All that may be true, but isn't $25,000 a decent chunk of change? For some couples that could cover much of their costs of living for the year. $2000 a month goes a long way in some parts of the country.
LazyMan, Thanks for the comment. I whole heartedly agree with you. I am not wealthy by any stretch of the imagination. I think an extra $20k is a tremendous sum of money and would go a long ways toward paying down some of my student debt. I was more trying to say that as individuals get very wealthy there are diminishing returns.
Hey, I was just curious if you could cover the requirements for this to be a bad thing. What if John made $50k and his wife $25k, or they both made around $25k? Not everyone looking to maximize their money is bringing down the big bucks.
Though I do appreciate the financial analysis of this, I think most couples choose to stay home for the soft-benifits of taking the active role in raising their children.
I know for a fact that my wife wouldn't work for any sum because she wants to be the one who raises our children, not an employee at the child care center.
Tom, thanks for the comment. I'm not trying to imply that every little bit doesn't help. I agree with you, but I think that Rick hit it on the head. There are other factors that people sometimes overlook, things like raising children, being able to see your spouse, and paying out your second income to the government in taxes should be looked at when making the decision.
I did the financial analysis because it is difficult - if not impossible to put a dollar value on those other soft factors. Few decisions are purely financial and wisely many people take the soft factors into account.
In the financial category, you're also missing the future earnings. Staying in the work force means greater earning potential. Stepping out for a few years can make it very hard to go back full time in the same field. Even if you somehow find a comparable job, it almost certainly wont be at the same salary you might have made continuing to work. Of course, if you plan on switching careers or staying out the work world anyway, you don't have this problem.
Mari, thanks for the comment. Very good point. I'm not sure how to factor that in, but that is definitely a concern.
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