The joys and pains of fatherhood are unique. It’s exciting to enter a new phase, but you’re also anxious about ensuring everything is just right for your child. Your finances shouldn’t be a concern. The certainty of a comfortable life is too important to risk. 

You have to consider contingencies as a parent. Despite your life circumstances, you need to protect your children from financial difficulties in any situation. It is essential to start financial planning early to ensure that your child’s future is as secure as possible. 

When should you start? 

Ideally, you should do so before you start a family. However, if you haven’t done that yet, now is the time to make a move. Engage a fee-only financial planner in case you do not have a financial advisor. They will chart the roadmap. It will provide you with a direction to meet your family’s short and long term needs, and achieve financial freedom.

Plan Your Goals, and Act Consistently

Expenses are easily visible as they occur. Look at costs before they knock on your door. Do not consider prenatal care and postnatal care as the only essential expenses. 

Break your journey down into stages. It could include your child’s primary education, higher education, healthcare, marriage, and retirement. To accomplish this step, write down your preferences and create a timeline. Separate these goals into short-term, mid-term, and long-term.

• The short-term expenses will include immediate expenses like household expenses on a single income, postnatal care, cost of a nanny, daycare expenses within a year or two, school fees, and extracurricular expenses. 
• Health expenses, extracurricular activities, graduation costs, and post-graduation costs are among the mid-term expenses. 
• Long-term expenses include health care expenses, marriage, investing in your retirement plan as well as ensuring your wealth management.

To achieve these financial goals, you need to plan financially, draw a budget, develop an investment plan every month and stay on track. Life is unpredictable, and unexpected expenses can happen at any time. Therefore, it is wise to ensure that your budget variance is less than 10%.

Afford the proper education for your child

As a father, you will want the best opportunities and education for your children. The rising costs may put unnecessary pressure on you. 

How do you ensure you would be able to meet your child’s preferred education needs while avoiding debt traps and financial instability? 

Short Answer: Start early. This way, you can use time AND consistency to your advantage.

It is wise to put in an effort to maintain optimal asset allocation. A good investment plan should mix low-risk investments like fixed, recurring deposits and government bonds with high-growth investments like equities and mutual funds. 

Financial Protection for Your Child

Financial protection should be the first step in your child’s financial plan. Health is the most valuable asset, and you need life insurance to ensure your child has adequate protection for future unforeseen events and to avoid any health complications that your child may develop.

Start Early – Educate Your Children While They Are Young

Life skills, such as financial literacy, are indispensable. A parent is the best teacher. 

• Encourage your children to become financially savvy. 
• Instill the habit of saving money today, not tomorrow. 
• Educate them early about saving, budgeting, switching costs, financial decision making, and the effects. 

As a teacher, you learn and guide your children to do the right thing and minimize errors later on in their lives. Encourage them to build financial resilience.

Engage your children in managing their money using savings and recurring deposit accounts. This way you can allow them to experience the process, the journey, the magic of compounding and the joy of earning interest. It is prudent to let them make mistakes while guiding them from time to time.

Whether your dreams are big or small, it is never too late to start planning for your finances and building your wealth. We will help build the financial plan and investment strategy you need based on your goals.