This week I've noticed the same article about adding children to a credit card account several times. I thought we were supposed to be learning money management, debt elimination, and how to use credit to boost our score…but I don't see the benefit of the article or the practice. Who knows how good the kids will be at maintaining their parent's budget? Who really wants to find out?
Maybe those should be a couple of the next survey questions:
Do you trust your child(ren) to have access to a credit card when YOU (the parent), are responsible for ANY/ALL purchases made by your child(ren)?
On a scale of 1 to 5, how much would you enjoy calling your financial institution to cancel all the purchases? 
Just cosign on a loan. It's the same thing, smh.
I'm sorry if I'm being pessimistic. I just think the article is counterproductive to financial freedom… but this is just my opinion.
I think I have a pretty good idea about those feelings, Kristen. For the most part my budget is now on autopilot, but it took a long time to get to a point where I'm using last month's money to pay this month's bills. When I was padding my savings categories (kids, medical, charity, etc.) for the remainder of this year while also contributing an amount each month to be ready for next year it was really hard to see the light at the end of the tunnel. It felt like I wasn't making any progress. Once each account was fully funded and I also got my checking account to a point where the money for the entire month's bills are there on the first, I started to breathe easier. I found it helpful to look at my budget every 2-3 days at first, numbers don't lie and it was reassuring to see, on paper, that everything will eventually work out if I remain patient and focused.
@Candice When I was a young adult my mom added me to her credit card as a user. I never actually used the account but it is the oldest account on my credit report. She left me on there a long time and always made payments on time. When I was ready to start using my credit score, I had a few years of established credit which looked good. But I was never in charge of the account or allowed to make purchases. I might do the same for my kid when the time is right. If I planned on letting my kid use a card to make purchases, it would most definitely be a pre-paid/reloadable debit and not credit card.
@Katie Getting to one month ahead is one of my goals right now. I'm up to about two weeks ahead right now (I get paid semi-monthly). As I've worked on getting debt paid down and reducing spending, I keep adding a few days ahead here or there. December is my goal to get ahead as that's when I will get my yearly bonus at work (as long as the company is doing well fingers crossed). That bonus usually went almost always to debt and then the cycle would begin anew, but not this year!
I love budgeting and budgeting tools. Right now I am using You Need A Budget and I love it. I check in with my budget just about every day because I am a weirdo who likes numbers.
@Candice P: Personally, I wouldn't. But I think that for those considering allowing a child to be an authorized user…from my understanding most the times those people are already at the "financial freedom" stage (whatever that might mean for them…basically being knowledgeable and responsible with their finances) and wanting to help their child[ren] have a head start on credit. I know at least for me, loans are not always applicable even with a cosigner because "I want a loan to build credit" isn't always an acceptable reason for the lender.
Sara B's Mom seems to have the right idea for using a co-authorized card.
@Katie P: Thank you for the support if by sharing similar experiences.
I don't know if they do this anymore, but when I was 16 they offered credit cards with a parent co-signed and my dad did that for me. I was always responsible with it and now, same as Sarah, I've got years more "history" than I would've had if not for that. It was very helpful with my first car loan at age 18 to already have established credit. I've been thinking about it for my kids but I think my dad took a huge gamble on that decision, and it just happened to work out well. He didn't teach me anything or advise me on how to use it, leaving the research to me. If I do it for my children there will be a lot of talk around it and as long as my name is connected with the account I will be a part of every decision to make a purchase with it.
Since student loan debt has come up on this thread before I thought I'd share a podcast that I heard yesterday. "How to Money" podcast episode #397. I don't have student loans but they interviewed a woman who made that subject her specialty.
I am beginning to enjoy budgeting. Especially
since I don't feel the need to check the account constantly because I'm finally no longer feeling the extreme pain of financial crises, but aches every now and again. 
My son is ten and has a limited concept of how money really works. Maybe I should give him the opportunity to start making small purchases of underwear and socks, lol.
I would DEFINITELY have to go with a pre-paid card and I'm strongly considering it (at 16 or when he gets his first job). This way he can learn about spending, taxes, and staying under budget all in one go.
Katie, you must ask Dad what made him confident in his decision… or did you prove trustworthy enough that he knew you wouldn't go overboard?
With all of that said, I'm happy the article was available for those willing and able to try it… I'm just not there yet. However, the article of today about estate planning and how that works spoke to me… I think maybe it's because everyone else seems to be hung up on college and 529 when I just want my child to do well. I went to college and I use my degree in my field of work but that may not be his dream. I want to give him a little cushion while making up his mind… especially when it seems that the coming generations need extra time to find their path.
