Regardless of the utopian financial scenario you hoped for, babies happen (ask your mom if you’re not sure how), even to people in a debt relief program. Unfortunately for those of us without a booming baby fund, they tend to cost quite a bit—according to Parents Magazine, between $7,000 and $14,000 annually—and that stork doesn’t come with a check.
For those with excessive credit card debt, enrolled in a debt management plan or experiencing a financial hardship when they find themselves expecting, there’s an alternative to baby-induced bankruptcy. We’ve asked the experts and compiled some of the easiest ways to save in the first few years, and it’s not as impossible as it sounds—after all, people were procreating long before credit cards.
