Why inflation is making us have fewer babies

Is inflation making American families have fewer children? Yes.

According to the Department of Agriculture data and inflation statistics from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, raising a child in 2023 could cost an average of $331,933 from the time a child is born until the age of 18. And that’s without the cost of a college education. 

In 2015, the cost of raising a child was calculated at just $233,610 and since then costs for day care, food and housing have skyrocketed. This means that, compared to nine years ago, an American family will need to come up with an additional $100,000 just to get one child through high school.

Young people are opting to not have kids, with money at the epicenter of their decisions. (iStock)

What are young families thinking about having family? Well, they aren’t just delaying until later in life to have kids. Instead, they are opting to bypass having kids at all, with money at the epicenter of their decisions.

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We are already at a record low birthrate, with the fewest babies born in 2023 since 1979. These challenges may not only affect the dynamics of modern-day family neighborhoods across our country, but they will also put us in a serious deficit position for the American labor force 20 years from now.

One issue that is resonating with young voters and affecting their financial desire to have children is home affordability. More than 9 in 10 (91%) of adult Gen Zers say housing affordability is going to be important when considering who they will vote for in the upcoming election. This issue was a higher priority than abortion rights, gun laws and even foreign wars.

In fact, it speaks to the financial issue on why more young people don’t want to have children and just how much the cost of living has affected their wallets and impaired their thinking of even being able to afford a family. Look at the home price to income ratio in America.

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In 1980, the median home price in the United States was $50,000, while the median income was $25,000. Today, home prices have soared to a median average of $423,000 and the median income is about $65,000. That means the home price to income ratio in our country has tripled from a 2 to 1 ratio to 6 to 1 in 45 years.

Aside from the financial issues, Gen Z’s lack of interest in having children also stems from wanting to have more time for themselves, to travel and explore other lifestyles than having a family. The phenomenon that started in the 1980s called DINK (Dual Income No Kids) has become popularized on TikTok and is being readily adopted with this generation as a conscious choice versus having children.

Some Gen Zs even cite climate change and political instability as other nonfinancial reasons for not wanting to bring children into the world.

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It’s ironic now having three kids of my own in their 20s and thinking about, "How do I get them off of payroll?" and watching my children consider, "Do I want to bring someone on to payroll?" 

According to a Bank of America 2024 State of Gen Z’s Financial Health report released recently, over 50% Gen Z adults believe the cost of living is their biggest challenge and greatest barrier to their own success, which in turn plants those seeds of doubt on how they can take care of another human being.

With credit card debt approaching $1.2 trillion, student debt still hovering at $1.7 trillion, and over $1 trillion of outstanding auto loan debt, getting our arms around the rising cost of inflation across the board will be one of the most important jobs for the next president of the United States.

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It's not going to be just about being put gas in your tank, food on your table, or being able to make your rent payment, but about giving the confidence to the younger generations that not only is it a great idea to have a family, but also one that you can afford.  

Right now, the high cost of everything is making this generation think more about themselves than our future.

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