A
few years ago, after the birth of our second child, my husband and
I were trying to decide whether or not it would be possible for
me to stay home.
At
first we thought that since we were just about breaking even, there
was no way we could ever make it happen. But when we decided to
actually put pen to paper and calculate our bottom line with and
without my salary, we were quite surprised.
What
we found was that it was actually costing us to have both of us
working.
While
that may not be the case for everyone, you may find that the second
salary brings in much, much less than you think it does.
According
to Jan MacGregor, a financial consultant and former analyst, "There
are people out there who are expecting to be able to meet their
bills better (after they re-enter the work force) and never realize
they are either working for a loss or for something like $4,000
a year (after expenses)."
That
may seem hard to believe, but if you consider the many "hidden"
expenses of a two-income household it is often the case. There are,
of course, the obvious expenses such as child care and commuting
costs. Some of the hidden expenses are the money spent on lunches,
more take-out and convenience food for dinner, dry cleaning bills
professional clothing. There can be higher medical costs due to
increased exposure to illnesses for children who are in daycare.
Many
families hire a housekeeper or gardener to keep up on the household
work that they don't have the time to do.
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Sharon Davis is the Mother of two girls, the owner of 2Work-At-Home.Com
and the Editor of the site's monthly ezine, America's Home. In her
spare time she reminisces about what it was like to have spare time.
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