Ready, Set, Launch! 6 Steps to Teaching Your Teen Financial Responsibility

Parents of teens often wonder if the sage life advice they attempt to impart rubs off on their children.

Your kids may not listen to you about brushing their teeth or driving too fast, but their ears are likely to perk up when you talk cash.

Take advantage of this interest in finances by teaching your teen some valuable money management lessons, and you’ll do yourself and your child a favor.

With some direction, your son or daughter will make a sound financial launch and be less likely to call home for cash after leaving the nest.

Here are 6 steps to teaching your teen financial responsibility:

Develop a budget

All sound financial plans start with a workable budget.

The fact that your teen most likely has a small amount of money to manage is a benefit, as any mistakes made will have minimal impact but teach lifelong financial lessons.

Review your teen’s income sources, such as allowances, monetary gifts, or a part time job, as well as expenses, including spending money and savings.

Have your child subtract the expenses from the income and discuss the results.

If there is a surplus, can your child save more for something he or she really wants? And if there is a deficit, discuss ways of cutting expenses.

Budgeting can be done on paper or use one of the many online budgeting tools available.

 

Discuss savings options

If your child already has a standard savings account, now is the time to talk about the advantages and disadvantages of more complex savings vehicles and perhaps open up such an account.

Explain the differences between regular savings, money market accounts and certificates of deposit and their various uses.

If your child is two years away from college and CD interest rates are attractive, for instance, this may be a good time to open a 24-month CD and deposit college savings money.

When your teen has a job, also teach long-range financial planning by opening up a retirement account in his or her name, such as a minor Roth IRA.

Teach price consciousness

Since teens are used to parents paying for everything, it’s often eye-opening when they see how much things really cost.

Have your child pay bills with you a few times, and when you’re grocery shopping, have your teen help you meet your budget. This requires examining prices and making choices.

When your child wants a big ticket item, such as an upgraded cell phone, use this opportunity to teach how to research prices and together determine how long it will take to save enough money to buy the phone.

Open a checking account

In order to prepare for the eventual task of paying bills, your teen needs a checking account.

A custodial checking account gives you a chance to show how to monitor the account and balance it.

Checking accounts generally come with a debit card, which is a good precursor to a credit card.

Start building credit

Once kids have proven themselves with debit cards and reach 18, they are eligible to open a credit card account, which is one of their first steps toward building a credit history.

Whether teens are ready for this responsibility depends on various factors, including how well they’ve done with a debit card and if they’ve managed to save money.

Use the opportunity of opening a credit card account to discuss credit scores and how credit standing affects your life as an adult.

Stress financial freedom

While it’s good to warn teens about the perils of overusing credit and not saving, it’s best not to overstate the negatives.

Take a positive approach and give your child something to aspire to by pointing out young adults who live financially responsible lives and are reaping the benefits.

For instance, share the story of a young person who amassed savings and as a result was able to take the summer off to travel around Europe.

Have them follow a few personal finance blogs (like MintLife!) for more real-life tips and stories.

Now that you have a plan of action, you can get started teaching your teen to live a financially rewarding life.

“Read, Set, Launch! 6 Steps to Teaching Your Teen Financial Responsibility” was provided by Julie Bawden-Davis is a staff writer for SuperMoney. Her mission is to help fight your evil debt blob and get your personal finances in tip top shape.
Copyright © 2013 Julie Bawden-Davis