Dear Dave,
My wife and I want to begin teaching our son how make a budget and live on one. He’s 16, and he has a part-time job and a hand-me-down car. Is this a realistic idea?
Mike
Dear Mike,
Your son is at a great point in life to learn how to make money behave. Even in his situation, when he’s still living at home, there are plenty of things he can include in a budget. There’s gas for his car, along with maintenance and insurance. He’ll need to save a little money – maybe even for college – and I’m sure he’ll want some spending cash, too.
Sit down, and teach him how to make a written budget by figuring out the upcoming month’s income and expenses ahead of time. Also, make sure he knows how to properly balance and reconcile his bank account.
It’s still your responsibility to provide him with the basic necessities at this point. But I love your willingness to teach your son how to handle money intelligently. The sooner he learns some basic money management principles, the sooner he’ll be able to handle his finances responsibly in the real world.
Dave
• Dave Ramsey is CEO of Ramsey Solutions. He has authored seven best-selling books, including The Total Money Makeover. The Dave Ramsey Show is heard by more than 14 million listeners each week on 585 radio stations and multiple digital platforms. Follow Dave on the web at daveramsey.com and on Twitter at @DaveRamsey.