How Do You Afford Being a Stay-At-Home Mom, Especially if Your Husband Doesn't Make Much?

Motherhood
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QUESTION:

"Stay at home mamas-: HOW do you afford it?!

Especially wondering for those of you whose husbands don’t make that much money. I just don’t understand how it is possible with a mortgage, bills, etc, and I want in!"

RELATED QUESTION: Stay-At-Home-Moms: How Do You Make It Work on One Income?

TOP ANSWERS (AS SELECTED BY MODERATOR):

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“My husband and I have saved and worked hard to get to a position that allows me to raise our children. We tackle the debt with the snowball effect. We pay off smaller bills when we have extra money. We don’t do credit cards and we primarily pay for things with cash. Our house is paid off too. I will say he’s a hardworking man who has always worked 40+ hours to give us this life.”

“If your husband has an average job and you want a super expensive house with the best car, and the newest phones and your nails done every week it’s probably NOT going to be possible for you. If you’re keen on living modestly but still having your child’s needs be met, maybe it is. All about priorities, really. It can also be hard to get out of these things when you have them due to the financial obligations you have already incurred. Add up the amount your husband makes + what you currently spend on daycare and subtract your necessary expenses, and see what you have leftover.”

“Drive an older car, only have one car, don’t eat out, buy clothes at second hand or swap with friends, no nail salons, no cable tv, read books, play games, do crafts, cook, etc.”

“Ultimately, it’s cheaper to stay at home than it would be to pay for daycare.”

“For me, it wasn’t that I could afford to do it as much as I couldn’t afford not to! 2 littles in daycare was going to cost me $360 per week minimum, plus all the expenses of a daily commute. I would have been working just to afford to work AND missing out on that time with my babies. It wasn’t worth it. So we had to buckle down and budget. We’d also always lived practically: small house payment and no car payment went a long way until my youngest started public school and I went back to work.”

“Daycare for 2 was too expensive. It was financially easier to be a SAHM. Now that the kids are in school, I’m happier being able to go back to work. Being a SAHM is not always easy by a long shot.”

“Not everyone can. You have to have a partner that has a good enough paying job to afford to pay for everything alone.”

“So I’m not a stay at home mom, but I’m a single mom with a household to maintain. It all comes down to budgeting and being tight with your money. I carefully plan out how my money will be spent, when I pay bills vs when I get paid, and how to save money constantly.”

“Honestly we just couldn’t afford the daycare it wasn’t worth for all of what I would be making to go into daycare my husband would try and get any overtime possible but it wasn’t worth what we would have to pay for someone else to care for our babies.”

“Been a stay at home mom for almost 20 years now. Can’t say it’s been easy. We live by a simple mantra, A penny saved is a penny earned. Every dollar I save is just the same as if I had a job and paid for it, so careful budgeting and shopping are very important. Also, you don’t have to “have a job” to help put food on the table. I started with a small garden and now have a nice sized one that helps me feed the family. We started with the basics; fruits and berries that would never need replanting, salad stuff, peas, green beans, carrots, things like that.”

“We just don’t live a glamorous lifestyle and aren’t afraid to live in a trailer as opposed to an expensive apartment or house. We have our needs met and save a little each week to be able to take trips after a few months or buy some “wants” (games, clothes we like, decorations, etc) and I do our budget weekly if not more to make sure we stay on track, in the beginning, we made cuts like no internet no phone plans no car payments but now we have all of that because we budget cautiously. It’s doable if you don’t want a fancy life. If you need all the bells and whistles then your husband will have to be able to work a super good-paying job.”

Have a response to this question? Leave it below to help a mama out! Or leave your own question and get responses from real moms!

READ ALL ANSWERS BELOW:

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We have 2 kids and a moderate income. It’s difficult but possible. Sometimes bills get put off a week or two and we live paycheck to paycheck but being able to be with my kids is a blessing. The Lord has provided for us in so many ways and instances. Not sure of your faith so I’ll leave it at that. I miss working some days, just interaction with other adults but it truly is wonderful to be able to be with them.

