Home
>
Personal Finance
>
The Changing Shape of Family Finances

The Changing Shape of Family Finances

Super-mums

It seems that the proof of maternal efforts is no longer found in the pudding ? it's in the spending. Women are increasingly outsourcing personal grooming tasks and the pressure of looking good, feeling healthy, maintaining a tight ship and IQ level has meant that housecleaning and gardening are again fashionable methods to promote the family brand; housewifery is now a career, with all the attitude of 21st century post-feminism. It emerged in a recent BBC report, that a new type of parent was surfacing?.the "manager mum". Manager mums tend to use the internet to save time on tasks and streamline activity, using the Web to undertake jobs such as grocery shopping or banking.

Once they've got their partner, it doesn't seem women can relax about their appearances, with women in relationships spending more on their appearance than their single counterparts. UK housewives spend a massive ?5 billion on 'keeping up appearances', in terms of gardening, home furnishings and personal grooming, according to a study by Virgin Money Credit Cards. UK women are splurging out an average of ?3,488 each on personal appearance and their home and garden. Of the ?3,488, 47% is spent on the home and garden, whilst the remainder goes on clothes, haircuts, beauty products and treatments.

The pressure to look good may be a factor in women being labelled as the worst savers, as reported by Guardian Unlimited. In an annual study by IFA Promotion, 63% of the women who stated that they were unable to put aside further savings, admitted to spending their spare cash on costly and unnecessary luxuries, whilst 28% of women get themselves into debt with expensive purchases. Women apparently seem to be content with spending up to 75% of disposable income and saving less than 20%, in contrast to men who save over 25% of their income and invest 8%.

Peter Pan fathers

Whilst fathers are not physically getting any younger, there is evidence that their mental age may be falling. The BBC recently reported that a new type of dad had emerged ? the "gadget dad", whilst in November last year, the Guardian reported that men were significantly delaying fatherhood. In a study by Panlogic, "gadget dads" love technology and have all the latest tech toys, from Sky TV to a car navigation system. Perhaps this love of tech toys is also the reason inhibiting men from diverting funds to babies. According to the Guardian, 81% of men admitted that financial fears would make them postpone having children and if current trends continue, the average age of men becoming fathers will rise to 40 by 2065. Virgin Money Life Insurance also reported in their studies that new fathers were waiting longer to start families and that UK fathers are working the longest hours in Europe.

Savvy kids

A recent investigation by Halifax found a positive attitude towards saving is increasing amongst children. Whilst in 1998, a third of children saved more than they spent; now that figure is over fifty percent. The bank discovered that most children are prepared to save for an expensive item, though parents of younger children faced more of a struggle, as 22% of seven to eleven year olds pestered their way towards getting what they wanted. Piggy banks, it would seem, may become sentimental souvenirs, as more children save their money in a bank or building society.

This trend of 'keeping up appearances' seems to induce individualistic behaviour in families, reducing co-operation on financial issues. This erodes family values in society and discourages future generations from investing in children. Without the motivation to invest in sustainable communities or even a sustainable standard of living, (currently supported by ?1.1 trillion of debt), the issue of successful management of family finance remains trivial.

Additional information:

Useful brochures & fact sheets from http://www.unbiased.co.uk/website/brochures/

Family finance information: http://www.unbiased.co.uk/website/brochures/

Rachel writes for Cashzilla, a personal finance blog.

Through Cashzilla, she expresses her frustration on financial matters and explores her alter-ego as a fictitious, money-wise dinosaur. If anyone is interested in this article or can offer professional counselling, please visit http://www.unbiased.co.uk/website/brochures/

Cashzilla is an Aries. He has a flamboyant character and a tongue that could heat up any conversation. If Cashzilla was an A-Team character, he'd be Murdock. In the words of Cashzilla, "I'm hairy, scary and lairy."

no-contract cleaning service Winnetka ...

In The News:

Paralyzed woman Audrey Crews controls a computer with a brain chip from Elon Musk's Neuralink, demonstrating breakthrough brain-computer interface technology.

Stay up to date on the latest AI technology advancements and learn about the challenges and opportunities AI presents now and for the future.

Meta removed over 600,000 predatory accounts from Instagram and Facebook while launching enhanced safety protections for teenage users on both platforms.

Facebook crypto scams trick users with fake celebrity endorsements and legitimate-looking cryptocurrency exchange ads that install malware on victims' devices.

Create private chat rooms using the iPhone Notes app collaboration feature with instant messaging capabilities and full control over conversation privacy.

Lyft rolled out safety upgrades with a new Safety Hub, driver blocking capability and a favorite driver option to give riders more control over their experience.

New research shows Americans increasingly trust AI for wellness guidance over social media, with 63% finding artificial intelligence reliable for health.

Luxury fashion brand Dior experienced a January 2025 data breach affecting customer personal information, and notifications were sent months after the discovery.

The commercial Unitree H1 humanoid robot weighs 104 pounds with 365 pound-feet torque per joint and demonstrates dangerous potential when software glitches occur.

Americans average 10-plus hours online daily, according to recent survey, splitting time between streaming shows on TV and browsing websites on multiple devices.

Boost your smartphone privacy instantly with these security tweaks for iPhone and Android that limit ad tracking, hide notifications and prevent unauthorized access.

Platforms like Hoax Tech and JS Click Cloaker help cybercriminals bypass detection systems using machine learning to selectively display scam content to victims.

A new battery recycling technique transforms old lithium-ion batteries into high-performance components that retain 88% capacity after 500 cycles with minimal waste.

Google's Android operating system can warn users about earthquakes before the shaking even begins – and there are ways to do it on your iPhone, too.

Meta's new gesture control wristband might just be the most seamless way to control a computer yet. And no, it doesn't require surgery, a camera, or even a touchscreen. All it needs is your wrist.

Long-haul trucks are now being upgraded with a surprising twist, thanks to California-based startup Revoy. Their electric boost doesn't replace diesel but works alongside it to cut emissions and fuel costs without major disruption.

PayPal and Venmo just rolled out something big: AI-powered scam alerts for Friends and Family payments.

As data centers multiply across the United States, energy demand is increasing at a rapid pace. This has not escaped the notice of large investment firms from Wall Street.

The Unicode Consortium, the nonprofit organization that maintains the Unicode Standard to ensure emojis work across devices, has announced Unicode 17.0, which includes nine new emojis slated for release this fall, in September 2025.

OpenAI is one of the world's leading AI research labs. Founded in 2015, it's behind some of today's most talked-about tools, including GPT, DALL·E, and ChatGPT.

Ever catch your dog staring at the screen during movie night and wonder if they're actually watching? Turns out, they might be. A new scientific study from Auburn University found that many dogs really do engage with television, and not all pups react the same way.

Stop the scammers from making contact in the first place. They're getting your parents' contact information and much more personal data besides, from somewhere.

The Walker S2 robot from UBTech autonomously exchanges its batteries in just three minutes, allowing continuous operation in car factories operated by BYD, Nio and Zeekr.

The FX Super One electric MPV from Faraday Future offers flexible seating, zero-gravity recliners and an AI system that creates a personal connection between driver and vehicle.

Practical solutions for reducing unwanted charity mail, political texts and email spam by opting out of shared lists, replying "STOP" and using data removal services.

The Changing Shape of Family Finances

Personal Finance