HENDERSON, Nev. (KTNV) — "It is pretty chaotic I have two school-aged ones and they are close in age," said parent Michelle Balan.
Balan is getting her kids ready to head back to the classroom, and that means back-to-school shopping.
"There is always the general school list, and then what's needed for their ages if you have multiple kids that is challenging," she said.
But like a lot of parents, she's spending more. Not surprising, we found a new survey conducted by Credit Karma asked a thousand adults how back-to-school shopping was impacting their budget. 1 in 3 said they can't afford it.
"I would say they are more expensive just like everything else," Balan said.
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Teachers are also feeling the pinch in their pocketbook.
"I think overall they are getting expensive and the cheaper ones are not as good as quality," said teacher Aleisha Kingsley.
Kingsley is an eighth-grade science teacher in Henderson.
She told me she is easily spending hundreds of dollars to get her classroom ready and get extra supplies.
"It is a lot, setting up a classroom is a lot of work. I don't think people realize how much teachers do behind the scenes, especially in the beginning of decorating and getting a classroom ready," Kingsley said.
Do you think it is getting worse this year compared to years in the past, especially with inflation?
"I do think the cost of school supplies has gotten higher," said Kirsten Searer, President of the Public Education Foundation. "The average teacher, nationally, spends $750 a year on school supplies."
She said each school sets their own budget — the amount and types of supplies vary.
"Depends the school the teacher is at, some schools the parents can afford to go buy the long list of supplies we ask them to, some families can't," Searer said.
Balan said she's happy she budgeted for the hundreds of dollars she's prepares to spend for her two children on school supplies this year.
"Probably a little more than that, but an easy $500," she said.
