Insider Finance - Business - Insider Today: The hidden cost of kids

January 8, 2024 • 5 min read

with Dan DeFrancesco

Hello from beautiful Las Vegas! I’m in Sin City for CES, the biggest trade show for consumer tech. Let me know what I should check out. 

In today’s big story, we’re looking at why the cost of having a kid is about a lot more than just a dollar sign.

What's on deck

• Markets: The nine tech stocks to get in on ahead of a big year for the sector.
• Tech: Veev wanted to fix the housing crisis. But production delays and financial woes got in its way. 
• Business: Boeing calls an all-hands employee meeting after the Alaska Airlines incident.

But first, the kids aren't alright.

Getty Images; Alyssa Powell/BI

The big story

Parenthood problems

They say the biggest purchase you make is a house, but something can be even more costly: children.

While you don’t purchase kids — if you’re unfamiliar with where babies come from, I’m sorry society has failed you — they ultimately come with a hefty price tag. 

Caring for a child in the US this year will cost you at least $25,714, according to an estimate from Business Insider’s Emily Canal and Andy Kiersz. This year’s figure is an 18.6% increase from 2021 and 41.5% jump from 2016, thanks to rising childcare, transportation, and food costs. More on how that figure was calculated here. 

But starting a family won’t just put a dent in your wallet. It could also upend where you live. 

BI’s Eliza Relman has a story on how millennials are getting priced out of cities as they look for more space for their new additions. 

The irony, of course, is millennials’ arrival in many neighborhoods sent prices soaring and forced out locals. It’s all craft cocktails and Trader Joe’s cauliflower gnocchi until you’re the one getting the boot.

Jesse Zhang for Business Insider

The cost of raising kids is taking its toll on younger generations. 

Millennial and Gen Z parents are struggling, as the proverbial village meant to raise their children is now empty. 

Even some grandparents aren’t as keen to babysit at the drop of a hat, as they’ve got their own jet-setting lifestyle to attend to, thanks to their mountains of cash. 

Meanwhile, government support for parents in the US isn’t great either. The US ranks near the bottom regarding spending on early childhood. As author Lydia Kiesling puts it: Why does America hate its children?

As a parent who recently left the big city for the ‘burbs due to rising costs, this all hits close to home. Add in the fact I’m still looking for a house, and my life has become the world’s worst math problem: Find a home close to the city I commute to with decent schools that won’t completely bankrupt me. 

Good luck. 

I adore my daughter, but I can’t say I’m surprised so many people are opting for the DINK lifestyle  — dual income, no kids.

As one DINK told BI’s Juliana Kaplan, "It really is just being able to envision a life of ultimate freedom.”

News brief

Your Monday headline catchup

A quick recap of the top news from over the weekend:

• FAA orders grounding of some Boeing 737 planes after an Alaska Airlines flight lost part of its fuselage in air.
• Ukraine just got a new Western air-defense system meant to wipe out Russian drones by firing 1,000 rounds per minute.
• Jo Koy was the wrong host for the Golden Globes, and his 'jokes' about Taylor Swift and 'Barbie' prove it.
• Elon Musk may have been 'under the influence' during an interview after his infamous tweet about taking Tesla private, WSJ reports.
• Donald Trump shared a bizarre video declaring that God made him to lead the country.

Markets

🔔 Before the opening bell: US stock futures fall early Monday as Boeing's stock price fell almost 9% in premarket trading. 

Brooks Kraft LLC/Corbis via Getty Images

1. Tech stocks to get in on ahead of “the year of AI.” Wedbush Securities highlighted nine stocks, including Palo Alto Networks and Crowdstrike, set to see a boost from a tech rally in 2024. Overall, Webush Securities’ Dan Ives sees the tech sector finishing the year up 25%.

2. A market vet believes the Fed could still hike interest rates. Wait, what?? Gregory Branch, founder of Veritas Financial Group, said the market’s anticipation of a rate cut has led inflation to re-emerge. As a result, another rate hike could be in the cards.

3. Investors came up short when it came to shorting last year. Short sellers suffered $195 billion in paper losses in 2023 as stocks soared. These are the 10 biggest short bets that went belly up for investors against companies like Tesla and Nvidia.

Tech

Veev; Getty Images; Alyssa Powell/BI

1. Production delays and financial woes demolished a plan to solve the housing crisis. An innovative idea to build homes on an assembly line shot Veev to unicorn status. But employees told Business Insider how internal problems plagued the company ahead of its downfall.

2. The top seven people in artificial intelligence defense. Developments in AI defense tech are moving quickly as global tensions escalate. The top leaders in this space include someone studying automation in military systems and another person developing microwaves to knock out drone swarms.

3. EVs aren't holding their value like other cars. A recent study found that EVs had higher depreciation rates across all major vehicle types. Of the cars tested, the Tesla Model 3 held its value better than any other EV, followed by the Tesla Model X and Nissan Leaf. See how the other models fared. 

Business

Getty/PM Images

1. A rule of thumb about making money. There are two basic ways to make money: get paid to do things or own things. Most people make their money by getting paid. But those who make fortunes generally do it by owning things.

2. Boeing calls an all-hands meeting to discuss safety. Boeing CEO David Calhoun is calling for a companywide meeting, per reports, to address Friday's Alaska Airlines incident where a piece of the fuselage of a Boeing 737-9 MAX blew out. More here.

3. The job market wrapped up 2023 with a surprisingly hot December. The economy added 216,000 jobs in December — way more than the forecast of 170,000. Meanwhile, the unemployment rate was at 3.7%, which is just below the expected 3.8%.

In other news

• The Pentagon's second-in-command didn't know Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin was hospitalized when she took over his duties
• The Red Sea attacks are throwing supply chains into chaos — but US oil exports appear to be benefiting from them.
• Google just lost another exec working on augmented reality as it plans to woo a partner for its glasses project.
• Sports betting is the 'cost of hanging out with friends' for many men on college campuses — and researchers warn it could be creating dangerous habits.
• The S&P 500 could crash by 30%, a recession is likely underway, and interest rates might not fall before summer, market prophet says.

What's happening today

• National YoungArts Week kicks off today. The annual celebration showcases visual, literary, design, and performing arts from 15- to 18-year-olds.
• CES activities continue ahead of the official start date. Media day and Digital Hollywood Events will take place in Las Vegas.
• Happy birthday, Valkyrae! Elvis Presley, Kim Jong-un, Stephen Hawking, David Bowie, and Noah Cyrus were also born on this day.