How to Save Money on Mat Leave (25 Best Ways & Tips)

You can learn how to save money on Maternity leave by reading this very detailed and helpful article.

It shows up to 25 best ways and tips that you or anyone else can use to really save money while on Mat leave.

 

Importance of Saving Money on Maternity Leave

One of the most joyous occasions that can be experienced by a woman is being pregnant and bringing a child into this world.

The potential downside is that if the mother-to-be is working, then at some point in time, she will need to stop working.

To help bridge this loss of income, many companies offer maternity leave.

Maternity leave is a good thing and is a benefit provided by the employer to help the family bond with the newborn child and provide time off and pay in the process.

Although the pay is good, it is not at the full rate that the woman would be earning and therefore is at a certain percentage of her wage.

This, in turn, creates a loss of revenue and, in some cases, needs to be addressed and somehow additional revenue created, or expenses cut back.

 

 

25 Best Ways & Tips to Help You Save Money on Mat Leave

 

1. Know What Maternity Leave is All About

Maternity leave is a benefit that companies and federal employees receive when the mother-to-be takes time off to be with her baby near or following the birth.

The length of the maternity leave may vary according to the policies and procedures of the company, and often the maternity leave is paid but at a reduced percentage of what the normal pay is.

 

2. Review Bills

One of the important actions to take when taking maternity leave is to review the bills that are ongoing and being paid on a monthly basis.

The purpose or the intent of reviewing the bills is to determine whether there are any expenses that can be cut back or eliminated.

This will help to save money on what is being offset against the income.

 

3. Save Gas Money

Perhaps, while being on maternity leave, there will be a reduction in travel expenses as it relates to the commute to the business.

If this is the case, then the money that is saved on less gasoline used can be set aside into a savings account to help offset any potential emergencies or other expenses that may be realized with the new member of the family arriving.

 

4. Reduce Food  

A possibility of saving some money while on maternity leave may be in the area of food and not having to take food or buy food at work.

Also, any eating out or other lunches are eaten at work by other members of the family can be satisfied by brown bagging the lunch.

 

5. Side Gig  

An opportunity to add money on the income side of the ledger would need to take on a side gig or extra work.

There are a number of ways that this can be accomplished such as taking surveys through www.surveyjunkie.com or freelancing and utilizing your various talents and sports.

A freelancing website can be accessed through www.upwork.com.

 

6. Revise Budget

Another way to save money while on maternity leave is to revise the budge by looking at particular line items on the expense side of the budget.

Some of areas could that can be revised would include transportation costs related to commuting, cutting back on entertainment expenses and possibly reducing streaming services or eating out less, etc.

 

7. Track Expenses

A great way of being more aware of what is being expended each month is to track your expenses.

This can be done by keeping a expense diary in which every expense that is made whether budgeted or not is written in the diary along with the date and what the item was and where the money was spent.

At the end of a time frame, you can look over the ledger to see what your money was spent on, which might include items that were or were not budgeted.

It would then be up to you to use this information to reduce those spontaneous expenses and therefore save money in the process.

 

8. Pay Yourself First

A commitment that you can adhere to is to pay yourself first, regardless of what money is coming into the household.

It could be money through side gigs, your maternity leave money, etc.

It is important that a percentage, 10% if at all possible or more, is the first payment that is made.

The money could be put into a savings account or a high-interest savings account and earn you additional revenue and help with your savings commitment while I’m on maternity leave.

 

9. Second-Hand Shopping

While on maternity leave, you are obviously going to need to shop for yourself as it relates to clothing and for your newborn.

One of the options as to where you can shop and save money would be a slightly used retail outlet or a second-hand shop.

Often these stores have quality items for women who are pregnant as well as newborn children.

Another possibility of where to shop for any baby items that are needed would be to hit garage sales early during the weekend.

 

10. Etsy

If you have a talent or craft that you like to create, you could always continue to create these items and register with Etsy and begin selling these items through their virtual retail store.

