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How Much Financial Support to Provide for Parents

Robert Wilkinson — Sun, 23 Jan 2011 01:04:26 +0000

How much financial support do you give your family?

When Sara was born, we were already thinking about her college fund. I remember my wife asking me whether we should setup a bank account for her many months ago, but at the end, we decided to just write down how much she actually owns without setting up an explicit account.

These days, we just spend money on her as needed. “Honey, time to buy formula” and “the diapers are running out” are common phrases in our household. Though we no doubt added a few luxuries, like one too many hats that she never liked wearing anyway, or that pair of pants that she wore a total of 2 times because she already outgrew them by the time we put it on for the first time, we led our appreciation for a simple life guide us.

At the end of the day, we were living well within our means, and the decision to spend money on Sara was, as a result, trivial thus far.

What About Me Growing Up?

And I reckon it’s similar for my parents too. Though many parents spend quite a bit of thought on how to teach their children proper financial values (a subject we often explore in kids and money), quite often, the decision is guided by how much they could actually afford. Sure, the it’s a tough sell when it’s about a pack of gum on the way to the checkout counter, but as to that first car, it’s definitely not in the cards!

My parents provided everything for me any parent could possibly think of growing up. Our family weren’t financially rich in any stretch of imagination, but as a kid, I didn’t have a clue. School trips? Sign me up. Car rides home? Every single day. Fancy lunch boxes? You mean mine?

I didn’t get everything just because I knew how to say “I want” of course. I begged, screamed and probably said a ton of hurtful comments for a good half a decade because I wanted a car with a manual transmission. It went no where, but in general, I never felt deprived.

I was loved like no other, and the reality is that much of all the acts of affection cost my parents money. Money they could have spent shopping, money they could spend on vacations and money they could happily use in retirement.

Do You Offer Help to Your Parents?

When it’s your children, the decision to take care of them before they are able to provide for themselves is easy to make. I’d argue that if your parents are struggling financially, the offer to help them out financially is also trivial. After all, they probably spent years sacrificing just to make sure you grew up happily and without worry.

But what if your parents seemed fine on their own? How much (if anything) do you offer then?

Based on several impromptu and general discussions, my parents have solid finances. Sure, there is always a more luxurious zip code to live in or a fancier car to own, but there is no worries of meeting basic needs. For the most part, my parents don’t need my help, but it’s time to offer. I mean, if it wasn’t for my existence, my parents might very well already be living in that more luxurious zip code and driving that fancy car!

But how much? I’m young, and good times don’t always last forever. Just as parents don’t want to provide their children with too much because it sets them up for failure, does the same hold true in the other direction? If I start offering substantial financial support to my parents and it indirectly inflates their lifestyle, am I the person to blame if, down the road, I can no longer afford the same support and they the higher expenses?

Of course, much of this boils down to my own unique circumstance. The amount of support in question, the dependability of my income, and the type of people my parents are will all be factors in the outcome.

Let’s imagine for a minute that you are me. What would you do? And while we are at it, do you provide support to your parents, or in general, your family? How?

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Make Everynight a Money Night Talk [Giveaway]

Robert Wilkinson — Fri, 24 Sep 2010 16:20:02 +0000

The National Money Night Talk has come and gone, but that doesn’t mean you should stop the conversations with your kids about money! For the past month we have been hosting giveaways in honor of National Money Night Talk. For those of you who don’t know, American Express teamed up with personal finance expert Jean Chatzky to launch the first annual “National Money Night Talk” — a program that encourages parents around the country to have “the talk” about money and financial responsibility with their kids.

As an ode to National Money Night Talk, we are hosting a final giveaway around family finances!

To enter, tell us what was the most interesting thing you learned during your money talk.

The winning entry will get a $150 American Express Gift Card as well as a copy of Jean Chatzky’s new book “Not Your Parents’ Money Book: Making, Saving, and Spending Your Own Money” — courtesy of American Express!

If you’re looking for helpful tips on how to have the money talk and some smart payment options parents can give to teens, check out the National Money Night Talk website: http://bit.ly/TheTalk. Here you can access information on Additional Cards with Custom Limits and PASS ...

