Tackling an enormous load of laundry can feel nearly impossible at the end of a long work week. When your to-do list is growing — or a new episode of your favorite show is calling — the thought of paying someone else to pick up your dirty clothes and return them freshly folded can seem like a dream.
But at around $2 per pound of laundry, or around $20 to $30 for washing an average load, it can be hard to determine if the convenience is really worth the ongoing cost, says Ben Smith, a certified financial planner in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.
“As a financial planner, I always encourage folks to consider the long-term benefits and impacts [of paying for convenience], not just thinking about a week or two or just a few months,” he says.
Smith recommends treating your finances like you’re running a business. If you can afford it, outsourcing tasks that bog you down can help you focus on what you value most — whether that be family time or an exciting new side hustle.
Here are a few questions that he and other financial pros say to ask yourself to determine whether to handle the load in your closet yourself, or pay someone else to do it.
Indeed or The Calculator Site, he says.
While making your calculations, you should account for several factors: base salary, bonuses, recurring job costs, benefits and vacation time.
For a quick estimate, add your annual income and typical bonus together, then subtract estimated taxes and work-related expenses, such as gas to and from the job. Divide that number by the total hours you work in a year, which is usually around 2,080 hours for full-time employees.
Once you have an hourly number to work with, you can more accurately determine if delegating makes financial sense, Smith says. If your hourly rate comes to $75, you may be comfortable paying someone $50 an hour on occasion to help with a tedious home maintenance task, he says.
When weighing if it’s worth it for you to outsource an activity like doing laundry, you should consider not only the cost, but how much time it normally takes out of your week, says Jovan Johnson, a CFP based in Atlanta, Georgia.
If you have a washer and dryer at home, it may be a relatively easy task to manage while going about your day. But if you have to haul your loads to a laundromat and wait around while they wash and dry, it might be worth it to buy back some of your time, he says.
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