46 Likes
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After daycare, union fees and gas to go to and from work I would only have brought home $300 a month. Really watched my spending and before the shutdown I had a one night a week job that brought in "fun"money for activities and so that my husband wasn’t buying his own christmas/birthday gifts (yqnd it gave me time to interact with other adults.,)

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I went and worked to support my family while my husband went to cdl school for 3 months when he got out of school he got a great job and I got to stay home with the kids, for 2 years straight, I didnt have to but recently made the choice to go back to work amd just started a new job

5

I am a paramedic and work 4-8 hours twice ish a week … my husband makes decent money, I treasure the opportunity to stay home with my sweet Sarah, but the extra $ helps. Cover groceries , our phone bill etc … and sometimes this mama needs to get out of the house … I’m mostly a SAHM … but I get out once in a while … it works for us

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6

Budget. Budget. Budget. My husband doesn’t make much at all but our free childcare was becoming unreliable and we knew we couldn’t afford daycare. We make sure we have our basic needs and plan in advance for special extra expenses we know may be coming. Also doing the Dave Ramsey debt snowball (or trying our best when we have a little extra) has helped out. I wouldn’t trade this time with my babies for the finer things we could have.

9 Likes
7

I’m home 5 days and work 2 12 hour shifts. It’s sucks to never see my husband, my car is 10 years old, we live very basic… but it means we get to keep our kids out of daycare. I make good money working part time (as a nurse) but it still gets tight at times. Not much going into savings, not too much extra. I just tell myself they aren’t little forever and if we can make it work, it’s definitely worth it to us.

72 Likes
8

It cost more for child care than what I’d make working. We were a military family living in places child care and jobs were difficult to find. Now we are homeschooling, and he has a good paying job.

13 Likes
9

You don’t need a big house or a big car. Stay out if debt and don’t use credit cards. Don’t keep up with the Joneses down the block. If you want it and it’s important to you then you will make do with less.

73 Likes
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I’ve been a stay at home mom for the past 9 years. I’m now a part time working mom for the past year. I loved being home with my kiddos and bit meant a lot of sacrifices, budgeting and planning. The reason I’m working it has became to much for me to stay home no matter how much we sacrifice it became no choice but for me to get a part time job

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My old man has always worked jobs that he made just enough that we got by, weren’t completely poor but definitely weren’t making bank either, lol. Now he’s making really decent money so we’re good. Before it was definitely a struggle, but it’s almost a lose lose in some areas. At the time jobs available for me wouldn’t have been high paying jobs, we only had 1 car, and child care probably would have cost near what I would have brought in anyway. It just wasn’t really the smarter choice.

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12

I’ve been a stay at home mom for the last 3 years since I had my last child at 45 years old. Basically I go completely without. The money I get from hubby is for necessities like gas for the car or groceries needed in between our large grocery shopping days or things the kids need. He pays for everything. My husband also works out of town a lot. We were just able to buy a house and we live in California. We also have an SUV and truck and my hubby has two motorcycles. Neither my husband nor I have a college degree so he doesn’t make a lot but it’s decent. We moved into a smaller town where home prices are really low. That helped because the mortgage payment is way lower than what we were paying in rent.

3 Likes
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If I went back to work, after gas and daycare for 2 babies… I wouldn’t bring much home. It’s just easier for me to stay home. Better for the babies to be with me than someone else anyway. We don’t make a lot of money thru my husband’s work, but we don’t spend frivolously. He picks up weekend shifts sometimes. We get assistance thru wic to help with food. Our vehicles are old, we have no car payments or credit cards. We refinanced the mortgage and it’s lower now, about $880 a month. I go thru shit and post online and sell it to make some extra $.

5 Likes
14

My husband makes about 50k a year. I’ve been a stay at home mom for almost 8 years now. Sometimes we are paycheck to paycheck, but we make it work

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15

Back when my husband wasnt making that much and I was still a stay at home we just didnt spend unnecessary money and always lived comfortably. Now i run two businesses just for side cash, still a stay at home mom lol

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16

I did in home daycare for some of my friends which helped … and you truly have to decide what you are willing to give up or change.

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17

My husband and I have been married for 10+ years.
We waited to have kids until we bought our house, paid off debt and were in a position to be able to afford for me to stay home. During the 8 years before we had our first child. We knew that we wanted me to be able to stay home, so we worked our butts off and saved as much money as possible. We are both savers, not spenders. We live well within our means and strive to be wise with our money.

6 Likes
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You have to decide whats more important and make it work. No new vehicles, no notes. We took out a small loan to remodel an old trailer on family property so no mortgage. We don’t buy fancy clothes, we buy in bulk and sales, we diy alot of things. We don’t go out. Make meals in bulk. I learn a LOT of stuff on YouTube, when the car breaks down or you have a plumbing problem or your kid needs a haircut and you’ve gotta figure it out instead of paying someone? YouTube.

