Kids and Money – Practical Tips for Parents

USAA recently had webinar program with experts answering parents questions and providing tips around kids and finances.  Topics include:

• Raising financially savvy kids
• Teach the value of saving
• Share money lessons
• Be a good financial role model

Very interesting program covering numerous common questions and concerns parents have.

Webinar Link >>

Financial Literacy Month and FamilyMint

By Bob Masterson

It is financial literacy month, so what can you do to help your children become financially literate and at what age should you start?

Just like all education, it begins in the home! Mom and dad are the first to influence a child’s behavior and habits. Just like reading and math, we begin with the basics of A B C and 1 2 3 and build from there.

It is no different with finances.  Kids are bombarded with consumerism from the earliest age and thus should be equipped to understand that money is a limited resource and that there is a difference between wants and needs.  Anyone can spend money, but to manage money wisely, we must instill early on an understanding of how money works and the responsibility that comes with having money.

This is where FamilyMint can help.  Children are given the ability with parents’ help to see how much they have and where their money is going. They can plan for long term and short term expenses and goals and keep track of their progress to these. Children learn by doing and money becomes truly transparent to them for the first time.

In case you were wondering how April became designated Financial Literacy month, it all started back in 2000, when Jumpstart Coalition began promoting April as Financial Literacy for Youth Month.  In 2003 the United States Congress showed its support by passing a Senate and House Resolution, and in 2005 a bill was passed calling upon all Federal, State and local governments to observe the month with appropriate programs and activities.

Today you will find schools, youth organizations and financial institutions offering numerous programs and activities to help Americans of all ages improve their understanding of finances.

Copyright Financial Literacy Month and FamilyMint © 2010. All rights reserved

The FamilyMint Minute: March, 2010

March, 2010 In This Issue Envelope System Made Easy Quick Tips Story of the Month Mary-Seattle, WA A few years ago I needed an incentive for my kids to read.  I began rewarding them with $1 ice cream sundaes for every 7 books they read.  However, I always seemed to lose my list of books read and the kids and I would get really frustrated.  We now have a goal set up for reading in our FamilyMint accounts.  The goal is $7.  Every time one of my children reads a book, he deposits $1 into his reading goal listing the title of the book in the description.  Once the goal is reached, my child will make a withdrawal and we go get ice cream.  The kids love it! Quick Links FamilyMint.com Blog Of Interest Facebook The FamilyMint Minute For all of the Irish out there and those who become a wee bit Irish during the month of March, happy St. Patrick’s Day! May you have: A world of wishes at your command God and his angels close at hand Friends and family their love impart, And Irish blessings in you heart. and…as you slide down the banister of life, may the splinters never point in the wrong direction! The Envelope System Made Easy The Envelope System is a popular method of budgeting, and for good reason.  The process is dead-simple.  Create one envelope for each major category of spending, fill each envelop up with the budgeted amount of  cash at the beginning of the month, and when the money is gone, it’s gone.  No more spending is allowed in that category until the next month. One variation on the “fill-er-up” part of the process is to allocate a portion of your paycheck to each envelope each time you are paid.  Keep one envelope for long term savings and allocate perhaps 10% of your paycheck to it, and you’ll quickly fill up that rainy day fund for inevitable unforeseen emergencies. This method works to eliminate debt and improve savings because you make your spending decisions ahead of time and you spend less than you make.    By setting aside money before you spend, you are better able to plan, and look to the future.    It is simple, but the key to make it happen is discipline and habit. With FamilyMint’s new Savings Plan feature, your kids can start forming this simple habit from day one.  You can read about how it works here: http://www.familymint.com/2010/03/08/savings-plan-now-available/ In a nutshell, each goal account acts as an envelope, and each deposit made through the Savings Plan will automatically flow into the pre-selected goals.  Then, each time your child spends money, he or she deducts it from the appropriate goal account.   When it’s gone, it’s gone! Savings Plan is just like the old envelope system, but it’s automatic and it’s visual.  Savings Plan turns FamilyMint into spending management system for kids. Quick Tips Can my child use FamilyMint without my involvement? Sure!  Kids can use FamilyMint to track their own money without parental involvement.  Just turn off all approvals. They keep the cash, but track it in FamilyMint.   Using this setup, there would be no real money being exchanged between you and your kids. Parents can still take a look when they want to see what their child is up to and potentially provide some guidance. How does the child get to spend the money? Ultimately, the goal of FamilyMint is to learn how to plan ahead and budget for the things needed or wanted.  Once a goal is achieved, the child makes a withdrawal from FamilyMint and the parent either gives the cash to the child or if purchasing online, makes the purchase for the child. Of course it is better for them to learn from poor money decisions now than later in life.  Let them make some mistakes.  The great thing about FamilyMint, is their spending and saving is transparent and spending that $5.00 on a rash purchase is only going to make reaching their goals that much harder. Please keep the questions and suggestions coming! Jeff Eusebio & Bob Masterson FamilyMint co-founders