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Financial Errors Which Will Affect Your Kid’s Future!

January 26th, 2017 Posted in kids and money, Money Tips
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It’s so important that we teach kids about the importance of finance as they are growing up. That way, we can feel assured they will go on to have debt-free lives in the future. And our children tend to follow in our footsteps, so we need to be good role models for them. As well as ensuring we leave enough money for them to have great lives, even when we aren’t around anymore. Therefore, don’t make these financial errors which will affect your kid’s future!

Spending too much of your savings

Before you take money out of your savings account, you need to think carefully about whether it’s the right decision. After all, its money which could be going towards your child’s future. And you don’t want to look back and regret wasting money on meaningless things. After all, it’s so easy to keep taking money out of this account when you need to buy things for your family. But for the sake of your kid’s future, only spend savings if you really need to. Otherwise, rely on your current account and keep your savings safe for the future.

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Taking on a too high mortgage

We often can get swept up in the moment when looking at a great house. And rather than thinking about the costs, we consider how perfect it will be for our family. But you don’t want to end up wishing down the line that you never bought the house as the mortgage repayments are too large. In fact, you might get in a position where you think ‘I need to sell my house fast’. After all, it’s so easy to get into debt if you miss a couple of repayments and then you might end up in the position of getting the house taken off you. And then your child’s future will be in jeopardy. Therefore, always think carefully before taking on a large mortgage. Get financial advice first to ensure you are making a wise decision when buying property.

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Not getting life insurance

A lot of people don’t get life insurance. They think they won’t need it as they are young, and the payments are too large. But if something happened to you, and you have no life insurance cover, your children might end up with little money for their future. After all, most life insurance plans will pay out a significant sum to you family if something unexpected happened to you. And that money will help your kids to continue having a good life. Therefore, you need to ensure you are covered for the sake of your child’s future. And for the sake of your kids, make sure you get a will too. After all, this will ensure your wealth and estate end up in the right hands after your passing. And as we said before, without one, your inheritance might not match your personal preference. Therefore, get this sorted at a solicitors as soon as possible.

And make sure you set up an account for your kid sooner rather than later. You can put money in there which they can use when they are old enough to put towards things like college and their first home!

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Teaching Children to Use Technology in Potential Future Businesses

January 25th, 2017 Posted in kids and money, teaching children about money, teaching kids about money
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King Arthur had the sword of Excalibur; Harry Potter had the sword of Gryffindor; and Bilbo Baggins had Sting. All three of these fictional characters needed their fictional weapons in order to become the heroes of their respective stories; and both you and your children can become the hero of your own stories by using the weapon at your disposal: modern day technology. If you’ve found yourself, of late, having a bit of a financial nightmare with your business, then fear no more because you can turn it into a dream; and if you want to teach your children about how to never get into such a situation: here are just a few technology services and tips that you can wield in order to save your business’s story from finishing before it’s even had the chance to reach it’s full potential, and maybe even pass on to your children to make them want to start their own.

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First of all, merchant services are pivota. A type of bank account that allows businesses to accept payments in multiple ways (typically debit or credit cards). With the pace of change in the UK payment market, for example, showing that over the past five years the debit card has proved itself as not only being the generally preferred method of payment in regards to frequency, but also the one that holds the most value in terms of total amount, it is paramount that if you haven’t done already, you utilise such a service. Not only will it save you from making those dreaded trips to the bank for bags of change, but it may save and even bring you custom. For example, a prospective customer may automatically think that you have technology driven payment facilities, such as a credit card reader, and subsequently not think to bring any notes or spare shrapnel with them. If they were to do so and then turn up at your till to find that they in fact couldn’t pay for their chosen products in one foul swoop of their debit card they may become annoyed, leave and never return to your business: losing you both a potential customer in the future and also their custom now.

Secondly, using electronic receipts or invoices is both easy to do and environmentally friendly. Most importantly for you, however: they help your business save money. By having electronic receipts instead of physical, paper ones you can completely cut out the use of any printing facilities, meaning either you can buy more paper for other things, or get rid of it altogether. Also, quite sneakily but not illegally, you obtain instant access to a prospective customer’s email address of which you can contact in the future if ever you offer a product that they may be interested in. Here are five apps that help you with the managing of the receipts.

So whether it’s you that needs the help with your dream, or you wanting to make sure that your children’s business dreams can come true, make sure to remember that technology is our friend!

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Teaching Teens The Financial Value Of Safer Driving

January 6th, 2017 Posted in kids and money
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Teens are natural risk takers and believe they will live forever – a nasty combination when they start learning to drive. They will also start to forget all the valuable lessons you have taught them about finances in the past  – temporarily, at least.

