How costly kids are putting parents under pressure

TEENS might munch through a lot of food and newborns suck up money for prams and nappies. But the most expensive age might just surprise you.

25.3.2016. Andrew and Emma Farrer with their children Amali, 11, and Ava, 5. Story is about children aged 9-11 being the most expensive age group for parents to pay for - clothing, food, education, technology, social and sports activities. Photo Sam Wundke

EXCLUSIVE.

THE most expensive years to raise a child are not what you might think.

While older teenagers may munch through a loaf of bread each day and newborns suck up money for prams and nappies, children aged between nine and 11 are the most costly to keep, research has found.

These “tweens” cost their parents an average $1636 each month — well above the average of $1370 for all children under 18, according to Suncorp Bank’s new Cost of Kids report.

It says the cost of raising a child increases each year to age 11, then starts declining to the age of 17, and parents typically spend more than a quarter of their household income on each child each month.

Andrew and Emma Farrer with their children Amali, 11, and Ava, 5. Picture: Sam Wundke

Suncorp Bank regional manager Monique Reynolds said it was commonly assumed that infants and teenagers required the most money.

“That’s why people are getting caught out,” she said.

“The primary school years are the ones we previously thought wouldn’t be a drama, and we would start to plan the budget for the teenage years. Now we have to rethink the way we budget.

“As children enter primary school years they have greater access to so many different things. The world has changed but we haven’t caught up.”

EXTRA ACTIVITIES

Ms Reynolds said children in primary school today were exposed to co-curricular activities they never had before. “There are more sports, dance and music and all the costs that come with that,” she said.

“They’re starting school surrounded by other children who have an insatiable thirst. Kids start to mimic other children. They are coming home with a list of wants, and parents are completely unaware that these primary school years are the most expensive.”

The research, which examined spending on more than 4000 children, found that food is the biggest monthly children’s expense. Food costs peak at $324 for 9-11 year olds, and more than half of parents say they often overspend on food.

Digital technology is draining cash from household budgets at $59 a month for 9-11 year olds, and 60 per cent of these children have non-school related electronic gadgets. “Children want to start accessing games, connecting with friends on line, and the demand for more data increases the cost,” Ms Reynolds said.

Social researcher Mark McCrindle said 9-11 was an age where technology expenses were fully paid by parents.

“What we find is that when children are in their middle teenage years they are starting to bear a lot of those expenses themselves from pocket money or part-time earnings,” he said.

CLOTHING COSTS

Clothing is another expensive item and the second-most likely cost to blow the household budget.

“They’re in a growth phase and need new school and sports shoes every six months to a year,” Mr McCrindle said.

No-name clothing brands were no longer acceptable by this age, he said. “By nine, 10, 11 they’re more fashion aware, and suddenly the cost of clothing with the brands wanted is doubling.”

SCHOOL SQUEEZE

Education costs are the highest for 9-11 year olds at $195 a month, followed by 15-17 year olds at $185 a month and $160 a month for six-to-eight year olds.

Mr McCrindle said private school education for primary school children had surged in the past 30 years. The number of students in government schools had grown 2.8 per cent since the mid-1980s while those in independent schools had grown 140 per cent, he said.

“We have seen a rise in private schooling for primary school children to the extent that we have got almost one-third of primary school age children at non-government schools,” Mr McCrindle said.

He said parents were hit by new categories of expenses that didn’t exist a decade ago — such as tablet computers and subscription music.

“Raising kids now is more expensive than when we were young.”

Ms Reynolds said nine to 11 was an age when children were eager to learn about money.

“Parents need to take more of an interest in helping children in these years to really understand the value of money — to educate them about the importance of planning ahead,” she said.