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April 09 2011 | Last updated 1 minute ago
gulfnews.comBusiness | YourMone
Cost of ra ising a ch ildin the UAEParents grapple with changing demands, soaringexpenses
B Cleofe Maceda, Staff Re orter
Published: 00:00 A ril 9, 2011
Image Credit: FrancoisNel/Gulf News
Left: Latha Jayaraman andGanesh Venkitajhalam with theirchildren Shruti and Swathi;Centre: Cathleen Nicol with Lily
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Jonathan.
Children are a joy to have but they constitute the single
greatest expense for many families. In the UAE, the
costs of raising two children run up to Dh60,000-Dh125,000 a year, eating away as much as 25 per cent
of a couple's combined annual income.
Major expenses revolve around education and
amusement or leisure for children which can easily add
up to Dh95,000 a year for some households. The above
figures are based on interviews with different families.
Separate figures released by financial adviser Candour
Consultancy showed that bringing up a child to the age
18 can cost parents in Dubai a staggering Dh1.14
million.
Approximately, the biggest chunk (Dh400,000) will be
spent on education. An almost equally significant
amount (Dh300,000) will go to childcare and
babysitting, and the third biggest expense will be
children's toys, hobbies and leisure (Dh150,000).
The aggregate costs can seem daunting enough, but
divided equally by 18 years, one child will set a family
back to roughly Dh63,000 annually. Couples with two
children can then expect to spend about Dh126,000.
"If you send your kids to a top school in Dubai, buythem designer clothes, eat out regularly, etc, these
costs will be much higher," says Darren Ashley,
managing director at Candour Consultancy.
Comparison
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Candour's estimates, however, did not take into
account the cost of housing and college education. It is
also important to remember that the actual costs in ten
or 18 years' time will be more than they are at present
as a result of inflation, so parents might need to set a
bigger budget.
In the United States, the US Department of Agriculture
calculated that the first 17 years of a child's life is
estimated to cost around Dh816,000, as of 2009 prices.
In the UK, raising a child from birth to 21 is pegged
around Dh1.24 million, according to a report this year
by The Guardian.
Nisreen Hussain from India has three children aged six,
ten and 16. In a year, the family spends aboutDh150,000 for their children. Around Dh60,000 to
Dh75,000 is spent on tuition fees. Extra-curricular
activities, such as karate, soccer, religion and private
tutorial classes cost Dh24,000 a year, while
transportation can run up to Dh18,000.
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Like any other parent, the Hussains shower their kids
with presents and take them on foreign trips every year.
Once a week, they go out to dinner that can set the
family back Dh350 to Dh800.
The Hussains recently spent Dh5,000 on one birthday
bash, and last February the eldest got an iPhone 4 for
her Islamic birthday. "We celebrate birthdays twice a
year, according to the Islamic and Gregorian calendars.
My eldest's Gregorian birthday is up soon and I don't
know yet what she's going to make me spend," she
says.
"The cost of raising children has increased. It actually
increased tremendously," Hussain points out. For
Cathleen Nicol from Scotland, UK, her two girls aged
five and two rack up about Dh125,000 in a year. The
biggest portion (Dh70,000) goes to school fees.
Price spiral
The girls are taking ballet, as well as arts and crafts
classes, so a year's spending on out-of-school activities
add up to Dh12,000. About the same amount is spent
on clothing each year, Dh6,000 on birthday parties and
Dh14,400 on leisure and entertainment. The girls also
get big toys for birthdays and Christmas that cost
around Dh1,000 per child, plus monthly small gifts that
can cost Dh4,800 in a year.
"Life expenses in general are increasing each year with
rises in food shopping and fuel costs, and, as the
children get older, school fees, uniforms, activity clubs,
etc. generally increase," Nicol says.
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Pascal Eppink, a Dutch expatriate and father of two
boys, aged five and six, says their annual outgoings are
rising as well. "It is just gradually increasing each year
as they get bit by bit more independent and undertake
more activities."
So far, annual spending is approximately Dh96,000.
School fees reach Dh35,000 per year, but about 80 per
cent of the amount is covered by Eppink's company.
The boys also take football lessons which cost Dh45
per lesson per child, and ski classes at Dh140 per
person.
Clothing costs amount to Dh7,000 to Dh10,000 a year.
"It's not too bad, but it adds up though. They are not at
the age yet of being brand conscious, so they have little
demands so far. They just enjoy occasionally some
cartoon characters clothing which usually do not cost
much," Eppink says.
Airfares for the two boys, however, can cost quitedearly, with the family travelling three times a year.
Although they don't have a dedicated nanny, someone
comes four times a week to help, all for about Dh1,500
a month. Latha Ganes from India says rising school
fees are one of their biggest expenses. Tuition fees for
her twin daughters, aged eight, have just increased
from Dh14,520 last year to Dh16,200 this year.
"Expenses are definitely increasing and this is the right
time to (tackle the issue) because the school has
increased the fees recently," Ganes points out.
Since the twins take Arabic and Kumon lessons, the
family spends an additional Dh1,800 per month.
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Another potential budget buster is the almost weekly
trip to the amusement centres and malls. A day out can
easily reach Dh250 to Dh300, or Dh14,000 a year.
Budget buster
Lynessa Serrao from India has recently given birth to
twins, so she has not incurred any major expense so
far, except for the baby furniture, clothes and
accessories that she earlier purchased for about
Dh2,500.
"These were one-time purchases. Newborns don't need
much, but I'm sure that as and when they grow up, the
cost will definitely increase," Serrao says.
The arrival of the twins, however, has caused Serrao's
housing budget to increase from Dh40,000 to Dh50,000
a year. "We used to stay in one bedroom, but we
thought it's too small now that we have babies. Luckily,
the rents are not that high," she says.
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