8 Likes
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I cut back drastically. Got rid of cable, switch to the economy internet 9.99 per month, use my brother in law Netflix account. Open windows to cut back on ac. Cook at home, buy from local farmers for just $20 i feed my family of six per week.
As for diapers I call pampers and ask for coupons. I also dash on Fridays night.

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Just because pay a child care is more than what I would earn…

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We barly scrap by we are a family of 4 i have a 3 and 1 year old my husband works i stay home we make donon 30,000 a year before taxes and do not qualify for government assistance he did recently get a raise for itll got up 35 to 38 a year but we considered the cost of child for 2 under 3 and just chose to make do. We rent as well bit thats 850 a month for a small trailer. Not counting all other bills and I do not have insurance for myself

1 Like
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For us, I thought we couldn’t afford it but once we set down and really crunched the numbers it was costing us more for me to work outside the home.

It also took a leap of faith and me trusting in the Lord! He has been faithful at every turn!

33 Likes
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It’s more about prioritizing what our family needs over what we want. My husband trusts my decision when it comes to budgeting our money. We had a long struggle in the past on how to handle our finances properly but we learned our lessons and moved forward with what is best for us as a whole. Start small by making a list of your expenses daily instead of weekly. Once you’ve accounted every cent, you can start planning your budget. Always set aside some money for petty cash too. This comes in handy.

6 Likes
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As a single mom, several sources of income always spinning. Weekends I dont have my son, I bake or cater, work from home during the week, a MLM I love for a little side extra, child support, rent out extra space on property, crafts sometimes and I’m always looking to hustle without cutting into home time. Diversify is my key.

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It Depends on what you consider a Stay at Home mom. I went from a 2 home income: to being a single mom that was required to work from home because of Covid. I’m currently paying the bills of 2 people and working from home with a 3 year old. I’m Blessed to have a Job but Its not easy also taking care of your Family!! Its hard I’m barely able to Afford my Bills but I will make it happen to have a home and food on the table for my children,

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I started to work from home and that’s helping a LOT! Most importantly I spend time with my toddler and hubby
If anyone needs help getting a job I can help :rotating_light:

3 Likes
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We figured out that it’s cheaper for me to stay home with the baby the for us both to work with the cost of child care We have learned to not live beyond our means he make just enough to cover everything if we want something we save for it like our coffee pot we saved for 3 months to get a $25 french press buy our meat in bulk which saves us 1-$5 a pound fruits and vegetables are frozen of in season

1 Like
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We live in CA which is insanely expensive and not accomodating to large families. We have six kids ages 18-20 months and are expecting baby #7 in Feb. We decided I would become a stay at home mom 9 years ago after we had been married almost two years. I have worked holiday jobs over the years just to help make extra money for Christmas but 3 years ago I fell asleep while driving after working a seasonal graveyard shift and rolled the car so my husband has not felt comfortable with me working seasonally since. He makes a very modest income and we live paycheck to paycheck but 100% on FAITH and trusting God to provide which he has and he does. We’ve been blessed in so many ways I can’t even begin to describe and God ALWAYS comes through even in our toughest moments(like our current financial situation). Most of our clothes and shoes especially for the kids come from church clothing swaps and facebook Mom groups I’m a part of. We’re also part of a food share ministry so every two weeks we get to pick up boxes of food and fresh produce and we do receive WIC for our two youngest kids so there’s always food on the table. It’s not easy managing a large household on a single income and sometimes strangers ridicule us for having so many kids but God has blessed us with these beautiful babies for a reason and we can’t imagine our lives any other way. God always makes a way and sometimes we have to go without, but we’re blessed and content😊

2 Likes
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I stay home because i wanted to but financially it made sense. What id be making would only really cover childcare. My s/o makes about 35-40k a year. We do try to catch side jobs for extra money when we can but mainly just pay our bills, only eat out once or twice every two weeks, and sometimes we are able to put up a little extra and make a small vacay atleast once or twice a year.
What we budget for bills (calculated for a year) is about 33,000.
We have a 15 month old, dont recieve goverment assistance except medicaid (me and my son), we own a mobile home that we have been remodeling, i have a car payment, own two other vehicles,and credit card debt as well as a loan payment plus regular bills.

