Budget for teenage son

megela

My 13yo daughter has £20 allowance per month to buy all non-essentials. I pay for mobile phone (although if she goes over monthly limit - she pays), school uniform, underwear, toiletries etc, scouts, dancing and swimming club.

I will buy winter coat, boots etc, but will usually agree a reasonable budget, and if she wants something over that will pay for the balance herself. She pays for everything else, and is really good with money.

She is expected to help out at home and is able to earn a little extra in the hols by helping out at work with me.

When she sees how much money her friends waste on magazines and 'rubbish' and then go for more handouts she is shocked, and genuinely appreciates having control over her own money.

I'm not sure it'll work with her younger sister though as she is so tight with money she can't ever be persuaded to part with it and would end up wearing rags!:rotfl:

Lunar_Eclipse

megela wrote: »

My 13yo daughter has £20 allowance per month to buy all non-essentials. I pay for mobile phone, school uniform, underwear, toiletries etc

Same in our house, plus the equivalent activities (sport.)

It feels about right to us for now, and will be increased as she/they get older and take over management and budgetting of additional items.

girlatplay

My 12yo DD gets £10 per week. I pay it directly into her bank account for which she has a cashline card. I pay for her phone bill (if she goes over the allowance I do pay the extra but she is very good and keeps a close eye on it, it has only happened twice by 35p since I got the contract for her in October). I pay for any essential clothing, school dinners, toiletries, etc.

If she wants to go out with friends (cinema, ice skating, bowling, etc) she pays for that. Non-essential clothing, non-essential toiletries. We live within walking distance of the school so if she wants to get the bus, she has to pay for it.

zzzLazyDaisy

I haven't read the whole thread but my first thought is that around £7 a week is not going to be enough to buy all his clothes apart from school clothes, plus snacks etc. What if he has a growth spurt. He won't get much change out of a computer magazine and a couple of chocolate bars for that! What about shoes/trainers/winter jacket? Sorry, but in my view, it is unrealistic expecting a boy of that age to manage money in that way.

I would start out with smaller aims that mean something to him - paying for his own mobile phone, saving up his own spending money for holidays, buying his own computer games/music/snacks/whatever.

If the purpose of him having an allowance is to help him learn the value of money it has to mean something to him, and it has to be achievable.

I'd also encourage him to get a saturday job, or find some other way of earning extra money - maybe look for gardening work (I wish some one would look for gardening work round my way!)

Just my opinion.

ellisionthomas

Yeah it is quite okay as he is just 13, but his expenses gonna increase as he will grow.