-
Source: ONE News
Think your children are costing you a lot? You're right, with an
Australian study finding that the average child now costs $1.2
million to raise, taking into account toys, holidays and other
activities.
A study on Generation Z and the cost of parenting by social analyst
Mark McCrindle found a government estimate that it cost $546,441 to
raise a child to 18 was way off as this did not include private
education, holidays or non-essential items.
It also assumed that children would leave home at 18 but this was
no longer the case with Generation Z, those born after 1995, as the
costs of accommodation and bills were a deterrent to moving
out.
"In today's Australian families the majority of young people stay
in the parental home and rely on their parents for some of their
expenses until their mid 20's. Therefore the cost per household to
raise children to age 24 is $1.1 million," McCrindle from McCrindle
Research said in his report.
He said then you had to add the non-essential yet usual child
rearing expenses such as toys, holidays and travel, dining and
entertainment, private tutoring and education, sport and
activities, furniture and household equipment dedicated to the
children's use.
This boosted costs by another $4,260 per child per year.
"This takes the total parental cost to raise the average number of
children (2.7) in Australia to 1,460,225," he said.
McCrindle said parents now do have more money to spend on children
than their parents did, making Generation Z the most financial
endowed generation of children ever.
McCrindle's research, based on a survey of 4,500 Australians, found
the average Australian child had more than 100 toys but that
parents threw out or gave away only five toys a year.
Almost all Australians admitted spending more than $US100 on toys
per child each year, with a small portion saying they splashed out
$US500.
Girls stopping playing with dolls at the age of six compared to
their mothers who played with dolls until age 10 and over half of
children's toys are powered or electronic.
"The 21st Century has ushered in a new lifestage: the tweens. Such
is the growing sophistication, marketing influence and.....that
these pre-teens are fashion aware, brand conscious and peer
influenced as much as yesterday's teenagers," he said.
The A$1 million ($1.2 million) pricetag was broken down into food
costing $292,164, housing and utilities $234,015, recreation and
entertainment $222,740, health and other services $217,065,
clothing and equipment $183,015, transport $174,503, and education
and child care $134,726.
World News Video
-
Dangerous rush to Everest summit (1:59)
-
Dozens killed in Syrian massacre (2:09)
-
'King of Romance' competes in Eurovision (1:46)