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We don’t lol it’s a constant struggle but with no babysitter we have no choice.

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I cut out unnecessary expenses. I get maybe 1 pedicure a year. I only get manicures when I have a gift card. I dont get highlights/dyed/etc, just a basic cut a couple times a year. I don’t have name brand purses, shoes, clothes. I don’t get new clothes for myself very often and when I do it’s from Walmart or goodwill. I dont have cable or satellite or even internet at home. I don’t go out very often (I’m not a people person anyways). When I need to buy something new, I shop around online to find the best deal. My boyfriend and I just fully furnished our living room for $50 by getting furniture second hand from his neighbor.

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I do license not required childcare from my home so I can stay home with my daughter and make some money at the same time

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I’m a stay-at-home mom and my husband doesn’t make that much. Honestly we live pay check to pay check. It’s extra hard some months but we make it work. If I was able to work I would but with not having a car and my husband working day shift I’d have to work nights to keep our youngest out of day care. The town we live in it’s to dangerous to walk home at night and my youngest just wouldn’t handle day care very well plus 3 kids in daycare would take most of one of our checks. It’s just easier if I stay home… But there’s no extra money no saving really it’s definitely not the best life you can live. I’m looking forward to my youngest starting school so I can work.

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It’s bloody difficult lol my husband works and we still struggle to make ends meet. Just have to prioritise and live within your means

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Hard budgeting.
Giving up luxuries, eating out, take out coffee, prepared foods.
Drive older cars.
Repurpose what you have. Trade. Buy 2nd hand.
Strategic meal planning. Like you buy a larger pack of chicken cook it all and some is for nights one dinner with rice and veggie. Next day its tacos with that chicken and rice, add in beans if chicken is slim. Etc

Cost of daycare is so high in my area. It’s almost impossible to afford to work.

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i worked a couple hours at night when the kids went to bed and then until 2am on weekends. worked for amazon customer service from home. I really needed something that was just mine and to talk to adults. it covered most my personal bills. then i budgeted a lot. ratracerebellion.com

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became a stay at home mom 3 yrs ago I had to terminate my self from my job. Day after we was about to go home from hospital they found a heart murmur and got air flighted to children’s hospital we live pay check to pay check I have 2 girls now and day care so expensive to put them in day care so my husband works nights now but we make it work some how

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I was a sahm for over a year i loved it all the time with my little mamas boy. I do work part time but it is just so i can get out of the house once in awhile. My husband makes decent money and we have gotten good at not splurging on things we don’t need. So many tactics we now use has made it possible for us to save money. and pay all our bills on time, and have left over fun money

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We try our best. I am the full time caregiver for my child due to his medical needs. It is tough

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I don’t know.

I do know that I was a stay at home mom for many years and we scraped by. We struggled. But I couldn’t have afforded childcare.

I’m now a single mom and I am fine. It’s rough don’t get me wrong and things are tight at times. But I’m not struggling.

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We are both on income assistance and live in low income housing which isn’t that great but we make it work.

42

Stay in your financial lane. If you can’t afford it, don’t buy it. ESP cute stuff for your kid’s . They will survive without it eg toys, expensive clothes etc. priorities should be food and bills to stay afloat.

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43

Well, you can always get a job at a daycare, that way you can get paid and and get free or reduced daycare!

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I’m a stay at home mom with no income. My husband finally got a promotion and raise but we still struggle. We just don’t overspend, we have the bare minimum with internet and basic cable, and we watch what we spend. We make it work!!

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It depends on how much your significant other makes and how you budget your money.

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46

I took care of kids after I had my daughter. I got to stay home with her and she got the socialization until she was in grade school.

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I was pregnant with mono-mono twins and I was on bedrest from 23 weeks until i had them at 30 weeks. That being said they had a 49 day nicu stay which meant me being there with them everyday.(unable to work)
We just added another babygirl, so I will continue to stay home. (Accidentally got prego, when the twins were of age to go to school)
We have struggled, But every day my babies are fed, clothed in clean clothes, and happy mommy is home with them teaching and love them.
So we drive paid off cars(2004&2008)
Rent a duplex,
And manage our money down to the cent. I personally would rather struggle and not have luxuries, than to pay someone I dont know to raise my kids for me while I work a dead end job I hate…

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48

Try not to live beyond your means. There are a lot of sacrifices you have to mske and go without .

