Someone said it costs 5k to make pesach. Way too high?

amother

↑ Firebrick

Sat, Nov 09 2024, 8:09 pm

amother OP wrote:

based on the responses so far, seems like it's really not appropriate at all to consider clothes as part of the cost of making pesach. plus, you need to buy the same clothes whether you make pesach at home or go to your parents or go to a pesach program. the cost of clothes is part of the cost of being alive.

But if not for pesach- one can buy the clothing later. Buy slowly, wait for sale etc. maybe closer to shavuos, when the weather really changes. instead they feel that lekovod yom tov they should buy for everyone everything new. So yes this is part of pesach (or Sukkos).

amother

↑ OP

Sat, Nov 09 2024, 8:15 pm

amother Firebrick wrote:

fascinating -- and sad -- to read about the 'keeping up with the shwartzes' stuff that goes on in town. seems like more peer pressure than doing what hashem wants, but who am I to say.

imasinger

Sat, Nov 09 2024, 8:36 pm

Call it the tradeoff.

If you live OOT, you probably don't have to worry about needing to buy your tznius spring/summer clothing before everything you might like is sold out.

But you'll pay more for other stuff.

My suggestion to your original question is to start planning now. If you need cookware, you can make your lists, look for sales (December 24 is usually a great discount time in secular stores), and buy in advance.

Paper and plastic plates for sedarim and seudos will simplify life; again, look for sales.

You can also look for sales on meat (most poskim hold that there's no issue with unprocessed raw meat, AYLOR), which freezes easily. If you ever go visit anyone in the areas of denser frum population, you can also stock up on meats and dry goods. For example, when I go to Lakewood for Shabbos Chanukah, I often buy olive oil on sale with OU-P, and set it aside.

When Pesach gets close, and you have the fridge and shelf space, Costco often has reasonable prices on shmura matza, eggs, raw nuts, and produce.

I'll be curious if you can report back after this Pesach, and tell us how much it cost.

Ema of 5

Sat, Nov 09 2024, 8:43 pm

I haven’t read the whole thread so I don’t know if anyone mentioned this. We host for Pesach, so that adds to our cost as well- more matzah, more wine, more food. We don’t have our guests bring wine or matzah, my husband is specific about what comes into the house.

amother

Petunia

Sat, Nov 09 2024, 8:49 pm

amother OP wrote:

Some in town people have to buy all their kids multiple new all matching outfits for yom tov and chol hamoed that’s why it’s part of their yt expenses.

amother

↑ Puce ↓

Sat, Nov 09 2024, 8:50 pm

amother OP wrote:

fascinating -- and sad -- to read about the 'keeping up with the shwartzes' stuff that goes on in town. seems like more peer pressure than doing what hashem wants, but who am I to say.

Right? For yt we sre supposed to according to Torah we are supposed to rejoice on the festivals, and that means wine for men, clothing for women, and treats for kids. It doesn't say each child needs several new outfits. If someone wants to do that, go aheead, but I don't think it can be counted as necessary pesach expenses. Kids need the nice clothes every week. They need it the week before Pesach too, and after.

amother

↑ Puce ↓

Sat, Nov 09 2024, 8:52 pm

amother Petunia wrote:

Some in town people have to buy all their kids multiple new all matching outfits for yom tov and chol hamoed that’s why it’s part of their yt expenses.

There's no chiuv. Show me the source for needing this.

joker ↓

Sat, Nov 09 2024, 8:59 pm

I think it makes sense. Just meat for succos was 1k for our family. We have four kids but we do have meat at every meal and do buy expensive cuts. Chicken had to be 500$ easily. Add in a few 100 for paper goods, matza wine . We spend 3 k on groceries a regular month so yes groceries are prob 2k for pesach. We haven't factored in cleaning help, clothing, dishes etc

amother

↑ Bluebonnet

Sat, Nov 09 2024, 9:04 pm

For my teen boys, their clothing costs get lumped together with my Pesach (and Sukkos) costs.
Because they're in yeshiva and come home only a few times a year.
They come home Pesachtime haven't been home since Chanukah. Shoes, suits, hats, pants, shirts.
It's not that I specifically am buying them tons of expensive clothing for Pesach. It's that they come home, and I see that their suit is 4 inches too short (so that's $200) and their dress pants are 4 inches too short (that's $30 per pair, 3-4 pairs), and their shoes have holes that they didn't care about so that's $100 and they don't have enough socks, etc, etc, etc.

That's just life with teens.

amother

↑ Vanilla

Sat, Nov 09 2024, 9:05 pm

amother Bluebonnet wrote:

Off topic, but where do you get $30 dress pants? Teen DS is now adult sizes, and $40 seems to be standard.

amother

Snowdrop

Sat, Nov 09 2024, 9:45 pm

amother OP wrote:

I'm not in town, but can someone explain why everyone needs lots of money to buy "clothes" for pesach. and if you're buying clothes for pesach, presumably they can be used for a while after that, so you're just really buying clothes as part of a year around budget and seems odd to allocate that to pesach spending.

I think we allocate for pesach bec it’s a huge lump sum of money at one time together with pesach expenses. So it’s just an overall expensive month.

There is an idea to wear special clothing in honor of the shalosh regalim
If I’m going to be buying my kids new clothes for a season it makes sense to do it in honor of pesach, one of the shalosh regalim
I believe you are supposed to have 3 levels of clothing. Shalosh regalim, Shabbos and weekday. So if I buy new Shabbos clothing special for the shalosh regalim I’m able to do that

amother

↑ Catmint

Sat, Nov 09 2024, 10:15 pm

amother Oleander wrote:

It's not outrageous. If it includes cleaning/babysitting help, clothes, chol hamoed trips and maybe some takeaway pre-pesach.

We don’t have any of that stuff except a few days of cleaning help and it still costs us much more than that. But we have lots of guests….

amother

Hyacinth

Sun, Nov 10 2024, 2:00 am

Our minhag is not to wear new clothes between pesach and lag baomer and again between lag baomer and 3 days before shvuos. Meaning we have to stock up on spring clothes before pesach and they have to be worn for about 15 minutes over pesach to deem them not new. So we do have an added expense that time of the year, in contrast to tishrei when we can purchase fall and winter clothes anytime after succos.

imaima

Sun, Nov 10 2024, 2:15 am

amother OP wrote:

fascinating -- and sad -- to read about the 'keeping up with the shwartzes' stuff that goes on in town. seems like more peer pressure than doing what hashem wants, but who am I to say.

You need new clothes even more if you go away on a program… you and your kids are always on display

Bnei Berak 10

Sun, Nov 10 2024, 2:26 am

imasinger wrote:

Chiming in.
Shop Pesach kitchen/table items throughout the year in sales. Carry a note with you in your wallet of which items you are missing.

amother

Orange

Sun, Nov 10 2024, 7:27 am

Family of ten here and if you are talking about the food - no way it costs us that much. I actually saved all my receipts one year because I wanted to keep track of what I bought as a starting point for a shopping list for the following year. I am not sure what people are buying or eating. I just keep thinking of all the stuff I could buy with $5000!

If people are including clothing and shoes and trips...everyone does that differently. I do not buy new wardrobes for my kids ever. They get as and when they need items. Maybe we live in a diff kind of community but ppl dress very simple here and I love it.

I'm budget conscious and that probably makes a difference too. But I'm like that year round and some of the amounts ppl said they spend on weekly groceries is completely mind boggling to me.