Raising Teens on a Tight Budget

[Maribeth]

We have a new article in the Parenting Teens Cubby - Raising Teens on a Tight Budget.

Share your budgeting tips with us . . . what do you do to teach your teens about budgeting? Have you tried any of the tips in this article?

Personally, I've found that when I've explained our family budget/finances to my boys, they're much more understanding of why they can't have expensive things. DH gets embarrassed to admit to the guys we don't have big bucks but the boys DO understand and they've gotten rather good at bargain shopping and getting the best deal they can find. Nothing wrong with that!

Mari

[Melanie]

Great article! Pierce knows about our finances, what we earn, what it costs to live in a house (gas, water, mortgage, etc). We keep his allowance in our account, so he has to actually ask for money from us or ask us to buy something out of his allowance. If we give him cash, it gets spent on ridiculous things like Cokes at school. He prefers to let us hang on to his money, so he can save for the things he likes to splurge on, like skateboarding shoes. Man, those things are pricey!

When we go clothes shopping, I tell him how much I intend to spend. If he chooses to buy more expensinve items and get fewer of them, he knows he's going to be doing his laundry a lot more often. He's really pretty good about it. He'll pick the shorts he likes at Old Navy (pricey, by my standards), and then go get his shirts at Target.

He will not be getting a cell phone or his own phone line at this point because there is just no reason to justify the cost; that will probably change as he gets older. Frankly, we spend enough just feeding this boy. We don't have any money left for the goodies!

[1Dawn]

We have always been very open about our finances. In the military the people around where you live all make similar money. Same rank that sort of thing. We always used that fact to discuss spending habits. It seems to have worked pretty well. The kids understand that we chose to spend and save differently than others. In buying this house last summer they were able to see the fruits of the saving labor so to speak.

We moved into a hight cost of living area. I didn't want my children to stand out as looking different. I flat out told dd that if she felt she needed something to fit in to ask and we would work to try and make it happen. She has asked for a few things along the way but not much.

I agree with the being open about the families financial situation. It is impossible for a child to understand if they are not made aware. Take them shopping, talk out the decisions outloud so they hear the process. I think it is really important to discuss long range financial planning. What do you want and how do you plan to get there. How to spend money, how to curb impulse buying, the whole balance is hard. These things are not taught in school. They have to be taught at home.

Dawn

[Maribeth]

Any other thoughts?