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We live 40 minutes near any town so the fuel cost and daycare cost it wasn’t worth it. Plus we live in an area it is a nightmare to find a decent babysitting. We had a sitter that had a lot of questionable accidents and I couldn’t take it anymore.

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Just wondering, how much does daycare cost in the US? I see that a lot of People say It cost more than they would make. Just wondering :thinking: I live in Norway, so I have like no clue :sweat_smile:

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I am dhs provider and private pay for babysitting that’s how I do it to afford things

52

You ladies don’t know how much I needed to read this tonight! I’ve been stressing a lot with the holidays coming up! Thanks for sharing your advice!

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I live out of town and with daycare cost and fuel costs its not worth it for me to work as I’d practically make nothing.

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54

Its literally about sacrifice. You learn over time what wants and needs really are :joy:

55

We have 4 kids. I have a side gig with Norwex thst gives me a little extra for fun or to take care of business as surprises happen. I have a lot of fun, get a clean house out of it and use my kids for free labor (making messes they can clean up themselves).
I shop out of season for next sizes when I can and am very happy with the power of the Norwex laundry items that keepnthe handmedowns looking amazing for the next in line.

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I substitute for the school district. And have my mom watch my boys. So my husband makes enough for bills and groceries and baby stuff and I make a bit on the side for fun stuff or clothes for the kids and sometimes small bills. Schools are desperately needing subs. If you can get someone to watch your kiddos a day or 2 a week the extra income is nice.

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You can also take in a kid or two to watch (close in age)
You can also take up sewing. It’s a pastime that can bring in a little money.
You could also take in elderly laundry to wash n dry.

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We barely do, but with 4 kids. Daycare is too expensive. So, we budget everything. And don’t spend in things we don’t need unless it’s been money saved for it. Or I make a little extra from my crochet items I make.

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I started doing direct sales. It may not be a lot but it is enough to cover Christmas, Birthdays, Sports & Vacations. It has helped me so much & I only do about an hour a day.

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Not living a champagne lifestyle on a beer budget :joy:, I’m a stay at home wife and mother, and we save for things we want (takes a little longer sometimes) and we’re still able to eat out as a treat sometimes, it’s all about budgeting :grin:

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61

We live simply and he works his ass off, overtime when needed etc. It’s alot of sacrifices and tight money.

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You can also nanny another child. They can come to your place and be a play mate. It can help with some of the bills ect

63

How do you afford not to stay at home. Child care is EXPENSIVE ASF

64

Cheaper by the dozen. I have 3 kids. We don’t buy things we don’t need. Keep to budget

65

Childcare costs a bomb and working for an extra 100-200 pounds not taking out travel expenses it just isn’t worth it :woman_shrugging:

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My husband is a cook doesn’t make that much. We live in our means . I don’t mean paycheck to paycheck I mean we cut out all we can’t afford and have enough for savings . We don’t go out and spend our tax returns we save it . There is no savings in our mind. We have 10 year old cars but they run and work great . Our phones aren’t new but they still work. I buy in sale and I get used stuff.
My nails aren’t done and neither is my hair. I do as much as I can at home and do free website for things that we made need like clothes or buy used. I teach my child bills than fun. I have credit cards but it’s to bill credit and the amount I
Owe is never more than I have in savings.
Weekly meals on a budget and don’t go out to eat . We collect cans of soda and cash in.
Live in your means but always save. I know it’s a struggle now but I hope to go back to work part time to help a bit but after a year around my husband schedule.

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67

What’s a better question is … how many moms can afford to work?.. Not offending anyone but I’ve worked jobs that only paid for child care with and without a degree.

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68

Ive been a sahm for over 15 years!! My husband makes enough money for the bills and mortgage and I take care of the kids and house.

69

You live within your means and make things do and do without things. Things don’t make happy healthy people.

