MONEY MORAL DILEMMA. Should Terry and June charge their son rent?

Talent

They're your kids! Don't charge them rent. If you brought them up properly they will pay you in other ways. Free lifts to the airport for your hols. Put on a slap up meal for you for no reason. etc etc. We never charged our 5 daughters one cent. There was one proviso that they all knew about though, once they left home there was no coming back, except for visits.

keyholekate

Yes he should pay rent. It will make him be aware of the cost of things. If his Mum and Dad are not in need of the money they could put it away for him until he is ready to buy his own place. :rolleyes:

hayleythedaisy

If it were me and I could afford to not charge him, then depending on what he was earning I would not charge rent for the same period of time that the others had it for free. If he was earning shed loads then I'd take rent and save it. I don't see why just because he choose a different route to employment he should be at a disadvantage to his siblings. Its the parents own fault for not charging the siblings in the first place. Just because they are students doesn't mean they shouldn't pay their way too!!!

Phyre_Faerie

Reading the topic it seems this young lad is what 16/17? he's got off his !!!! and got work but at his age hes very unlikely to be pulling in a decent wage in fact probably not a lot more than his student brothers did in grants. I agree he should be paying council tax and utilities but surely he deserves the same kind of helping hand his brothers got when they were his age. I left home when I was 16 and it was worse than hard and if his parents have the oppotunity to make this better for him they should. Knickers to all this teach him the value of money crap. It will teach him nothing if he ends up in massive debt with a ruined credit record from a young age if all he can do is struggle to make ends meet and not have the chance to do what his brothers did and live a little.

jon_k

No don't make him pay rent for the same amount of time the other two kids had it rent free (commercial rent afterwards). As previous posters have said, it was a choice to go to university for the supposedly higher salary this brings in the long run. I doubt the parents will be charging the other two £600pm in twenty years time to make up the shortfall!

Preston should pay for all bills on the property including council tax, utilities etc.

The lad is 18 so is old enough to make his own decisions/mistakes. By all means advise him on what to do with the additional money but forcing your kid to live on 8p baked beans when smugly storing him up a "nest egg" is 1) cruel and 2) a mistake from a taxation point of view.

It's a different situation but I remember when me and my brother were living at home after uni: I worked full time and my brother (through choice) part time. I had to pay double what my brother did, which I found (and still find) totally unfair. Having said that, can't complain too much as it was considerably under market rates

Augustus_the_Strong

Fair enough to make the lad pay. Why should the parents lose income they could be getting otherwise? If he doesn't like it, he could always sign up for a course of further education.

fayraz

He should not have to pay for anything, if he thinks his parents need some extra cash now and again he can decide whether to help them out.

kevanf1

Absolutely he should pay. However, if it leaves him financially broke or close to then the parents should adjust the amount that is paid. In the long term it will teach the son how to budget properly in the real world. After all, what would he do if his parents were sadly killed in a freak accident? Ok, so he and his siblings may get some insurance but this will not last for ever and then he would be on his own.

He should pay his way but without being exploited for profit.

Take care.

Kevan

RuthnJasper

Well, even though T&J weren't making any money when their other boys used the flat, the lad in this case SHOULD make a contribution, as he will be earning. He should also pay for his utility bills. The parents should charge a minimal rent - ideally proportional to what he is actually earning, and give him a monthly or annual statement.

And the boy should consider himself lucky that he will have sympathetic and understanding (hopefully) landlords who will accept such a low rent. It's London for goodness' sake! My cousin used to have an excellent job with the Bank of England, and he was still only able to afford a complete sh*t-hole of a flat in central London. Wish I had parents who had a flat to rent out to me in London!

bradsy69

no i dont think he should pay rent, council tax and other bill is different , we all have to pay them. i have 2 boys over 18 and they live at home free. but pay for there phone bills and Sky TV which they have in there rooms.