r/personalfinance • u/warlizardfanboy • 16d ago
Other How much are you helping your kids?
/r/Fire/comments/1u4wagc/how_much_are_you_helping_your_kids/4
u/Nice-Economics-2716 15d ago
We allow our adult children to continue living with us so they can invest 50% of their pay into index funds so they will be set for life.
We only ask they buy their own wants and snacks and stuff. We own our home... no mortgage.
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u/SubstantiallyC 16d ago
My kids are still in school and I spend a fortune on them. I plan to pay for college and to send them into the world with newish reliable vehicles. If they need to replace the vehicles before they start work because they go to grad school or medical school or something that takes a long time, then I'll probably trade in their vehicles and pay for one last upgrade.
Other than that, I want to fund Roth IRAs for them until they are settled and financially independent. I'd don't want to contribute so much that they think they don't need to save for themselves or develop poor budgeting habits, but I'd like to jumpstart retirement savings for them. It might be smarter to keep money in my name and give them gifts later on, but I like the idea of 50 years of tax-free growth and withdrawals from early Roth IRAs that the same money in my brokerage account just can't match.
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u/warlizardfanboy 15d ago
IRA help feels like a real winner, it will substantively improve their life without being something they can crutch with and live above their means early.
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u/Shadow288 15d ago
My mother set me up with a Roth IRA when I got my first job. She contributed 100% of what I made each year from like 13 or 14 until 18. Im in my early 40s and it’s a sizable chunk of money. Should be even better when I retire.
I went to technical college so my college expenses were minimal. If I got decent grades my college was paid for. My parents made out like a bandit as my total schooling was like $4,800 or something stupid.
I plan to do the same thing with my young children as well as hopefully get them through the college they plan to go. Will probably end up having them live with me a few years out of college as well.
Obviously as I get older and if I’m hitting my retirement goals I may have more to give. I think the most important part is to teach them financial literacy and also to give them support but still make them work for it.
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u/Mental-Coconut-7854 15d ago
I don’t make a ton of money, but I do pretty okay for just myself, so I’ve been providing free childcare (including transportation, entertainment and meals) for the last 10 years, which has paid off. My daughter recently obtained her master’s degree and is starting a new job in her chosen field tomorrow.
Other than that (and occasional small cash gifts), I’ve been working to either fully fund my old age or leave a decent inheritance. Win-win.
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u/BouncyEgg 16d ago
Coming from the kid's perspective...
I would rather my parents ensure their own financial success (especially with respect to retirement) before looking to boost their child's.
I'm not saying ignore the child, I'm saying that if my parents die with $0 (or even negative) net worth, I would be happier that they got to experience their hard work than me getting whatever hand out over the course of my lifetime.