70

I do side jobs like babysitting help clean homes help people move ECT ECT…and here soon will be selling paparazzi again

71

I have a little job I work from home that brings in enough to cover our be groceries. Other than that it’s being frugal, making sure we tithe, and just trusting God. We buy a lot of things used, we eat out once a week, if that. We always pay off our credit cards. We save up to go on vacations or make large purchases. It is tight. It has been scary at times. But it’s worth it to us

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72

I was a stay at home mom until my youngest started school. It would have cost entirely way to much to put 4 kids in daycare of any kind. There was a point my husband took on 2 jobs, but we’ve made it work. I enjoyed being the one raising our children and not missing the “little” things. I attempted to get a part time job when we only had 2 kids,but I was missing out on stuff that my children were doing and I wasn’t ok with it. My husband was working nights and we never saw each other. It was hurting our relationship. Me being a stay at home mom helped all the way around. Now our children are teens and 4 years away from being all adults. :sob:

73

Dave Ramsey’s baby steps are the only way we’re able to do it. 10/10 would recommend.

74

Don’t live above your means 🤷

75

My husband is a deputy.

76

Budget, budget, budget. I was a stay @home mum with 4 kids.

77

My husband has 2 jobs just to make it work

78

We don’t really. We thought it would be affordable if we tightened our belts but as of January I will be uninsured for the second time because they increased the cost to keep me on his plan $160 per month, and due to taxes in my area bumping our mortgage by $100 each year…I will probably be back at work before my kid is in kindergarten :confused:. No car payment, only one credit card, and just basic bills like water etc. We are 5 people and qualify for EBT but only $50 per month. It’s crazy.

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79

It’s cost less for the mom and or dad to stay home whichever you both agree on cus the cost of a baby sitter outways 1 stay at home parent it’s just too damn expensive to pay for a daycare and or baby sitter

80

We didn’t make it lol that the easy answer. I have two daughter’s ages 12 & 16. My husband has been the only income for us for their entire lives up until August. I’ve started cleaning houses during the day for xra money. Works out great! & I get to keep all of my tips! +12 dollars an hour. But yea we struggled so much. Not fun at all. But at least I got to stay at home with my kids.

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Husbands/Partners/Wives!!

82

I have been a stay at home mom for 13 years now. I had an 18 month old and a full time job. And my mom helped with my son. When I met my (now) husband he had a very modest income. I continued to work while we were dating, of course, because I had a child to care for, and that was my responsibility, not his. We were several months into dating (but living in our own places), when a tragedy hit my family hard. I took bereavement leave. But when I had to return to work (I worked for a reputable portrait place) my “boss” (who was less qualified for her job position than I was) did nothing but complain about how I inconvenienced her while I took time off to grieve. She usually travelled between locations, but hadn’t had to actually DO any of the work in a really long time. For the time I was absent, she actually had to WORK. She had to be in one location all day, by herself. She had to perform all of the job requirements she expected from the photographers (me). She had felt that the job duties should require only 1 person to be there working at any given time. Which meant appointments were late because after each session, we had to select which photos were used and build a custom portrait package for each client. That process takes awhile, and we were only allowed 30 minutes with each client, start to finish. We were expected to stay as late as necessary to make sure everything was clean and organized for the next day before leaving. That part wasn’t difficult to do. But she soon realized what I dealt with on a daily basis. I arrived before her on the day I returned to work. The place was a disaster, coffee spilled all over the keyboard, 2 of my backgrounds were wadded up in the corner, my camera lens was filthy, props all over the place, some broken . I honestly thought we’d been vandalized! I was on the phone with corporate when she arrived and had reported it. Turns out, we weren’t vandalized, SHE had left the place like that the night before. She was responsible for all of it, and then expected ME to clean up the work space she’d made a disaster. Her time was too precious, she was only there to collect something she’d left there and aparently I “owed her one” because she covered for me, and mentioned that I was lucky to get a week to grieve. She thought I should only be entitled to 2 days off. I found my brothers dead body in my back yard, after hearing a gunshot that was too close to the house. I returned to work still very traumatized a week later. I loved my job, but I went home that night upset because she was so cold and heartless. She knew what happened, but all she could do was complain about how it inconvenienced her life to do the actual work. My boyfriend (now husband) told me the job wasn’t worth the heartache. He asked me if I’d move in with him, and said he wanted to support me and my son 100%. I quit my job, my boss was fired because I had reported what I’d thought was vandalism, and corporate later found out it was my boss who did it. But I never returned to work, even though I was offered her old job. My husband and I have 2 more children now, and we live paycheck to paycheck, but other than the house, we have no debt. No credit cards, student loans, no car payments. We live simply and we’re happy. It can be done, with just one income, but sometimes you have to make sacrifices. If I don’t need it, I’m not worried about it. I am thankful for what we have, instead of wanting something more. We have what we need and it’s enough!

