Maybe you’ve thought about it over kopi at your usual hawker stall or while scrolling through HDB listings late at night: “Should we have kids?” For many young couples in Singapore, this question is no longer just hypothetical. It has become something to seriously consider, especially when money comes into the equation. Raising a child today is about more than just love and nappies. It involves thinking about whether your income can cover childcare costs, whether your career can handle a break, and whether your long-term plans, like buying a bigger home or retiring early, can still fit in. More couples are choosing to pause, not because they don’t want kids, but because they want to fully understand what the choice means. They are asking questions like:

• Can we afford childcare without one of us quitting our job?
• What are the trade-offs between having children now and pursuing further studies?
• Would staying child-free give us more freedom to travel or retire earlier?

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