What money advice did you get when growing up?

beanielou · 28 November 2006 at 11:27AM

Interesting thread.
I cannot remember getting any money advice at all!
We dident have loads of money but we got by!

immoral_angeluk · 28 November 2006 at 11:36AM

My mum and dad had a lot of debt. My dad was the type of person who would try to swindle all the money he could by claiming for benefits he wasn't really entitled to but 'exaggerating' his details (Claiming he was disabled when he was fine etc, claiming a lower income than he was actually on etc.). Also he would take most people to court and sue them for things, even if he was in the wrong. We spent all of my childhood moving from one house to the next, even moving countries 4 times to try and run away from everything. Even then he was never in the wrong....

I'm just glad to say that I won't be following his example.

pbfhpunk · 28 November 2006 at 11:56AM

When I was growing up I'd get very annoyed about how much money my parents had compared to how much money they'd spend on us, but then as my dad always says, he's well off for a reason - he doesn't spend any money!

Besides if I'm in real money hell then my folk's have bailed me out a couple of times, I don't use it as a safety net though as along with the money I also get hours of lectures and hassle!!

Gemmzie · 28 November 2006 at 11:58AM

My parent's have never been the greatest money managers. Mainly due to my Dad's ridiculous overspending which went from treating a good wage as if he were still a single young man when in fact he had a mortgage and two very young children. To leaving that job and continuing to live on that lifestyle.

So I've learnt from his mistakes to take responsibility for my financial matters. You can't just up and leave a job because you don't like it, you have to think ahead, cover bills etc.

Mum's fairly good but it's always come down to not enough for the lifestyle we live, which isn't exactly extravagant but seems to be way beyond our means. So from her I've learnt to budget, I spose.

I don't really know where I learnt the rest of my money sense really... working at the bank taught me a lot, and then just generally reading around the internet and picking things up. Glad I have though.

climbgirl · 28 November 2006 at 12:01PM

My parents were very good with money, they didn't earn a lot when I was growing up but we never felt deprived as kids. In hindsight I can now see how much they scraped and scrimped to give us a good life but as a kid I never noticed it.

They never had debts, worked hard to save for everything they bought and have got themselves into a pretty good position now that they're coming up to retirement.

As kids we never got pocket money, things were bought for us when we needed them (emphasis on the need!) and we had to work for our "fun" money. I've had a part-time job since I was quite young, paper rounds, shop work, you name it! I think that more than anything has taught me the value of money - how hard you have to work to get it and what things actually cost in terms of earning time!

And it's rubbed off on me - I've never really been in debt (apart from a student loan which was paid back 6 months after leaving uni) and I'm working on getting myself into a good position for when I'm a bit older. One other thing they taught me was that you'll never be in a better position to save money than when you're young and have no house, no family etc. And I'm trying to bear that in mind!

I do think that having jobs when we were young did us the world of good. it's certainly taught me the value of money and a good work ethic.

LookingAhead · 28 November 2006 at 12:09PM

I grew up in a one parent family (till I was about 10 then Mum met my StepDad but he was rubbish when it came to money).

There was naff all money to be honest but Mum didn't accumulate debts, she was good, I don't know how she did it to be honest!

Anyway, she instilled in me, when it came to friends "Neither a borrower or lender be" - and I have adhered to that all my life, except on one occasion when an ex loaned me money for a second hand car. When I couldn't pay him back one week (I offered to pay double the next) he went wild! So I'd never do it again. She was right.

Unfortunately though her other advice of dividing money into thirds (a third for spending a third for bills & a third for saving) never got put into practice. I regret that now.

The bit about borrowing.....needless to say I should have extended that to financial organisations, but I didn't...b*gger! :rolleyes:

That was about it. No advice on credit cards (Mum has never had one) or overdrafts (Mum had never had one). School gave zero advice on money. I left secondary school in 1987 and went straight out to work at 16.

The debt started two years later and has hung around like a bad smell ever since. :eek:

Becles · 28 November 2006 at 12:09PM

My parents borrow all the time. They keep buying a new car each every couple of years on HP, and have to cash in the old loan to take a new one out.

They did a number of home improvements when I was a teenager - new fitted kitchen, conservatory, new bathroom. All that was paid for by increasing the mortgage.

In more recent years, they've increased the mortgage again to extend the garage, replace the central heating system, block pave the drive, build a porch and have double glazing throughout.

I was like that and would use credit cards and loans to buy what I wanted now.

Then I became a single parent and had to count every single penny and I realised it wasn't right to keep borrowing.

Nowadays I'm more savvy and will save up for things I really want, rather than just put things on the card on a whim.

wilson_lfc · 28 November 2006 at 12:13PM

my parents are fantastic with money,
the only thing they advised me on was, if you cant afford it dont buy it.

to this day i have listened, and have remained debt free, thank god.

i am 28, and have two morgages which i want to pay off early!! hopefully this site will help me.

good luck to all of you who are fighting and winning in clearing your depts!!!

Valentina2 · 28 November 2006 at 12:29PM

My mum was spending hers and my dad´s money as soon as it was coming in and I used to think that huge amounts of groceries, new clothes every month were "the norm" and ended up getting into a bit of a mess and had to learn thre hard way that you have to budget, cannot spend all you earn, or treat yourself all the time.
If I ever have a child, I would like to teach them good money skills and encourage them to save their pocket money if they want to buy something so they learn the value of money and hopefully won´t make the same mistakes as I have- mistakes I am still paying off years later.

Brassic · 28 November 2006 at 1:50PM

My parents got into a huge mess, but it didn't seem to occur to them to clue me up on the pitfalls they'd fallen into. I remember my mum being obsessed with turning lights out however, and forever telling me about how much debt they were in. But since they still spent a lot, and didn't tell me why or how to avoid it, it never really seemed like a big deal!

However, I take full responsibility for my own debt - and for paying it back, even if it is slowly but surely.

What money advice did you get when growing up?

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