 

11. Coupons

To save money while on maternity leave, a good way of doing this is to utilize coupons.

The coupons can be found in your mailbox as generally they are delivered once a week or by looking online or the local newspaper that carries coupons, especially in their Sunday edition.

 

12. Shop Around

An important action that a single mom can take is to shop around.

This can be accomplished by going to a search engine and utilizing the shopping link at the top of the search engine page.

The items that you’re looking for are to be displayed on the screen, and generally, there are filter options available in which you can restrict the search according to brand, cost, etc.

When utilizing this process, it is important to take into consideration all factors, such as shipping costs and tax.

 

13. Sell

While on maternity, a good task to undertake while continuing on through the pregnancy process is to sort through the various rooms of the house and figure out what can be sold and what should be kept.

With the items that you identify that can be sold, you can list some of these items on a website such as eBay, or you could hold a garage sale.

And in either case, the money that is earned through the selling of these items can be saved as part of your maternity leave savings commitment.

 

14. Freebies

Being pregnant, there are companies that wish to help you celebrate your blessed event and, quite frankly, get you to buy their products.

Therefore, there are many baby brands that offer various items that can be utilized in the care of the newborn.

• Some of those items could include free samples of bottles
• Blankets
• Formula
• Clothing
• Etc.

One such site that offers baby freebies is Amazon, and you can sign up as a member of their baby registry.

The only drawback is that you need to be an Amazon Prime Member.

If you do opt to go with a baby registry, it is important to read the fine print because certain items need to be purchased in a minimal amount and at a certain percentage.

 

15. Recycle

Another important component in saving money while on maternity leave and preparing for the birth of your child is to recycle you may have if this is not your first child.

Also, you can invest in a diaper bag that could be a piece of flowery luggage and then willingly diaper bag is no longer needed; you will then have a piece of luggage that you can utilize for short trips.

 

16. Baby Showers

A tradition that is often followed when an expectant mother is about to deliver their baby is that friends or family will have a baby shower for the expectant mother and baby.

Obviously, you don’t want to be so bold as to say to an individual that you would like them to host a baby shower for you.

But most likely, you can anticipate one of your friends or family members hosting such an event which will help to reduce the cost of spending on clothing, papers, baby cleaning products, etc.

 

17. Automate

A practical tip on saving while on maternity leave is to automate your savings.

Automating your savings is a concept that, once accomplished, just continues automatically whether you remember it or not, and it’s almost like that saying out of sight, out of mind.

The power of automating your savings is that if you don’t see the money in the checking account, then you are less tempted to spend.

All you need to do is work with your bank, set up an automatic withdrawal or transfer of money to your savings, high interest-bearing account or retirement account and then just let the process work for you.

 

18. Credit Card

An option for saving money while on maternity leave is opening up a new credit card.

By opening up a new credit card, you will increase your credit score, take advantage of any rewards the card may offer and only use it when you know that you will be able to pay off the monthly balance.

Often, the rewards that you receive from a good credit card can be redeemed in cash, and that cash can be set apart in your savings account.

 

19. Bank  

Another option for saving money is to possibly switch banks if needed.

If your current bank charges you a fee for not keeping a set balance within your account or if you use your ATM card and are assessed fees, then you may need to look at another bank to provide your banking services.

Also, a smaller bank may offer a more competitive rate as it relates to interest earned on savings.

 

20. Tax Credits

When your family expands, IRS has made provision to provide increased credits for the number of dependents that you have.

When the blessed event occurs, it is important that when you file your taxes, you take full advantage of any tax credits with having an additional dependent or other child tax credits that may be available.

Also, you may wish to look into the college 529 savings plan.

As with all things pertaining to taxes, it is important to consult with your tax advisor to ensure that the returns are properly filled out and that all legal tax deductions are taken.

