3 Tips For Helping Your Teen Manage A Checking Account
When your teen lands his or her first job, opening a checking account might not be far behind. As a parent, this is a great opportunity for you to help your child learn financial responsibility. Before opening an account for your teen, here are some things you need to know.
Ensure Your Child Is Ready
Your child getting a job might not be the sign that he or she is ready to have a checking account just yet. Managing a checking account requires taking on responsibility and if your child has yet to show signs that he or she is ready, it could be best to wait.
One way of determining if your teen is ready is to measure how he or she handles working. For instance, if your teen is adamant about being at work on time and consistently works his or her shifts, then he or she is probably ready. However, if your teen is not embracing the responsibilities that come with working, consider waiting.
Walk Through Checking With Your Child
Even though your child has probably used your debit card in the past or been with you to the bank, it does not mean he or she fully understands banking. By not fully understanding the practice, he or she could make financial mistakes that could be costly to him or her.
Walk through using the debit card and tracking the transactions. Download the bank's app on your teen's phone so that he or she can monitor the account at any time. Encourage your child to keep all receipts until the transactions have cleared the account.
If the bank has text alerts about the account available, ensure your teen signs up for them. You want to enforce how important it is to be aware of what is going on with his or her account at all times.
Remember Your Teen Is Learning
While learning the ins and outs of banking, your teen could make mistakes. For instance, the occasional overdraft might pop up. It is important to remember that financial responsibility is learned and that it can take time for your teen to get the hang of managing his or her account.
When your teen does make a mistake with the account, discuss what happened and offer solutions to avoid that mistake in the future.
Maintaining a checking account can be a big step for your teen. Fortunately, with your guidance, he or she can successfully accomplish this.
For more information, contact Cheviot Savings Bank or a similar location.