Part 3: The Financial Weight of Child Care

By Rebekah Z. 

Even when you “win” the childcare lottery and find a spot, the victory comes with a massive price tag. At Weefolks, this family pays $230 a week. While they love the care—the app updates, the meals, the attentive teachers—the cost is staggering.

“Two hundred thirty dollars a week is not cheap,” Ballek said. “And actually costs more than our monthly mortgage.”

In Itasca County, it can be more expensive to look after a toddler during work hours than it is to buy a home. And for infants, it’s even steeper. Infant care typically runs $100+ more than toddler care, landing in the $300–$350 per week range. 

For many, this isn’t just expensive, it’s a barrier to basic needs.

“There have been times where we needed groceries over the weekend and just had to be prepared to be overdrafted come midnight Monday/Tuesday,” Ballek said. “That’s the reality of needing childcare.”

More to come . .