Massachusetts Child Support vs. Real Cost of Kids

Massachusetts has child support guidelines. The guidelines were created to determine the amount of financial support the non-custodial parent pays to the custodial parent for the support of the child(ren). Frequently parties involved in a this matter believe that support per the guidelines is either too much or too little. The U.S. Department of Agriculture has produced a report calculating the average cost to raise a kid before college. The cost is…
The USDA says that the average cost to raise a kid is $234,900.00. The report is for for the period from birth through 17 years of age. This means that the average annual child support cost is $13,817.64.

The USDA breaks down these child support expenses in the following categories: 30% for housing, 18% for child care and education, 16% for food, 14% for transportation, 6% for clothing, 8% for healthcare, and 8% for miscellaneous.
This above percentages are for the whole country and typically costs more to live in Massachusetts than other states. So, I think it is fair to say that the cost to raise a child in Massachusetts is significantly higher than other states. Based on USDA average it is necessary for the payor to pay approximately $265.72 per week in support to cover 100% of a child’s needs. Again, it is likely that the amount is significantly higher in Massachusetts.
Before you complain about the amount of child support you are paying or receiving, take into consideration the above numbers.