Teaching your children about money - what one lesson would you want them to learn?

NightLark I do agree with you. There are times when the adventure has to happen but it has to be within your future power to pay it off or family that can get you out of aggro before you go bankrupt. I still regret not going to Burmuda to see a man who looked like Errol Flynn and was as lovely inside as he was out. I would have had to go in cheap old clothes and counted my pennies at the bar. I also travelled mega cheap by Inter-railing and staying in very cheap hotels. There has to be a limit to everyones spending. Travelling and working must be the other option.

Live within your means
Save for the future
The size of your paycheck does not reflect your self worth

• Pay cash for everything (or use a debit card). If you can't afford what you want, save up until you can pay cash (stops impulse buying).

• If you have a credit card, pay it off in full every month. Only have one or two credit cards. Decline all other offers.

• One of the first things you should do is save enough cash for 6-12 months living expenses, and set it aside. Use it ONLY if/when an emergency arises.

• Your only debt should be your mortgage. Shop for the best interest rate. If possible, overpay on your mortgage every month.

• Get a mortgage you can comfortably afford, instead of the maximum you are allowed

• If you receive a windfall (inheritance, bonus, lottery win), use it to pay down your mortgage

• As soon as your mortgage is paid off, take the monthly mortgage payment amount and start putting it into a savings/investments/pension.

• Financial security = peace of mind and freedom.

onecosk?
i can't type - onesock!

onecosk- i know what you mean, but i believe that you lend money to a friend, or to anyone, then you should consider it a gift, because then if you get it back, it's a bonus, but don't bank on it.

my dad's just quoting an old saying - he doesn't lend money as a rule, but he will give his children money if we need it.

How a credit card works

You see, nickelbabe, I disagree with the second part of that wholeheartedly.

Many a time I have leant money to a friend in need. It's nice to get it back but if I don't then I just figure they need it more than me.
To be in a position to give, to share, is to me the greatest gift of all.

If my children grew up happy and successful but tight with money then I would feel like I failed them.

My Granny used to say, '£10 is not always worth £10!' She was right; to me it's a nice coffee and cake in Starbucks but what is it to the mother struggling to make £2.50 last until the end of the week?

that the most important thing is life is to be happy not to earn the most, or afford the best.

Just because they will give it to you doesn't mean you can afford it

(a lesson my Dad has still not really learned)

Think to yourself 'will I get £X worth of joy out of this?'.

my dad always taught me "don't spend what you haven't got"
and "neither a lender nor a borrower be"

both very important.
don't get into a cycle where you need credit - if you haven't got the money to buy something ,then don't buy it.
his only debt his whole life was his mortgage (and he paid that off in half the time - mortgages were cheaper in those days!)
and now he's retired he has money to spend, and is enjoying himself (and he was never miserly with money.)
and never lend people money, because you'll never get it back.

saving is important - if you want something, then saving up for it makes it feel sooo much more valuable - buying things on credit is why our society is so throw-away these days. and always have enough in savings to be able to pay for the most expensive thing in the house should it break.

oh, he also used £100 as his zero mark in his bank account - never went below £100, just in case a payment went out that he'd forgotten about or thought had cleared, or in case of emergency.

Don't be frightened of it.
Learn from an early age that if you want something that costs £1 and you get 50p pocket money then you can buy it NEXT week once you have your 2nd 50p.
That savings can be spent on something fun, it isn't always for boring things - therefore saving can = fun.

Also if you are getting into a pickle with your money, the quicker you talk to someone about it the easier it is fixed.

that supermarkets are evil, and will go to any lengths to con you - 'buy one, get one free' is NOT the same as '1/2 price'!

oh yes mayornaze, dont hide your debt from yourself or anyone really. be hones about how much you owe, thats the only way your going to be able to pay it all back

that money doesn't grow on trees

if you want something - you earn it

end of

honesty is best policy

that you have to get out there and earn it.

that an advert is, well, an advert. Not the whole and unvarnished truth. So when you see something you think you really, really want, stop and have a think about it, and about the motivation of all those nice people out there trying to sell you stuff (mortgages, new cars, oodles of lifestyle tat etc etc).

Perhaps I'm less cautious than the rest of the posters, but the one lesson I really want my children to learn about money is:

You can't take it with you when you're gone. Don't be afraid to use your money to enjoy yourself, you only have one life, and savings will mean nothing when you're dead.

I got an opportunity to travel the world once, if I was willing to leave that week. I packed in my job, got a £5,000 credit card, and off I went. Paid it back for YEARS afterwards, but never regretted it once, not even for a moment, best thing I've ever done. I want my children to have the same attitude to money - never let your debt stress you or get you down, it is only money and as long as you have your health, then you are very lucky indeed.

Write down what you spend in a week or month. Multiply by 52 or 12. Add on irregular costs (holidays, annual direct debits.

Be shocked at how much your lunch or whatever costs you a year.

Or do what I did and go into debt with a catalogue for 200 quid at age 17 when I was earning about 50 quid a week. It took me ages to pay off and shocked me into being thoughtful what I spend, and going into debt.

Know how much you have coming in. Know how much you have going out. Read your bank statements. Open your post. Be in control.

Also - if an offer looks too good to be true, it probably is, so think anbout it carefully.

Always remember that companies exist to make money, not to be nice to you.

Oh yeah, Banks are not your friend!

It's better to save for the things he wants rather then to lend money as by the time he's finished paying it off he could have paid for 2 of the item he wanted in the first place.

Read the paperwork. Then read it again. No good complaining about what the bank/insurance company have done when it was clearly in the policy documents you were given.

You see, I don't see all credit as evil - so not a lesson I will teach DD.

But I will ensure she knows the value of her money and that if she does borrow money then she has to ensure beforehand that she can pay it off.