Do you need any one job that badly? Appreciate I am in a fortunate position but I was under the impression that there is more demand for developers than there is supply.
Great devs should receive their worth as compensation. But that wouldn't make them expensive. That would just make them worth their dime.
But I totally get the point you were trying to make. Lot's of employers try to get one over and not pay you what you are worth.
Of course my view of cheap and expensive may be different from yours.
Most companies that claim to be family friendly are anything but.