Finally, a study that confirms why I’m not concerned about paying for college:

Daycare now costs more than tuition at a public university in 44 states, including Minnesota, according to the The National Association of Childcare Resource and Referral Agencies. Here’s a study the group conducted on the high cost of child care that pegged MN as second in the nation for least affordable child care (although if quality and cost go hand-in-hand, this is a good thing in a way).

For example, the average cost of full-time preschool care in MN is $8,832. For infants it’s $11,796. So that’s where the mortgage payment for our bigger, nicer home is going.

If you can keep your lifestyle the same as your earnings rise and your kids grow, you can save that day care money, or at least some of it, once the kid enters grade school (assuming you don’t send them to private school or pay a lot for after-care programs).

I’m hoping we can manage to save at least half of our kid’s day care tab each year to pay for a combo of college and retirement.

The American Payroll Association sent me a press release with these day care stats to convince people to consider using a dependent care account to save up to 35% off child care costs in 2009.

According to the association, flexible spending accounts, where you put money aside from your paycheck tax-free for child and elder care are a free benefit offered by 80% of American companies

You have use all of the funds in a given year or you lose them. No “rolling over.” But chances are you’ll whip through the typical $5,000 limit in no time. I know our family did in Spring.

This entry was posted on Thursday, August 28th, 2008 at 1:06 pm and is filed under college saving, saving. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.