I believe it can be pretty high, but $400,000 seems utterly ridiculous to me. You spend $100K per year per kid just for child care? You can hire a live-in nanny for that amount of money.
Most families are in poverty with regards to childcare, they just don't realize it.
Sure you could keep a child alive on less, but to "raise" one involves a host of social social capital, enrichment, and cultural integration. Child care is ridiculously expensive because most attention is captured by frivolities (and companies abusing child labor).
Say you spend 10K a year on food, school supplies and some sport, unless your child becomes a scholar or athlete you have failed to raise them. You might have prevented obesity and built some amount of discipline, but you've prevented them from making connections outside school/sports. Do you think hiring a nanny would, over time, go most of the way towards raising your children? If so then $400,000 isn't ridiculous, if not then shouldn't it be higher?
Unfortunately more than 99% of children in America are chronically undervalued, parents have overly cynical beliefs about their children starting from ages even earlier than 4. By the time a child sees any real investment they are likely to just give it straight to the mag7
casey2|6 days ago
Sure you could keep a child alive on less, but to "raise" one involves a host of social social capital, enrichment, and cultural integration. Child care is ridiculously expensive because most attention is captured by frivolities (and companies abusing child labor).
Say you spend 10K a year on food, school supplies and some sport, unless your child becomes a scholar or athlete you have failed to raise them. You might have prevented obesity and built some amount of discipline, but you've prevented them from making connections outside school/sports. Do you think hiring a nanny would, over time, go most of the way towards raising your children? If so then $400,000 isn't ridiculous, if not then shouldn't it be higher?
Unfortunately more than 99% of children in America are chronically undervalued, parents have overly cynical beliefs about their children starting from ages even earlier than 4. By the time a child sees any real investment they are likely to just give it straight to the mag7