re: Why don't more wives demand their own retirment account?

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I don't understand how you can just live your life completely dependent on someone else I guess?

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that is something that is hard to understand until you have a family. also, it is a 2 way street. just because a wife stays home doesn't mean she is completely dependent. in a good marriage, the stay-at-home wife is just as crucial to good finances as the working husband. Some examples:

1) My wife is responsible for shopping through the ads every week and making sure we are wise in how we spend money on groceries, clothing and other essentials. I'd say in general she saves us about $4k/yr doing this about 30 minutes a week.

2) My wife is responsible for taking care of our 3 kids during the day. This saves us about $12.5k/yr assuming 2 weeks per year we don't need it due to vacation.

3) My wife is responsible for so many day-2-day activities/scheduling that I couldn't even begin to put a value on it.

4) She provides added value of knowing my kids are safe and healthy.

5) There are so many added values of having a capable stay at home mom/wife that it is very difficult to put a $ number on that.

In the end, me and my kids are just as dependent on my wife as they are on me.