Discussing financial matters with your husband or wife can be a tense situation, especially if your financial situation isn’t too good. If your partner has a different approach to financial matters from you, or even if they’re similar but have different priorities for money you save, then there is bound to be some conflict. Trent at the Simple Dollar has some talk tactics that should help your discussion work out better, including:

• Start off by talking about your financial goals and ideas for the future
• Focus on one issue per conversation (reducing spending, or retirement planning)
• Don’t make any accusations without admitting to some of your own faults at the same time
• Be realistic with expectations, and how much change you can expect - both from yourself and from your partner
• Decide on precise tasks for each of you to do before the next conversation (for example, researching retirement plan options)
• Consider what financial or material sacrifices you are willing to make (before you start talking)
• Don’t hide any spending secrets or unpaid bills from your partner - put all the financial story on the table
• If you have trouble talking about it calmly together, consider having the conversation in another way, such as by email

You can imagine the scenario: one partner is a big spender and the other a big spendthrift, and it’s a marriage doomed to arguments and conflict forever. Or is it? Some recent tips from Laura Rowley do at least provide some hope for couples who have major financial differences of opinion.

One suggestion is to seek the aid of a financial coach who can work with both partners to reach a compromise on your financial strategies. Since a lot of your financial approach to life can be a result of your childhood and family circumstances, it’s sometimes difficult to understand where your partner’s seemingly crazy ideas are coming from - a coach will help you both explain your thinking and work together to have a compatible outlook for future saving and spending.

Another helpful way to get partners on the same financial track is to use an effective tool to manage your money - for example, finding a good piece of budgeting and money tracking software that you can both use. Some of these tools, like Mvelopes.com, include a section for discretionary spending for each individual - for example, a clothing or computer game budget per month - which means that you can each buy something you like for yourself without feeling guilty, because it’s part of the agreed budget.

When you have a child, the big decision is how soon, or if at all, to return to the workforce. Of course, there are plenty of personal factors involved here, but one major influence is often the financial situation. But make sure you take into account all the costs before deciding whether or not returning to work makes sense from a financial viewpoint:

• Calculate child care costs: This can quickly reach into the thousands of dollars. Unless you’re really career-focused, you want to make sure you’re earning significantly more than you’re paying to put your child into child care. And in this case, more children make it more expensive.
• Calculate extra costs of being at work: For example, the quick coffee that you buy on your lunch break (even if you are frugal enough to bring your lunch from home); and the extras you need to be able to be at work, for example, work-style clothing. On top of that, factor in the costs of transport or commuting both to the child care center and to your place of employment.

Once you’ve gathered this information accurately, compare that to the income you will receive by returning to work - this makes at least one aspect of the decision a little more grounded in reality, because it’s not an easy decision for many parents to make.

1. Take a road trip: It now costs you less to put gas in your car while it will take more money to get your bags on a plane. The idea of spending hours in a car with howling kids might terrify you, but they are your kids and the howls of laughter can make it worth all your effort. The key to a successful family road trip is planning. Pick a travel route that connects interesting places at least 75% of your family will enjoy. MP3 and portable DVD players can be great to keep the kids quiet, but don’t rely on them the entire trip. Technology creep has led families to spend less and less time actually communicating. Just don’t expect anything miraculous to happen. Most family bonding happens when remembering a trip, not during it. (more…)
   

Wisebread.com has a tip for families suffering in the recession: send your kids out to work! Okay, it’s not quite as drastic as that, what they suggest is that now, and really at any time, there are quite a few benefits for your teenager in having a part-time job.

First of all, having a job can teach your teenager many life lessons early on - how to save money, how to be responsible, punctual and hard-working, and how to juggle commitments and responsibilities. And it can also help the family out if your teenager can earn their own spending money rather than totally relying on the parents.

But of course, you have to be careful. First, make sure all the legal requirements are met (for example, fourteen years old is the minimum working age across the United States, but many other local restrictions apply, like how many hours they can work in a week). Make sure that you set limits on working time yourself, so that your child doesn’t end up focusing more on the fun of earning money than on their schoolwork.

To help your teenager find a job, there are a few strategies including asking around amongst people you know, and dressing nicely to take a resume around to prospective employers in the neighborhood. And don’t forget that even seemingly mindless, boring jobs can be great life lessons for kids, so don’t overlook them.

College students and anyone who has just turned 18 are targets for credit card companies looking for new customers, but if your 18-year-old is either still living at home or is financially dependent on you and away at college, then the decision on whether or not they should get a credit card fairly lies more with the parents. A recent post at About’s Financial Planning site had a good discussion about the pros and cons of giving a teenager a credit card, and the end result: usually, the best answer is yes, sign them up.

But of course, there must be rules to go with their new found credit freedom, if parents are the ones who have to foot the bill. For example, it should be used to pay for something that the parents have already agreed to pay for (gas for the car, for example) or only in case of emergency.

One of the biggest benefits of getting your 18-year-old a credit card is that they can begin to develop some credit history. Length of credit is an important factor in calculating credit scores so if they are able to use a credit card without creating debt from a young age, that stands them in good stead. But the key thing is that they should treat the card as a bill that must be paid off in full at the end of every month.

photo credit: Material Boy

As a parent you are probably well aware that your child needs spending money from time to time. The question is: how much of an allowance does your child receive? This is up to you as a parent, and should be based on your beliefs, your child’s wants and needs, and of course, how much money you have. After all, if you don’t have enough money to give your child a large (or small) allowance you should stray away from this for the time being.

As noted above, it is your job to decide how much of an allowance to give your child as well as when they will receive this money. Some parents base this allotment on their child’s behavior or how many chores they do around the house. This is a great idea because it helps to teach your child that they need to do work in order to get paid.

But what if I don’t have a lot of money to give as an allowance? As you know, this is something you have to work into your budget. You should never feel obligated to give money that you don’t have. Instead, explain your situation to your child so they have a better understanding of what is going on.

How much of an allowance does your child receive? This can be a tough situation to deal with!

If you have children it is important that you give them the knowledge they need to succeed. And while “book smarts” are very important, you must remember to teach your children about money as well. This is not a subject that is always touched on in school so it is your job to do so at home. With the right money management skills your children will have the knowledge they need to get a good start with their financial life when the time comes.

It is not always easy to teach children about money management, but it is more than possible. As soon as your children begin to receive an allowance is when you should begin to talk to them about money management. This includes everything from how to save money, how to spend, and how to set a budget. Of course, you do not have to get to in-depth; you don’t want to confuse them.

The earlier you teach your children about money management the better. As long as they have an understanding of what money is and how the system works you should be able to start talking with them about money management and other financial topics.

The impact of the economic crisis on our kids is an important issue; but as well as explaining the situation carefully to children, it’s also essential to realize that they will have probably figured out a lot of what’s going on before you get around to telling them. Don’t forget that when you were a child, you understood a lot more of what was happening around you than your parents thought - well, these days kids are just as smart. (more…)

photo credit: Megapixel Eyes

Sometimes we forget that kids might hear all this horrifying news about the economic crisis - and listen to what the adults around them are saying too - but not really get what’s going on. Rather than get them feeling worried or scared, Yahoo suggests, parents should remember to chat to their kids about the economic crisis and make sure they understand the gist of things without feeling too anxious. (more…)