Report: NJ families spending wild amount of income on child care

Families in New Jersey who pay for child care are coughing up a major chunk of their income in order to afford it, according to a report from LendingTree.

Their analysis of U.S. Census data suggests that about 70% of families in New Jersey — close to 800,000 households — that use child care are paying for it. And they're doing so by, on average, putting out 19% of their income.

Specifically, the report says a family is shelling out $442 weekly, out of $2,325 in weekly earnings.

"Life in New Jersey is expensive enough. When you're paying so much for something as fundamental to our lives as child care, it can make it even tougher," said Matt Schulz, chief credit analyst at LendingTree.

SEE ALSO: New home buyer? Here's how much you need to earn in NJ

In general, Schulz added, families aren't looking to cut corners when choosing a child care program.

"The last thing you want to do is send your kid to a bargain basement child care and not feel comfortable with it," Schulz said.

According to the report, people in 12 states devote a greater percentage of income to child care than people in New Jersey. The rate is as high as 32.3% in Nevada, where there are accessibility issues caused by child care "deserts."

New Jersey records the highest income-to-care percentage in the Northeast. New York ranks at No. 16.

According to the study, the average family in the U.S. who pays for child care devotes 18.6% of their income to it.

More recently, New Jersey has been lessening the financial burden on families by funding towns' efforts to institute free, full-day preschool.

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