83

My husband was a stay at home dad when I made $17/hr in WA and we owned our home and had 2 car payments. Money was tight but I worked OT when I could to pay down debt.

We moved to FL and now I’m the one staying home while my husband makes $15/hr with OT each week. He sleeps in his car to cut down on gas cost and we see each other a couple nights a week, it is very hard but temporary because we live 90 minutes from where he works. It really just comes down to making some temporary sacrifices to get where you want, we are pre-approved for a home we just need to pay down more debt with his OT to feel comfortable paying a mortgage.

84

I have an Etsy shop. My husband takes the rent bill. I do the rest, we have no car note so that helps out alot

85

We have the basics that we need! I’m a SAHM and I sacrificed having money of my own. But it has been so worth it. We have a roof over our heads, food in the table and the things we need. It’s nice when we can have a little extra here and there. In the end, I was able to be home with my kids and not work just to pay for someone else to take care of them and us NOT have any extra. I hope that makes sense.

9 Likes
86

My husband makes $43k/yr and we make it work.
We have a mortgage, car PMT, kids are in Martial Arts, cricket wireless, and typical build ie water, gas/electric, insurance and a couple credit card bills.
I’m working hard to get everything paid off. I budget and plan ahead. Rarely eat out.

5 Likes
87

My husband doesn’t make a ton of money($14/hr 40hrs a week). We have a second job that brings in about $600 a month. We budgeted for me to be a stay at home mom by paying off most of our debt before getting pregnant. We didn’t have car payments, only had a hospital bill and one credit card we where pecking away at. We live in our means, we buy used or on sale. We budget and stick to it. But we live a good life, we save up for trips and special stuff.

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88

my bf makes $2,400 a month. Monthly bills including utilities, rent, cars, insurance, aps, & gas we pay $1,900. We usually have about $500 a month left over but we put some in savings. & the rest we used for groceries, diapers, etc .
We are super tight on money. Buut I get to stay home with my babies. And like other people said in the comments we also cut out many many things for me to be a stay at home mom. We don’t eat out as much, we travel but we try to do cheap things or if we go out we eat sand whichever on our trips. We also don’t have the newest iPhones etc .

89

Try not living above your means. Like do you need that new phone or fancy phone , go cheap with prepaid , don’t eat out, meal prep, shop for clothes at consignments , resell old toys and clothes at consignments. Buy the generic stuff when it doesn’t matter. I’m not saying you live above your means but I’ve realized there’s a lot of I need this and that I need cable when maybe you just need to pay 10$ a month for Netflix and no expensive cable . Maybe you don’t need to pay crazy amount for internet at home when he’ll all we did was add a phone line for ten dollars a month, leave it on hotspot and that’s how we get our internet lol I also use an acorns account that rounds up my purchases to the next dollar and take the change and put it into my acorns account and then that’s my emergency fund. It adds up quick and I’ve never overdrafted using it so it helps. I be used it for a while and just now cashed out 500 dollars for Christmas money.

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90

I would say but people are going to judge me because I’m a single mom of five kids but I don’t care I do what I do for my kids especially since my youngest twos father is not in their lives

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91

I worked for 8 years till I became a stay at home mom. I wish I had did it sooner. I was scared we couldn’t do it & boy was I wrong. It just takes some adjusting.My husband has a good job for this area that has a lot of benefits so that helps out,so I mean it’s a tight budget but we are not struggling. We do live pay check to paycheck thou .Money wise, we have saved so much on gas $ and babysitting $ since I stopped working. One of our kids was born on Christmas Eve so I learned that when toys, etc go on sale to grab em and store em thru out the year,so when it’s time for bdays and Christmas I’m done. (We teach our kids to be grateful for what you do get, so I don’t have to worry about if they’ll hate the gift).I literally find $20 items on sale in the clearance section at walmart for $3. When it comes to clothes, always the clearance rack or yard-sales. For groceries It’s always the cheapest brand we can find. We also live within our means. I also am a home body so I don’t run around or go shopping a lot. We also teach our kids about $, so they know if they go in a store what their budget is so we never have crying kids bc we said no over some toy. Also we don’t do vacations a lot. It sucks but yea, we usually find local stuff to do. This year we actually took a legit vaca and I paid for half of it with our taxes but trust me I made sure it was the cheapest we could go.Also if something comes up that’s like a huge expense bc trust me things break,(we’ve taken out small loans then when we get our taxes back we pay it off) , bc honestly we couldn’t come up with $ quick like that.Another huge perk is my husbands job and kids school are right below our home so we save so much gas $ bc they are right there. Oh and with bills, some times we pay them in the grace period when we won’t be charged extra but it just depends on when the payday falls on.We didn’t have tv for years, now we just do streaming and that saves a lot of $.we also do prepaid phones. When we first got married my husband got layed off and the cell phone company wouldn’t work with us & we said NEVER Again. We use our wifi mainly so we don’t need to spend a lot on data.So yea, live within your means, always shop clearance, & if you vaca then vaca on a budget.

