Pocketmoney Discussion Thread

wherediditallgo

I'm with those who don't pay for doing basic household chores, but will give some money for anything over & above that. Anyone living in the home should be contributing to it - even if they do something badly, at least they're trying & they'll get better with enough practice.

I'm supposed to be having my nephew coming to stay for at least 4-6 months next year. He's 15 & will have left school by then, & there have been the most unbelievable discussions about what I'll be paying for, what I'll expect him to do in my home & what I'll expect of him in terms of getting a part-time job. I've had more e-mails & calls from him about this particular issue than everything else combined in all his years on earth. He's had it relatively easy back in Australia, with all his part-time earnings to keep for himself, plus AU$10pw from his mum, plus her paying for essentials. He hasn't quite understood a PS3 & other computer gadgetry aren't essentials, & she's a bit slow on the uptake too on that score, so he usually ends up getting his way. He was desperate to come back here for a while after leaving school while he decides whether to go to TAFE or not, but the stay is losing its attractiveness since he found out he won't be spending his time with his feet up playing with the tv remote & games, in between doing the same round at his friends' homes.

sunnyflower

We have never given our kids money for housework / chores. They have been getting pocket money for a few years, but I am a firm believer that everyone should do their bit around the house anyway, (BIT being the operative word when it comes to my kids contribution) :mad: It's part of family life.

One of my boys has asked me several times if I'll pay him for this that and the other, my reply is "no-one pays me to do jobs, so why should you get paid!!? :rolleyes:

In a few years your daughter will be old enough for a paper round, dog walking etc anyway. You'll probably help her with that (like we do with ours; we don't see any of their money!!)

bestpud

I think it's ok to pay for specific jobs at her age, but not for general courtesy jobs iyswim.

I would expect mine to pick up after themselves and clean their own rooms etc for nothing.

However, paying for other jobs is a good way to show them money has to be earnt, I think.

What is she like at vacuuming (sp?)? Some are better than others!

Others are: emptying bins, clearing/laying the table, dusting, cleaning the sink - bathroom or kitchen? Small jobs are best I find - things they can do relatively quickly, but the results are obvious. And two smaller jobs is better than one big one - or it was for my children at that age anyway.

morg_monster

Is there anything you really hate to do? If so - pay her to do that (if its something she's capable of at that age!). From the age of 11 I was doing almost all the ironing in our house of 4, because my mum really hated it! I'd just stand there and watch the telly while doing it and got paid per hour, brilliant. But again, it depends if she can learn to do it to a decent standard and do it safely. My bro and I had to stack/unstack dishwasher, wash and clear up after dinner, help out in the garden, hoover our own rooms and clean our bathroom etc. We didn't get paid for any of that (got pocket money though) but I loved it when I got paid for the ironing! My brother got paid to mow the lawn once he was big enough to manoeuvre the mower (again, something dad was only too glad to give up!).
Doing it this way means you are actually benefiting more from her help, and so its worth paying, but again, choose something that she can do well and that you don't just think "hm I could do it in half the time and twice as well..."!!

pulliptears

Mine dont have specific jobs, but they have £20 a month each on condition they help around the home.

DS (15) will keep his own room clean, clean the bathroom and vacuum, clean the kitchen, wash dishes occasionally and generally help to tidy.

DD (10) will keep her own room clean, wash dishes occasionally, keep the conservatory clean and also just generally help to tidy.

I'm a full time student, so the kids helping me is great and saves me a lot of time. I don't use set tasks really, if I see a mess somewhere I'll just ask one of them to help tidy it.

Alikay

I never paid any of our kids to help out around the house, or had a rota or list of chores. They all have different skills: DD is a fantastic cook and volunteers to do the dinner a couple of times a week, DS2 always helps out with gardening, building flat-pack stuff, trips to the loft etc (anything blokey!) and DS1 does less of the physical helping, but always finds everyone great deals on the net, e-bays the unwanted bits and bobs and deals with any techie and computer issues.

On the occasions where we all need to pull together (major clean-up, family visiting etc) I expect everyone to help without questioning.

moo2moo

My eldest (aged 8) has negotiated pocket money at £2 per week which she would like to save up to buy things she would really like but which are outside the acceptable limits for weekly treats. In return she is willing to forgo magazines (which she rarely gets) and sweets (again a very rare treat).

We've spent the morning discussing various options ranging from the piggy bank in her bedroom to a bank account. She has decided she would like to open and operate her own bank (or building society) account but having told her that as a "thank you" for opening the account the bank will give her a welcome gift as she is lending them her money I can't seem to find anything worth having (me and my big mouth!).

The very shortlist is as follows:

Co-op bank - elephant money box and £2 per year bonus (on reaching £50 balance)

Bradford & Bingley - Penguin book each year (providing no more than 3 withdrawls are made).

Has anyone spotted any other accounts out there with freebies? I have found a few accounts with interest rates of 7-10% but as shes unlikely to have a balance of more than £100 this isn't a priority at this stage. I would rather that she saves regularly and sees some form of incentive for doing so rather than waiting a year to gain an extra £1.

I got hooked on the NatWest pig account as a child and religiously paid in everything I could get my hands on in order to get the next pig and the next and then the next until I finally had the whole family (although I did have to arrange a loan with the Bank of Dad in order to get the last pig before the deadline... and was penalised with an interest charge on this by him). I was rather hoping there was something similar currently available

Lynsey76

Have a look here:

https://www.myeggnest.com/info/freebies.aspx

although if you can't find anything that would suit her maybe you should go for the higher interest rate - more use in the long run- and buy her a gift yourself. You could say it came from the bank if you wanted.
Hope this helps.

pinkshoes

Check to see if any of your local banks are doing any competitions to entice young savers. I remember "winning" a Natwest account when I was around 7, with £10 in it, and a few other goodies too. It worked, because I still bank with Natwest!

You might want to read this about young savers:
http://www.thisismoney.co.uk/saving-and-banking/article.html?in_article_id=420847&in_page_id=7

it's a little out of date, but could give you a good starting point on what to look for!

Violetta_2

Bit of info on this brill website I've found run by a very clever bloke.