Family Stages

"My interest is in the future, because I'm going to spend the rest of my life there." ~ Charles F. Kettering

Are you about to enter the family stage of life? Having a family is one of life’s biggest blessings. It’s also one of life’s biggest responsibilities. Careful planning will help you manage the responsibilities so you can just enjoy the blessings.

But along the course of your family’s life, your financial needs will change dramatically. When you’re young and married, you have an opportunity to be aggressive with your savings and funding your long-term goals.

Once that first baby arrives, life as you know it changes. Suddenly you’re buying a larger house, spending significantly more money every month on new essentials and worrying about starting a college fund.

According to a 2014 Department of Agriculture study, the average cost of raising a child to age 18 in current dollars is about $300,000. After a third of a million dollars in payments, the balloon payment for children comes at the end when college expenses are often financed through student loans and additional mortgages. During this stage, you’ll be grateful for wise planning early in your marriage.

Once your kids are through college and out on their own, you find you have a little more money left over at the end of the month. Now the question shifts to legacy discussions and funding your retirement.

Each of these family stages comes laden with vitally important financial decisions. At Compass Financial, we come alongside our clients at each stage, helping them work through both the immediate and the long-term challenges and opportunities.