Octomom can’t. The Duggars can.
Go figure.
Nadia “Octomom” Suleman, the infamous mother of 14 recently got nearly naked for the U.K.-based magazine Closer. Unfortunately, showing her skin only helped pay the bills temporarily and now the frazzled mom is relying on government assistance to feed her brood.
Juxtapose Octomom and the Duggars and you might as well be comparing night and day.
For years I’ve wondered how much Jim Bob, Michelle and their 19 kids raked in for allowing cameras to document their every move and broadcast it on TLC. Thanks to digging by E! Online’s staff, it’s estimated that the Duggar clan collects a cool $25,000 to $40,000 per episode or roughly $400, 000 per year. In addition to their “19 Kids and Counting” paycheck, Yahoo’s Shine claims the family also generates a slew of cash from real estate investments and speaking engagements.
Not bad for parents who never went to college.
Interestingly, the U.S. Department of Agriculture recently released an updated calculation revealing how much it cost to raise a child from birth to age 18.
The magic number: $250,000.
A quarter of a millions dollars for one child, and that doesn’t include college tuition.
For the Duggars that means nearly five million dollars.
Five million to raise all 19 of their children, and yet the clan lives debt-free.
Whereas I am sure that reality TV stardom helps pay some of their bills, Ma and Pa Duggar were frugal long before they hit it big in the procreation department. According to Shine, the Duggars don’t use credit cards and paid $65,000 in cash for their second home–a 2,000-square-foot ranch where they lived with 17 of their kids. Currently, the Duggars live in a 7,000-square-foot house which they built themselves. In addition, the budget-conscious clan refuses to purchase new vehicles. Rather, they buy used and not just cars. The Duggars told MSNBC that they shop for children’s clothing and shoes at thrift shops and buy groceries in bulk.
Never mind that their grocery bill is a jaw-dropping $3,000 per month. They also shell out $700 per month for utilities and limit their entertainment spending to $100 a month.
Could you afford to spend that much money raising your kids without going bankrupt?