Raising a kid in the US includes a soaring price tag

Global Business

For those pondering parenthood, the price tag for raising a kid until he or she is 18 can make anyone suffer sticker-shock.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture says the average amount would be $245,000, and that’s heading higher. That figure is nearly 2 percent higher compared to 2012. Most of the expenses go towards housing, food, child care and education.

Housing costs make up the biggest past, accounting for 30 percent of the expenses. But now, child care and educations costs are make up a bigger part of the expenses, 18 percent today compared to 2 percent in 1960. On average it only costs $190,000 in rural areas since housing is cheaper. In the country’s northeast, it soars to more than $280,000.

For more on the issue and how to better spend your money, CCTV America talked to Matt Becker, founder of Mom and Dad Money, which provides financial consulting services to new parents.