Kids and money.

[Wormius]

So, my son is about to get a flyer delivery route and I am curious what some other parents think about how to deal with their earnings. Is it good to let them start paying for the things you once did (eg, fun lunches at school, birthday presents for their friends parties) or just let them decide on what to do or save for? Or a combination of making him pay for certain things, as well as save for something he wants?

[Locke]

Start charging rent!

"The womb was free, my house costs money!"

[Tacopuck]

I suppose it depends on his age and whether it was his idea to get a job or the parents.

[Red]

Open a savings account and teach the kid to put money away. If the kid takes to it you won't have to bail them out all the time when they hit adulthood.
I'd never let my kids pay for fun lunches etc. but that's not to say that it's bad. I just want my kids to remain kids for a bit longer.

[OMG!WTF!]

He should pay for his own smokes now.

It kind of sounds mean making him pay for stuff like you mentioned. Maybe give him a limit, like $10 for a bday present or whatever and anything over and above he can cover...like if he wants to give an awesome present it's now up to him. If all the other parents are still buying presents then it might seem unfair to your kid and he might not want to work. "if I don't work...i get stuff to free". Not a psychologist or an experienced parent though.

But definitely he buys the smokes from now on. Wouldn't hurt to contribute a six pack once in a while either.

[socktape]

I would say that it depends on how old he is. I don't know how much a route makes these days but a good 70%-30% rule is a good start. 30% or fun stuff, treats, toys,etc. and 70% put away for savings for well thought out purchases or big ticket items. It is important to have a goal to save towards. 30 years ago I think i made about 35-50 a cheque delivering flyers, now I am sure they are well past that.

[habernac]

Mix it up a little, let them make some of their own decisions.

[Bonded]

Parents made me get a job at 14. Let me do what I wanted with the money, but after that point I was buying the clothes, games, etc that I wanted. Now, if I really needed jeans or shoes or something like that they would buy them, but, for the most part non-necessities were my responsibility.

I am glad they handled it that way, taught me the basic tenants of saving, spending, and the value of money.

Now, if only I didn't spend all of that nest egg on booze in university...

[troutman]

My 14 year old has his first job at Bow Cycle. He spends all of his pay cheque at Bow Cycle.

[flamesfan1297]

How old is your kid? I got my first job at 14 working at a grocery store where id work evenings and weekends during the school year, then in the summers from ages 14-18 I'd get a second Job working 40 hours a week, plus still working at the grocery store. In the summers I'd usually work between 50-60 hours a week, sometimes more. My parents never made me, it was my choice.

My parents would pay for the necessary items like clothes, shoes and food. But I always had to pay for luxury items like going out for lunch, gas money, insurance, truck, and phone bill. I bought my first truck at 16 for $14,000 from savings.

It depends on lot of things, such as your kids age, what he's interested in, and how much he makes. Maybe you could slowly start to make him pay for more things over time.

[Wormius]

He's 10 and it's only about $60 or so a month so nothing big, and he actually wanted to do something, and this popped up.

He was hoping to open up a lemonade stand in Kelowna this summer, and he probably would have raked in the dough as my parents live on a pretty busy street, but I guess they are cracking down on unlicensed lemonade stands in Ktown. I remember selling Koolaid when I was little. I think I spent it all on Cool Ranch Doritos.

[flamesfan1297]

Cracking down on unlicensed lemonade stands? What a joke. If a kid wants to sell lemonade and make a few bucks he should be allowed too. It should be encouraged, not discouraged.

[Coach]

If he's only ten I'd say keep fronting him and let him pocket all of his earnings. It'll teach him to save and by the times he's 15/16 he'll have a nice savings account and an actual job that can take care of his extra curriculars. Or.maybe be able to buy himself a car or something.

Might even be good to put it into some long term investments in his name. He can start feeding it himself when he's a little older, and by the time hes in his 20s hell be way ahead of his counterparts.

[CaptainCrunch]

Take his money and blow it at the track, the sooner that he learns life's harshest lessons the better.

and that lesson is never trust the man.

[Oling_Roachinen]

At this age, I don't know if any hard and fast rules need to be implemented. I think it's more about letting him know the responsibilities and consequences of his actions. If he wants to spend all he has made on a video game, let him know that he wont have enough for a toy/chocolate bar/whatever until he gets his next pay cheque.

[Oling_Roachinen]

Originally Posted by MattyC

If he's only ten I'd say keep fronting him and let him pocket all of his earnings. It'll teach him to save and by the times he's 15/16 he'll have a nice savings account and an actual job that can take care of his extra curriculars.

I don't know if that will help teach him to save, if he doesn't actually have to save to get what he wants. Seems that it will do the opposite effect.

I guess it's what you mean by "fronting" him, but I would hope Wormius isn't thinking of charging him rent yet

[polak]

Originally Posted by Wormius

He's 10 and it's only about $60 or so a month so nothing big, and he actually wanted to do something, and this popped up.

He was hoping to open up a lemonade stand in Kelowna this summer, and he probably would have raked in the dough as my parents live on a pretty busy street, but I guess they are cracking down on unlicensed lemonade stands in Ktown. I remember selling Koolaid when I was little. I think I spent it all on Cool Ranch Doritos.

Kevin Lowe is that you?

[blueski]

Open up a day trading account for him!

[troutman]

There are wolves and sheep in this world

[Coach]

Originally Posted by Oling_Roachinen

I don't know if that will help teach him to save, if he doesn't actually have to save to get what he wants. Seems that it will do the opposite effect.

I guess it's what you mean by "fronting" him, but I would hope Wormius isn't thinking of charging him rent yet

Yeah, I suppose if he wants to buy a new toy or something, you could have him dip into his savings. But as far as clothes and whatnot, he's probably a little young to be paying for that stuff quite yet.

To me, the impact of saving would come later, when he's in his late teens and wants to by a car or a video game system or something, and you can say "well its a good thing I had you save all that money, because I wouldn't be buying it for you!"

Because at that time, he'll probably have a real part-time gig that actually pays for his clothes and movies and whatnot.