The spouse that brings in the income usually gets all the praise and recognition. But, what’s rarely talked about is how much value the non-breadwinner can add to the household. Managing a house and raising children is no easy task. But it’s underappreciated because, as a society, we place so much emphasis on status and how much money you make a year.

The numbers in our post were sourced from a few recent surveys (SalaryCom, BankRate, Workable). They can vary a lot depending on many factors like what state you are in and how many kids you have. Some studies that have tried to estimate how much a stay at home parent saves their family have calculated numbers that range from a few thousand to well into the six figures.

Stay at home parents often have to be on their game for long hours, seven days a week. A recent study said a stay at home parent works an average of 15 hours a day (105 hours a week!!). They juggle a ton of responsibilities to make their house and family run smoothly. Just because they don’t have a paycheck hitting their account doesn’t mean their work is any less valuable.

This post obviously applies if either parent stays at home. We didn’t even have room for a ton of other jobs the stay at home parent often does, like interior designer, nurse, facilities manager, and so on.

What do you do with this information? Make sure you take the time to appreciate whoever is in your life who chose to stay at home and raise the children. Maybe it’s your spouse, a parent, or yourself. They probably don’t get the recognition they deserve.

As always, reminding you to build wealth by following the two PFC rules: 1.) Live below your means and 2.) Invest early and often.‎

-Vivi & Shane