1 Like
92

Three kids here and we buy everything we can in bulk, make lots of meals at home, one of our cars is 20 years old (Toyota), our house payment and insurance is 1000 a month. We don’t really go many places at all. I buy all my kids clothes secondhand and anything we buy is mostly on fb marketplace. When I want to go shopping I go to the dollar tree. We actually eat all of our leftovers every time. We play cornhole with the neighbors nearly every Friday. No cable, just internet and a little thing that goes in the window its square but i think it an antenna for PBS in my sons room. Straight talk phones, don’t use credit cards, don’t even have one. we live in a neighborhood with a fishing pond, 2 pools and a park. Having places to walk to was a must for me because when we moved here one of our cars was broken down. Mortgage and house payment is 1050$ a month, HOA fees are 100$ a quarter, our one car payment is 400$ we bought a new sonata that is way too small now but we’re trying to make it work. We use a pellet fireplace in the winter and keep the air on 70-72 in summer and mostly off in fall and spring days. Vacations don’t really exist for us but we do visit my hometown (4 hours away) often. We YouTube and google how to fix things ourselves. We don’t go all out on Christmas or birthdays. Don’t spend our tax return on anything we don’t need. The down side is I haven’t left the neighborhood in like 10 days.

93

My husband is a student and can only work 20 hours a week and he makes $17.25 an hour during the 8 months of school. The 4 months that he isn’t in school he works 40 hours a week and what we do is save as much as possible during those 4 months. He also qualifies for some scholarships that we space throughout the year to help. I also do a thing called shipt when I have the ability to. It’s grocery shopping for other and then I deliver and I get paid. It’s a choose my own hours and when I want to work. Also with taxes we pay bills ahead. We get help from WIC and foodstamps to take care of groceries. We have a budget we follow that helps. Its $750 a month to do childcare for our 1 child so I stay home

94

Look into food pantries and free clothing in your area. Don’t be too proud to accept handouts!! Many communities provide gently used clothing and Christmas/Birthday gifts for children. Ask at local churches whether you attend or not, you and your family and children will be taken care of. Much luck to you, if you and your husband are doing this to keep your children safe and protected, you will reap the benefits!!

95

Its hard we are always making payment arrangements and he could even work over that week yes there are things we should have waited to get but we needed them and it takes everything… but when you have 5 kids and 3 of them have special needs and you have a new born it just makes sense to suck it up and stay home and just know it will get better one day

96

You can also check teaching English online while staying at home… there are platforms that allows teaching with just using a mobile phone. And there are teaching platforms that only requires audio teaching. That is how we are getting through everyday in my family. My husband is a freelance air conditioning technician but it doesn’t pay much due to Covid. I stay home to take care of the kids and the house. Teaching online for 5 hours a day.

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97

I just became an Usborne consultant! I can make my own hrs and bring in a little income. If you want more info, let me know. Usborne are books for newborn- young adult. I do most of my stuff during nap time and after bedtime.

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98

I don’t get it, either. We maybe make 30K a year. I don’t know how I can go back to work because we can’t afford to pay a babysitter or day care. We’ll never qualify to own a house, and we have more bills a month than we do income. I’ve just resigned to the fact that we’re screwed and we’ll either end up homeless or forced to to move out of state away from friends and family because we can’t afford to live here anymore and there’s no cheaper options other than living out of our car.

2 Likes
99

I’m a stay at home mom have been since this pandemic started. My husband makes good enough money to support us. We live within our means. My kids have everything they need we have a vehicle and a rent gas electric car insurance we splurge here and there lol we make it work. :relaxed:

100

I can’t afford to work unfortunately daycare is too expensive and my paychecks will likely go to just that.