KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 19 — Two-thirds of Malaysian parents say they are spending more on their children each month than they expected, with food and daily necessities now almost level with education fees and tuition as their biggest expenses, according to a survey by Malaysian fintech company Versa.
The Versa Parenting Survey found that 66 per cent of parents said the actual monthly cost of raising their child was higher than they had anticipated, including 27 per cent who said it was “much higher.”
Only 31 per cent said their spending was close to what they had budgeted, while 3 per cent said they were spending less than expected.
Food and daily necessities were cited by 70 per cent of parents as one of their biggest monthly expenses, narrowly ahead of education fees and tuition at 69 per cent.
The survey allowed respondents to select more than one answer for their biggest monthly expenses, meaning the percentages do not add up to 100 per cent.
The findings suggest that while parents may expect education to account for a significant share of the cost of raising a child, everyday spending on food and necessities can be just as large.
Most parents surveyed also said they had made financial adjustments since having children.
Thirty per cent said they had cut their personal spending, while 22 per cent had made changes to their lifestyle. Another 16 per cent said they had delayed purchases, and 11 per cent had taken on extra income.
Only 9 per cent said they had made no financial adjustment.
Despite spending more than planned, 78 per cent of parents surveyed said they already had savings or investments set aside for their child’s future.
Versa said nearly all of the remaining respondents planned to start saving or investing for their children.
“Parents keep telling us the expenses are coming in higher than they expected, and yet most of them are still putting money aside every single month for their child's future. That kind of determination shouldn't have to be this hard — our job is to make it easier for the parents already doing it, and simpler to start for the ones who haven't yet,” said Teoh Wei Xiang, chief executive and co-founder of Versa.
The survey polled 2,565 respondents in Malaysia through the Versa app, covering parenthood status, financial readiness and attitudes towards the cost of raising children.
The figures on parenting costs were based on 677 respondents who said they currently had children.
Versa said the figures were self-reported and percentages had been rounded. It also noted that the findings were based solely on surveyed Versa users and may not represent the views of the Malaysian public as a whole.
