Income for single mom in DC

[Anonymous]

Kids are expensive, so wondering what is a comfortable annual salary for a single mom in the DC area? How much extra $ per month should I expect to need?

[Anonymous]

1 kid — 120k
2 kids — 180k

[Anonymous]

Depends on what you find comfortable and where in the DC area. . .

[Anonymous]

Will you revive child support?

I'm a single mom in DC, and I make about $70k, plus I get $10k in child support every year. We're comfortable and I bought a house 2 years ago (when salary + child support was closer to $70k).

[Anonymous]

Also depends on how old your child is. If they need daycare, you should have a cushion of $30K annually.

[Anonymous]

My one kid costs us about $800/month (between aftercare, swimming class, food, and clothing). If I ended up a single parent I would want to be making at least $100k, but I could probably make it work on less.

[Anonymous]

Would you need a two bedroom or be okay with one? Housing and daycare are big expenses.

[Anonymous]

What other debts/ expenses do you have? Where do you plan to live? Daycare years are very expensive.

[Anonymous]

Infant child care is the highest in DC, averaging around $1200-1800 a month. I say $200k is the needed salary with the cost of living.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Infant child care is the highest in DC, averaging around $1200-1800 a month. I say $200k is the needed salary with the cost of living.

LOL what? I'm not a single mom but my husband and I don't earn that much combined.

OP, I'd say $80-100K is a good range if you want to be comfortable. If you're ok with tightening your belt, $60K would be sufficient. You have lots of options WRT where you live and childcare. I toured an in-home daycare that would have cost $185/week for my infant. And of course there are still plenty of areas in the DC metro area that are not exorbitantly expensive.

Best wishes to you!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Infant child care is the highest in DC, averaging around $1200-1800 a month. I say $200k is the needed salary with the cost of living.

LOL what? I'm not a single mom but my husband and I don't earn that much combined.

OP, I'd say $80-100K is a good range if you want to be comfortable. If you're ok with tightening your belt, $60K would be sufficient. You have lots of options WRT where you live and childcare. I toured an in-home daycare that would have cost $185/week for my infant. And of course there are still plenty of areas in the DC metro area that are not exorbitantly expensive.

Best wishes to you!

It can work if you get an apartment.

[Anonymous]

There are a lot of factors to consider...child care type/cost, where you want to live, do you have student loan debt or any other debt. I make 102,000 and live in NE with my partner and one kid and he makes about 130,000. I still have student loans I'm paying off, if I didn't have his income to help with child care expenses, I could do it, but would not feel "comfortable'

[Anonymous]

Do these averages still stand after covid19, given the change in work environment in the Washington DC area? For a single mom with no other financial assistance but her earned salary.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Do these averages still stand after covid19, given the change in work environment in the Washington DC area? For a single mom with no other financial assistance but her earned salary.

HELL NO. Nobody is charging $185/week today or $1200-1800 for an infant. Well, maybe $1800 but that would be the lower end.

[Anonymous]

I was a single Mom in NOVA with 75K base, plus bonus and child support. No debt or loans.