How much have you saved for your kids future?

[workworry1]

Just wondering. Ds is 7 and we've managed 15k between savings from dh and I and gps birthday and Xmas money

I was reading that if he wants to go uni I would need 80k for him to leave debt free so that doesn't sound anywhere near enough

Agree with what a previous poster has said re: overpaying mortgage.

No idea if DS will want to go to Uni eventually (and speaking as someone who works in HE, I'm not convinced Uni is always the right option.) However, my plan is to be mortgage-free by the time he is 15 to free up the finances.

Our DC each have a few thousand they inherited when very young. That's it! Everything else is in our name. If either of us were to lose our jobs, we may need all the money we have to continue to pay the mortgage. Various other things may happen which would require us to need our savings. If nothing untoward happens, we should be able to help the DC with Uni and other things but will decide at the time if it's appropriate and how much we can afford.

This. I'd give my children the world if I could but we just aren't in any financial position to save from them just yet (aged 3 and 5). This is in no way a criticism of those who can at all and I'm derailing slightly but wanted to add in a quick two pence for anyone else who is reading this and feeling all those negative feelings and like they've some how failed their children.

In the past I have avoided these threads because that feeling of failure is like a slap to the face but (with lots of CBT support) I'm trying to look at it another way. They are loved beyond measure, have a safe home and a happy life. At the minute we can't give them a lot financially but that in no way equates to failure. Hopefully in the future that will change. Please also remember that people who aren't able to save substantially are also unlikely to add to these threads so the response are skued and its easy to seem like the worst parent in the world because you can't do it.

Just realised my quote didn't work at all!

Above in response to

I have £10 in my current account and £20 in my other. 4 pence in my savings account and dc have the £10 they got from ggp last week. Thankfully we live in Scotland so uni is free to a point but these threads always make me feel like such a failure. Quite sure dc won't be the only ones in this position leaving school though. One of the main reasons for it is living in a great school catchment and trying my best to give them something like the same opportunities as their peers from much wealthier families

I put a pathetically small amount in their accounts each month - DD has a child trust fund, but those were scrapped by the time DS came along so he has a Child ISA. They both got about £4k from my grandfather before he died and they will get a share of the proceeds (between them, my two nieces and my nephew) of his flat when my step-grandmother dies or moves out. The latter is likely to happen in the next few years as sadly her eyesight and memory are going, so she will probably have to go into some sort of supported housing (NB, my granddad left other money to support her care).

Nothing, really. They are now late teens/early 20s. We have never saved money for them.

This thread has reminded me that I must move DD's money to an ISA as her brother's one is worth a lot more!

I hate threads like this. Surely anyone with an ounce of self-awareness would realise that a question about 'whether £15k is enough to have saved for your DC future' is going to make those that are struggling to put food on the table feel absolutely dreadful?

With regards to uni fees, it doesn't make any financial sense to pay the fees upfront, rather than take out a student loan. Martin Lewis has lots of info about this on his website.

I was reading that if he wants to go uni I would need 80k for him to leave debt free

Why would you need anything?
Your son will be an adult. It's up to him to work and save up to go to university, work whilst there to lower his debts, and earn afterwards to pay off his loan.

@VioletCharlotte that really only applies to the U.K. not everyone on here is based in the U.K.
I left university debt free so I would like my dc to have the same

It is ridiculous to save up for university fees. There’s no need. The student takes out a student loan. The parent only gets involved if they need to pay the top-up portion of maintenance- and that is based on your income at that point. By all means, save upfront for that if you think you’ll have to contribute.

The student doesn’t HAVE to take out a loan...I would rather mine didn’t. We are not in the U.K.

Meanwhile back in the real world ....

I am in the UK but did not grow up here. I don't want my dc to leave university with debts either and will be paying for everything if all goes to plan.

Student loans are de facto an insidious tax on their income and a disincentive to becoming a higher rate tax payer. It saps the joy out of their pay increases. It is stupid to take out a student loan on the basis that they could earn so little they don't pay it back. Why bother with university if people aim so low. I have a lot of faith my dc will earn enough to have to pay it back and hence don't want that 6% (or whatever it is) interest dead weight on their loan.

Most people don’t go to university with the aim of being a higher rate tax payer, or to become wealthy. They have different aims altogether.

daisypond in that case it is a waste of a tertiary education and tax payer's money that these people get into debt with no expectation to get a high paying job or to repay the student loan. Don't see the point in that. Far too many graduates not making use of their degrees and seeing debt as normal.

Teachers, nurses, social workers, librarians all need degrees. There are very few high paying jobs. My job needs a degree- and most staff went to Oxford or Cambridge and have masters or PhDs - none are higher rate taxpayers.

50p
I did only find out I was pregnant on Friday though, so...

@daisypond

In Ireland those jobs are all very well paid and they can be higher rate tax payers.
Teacher- 36k to 60k+ (That’s classroom, no extra responsibilities)
Nurses- (are actually not well paid but start at 29k, can earn up to 45k as ward nurse) public health nurse up to 56k, clinical nurse up to 64k.
Social worker- start at 25k, earn up to 56k
Librarian-€41,662 rising to €50,357 depending on length of service, county librarian earns from €67,160 to €88,385.

The thing is Ireland has cheaper university costs and ppl will stay home throughout university if they can!

Is the loan kids can get to cover tuition fees means tested?

No. Tuition loan is the same for everyone.

In england tuition fees loan is available to all. Maintenance loan has a minimum available to all then a means tested amount to the maximum. Based on household income not parental. So if your partner (as rp) when your child goes to uni is not their parent it is based on you and your partners income not the parents joint income iyswim

In Ireland you get student loans from your bank. Anyone can get it. We have a grant system that is means tested.
Fees here are €3k per term. You don’t have to pay them upfront you can pay in installments.

People doing socially useful jobs “pay back their debt to the taxpayer” in other ways, not necessarily financial. And even if they don’t have that sort of job either, the fact that they are employed in whatever job they do means they are self-supporting, also not relying on the taxpayer.

NOT 3k per term sorry, 3k per year.