Report: Child care costs sting in Naples, Sarasota

Cost of living studies and reports in Florida of late have mostly focused on housing — for good reason. Finding a place to live, for many in a variety of fields, has gone from hard to heartache to hellish. That struggle, in turn, has a direct impact on the business community. 

But another segment of expenses that shouldn’t be overlooked is the cost of having kids. And, according to a new analysis from data firm SmartAsset, that’s not cheap. When factoring in food, housing, child care, health care, transportation and other necessities, it costs an average of $20,813 annually nationwide when a two-adult household adds a child, the report found. (On the flip side, with a declining birth rate nationally, the costs of not having children, to society and in business, are also high.) 

Child care, costing on average $9,051 a year nationwide, is the biggest expense when it comes to the overall aspect of taking care of another human being, according to the report. That accounts for nearly 50% of the annual cost of raising a child.