I got a lot of use out of the estate planning article, too. I loved that it linked to the Investopedia website as well, that site is full of good information. I have to write weekly blogs for the competition I'm in and one of them, towards the end, will be on estate planning. I'm embarrassed that, having four children, I haven't started any sort of will, trust, guardianship, etc. I feel guilt but not shame because I realize that I can't change the poor decisions of the past, I just have to correct it now that I'm learning more.
That is amazing!! I really hope you do well in the competition. As far as guilt, get rid!! We can't change the past but we can learn from it and make better decisions when planning for the future. I have the trust established but I guess I need to work on a will.
I only have one child and I've already told the person who is designated as the custodian of the finances if something should happen to me but other than that I'm not sure what else really needs to be done.
I need to get on the estate planning! Its one of the things I am behind on. I have my beneficiaries set on everything, but I do not have my end of life stuff/etc. ready. I keep putting it off mostly just due to other things taking priority.
I forgot my headphones this morning at home, so no podcasts for me today but I will def check that one out. @Katie
Hello, everyone!
So, today's article is about lifestyle inflation (something I'm almost certain we've all heard about before), and I've been waiting for this article to become a daily so that I can share a little fun fact.
"Lifestyle inflation" is also known as the "Diderot Effect." Denis Diderot was an 18th century scholar/philosopher who upon receiving a gift eventually fell into financial ruin. This is explained/cautioned through an article he wrote titled: "Regrets on Parting with My Old Dressing Gown." Though it might take a few read-throughs due to vocabulary, I found it a wonderful parable and now prefer "Diderot Effect" over "Lifestyle inflation."
As for estate planning, I wish I hadn't missed that day as I think I may have benefited from that article. My excuse-driven mind keeps trying to say that I have time (or not really that many assets to my name), but I do want to at least have some structure for after-death wishes.
Happy New Week of savings… and managing the Diderot Effect.
Hope everyone is doing well! My focus this week is just the classic goal of not spending money. It hasn't been too rainy in my area so I'm saving money by riding my bike for my commute. It takes about an hour but the scenery makes it go by faster.
@Katie P. - Enjoy your ride and the scenery!
@Kristen I had never heard of the Diderot Effect before but I have lived it when I was younger. I bought the fancy designer dresses, shoes, purses, etc because I thought I had to working in an office. Then one day I had a moment where I realized I was wasting money on things that didn't really enrich my life for the price I was paying. And that really weren't worth the price I was paying or the debt I was accumulating. I do occasionally purchase expensive clothing/items, but I buy it from a small designer/something handmade on etsy so I am supporting an actual person with my purchase. Makes me feel better about spending money on something. I now sometimes struggle with spending on myself, kinda did a 180 there :) but if I have to I try to spend my money wisely.
Keeping on track and moving forward! We did have to replace a battery in our other car, so the little I had been able to put back into savings this month after our last car repair had to come back out. Life happens but both cars are now running smoothly so no complaints there!
I wish everyone happy savings for the weeks ahead!! I will have to miss a few conversations 
but I hope to learn more when I return. In the meantime, happy saving, spending and donating.
@Lettie, it rained they said it wouldn't, but it did.
@Sarah, that's a good lesson to learn - one that many people never do! It's great that you found a way to modify your purchases to something that matches more closely with your values, too. As far as taking money out of savings to pay for unexpected expenses, well, that's fantastic that you had it to use and didn't have to go into debt or pay interest on a loan for it!
@Katie I'm jealous of your rain! I'm in the west; its hot, dry and smoky. I probably live close enough to my work to bike (~3 miles), but 60% of the year its just too dang hot to get to work and not be covered in sweat. My company is small, so we don't have any locker rooms or anything I could use to freshen up.
I am currently looking to replace my paid off commuter car with an electric vehicle. There is an incentive in my state to switch and we recently installed a large enough solar system on our house to cover overnight charging. But we already have one car loan for our newer car (which should get mostly paid off by December), I can squeeze out another year or two out of my commuter car to save for a down payment.
That's a good plan, Sarah, and it's smart that you're saving for a down payment until the other car is paid off rather than rushing into something!
Hi, Jason!
Happy Friday, everyone! It's not a Payday Friday for me but hopefully it is for some of you! Make sure to remember to put some of that in savings if it is 
Happy Friday to you as well! Today is my day off! Going to try to make it as low spend as possible this weekend :)
We need more ways to earn points.
