Having a baby is a significant life event and it’s important to have your finances under control so you can set aside any worries and concentrate on raising your child.
Having a planned budget allows you to better manage your money and plan for your family’s future. It’s an easy way to work out what you can spend, and what you can afford, avoiding the pitfalls of accruing unnecessary debt.
And it seems money is on the minds of a lot of Australian parents, based on the results of the recent First Five Years Snapshot of Australian Families survey, which found 40% of parents surveyed have struggled to meet essential expenses like food, mortgage/rent, utility bills, child care or important medical care over the past 12 months and 29% of families do not believe they have enough money left after essential expenses to purchase much of anything they really want.
To make that process easier we have searched the internet to find some of the best online tools and resources to assist you and your family.
Australian Securities and Investment Commission’s (ASIC) MoneySmart
Some of the most popular tools are those provided by the Australian Securities and Investment Commission’s (ASIC) MoneySmart website: