Welcome to Radical Personal Finance, a show dedicated to providing you with the knowledge, skills,

insights and encouragement you need, to live a rich and meaningful life now, while building a plan for

financial freedom in 10 years or less.

My name is Josh Rashidz.

I am your host.

Today, we begin with an article from today in the Wall Street Journal.

Dateline is April 25, 2024. U.S. fertility rate falls to record low. Fewer babies were born in the United States in

2023 than any year since 1979. Here's the first paragraph or two. American

women are giving birth at record low rates. The total

fertility rate fell to 1.62 births per woman in 2023, a 2% decline from a year earlier.

Federal data released Thursday showed.

It is the lowest rate recorded since the government began tracking it in the 1930s.

The decline reflects a continuing trend as American women navigate economic and social challenges that have prompted some to forego or delay having children.

A confluence of factors are at play. American women are having fewer children later in life. Women are establishing

fulfilling careers and have more access to contraception. At the same time, young people are also

more uncertain about their futures and spending more of their income on home ownership, student debt, and child care.

Some women who wait to have children might have fewer than they would have otherwise for reasons including declining fertility.

The actual total number of babies was in 2023 the United States tracked and registered

3,59,328 birds.

That is 2.1% fewer than in 2022.

And the total fertility rate has declined to 1.62 children per woman down from 1.66 in

2022. Now if this is your first time thinking and talking about fertility rates

...