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Stat Of The Day
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47 Minutes
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Sorry, employers…that’s how much the average workday has shortened since 2021. According to an analysis by ActivTrak, the average employee spent 9 hours and 52 minutes on the job at the beginning of 2021. By 2023, the workday shrunk to 9 hours and 5 minutes.
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How To Navigate The Cost of Infertility Treatments
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Soon after Erin Wood and her husband were married, they started planning to expand their family. "We thought we did everything just right – we saved money, bought a bigger house, and discussed timing," she writes this week for HerMoney. "What we couldn’t have planned for was trouble getting and staying pregnant."
She and her husband aren’t alone – according to the CDC, one in five married couples struggles with infertility. Even so, they felt isolated in their journey, as infertility is something few people want to talk openly about. And the cost of infertility treatments, along with the brutal trial-and-error process involved, often only compounds the pain for many families.
Infertility takes many forms and has many treatments, but IVF, or in vitro fertilization, is the most costly infertility treatment available. The average cost of IVF is estimated to be between $15k and $30k per cycle. There are other expenses to consider too…time off from work, lodging if you don’t live near your clinic and of course, the chance that you might have to go through the process several times.
As Wood reports, it’s not uncommon for an American couple to spend around $36,000 out-of-pocket on their treatment journey. If you’re struggling to expand your family, here’s what you need to know about navigating the cost of infertility treatments.
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This Week In Your Wallet
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The latest jobs report showed a whopping 303,000 jobs were added in March, with positions in the health care, government and hospitality fields leading the pack when it comes to growth. The report signifies we could be moving closer to that "soft landing" the Fed has been looking to achieve…and that could mean they will take their time with making highly-anticipated interest rate cuts. As USA TODAY reports, "The sizzling report may assure Fed officials that the economy is at little risk of weakening significantly or slipping into recession, delaying the first rate cut past the June timeframe that markets are anticipating."
Stay tuned.
It’s a battle between Millennials and Baby Boomers for homes…and Millennials are coming out on top (for now). A new report from the National Association of Realtors (NAR) shows Millennials now make up 38% of homebuyers, compared to 31% of Baby Boomers. The report also highlights the emergence of Gen Z in the housing market. "While this cohort only accounted for 3% of all buyers, an impressive 31% of Gen Z purchasers were single females – a proportion significantly higher than that observed in any other generation," reports the NAR. "More than half are single buyers, outpacing all age groups of single men and single
women, and they are also most likely to identify as LGBTQ+."
Should it be illegal for your boss to contact you after hours? At least one California lawmaker thinks so. The proposal would make it illegal for your boss to contact you when you’re off the clock with exceptions for emergencies and scheduling questions. If the bill becomes law, employers could face a $100 penalty per offense (#ouch). "The villain here, if there had to be one, is not the bosses but really the technology," Matt Haney, the lawmaker sponsoring the legislation tells The Washington Post. "Everybody has a smartphone, so they’re available 24/7, and that has led a lot of people to feel they can never turn off. Our
laws are not updated to reflect that reality." Of course, not everyone is on the same page…namely tech leaders, who say the law would hamper the success of startups.
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Things That Save You Money
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Take Back Your Time With Google’s Productivity Expert
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"Keep a post-it note at your desk and anytime you feel like, ‘Wow, I’m really in the zone. I’m really focused,’ Write what time that is, and how you’re feeling."
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For most of us, 24 hours is rarely enough time to squeeze in all of the day’s demands. How can we better juggle work, raising a family, and all of the other tasks in between…while still making time for exercise, vacation, and a little reality TV on the side? Laura Mae Martin has cracked the code. She’s Google’s Executive Productivity Officer, and in that role, coaches the company’s top executives on time management and efficiency.
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Mae Martin, who joined Karen Finerman on the How She Does It Podcast, says one of the best ways to take back our time is to focus on our "power hours," or the times of the day when we feel most productive. To find yours, she says to "keep a post-it note at your desk and anytime you feel like, ‘Wow, I’m really in the zone. I’m really focused,’ write what time that is, and how you’re feeling. Then you can start to narrow down on those few hours where you really get things done."
Mae Martin says one of the biggest workday time sucks is (as you may have guessed) meetings. Click here for Mae Martin’s advice on how to take back your time with what she calls a "zero-based calendaring" mindset.
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Ask Jean
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Today's question comes from Megan. She writes: I am newly married and also have an almost one-year-old daughter with my husband. I would love to hear the best way to combine income (or not).
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Thanks for your question, Megan. Congratulations on your marriage AND baby!
Here’s the thing–there’s no one, right way to manage finances as a couple. It really boils down to what works best for you and your spouse.
What I might suggest you try though is the "yours, mine and ours" approach. In dual-income couples, which it sounds like you are, you don’t have to choose joint or separate accounts. Many find the easiest setup is to have a joint account that both of you fund to pay shared expenses (everything from the electricity bill to diapers). Then each partner can have separate accounts to pay for individual purchases (maybe it’s a new bag you want, a night out with girlfriends, whatever!). Both partners share the financial burden of day-to-day expenses while maintaining financial independence. Note though, that the odds are you and your partner earn different salaries. Your contributions to the joint account–and subsequently the paying of your expenses–might not be equal, so take time to figure out what’s fair.
"Some of the most happily married couples I’ve seen are ones that kept their money separate for their entire marriage," Emily Sanders, managing director of United Capital Financial Advisers in Atlanta recently told HerMoney. "It takes away some of the power and control issues that tend to be associated with how we use our money." For more on how to split expenses, save for big goals (like a family vacation, or your child’s education), and invest alongside your partner, click here.
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Have a question for Jean? Submit it here.
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Get Your Free Retirement Review
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We maintain a strict editorial policy and a judgment-free zone for our community. We strive to remain transparent in everything we do. Website posts and newsletters may contain advertisements, links and mentions of products from our partners. Learn more about how we make money.
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*The HerMoney podcast is proudly sponsored by Edelman Financial Engines. Unlock your wealth potential with our sophisticated wealth planning. Continue your journey at EdelmanFinancialEngines.com. Sponsored by Edelman Financial Engines –
Modern wealth planning. All advisory services offered through Financial Engines Advisors L.L.C. (FEA), a federally registered investment advisor. Results are not guaranteed. AM3442999.
HerMoney is not a client, agent, representative or affiliate of EFE.Edelman Financial Engines ("EFE") is a sponsor of the "HerMoney with Jean Chatzky Podcast," created by HerMoney Media. Inc. ("HerMoney") and provides cash compensation to HerMoney Media. HerMoney receives a sponsorship fee from Edelman Financial Engines depending on the number of podcast downloads, as measured by the end of the calendar year. The sponsorship fee is paid on a quarterly basis each year. In turn, HerMoney also provides promotional deliverables regarding EFE on the HerMoney podcast, newsletter, and social media channels. Due to this sponsorship arrangement, HerMoney has an incentive to endorse EFE and its services.
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