Did you have a baby last year? We didn’t — good thing, too, because babies are expensive and we really can’t afford one at the moment. Yesterday, the USDA released its estimate for what it will cost to raise a child born in 2007 until he or she turns 18. Factoring for inflation, middle-income families will spend $269,040, and this doesn’t include college, SAT prep classes, Brett Favre jerseys, iPhones, or whatever happens to be popular by the time these children hit middle school. For about the same amount of money, you could buy this house in Clermont, FL, but why you would is beyond me. [Reuters]