6 Back to School Essentials for High Schoolers

Robert Wilkinson — Thu, 12 Aug 2010 11:20:18 +0000

They can study, hold an after-school job, and keep a group of friends, but they still may need a little help from their parents in finding (and paying for) the best gear for back-to-school. Forget those boring backpacks and same ol’ supplies -- We’ve got an eye for the newest and best tech on the market for teenagers, and our recent guide at My Life Scoop features six amazing products and services for their class time and anytime! Check out my two favorite picks here:

SMS Replier with Drive Reply

Free for Lite Version, $19.95 for Pro Version

Does the thought of your teen on the road leave you a bit… concerned? If you’ve caught your child texting while driving (or being tempted to check messages), this easy fix may be for you. A simple app for Blackberry, Android, and Windows Mobile (an iPhone version will be released later this summer), the SMS Replier may literally save a life! At speeds of 15 MPH or greater, the Drive Reply feature automatically engages and responds to all incoming text messages with a customizable auto-reply, letting everyone know that driving safely comes first! All SMS communication can be put on hold until your teen arrives safely at their driving destination.

Installation and Use Video:

Zebra ...

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Rent-to-Own: Consider Saving Up Instead

Robert Wilkinson — Tue, 09 Feb 2010 17:20:13 +0000

Over Xmas, my husband’s mother and father came to remain with us for two weeks. We have an extra bed room, but no bed for it. Although the air mattress is fine for a few of nights, we didn’t want my in-laws to have to sleep on it for two weeks. We’re not quite prepared to purchase another bed, so we made the decision to lease one. My husband called the lease-to-personal locations here in town, and we found one prepared to lease us a new, by no means-been-slept-in bed for a month (they wouldn’t do it for two weeks).

In spite of the fact that I once obtained a payday mortgage, I had by no means been into a lease-to-personal location before. I filled out the form introduced to me (which set it up like a mortgage, even although the people at the counter assured a panic-stricken me there would be no credit score pull), and then we had to wait while the documents had been ready. I looked around the retailer with curiosity, questioning what type of offer you can get on merchandise at such a retailer.

Photo by aranarth via Flickr

I discovered tha you purchase the items ight, they price something similar to what they would at a retail retailer. However, if you lease the items initial, making month-to-month payments, the story rapidly becomes various. If you make month-to-month payments, going to phrase (twelve to 36 months, depending on the merchandise), you could finish up paying 3 to four occasions retail. In fact, you could finish up paying nearly $one,000 for a basic computer that costs $300 elsewhere if you make the payments of $twenty a week ($80 a month) for the twelve-month phrase.

The Area of interest for Lease-to-Personal

Clearly, despite the big premium you pay when you go with lease-to-personal, these locations are quite well-liked. Indeed, while we had been there, 3 various clients came in to purchase various items: two TVs and a camera. I heard one point out that he had inadequate credit score, and couldn’t get financing for the 42-inch television he wanted. The product sales rep stated it was fine; he just need to show that he could make the weekly payments. If he made all the payments, he would personal the Tv outright in 24 months. If he wanted to, he could pay off the obligation earlier, and owe much less overall than if he carried the transaction to its phrase.

Lease-to-personal provides a location for those with inadequate credit score to bring appliances, furnishings and electronics house with a more compact upfront commitment. The lease-to-personal location can get the items back if clients miss a payment. So if you pay your $80 a month for ...

New Car Buying Tips: How To Get The Best Deal On A New Car

Robert Wilkinson — Mon, 08 Feb 2010 15:20:12 +0000

Buying a new car is a big deal, especially when it is your first. In 2002, when I was 17, my parents bought me a beat up black 1999 Grand Prix that I absolutely loved. I put that puppy through a lot and it was passed down to both my younger brothers before making its way back to me. This past summer, my beautiful baby died — about a year earlier than I hoped and left me stranded.

I have no debt and despite the preaching of many to never by a new car, I felt it was the right move for me because I plan on keeping it until it eventually dies. Since this was my first time buying a car, I was nervous — but I read up and talked to some friends before starting my car buying journey. Here are a few steps I took:

1. Know your budget

Before you can even begin to figure out what kind of car you want to buy, you have to know your budget. Whatever amount you are comfortable with, set that range you’re able and willing to spend before hand.

When you know your budget, it will help you determine where to begin.

2. Research

Once you know your price range, start your research. The best way to research nowadays is online. Sites like Edmunds.com give you comprehensive information and ratings about the vehicle along with safety, fuel efficiency, and numerous consumer reviews. Researching online will give you the information necessary before you even step into a dealership. This will help you narrow down your choices, as well as help you think of a few questions to ask the salesman.