 

21. Garage Sale

To earn additional income and to de-clutter your home in the process, is to sort out items around the house and place them in separate piles.

The separate piles could be labeled as items you wish to keep and items to sell.

When you have accumulated items in the to-be-sold category, you can arrange to have a garage sale and then utilize the money that you make off of those items as part of your savings while on maternity leave.

 

22. Meal Planning

Another way to save money and put aside that money into a savings account is through meal planning.

Meal planning is the process in which you set up a weekly or every two-week menu, and then once established as to what you will be cooking, you can then create your shopping list for the needed ingredients to make those meals.

The benefit of creating a menu or meal planning is that when you go shopping, you stick strictly to the shopping list and don’t buy anything that is not on the list.

Also, when you know what your meal is going to be and the needed ingredients, then you can be on the lookout for any coupons that can be utilized for discounts.

 

23. Pause Payments

During your pregnancy and while on maternity leave, there may be some services in which you have a membership, but due to your condition and wanting to save money, you could pause those membership services or monthly payments.

An example of a payment that could be paused that is membership based would be your workout process and the health club or workout center that you belong to.

 

24. HR

When taking maternity leave, it is important to have a candid conversation with HR to find out what your benefits are.

Included in the questioning should be your salary that you will be receiving while on maternity leave, how much the paychecks will be and how many payments you are entitled to as part of your employee benefits.

 

25. Bulk

One other option that may have value is the purchase of various items in bulk quantities.

Typically, when buying in bulk, the cost per unit is lower, and therefore savings are realized for each unit purchased in comparison to buying in non-bulk.

Examples of items that you could purchase in bulk could include

• Baby wipes
• Diapers
• Formula
• Food in general
• And so forth

Talking about savings, below are some helpful guide to saving money:

• Check This Out to Save $5000 in 6 Months
• Check This Out to Save $10,000 in a Year
• Check This Out to Save $3,000 in 3 Months
• Check This Out to Save $5,000 in a Year
• Check This Out for Best Money Saving Apps
• Check This Out for Coupon Sites to Save Money
• Check This Out for Funny Ways to Save Money
• Check This Out for How to Get Paid to Save Money

 

Personal Story

It seems that the best time to get serious about saving money is when our income is limited and somehow we understand even more the importance of having a nest egg on hand.

I was not pregnant, but my wake-up call came when I understood the importance of having money to fall back on was when I was laid off from work.

I was given severance pay, paid for my outstanding vacation not used and my regular paycheck.

All were deposited immediately into a high-interest savings account and I simply buckled down and made the money last several months until another job opening became available.

Challenging times can work for our benefit and can help us to learn new disciplines.

 

FAQs

When Did the Concept of Maternity Leave Become a Reality?

In 1978, the pregnancy discrimination act was passed, which barred a pregnant woman from being discriminated against in the workplace as it related to hiring, firing, and promotions.

At the time, there was no provision made that many employers were mandated to provide leave, but at the time, states started enacting their own laws.

In 1993 a law was passed and was entitled the Family Medical Leave Act.

 

How Are Women Paid While Taking Advantage of the Family Medical Leave Act When Pregnant?

The law requires that maternity leave be provided to pregnant mothers and begins with the birth of a child and can be as many weeks off as up to 12.

There is no provision in the family leave act that requires an employer to pay the parent taking maternity leave. However, like everything else, there are exceptions to the rule and to some companies will provide some pay at a reduced rate.

 

You Can Do It

You are on maternity leave, and there is so much to do prior to the arrival of your baby.

Fortunately, with maternity leave, you are receiving money but not at the full rate of pay that you normally receive.

However, being a strong woman and mother-to-be, you have prepared for this contingency and have decided to save money while on maternity leave and not panic.

 

Conclusion

Maternity leave is an opportunity for a mother and family to prepare for that blessed event of welcoming that beautiful baby into the family.

There is so much to get ready and prepare for, but not only have you planned for this moment, but your plans also include saving money.