Normally this post would be something I would share over on my personal finance blog, Keene On Saving but since this blog is a lifestyle and parenting blog, I thought it would be a much better fit over here.
I haven’t always made the best financial choices and I know that. I’ve been documenting my journey both here and on KOS and I already know what advice I will be giving my children when it comes to that point.
If you can’t afford it, you can’t have it
I want to encourage my children to save up their money to get the expensive things that they say they want. I remember wanting things all the time as a child and it would almost certainly be a passing phase. If it is something they truly want, they won’t mind saving up their pennies to get it. Patience is key.
With that in mind:
Open up a savings account/ISA to save your money
Jack already has his own savings account and we will of course open up savings accounts for any future children too. We will encourage them to save their money in their accounts to then use for those items they really, really want.
Don’t get into debt
Simple really but such an easy trap to fall into. Our children will have their own current accounts and savings accounts – and when necessary, a phone contract or something similar when they are at the age to start building their credit report. We will discourage credit cards or catalogue accounts unless they can prove they can pay the balance off every month. Credit reports are easy to damage, they need to be looked after carefully if you ever want to get a mortgage or something similar.
Money doesn’t grow on trees
My children won’t necessarily have to work for their money until they are of working age BUT they can certainly help around the house if they expect money. We will be giving them pocket money when they can understand and appreciate it but if they want extra, they have got to prove themselves responsible enough to help us out. Jack actually loves wiping the dining table after dinner and loves helping me put the laundry out – I’m happy to give him some pennies for doing so and I hope to continue this throughout his childhood. They will not be overloaded with chores though – they will just be expected to help sometimes.
You’ve got to work for your money
This is mainly for older children – and I don’t mean around the home. As I’ve already mentioned, my children won’t be given a ton of chores to complete but rather expected to help out with small things when they can. However once they reach an age where they can do a paper round, baby sit or even have a Saturday job, I expect them to do so. When I was younger and wanted money for something, I would baby sit my neighbours children or do a paper round. When I was 16, I got a weekend job. Although I’ve made some financial mistakes since then, it still taught me the value of money.
What financial advice will you give your children?
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Great advice, I think children these days get given so much they just expect it. 🙂
Really good advice, I'd give pretty much the same to my kids, especially with regards to debt! Just don't do it x
Great advice. I wish my parents gave me this advice, but then again I like to think I have been quite savvy by opening a savings account when I could afford to save
It is definitely better to teach them from a young age 🙂
x
Very practical advice. Totally agree that money has to be earned and we give pocket money for chores already.
Great advice, I am not getting my 7 year old to pay for the things she wants and work out how much its all going to cost.
This is great advice – but I never give my children for housework (because no-one pays me for it). My oldest son got a job life guarding at 16 and seems sensible enough when it comes to money.
I was proud of my son the other day. He had some money to spend, but decided not to buy a comic with it, but instead to save it up so he could 'buy something better when we go to Leeds Castle'. At only 5, I think that's quite impressive! Sound advice in your post here, too.
Such wise words. We have to teach our children the best we can and it can be really hard to do this.
Great advice! It's good for children to learn about the realities of money from a young age.
Brilliant advice, I would also advise them to shop around for better deals. We all love a bargain hehe x
Good advice, I never saved for what I wanted when I was in my early 20's and it quickly got out of control.
I'm with you on the 'if you can't afford it, you can't have it' thing – if you don't stick to that, you can get into all sorts of trouble. Only exception we make is the mortgage.
Some really good advice there and even as adults it is something we can learn from x
Brilliant advice! I will be saying exactly the same things – and warn them about credit cards (we don't have one!)
Really good advice. I was brought up on this, and will certainly be passing it on to my kids.
Great advice and yes most certainly don't ever have a credit card !
i think giving your chikdren financial advice is always a great idea , but i would also start with our saying '' never be a lender be
Great advice for all children. We don't have any credit or loans and hope to pass that on to the children too.
Great post and advice. It's very true the if you can't afford it, don't have it especially. I've been guilty of that myself many times! Our daughter is only 4 but we're trying to teach her the value of money.
Same advice I have given mine and I also refuse to bail them out – they have to learn the hard way!
great tips my parents never really gave us advice on money hopefully I will for my kids its so important!
Great advice although I would go a stage further when they are ready to buy a house and tell them to leave a small manageable amount on a credit card. Might sound nuts at first glance but credit card companies are less keen on customers who pay off in full every month (obviously because they make no money from them) and your rating can improve by having a small, manageable amount owing. There's more to those tips, like managing limits and ratio of available debt to amount owing. All of these are of course only for when they need a mega rating to get that house!
Good advice – I need to get my little ones better at saving for the better things, rather than spending any money as soon as they have it.