From these sites, you can also find the MSRP and the invoice price of the car you want. These numbers are important information to help you negotiate for the best deal. Obviously, you are trying to pay closer to the invoice price than the MSRP.

Once you narrowed down your selection and have a good idea of prices, head to the dealership.

3. Test Drive

In no way shape or form should you be thinking about buying when you go to the dealership for the first time. You are there to test drive and you should make that known right away. Try to test drive all the cars you want to check out on the same day. This will help you better compare the cars and make it easier to narrow down your options.

Tell the salesman you are looking to buy a car within a certain time period, that you’re visiting a few dealerships to test drive, and you would like to test drive one ...

Tips for Paying Off Student Loans

Robert Wilkinson — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 07:20:23 +0000

Right now, the student loan industry is going through one of its worst periods in decades. New Federal regulations have forced many banks to stop offering student loans, and students are being forced to either find a direct loan or start paying back what they owe. Enrollment figures are being affected dramatically and right now, many students simply cannot afford to go to school.

This problem is extending to those that are already trying to pay on their student loans. It has become harder than ever to consolidate old student loans and the interest rates are not helping matters either. It is important to pay off your student loans as quickly as possible, especially if you want to save money over the long term. Here are some tips to help you accomplish this.

1. Try asking your family for help.

If your family is in the position to help you financially, this should be your first stop. No one really likes borrowing money from their parents, but if you can pay off all of your loans, it is worth it. You won’t have to worry about crazy interest rates and you’ll have a chance to make bigger payments on the loan. However, you’ll need to make sure that you can set up a payment plan and stick to it to avoid causing any family disputes.

2. Get a second job.

This is a tough one, especially if you are already working full time. However, it can mean the difference between paying on student loans for the next decade, or taking just a year to pay them off. For example, if you owe $98,000 on your student loans, and you get a part time job that pays an extra $1000 a week, you could pay off that loan in less than two years. There are many high paying second jobs, such as bartending, where you can easily work off that student loan in no time at all.

3. Leverage your debt.

If you don’t have the time to get a second job, you may want to consider a technique known as debt leveraging. This involves taking out a loan and making an investment. Whether it is in an interest bearing account, new business idea or stock is up to you. Just make sure that you can count on the returns. This will create a secondary stream of income that can be used to pay down your student loans in a lot less time.

4. Negotiate.

If all else fails, try negotiating with the loan company to get a lower interest rate. If you have been paying on your loan faithfully they will be much more likely to help you out. It never hurts to ask or to apply for a consolidation loan. The worse they can say is no, and you’ll still have a lot of different options out there. The important thing is that you don’t fall behind on your debts. It may take some hard work, but you’ll appreciate it once you’re free of the yoke of your student loans.

Photo Credits: 1

Originally posted 2008-08-17 05:03:58. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

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Your Take: How Do You Prepare Your Taxes?

Robert Wilkinson — Fri, 15 Jan 2010 19:20:45 +0000

Last night I had to pleasure to finally meet some of the DC personal finance bloggers and some PR folks at a happy hour (or three) hosted by TurboTax at Busboys and Poets at 5th and K Street. It was a fun event that was really casual and it was nice to meet people I’d only been emailing, instant messaging, or twittering with these last few months and years. Many thanks to the most awesome Chelsea (@TTaxChels) for inviting me!

In talking with both Scott Gulbransen (@prgully) and Dave Donohue (@davedonohue), I was surprised to learn that most people prepare their taxes the same way their parents did. If your parents did their taxes online with a service like TurboTax, you were more likely to use TurboTax. If they always went to a tax prep place like H&R Block, then ...

Teach Your Kids about Money Management

Robert Wilkinson — Sun, 03 Jan 2010 21:20:21 +0000

It is never too early to teach your dren the fundamentals wht comes to good monanagement. Teaching your children good habits is usually smart, and money management is certainly a set of good habits that is better taught sooner rather of later. If you teach your children how to value and handle their money very young, then it will be useful for them in the future. In order to make children discover the value of their money and money management, parents and guardians can practice a few very easy actions, such as the following:

- Parents can include their children when they are speaking about actions relating to money. They can consist of their children when they sit down to discuss household budgets and other similar money associated subjects, so that they can teach their children what actions include money and what elements of the family require money in order to run easily. When children comprehend why money is essential, they can better comprehend its value.

