Egg Freezing Strategy: Are You Budgeting For A Child?

One important fact about the egg freezing process, every woman needs to know is that the younger you freeze your eggs, the better. But, as you decide to freeze your eggs, one key factor you are probably considering is the cost.

In the previous articles, fertility specialists from our Orange County fertility center have discussed everything you need to know about egg freezing previously. We know that a woman is born with all the eggs she will ever have. And, these eggs decrease in number as they become older. Female eggs also get exposed to the damaging forces of life, such as infections, fevers, free radicals, stress, etc. This diminishes the quality of the eggs or the state at which they are genetically normal.

Why Freezing Eggs at a younger age is a Wise Decision

Women’s fertility decline occurs in two ways:

1. As a woman gets older, her eggs become fewer
2. A lower percentage of the remaining eggs are genetically normal and can result in a healthy pregnancy.

That’s the reason why – although there is no specific age limit for egg freezing – it’s fact that the best time for a woman to freeze eggs is before the age of 35. This is when her eggs are more abundant and healthier. It will enable her to produce more eggs per cycle, raising the chances of conception. Moreover, the eggs frozen at a younger age are more likely to lead to a healthy pregnancy in the future.

A good way to think about egg freezing is that you are budgeting to have a baby. In this article, we will talk about the cost of having a baby, income for moms, and the total costs of egg freezing process. We will also look at the costs of IVF treatment that you will need in the future for achieving pregnancy. It will help you to know how freezing your eggs now can impact your finances in the future.

The cost of raising a baby is around $15,000 per year.

According to the recent data from the Consumer Expenditures Survey, the average cost of raising a baby in 2015 is around $15K per year. That is, including food, housing, and education/baby care. As you are budgeting for a child, bear in mind that the baby will become older. Also, $15k a year doesn’t consider inflation or include the fee for a college education.

Your baby budgets even need to be higher if you live in New York. As per a 2014 report, middle-class parents spend an average of $30,000 plus per year to raise a baby in Manhattan. The more a family earns, the more they are going to spend on their children. Moreover, residing in the northeastern US will surely cost you more. It is the most costly place to raise a baby in the United States.

Women who have children later earn more

As we compare the option of egg freezing process, remember that your baby budgets should not only include the costs of raising a baby. We also need to consider the fact that women, in particular, earn less after they have given birth. It’s referred to as the “motherhood pay gap.” Working women aged 25-34 earn 92% of what men earn. Whereas, women between the ages of 35-44 earn 78% of what their male counterparts earn. This pay gap broadens when they have a baby. Married mothers earn 76% of what men earn.

However, postponing motherhood may give women the opportunity to regain some financial power. US consensus data show that women who delay motherhood for only five years (for instance, have a baby at 35 instead of 30) made around $16,000 more every year. Also, women between age 40-45 with full-time jobs and professional qualifications who had their first baby at age 35 made $50,000 more per year compared to women who became mothers at 20. This increase in financial power could make budgeting for a child – when the timing is right – a lot easier.

Freezing eggs before age 35 and using those eggs to conceive later can save you money.

Here’s one fancy thing about budgeting for a baby. For women who don’t become parents until 40, it is less costly. At the same time, it is more effective to use previously frozen eggs to perform IVF fertilization at the age of 40.

On average, the cost of freezing eggs before the age of 35 and using them at age 40 with the help of a reliable fertility clinic as well as in California, is $39,946. Using eggs frozen earlier (preferably at a very young age) gives women a 62% chance of conceiving. On the other hand, most women who want to conceive at 40 without previously frozen eggs will have to use IVF (in vitro fertilization) treatment to become pregnant. The average cost of two IVF cycles at age 40 is $55,060, and the success rate is around 42%.

That implies that if you have your eggs frozen before age 35 and use them when you turn 40, you might be able to save up to $15,000. Additionally, you can also increase your chance of achieving motherhood. So, if you are thinking about budgeting for a child in the future, freezing your eggs before age 35 might be the best financial decision you can ever make.

Conclusion

Egg freezing is a powerful option for women who want to have children at a later stage of life. If you are interested to know more about egg freezing and other fertility preservation options reach out to us at Coastal Fertility center (Orange County, CA). Call us today at (949) 726-0600 or schedule a consultation to meet with our fertility expert to go over your options. You can also visit our website for more information.