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Creatively Frugal Teens
How do you save money on all the expenses related to raising a
teenager?
"My teenage son, Cory (17) and his buddies have discovered the
joys of thrift store shopping!
The other day we were at a well-known discount store and I pointed
out to him a nice shirt that was on sale. He looked at me and
said, 'Why would I spend $11.00 on a shirt that I really don't
like, when I can go to the thrift store and get three or four shirts
that I really like for a couple of bucks?' I absolutely
agreed! (Plus he is dressing better than he ever has.)" ~
Thelma
"When each
of my kids turned 11, I gave them a set amount of money for the season,
the amount that I would have spent on clothes for them (excluding
underwear, shoes, dressy clothes, outerwear and pajamas). They were able
to choose what they wanted, and I would hold aside money for the purchases
I knew they would forget to make (underwear,
etc!). As they got older and were able to manage it, I included enough
money for all of their needs (one season at a time) – including
the extras such as underwear, outerwear, pajamas, dress clothes, etc.
At first they
tended to buy expensive over-hyped brand name clothing at the mall, but in
time they decided on their own to stretch their clothing dollar by
shopping for sales, going to discount stores and outlets, buying good
quality non-brand name merchandise, etc. They became very savvy at
learning which discounters and outlets were good and which were not good.
They learned when things went on sale; they learned to sign up for email
coupons and sale alerts.
All three are now
in college, and they have developed excellent shopping skills (better than
mine, to tell the truth!). And I
was able to stick to my clothing budget without being nagged and cajoled!
" ~ Frances
"Expenses with teenagers: Not quite sure what
added expenses would be. If you mean food since they're bigger and eat
more, it's the same as cutting food expenses when younger. If
anything, it is easier to reason with a teen that eating out all the time
costs more. If food is costing more because you are relying more on
convenience/prepared/fast food items as schedules get busier, once again,
it's back to basics - a crock pot full of soup everyone can help
themselves to when hungry, a good supply of cut up cheese,
meat, veggies and fruit in the fridge for on the go eating, etc. As
far as clothing and amusements, it is MORE important to teach a young
person that
"we can't always have everything we want, when we want it".
I may be in the minority but I do not believe it is reasonable for
responsible parents to EXPECT their children to buy all their clothing as
that falls under the necessity category, but certainly one does not need
to indulge every single whim and fad.
Driving is probably the other single biggest expense with teens.
Some families choose to not have their teen drive, or to have the teen pay
the expenses of driver's ed and/or insurance. In our case, for our
family, we knew it would be a huge time saver for me to have our daughter
driving, as she would have to be driven to her Christian school,
someone would have to struggle through traffic to pick her up from her
after school on site job, get her to Girl Scouts, piano lessons, etc.
So we decided for us it made more sense to treat it as an investment.
She does not own her own car per se. She has the use of the family cars
and is expected to drive responsibly, and is to run errands when
practical.
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"As far as teen outings are
concerned, go to your local public library and see what the Young
Adult librarian has planned. I'm an adult reference librarian
and our YA librarian has one great 'tween and teen program after
another. Most of them are free and some are $5 each. We
have had everything from making duct-tape flip-flops to decorating
tee shirts to book discussions to yoga to reading for prizes to
chess instruction. We have teens volunteering to read to
little children and to teach senior citizens computer skills.
If your local library doesn't have these kinds of programs, then be
a mover and shaker and help get them started. The Internet is a
great resource to see what public libraries across the country are
offering teens. www.nassaulibrary.org/rvc
" ~ Alene P.
"I put my daughter on a budget, and
let her make her spending decisions. Her allowance has to cover
her clothing, entertainment, and other discretionary spending.
This way she learns that life is full of choices, and that we
can't have everything that we want. She just started driving, and to
save on car expenses, the policy is that she can use
the car on an 'as needed' basis not on an 'as
wanted' basis. To save on insurance costs, she had to
wait to drive until she could qualify for the good
student discount. In our family, saving money is about
setting limits." ~ Marsha
"Since working at a thrift shop in high
school, I have always shopped there for my family's clothes. I have
found very fashionable items there for both my sons. We shop there first
when looking for a particular item. As for
sports or extra-curricular activities, I always try to carpool with
someone to save on gas. I also ask that my sons do 'extra' chores
for payment for a particular outing. If they want something bad
enough, they will help pay
for their way." ~ Anggie
"I have a
twelve-year-old girl who is very cost-conscious for her age and is a great
saver. Recently she has developed a sense of fashion and loves to
buy clothes, jewelry, CDs, etc., as well as an interest in going to
special events that cost money. In an effort to eliminate any
battles about what I will and won't pay for and to teach her how to handle
her money responsibly, I began giving her a monthly allowance of $100.
That amount may seem high, but she pays for all of her clothes,
activities, gifts, and even any long distance calls she makes. It has
eliminated her asking for things and she has gotten even better at finding
bargains on items that she likes. The best part is that she has learned
that there are choices to make and she usually makes wise ones...and her
savings rate has increased! Before I felt like I was constantly
saying, 'No,' to her requests; now she says, 'No,' to herself." ~
Kimberly
Editor's Note: Thanks to these
readers for taking time to respond!
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