- These days a lot of our money is being used in the form of credit score cards and checkbooks. When you make use of these alternative payment types, you should explain to your children what you are doing and how it works. Tell them about the ease that financial institution accounts and credit score cards can provide, and detail the role that they play in the money management procedure. You should also make an work to teach them the difference between credit score cards and debit cards so that they can make good use of all the money mediums accessible to them in the future.

- As early as possible, it would be advantageous to allow your children to handle, organize and save their own pocket alter. They can be taught more than time to count their money, use financial institution accounts, open a financial savings account, draw money out through checks, and maintain their own distinctive private spending budget and so on. When you first start to teach your children about money management, they will probably be more most likely to mess issues up than to get every thing correct.

-In order to assist them in this regard, you can introduce your children to online money management software and other choices like a checkbook register as quickly as possible. This will display them how to keep track of their financial savings and their spending. This will also assist them set up alerts and reminders so that they can keep track of spending, earning and saving. As children, individuals are simply not very adept when it comes to money management. Teaching them early and impressing them with the ideas of money management frequently will assist them overcome their issues with money management, allowing them to get better control of their finances from day one.

When it comes to money management, the previously you teach your children about taking care of their money, the better off they will be as they start to have their own financial savings, incomes and expenditures.

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Originally posted 2008-12-22 05:25:49. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

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Debt Repayment Techniques Paying back again all of the money that you owe to your credit score card financial debt is not almost as easy as it was for you to go into credit score card financial debt in the first location. Still, it can be done. When you place with each other a good operating plan coupled with discipline......

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How to trick dumb kids into eating less Halloween candy

Robert Wilkinson — Sat, 31 Oct 2009 05:20:13 +0000

How to trick dumb kids into eating less Halloween candy

7 comments — written on October 30th, 2009 (7 hours ago)

How can a mirror cause dramatic behavioral changes in kids?

First, I should acknowledge that the kids are not really dumb because of the psychological technique I’m going to describe below, but can’t we all agree that kids are pretty dumb in general? Come on. My parents just told me a story about how, when I was a kid, my Dad once cut a grapefruit for me and sprinkled sugar on it. I screamed and screamed for FIFTEEN MINUTES about how I didn’t want sugar on it. When my dad finally said, “Ok ok” and took the sugar off with a spoon, I still screamed because I didn’t want THAT grapefruit. I feel sorry for my dad, 24 years later, and I hope you see why I make fun of dumb kids now. So I’m delighted when I can trick them.

In 1979, researchers Beaman, Klentz, Diener, and Svanum wrote a terrific piece of research involving Cooley’s Looking Glass Self, which basically points ...

The Importance of Personal Money Management

Robert Wilkinson — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 10:20:17 +0000

Many of us were not taught the importance of personal money management when we were young. We did not learn to save, invest, allocate, or how to make our money work for us. Many of us are in debt, have no idea how we got here and do not know how to start digging ourselves out. Well, today you can break the vicious cycle by teaching your young ones to better manage their finances, starting with their allowance and birthday money.

Photo by Digital Sextant via Flickr

Our parents didn’t know so we don’t know.

The fact that your parents never taught you money management only shows that they did not learn it themselves. Once you learn the benefits of financial management, not passing it on to your children would be a crime. As a parent you want your kids to be successful in life. It does not matter how much they end up earning for a living, if they know how to manage it, they can live very comfortably and avoid the number one pitfall in America…DEBT! Just think of all the times you said to yourself “If I only knew”. Well, now you do and have a chance to break the cycle.

We all depend on money in one way or another, some of us use it to better our lives and some of us get used by it. Some of us work hard for it and some of us put it to work for us. By social standards the ones that use it to better their lives and put it to work for them are the successful ones.

It isn’t hard to make money work for you if you understand how money works. If at age 20 you knew the basics of saving and planning for retirement it is most likely that you would have started saving for it. Worst case scenario, when it was time to retire you would have enough to live off the interest. Best case scenario you would have an island next to Angelina Jolie with a private jet to swoop you anywhere you want to go.

Everything is for sale.

The second reason we do not manage money well, is that there are so many companies trying to get it out of our pockets. These companies have the best advertising minds and years of research working to get us to spend. I have nothing against buying what you want and need, but there are ways to get everything we want and not end up in debt.

The problems is, we do not want to wait or save for these things. Children’s minds are copy machines, ...