ample time to take care of your newborn.

3. Where possible, borrow, reuse or DIY

Parents understandably want to buy everything new for their babies. But did you know that by resorting to options like DIY, reusing products like toys, books and other items, and by borrowing things like cradles and prams, you can be financially responsible as well as environmentally responsible?

Borrowing books and toys, or reusing your older child’s playthings if any, can help you save quite a bit of money in the long run. This idea is also in tune with a sustainable lifestyle. If you don’t have any sources to borrow from, you can resort to DIY projects for things like cribs and cradles. The phase when you are becoming a new parent can be overwhelming, and a DIY activity can give you and your spouse something to bond over. Simultaneously, it can also help you save money by quite a bit.

4. Use cash instead of credit

There are several kinds of credit facilities available these days. Right from a variety of credit cards to buy-now-pay-later apps and accounts, there are many ways to spend money without actually having it in your account at the moment.

If you are using credit to pay for your child’s needs or your day-to-day requirements, you may end up spending more than you expected to. That’s because paying through credit is like using an opaque piggy bank - you cannot see how much you have spent, and you cannot see what remains in your account.

It is always a good idea to use cash or debit, so your money is immediately deducted from your account. This gives you a better idea of how much money is left in your bank. More importantly, it helps you avoid using money you don’t have. Eventually, this technique helps you save money because you spend more wisely and carefully.

5. Invest in a child plan

While the above tips and tricks can help you save money over the short term when you are having a child, a child savings plan can prove to be very useful if you want to save up for your child’s future.

A child plan or a child savings plan is a kind of life insurance plan that gives you guaranteed¹ benefits to cover the important milestones in your child’s life, like their education and their wedding. The ABSLI Child Future Assured Plan³ is one such plan that gives you the option to plan for one or both of these milestones.

Child savings plans help you save up consistently over the long term to secure your child’s future. In addition to this, they also offer a life cover, so in case anything untoward happens to you, your child will be financially protected.

Conclusion

The ideas and tips outlined above can help you save money as you enter a new phase of life. Remember that as with every other major and minor milestone, the first step to saving money is to have a budget in place, and to stick to it. So, take that as a starting point, and use the hacks mentioned above to build upon your savings plan. That way, you can have enough and more to take care of your newborn completely.