Good Financial Habits for Kids

It’s never too soon to teach your youngsters good money management skills. Statistics show that children today have more disposable income than ever before...and they’re spending at a rapid rate. Of course, spending is easy; but learning to save is crucial for their success in later life.

If you haven’t yet opened a savings account for your child, do it now. For the month of November only, Alamo Federal Credit Union will deposit the $5 minimum to open the account and all you pay is a $1 membership fee for members under the age of 12. After you have opened the account, show your children how to make their money grow. Here are some guidelines that will help:

GUIDELINES TO LAST A LIFETIME

• Help your children set savings goals.
• Choose realistic goals. These may include making weekly or monthly deposits, or saving a specific amount over a period of time, or saving to purchase a special item.
• Encourage them to save 15% of allowance, earnings, or cash gifts.
• Use AFCU’s on-line calculators to show your children how money grows when it earns dividends. Visit our website, www.alamofcu.org and click on “Calculators.”
• Show you value your children’s efforts by rewarding good savings habits, and we will reward them as well by making them members of our AFCU’s “Kid$ Club.” As a member of the Kid$ Club, your youngster will be eligible for numerous discounts, prizes, and games giving them the opportunity to be awarded for developing good savings habits.

Regularity is the key. A child who gets “hooked on” building wealth through saving is less likely to get “hooked” into debilitating credit card debt later on.