staying home

how much do you think your dh would have to make for you to be a sahm and live comfortable???

Re: staying home

I think it would be different for everyone based on that individual situation.

Re: staying home

I think it's impossible to put a number on that because everyones living situation is different.

In my case, I never really earned all that much money to begin with...DH is definitely the bread winner. If I continued working, I would make enough to pay for childcare and not much more than that, so it makes sense for me to stay home with the baby. It's a very personal decision.

If you're thinking of being a SAHM then you and DH should probably sit down and gather all your bills for each month and see how it breaks down with only one income. That should be a pretty good indicator.

Re: staying home

Re: staying home

I think your best bet is too figure out how much more money you would need him to make beyond what your comfortable with now. When one person alone works.. what if he looses that job? Theres no second job to fall back on until he finds another one... like you would if you both worked.

Re: staying home

it would never be a concideration for us at this time, so i never had to think about it- but i agree with the other posters.

Re: staying home

It's different for everyone. My DH supported me while I was in dental assisting school and then after 4 months of working i got laid off and now im pregnant. DH has mentioned being a stay at home mom for a few years. We will have to watch our spending since only 1 of us would beworking but it's do-able.
It really depends on the income of one, how much monthly bills are ....just depends on your situation.

Re: staying home

For us, my salary literally, almost to the $, pays the mortgage. My DH's salary (well before he got laid off ) paid everything else...for us, me staying home is not an option unless miraculously he doubles or triples his salary in the near future.

Re: staying home

I always figure it this way... I combine what we are both making now- and living comfortably on- and that is how much he would need to make on his own for me to stay home...

Either way, its not doable...he isnt going to be making that much more anytime soon.

Re: staying home

DH doesnt want me to work but he doesnt do the bills each month! and doesnt realize my salary is a big help. and besides i love having my own money. but at the same time i want to be home with the baby

Re: staying home

Re: staying home

i guess i can do that but i wouldnt want to back right away either. i work on my feet for 10 hours but im sure they will b flexible with me. also i dont know how long i could be able to work like that im going to make it work i guess!!

Re: staying home

For us, it would take my Full-time salary plus his Part-time salary....just too much!

Re: staying home

Re: staying home

Not an option for us either. He pays the mortgage, I pay for basically everything else including $$$$ towards our savings, and I carry our health insurance since he's self-employed.

Re: staying home

It depends on too many things -
Your debt, your expenses, your standard of living, your spending habits, the lifestyle you want, etc etc etc. -
It also depends on whether or not you and your DH WANT one of you to be a SAH parent, and if so, HOW important that is to your family -

I could absolutely stay home on DH's salary, but we have decided it's not the best thing for us as a family - There are too many things we want in life, too many things we want to be able to do for our kids, different values we feel are more important than others etc etc. - And all of those things mean I should (and want to) work -

Re: staying home

It really is a personal decision... I am a SAHM and would not change a thing.. Yes it is a bit of a struggle, but with the amount of daycare these days if your not making aver 50 grand a year to cover daycare cost and still have plenty to use for daily expenses, IMO it's not worth it... I had a great job making excellent money, that yes would have helped out nice, but for me working was not in the cards.. I wanted to raise my child myself.... and being a SAHM was the best option for me... You should sit down with DH and look at how much you make combined and what you spend monthly and add in extra expenses for baby formula diapers and clothes ect..... and way your options...

Just remember what you choose is what is best for you... What we here have to say may be the best for us....

Re: staying home

we live comfortably now with two salaries, and I like it this way. So in order for me to stay home, DH's salary would have to double.
Personally I would not want to stay home. Of course I would love to be with DD all day every day, but there are a lot of things and goals in our lives that we want to achieve. Also, I do not (this is my opinion only) think it is fair for DH to take on the financial burden of our family all by himself.

I have 4 months fully paid maternity leave, which is awesome, and I will enjoy every minute of it

Re: staying home

I would love to stay at home, but we just can't afford it. My salary is a great help with the mortgage and the bills. That is before the baby comes- once the baby comes there is going to be so many more expenses. Between diapers and formula- every $ counts.