The result is a headstrong child driving in a lethal weapon, who knows that mom or pop will bail them out if they have a crash. And a young adult who doesn’t care about the fact you are worried about their safety.

So, how can concerned parents teach their kids about the value of driving safely – at all times? As I mentioned above, their innate confidence means they will think you are overly concerned. After all, they can drive perfectly well – the license they have in their wallet or clutch proves it, right?

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Forget about safety

First and foremost, forget about your safety concerns. Try and think back to when you were a teen. How many times did you listen to your parents when you went out for a night? What did you do when they told you to be careful or watch how much you drank? Or, when they asked you to make sure you drove slowly? It will go through one ear and straight out the other. You need a different tactic, and one that they know will impact them – money.

Talk about insurance

It’s OK to pay for your kid’s first car, and all the costs that go with it. But one tactic that might work for you is to make sure that your teen is aware they will foot the bill for any insurance increases. Now, as an adult with years of experience of driving a car, you might not remember how costly that can be. Teen auto insurance is extortionate enough as it is, but it skyrockets even further if they are involved in a crash. And a quick search online for an auto insurance comparison service will show them exactly what that will mean. They could be facing extra payments of over $100 or more every month.

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Talk about the impact of an accident

While your teen will care little for their own safety, they will care if it impacts on your family. So, let them know how much it will cost to hire a personal injury attorney in the event they have a crash. Point out that you might have to say goodbye to your family vacation, as you will need to take time off work to look after them in their hour of need. It’s even worth showing them precisely how much it costs to treat an accident at a hospital, including the ambulance fees, charges for X-rays and scans, and the price for staying overnight in bed. Even a teen from a wealthy background will wince at those figures!

Conclusion

Teens don’t go out with the express intent of causing trouble on the roads; it’s just the way their brains are wired. And their wild nature means no harm to anyone else; it’s just that they think they are superhuman. But with a little education in the right areas, you will be able to – hopefully – encourage your child to learn the financial implications of having a crash in a car.

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Early Learning: How to Teach Important Business Concepts to Your Child

January 3rd, 2017 Posted in financial education, kids and money, learning about money
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It can be difficult trying to teach our children how business works, but it’s a necessary eye-opening experience that your child needs to understand. It will help them make decisions in the future, and they’ll learn to appreciate how the economy works which can be a great boon to their learning ability in the future.

Here are some of the most important concepts to teach your child, and examples of fun activities to help them understand it. These shouldn’t be aimed at children who are too young. Ideally, you’ll want your child to have a basic understand of maths first because there are a lot of numbers involved in business. You also want to have a couple of toys or video games laying around to use as “products” to demonstrate these concepts.

You’ll also need some sticky labels (that can easily be removed) and a pencil, better yet some colored pencils and paper to write things down.

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Supply and Demand

To teach your child this simple concept, bring out a bunch of their favourite toys or video games and grab a couple they don’t use anymore or don’t want. Set them out like a shop, and then give your child some fake money (such as monopoly money) and offer them to your child. Set a price for each one, making sure that your child’s favourite toys are more expensive, then offer to “sell” them back to your child.

To teach them supply and demand, tell your child that their favourite toy is in high demand and that the price has increased from what the label says. Then, tell them that their other toys are cheaper because they aren’t in demand. They’ll start to understand that products that are highly sought after will cost more because they are in demand, but because there isn’t much demand for their other toys, your child can “buy” them back from you for a cheaper price.

Trading

You can teach your child to learn forex trading which will give them an insight into the trading industry and also how foreign currencies interact with home currencies. A simple way to do this is to use online programs and trial accounts. If those programs are too advanced for your child, then a simpler method is to set out a bunch of toys or games that they like to play, much like the supply and demand example. Play a simple game of trading with them. The objective is to tie in supply and demand with the toys that you have set out.

Give your child a couple of toys and set values on them. Next, tell your child which toys are in high demand (use your imagination here!) and give them reasons. For example, perhaps the latest Pokemon game came out and, as a result, Pokemon toys that your child owns have gone “up” in value, so they can be sold back to you for more money because they are now high in demand. Teach them to read how the market is going so they can buy and sell products to gain profits.

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Investing In Property Can Be So Simple A Child Could Do It!

December 29th, 2016 Posted in financial education, financial literacy, kids and money
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You might think that investing in property is quite complicated. After all, you will be dealing with large amounts of capital particularly when you’re buying homes or even apartment buildings. But if you make the right choices this form of investment could be a lot more simple than you ever imagined. Let’s start by thinking about finding the property you want to buy.

Finding The Right Property

When you go on the hunt for a property investment, you are looking for it to tick off a number of boxes. It needs to be selling at the right price which means you should be able to afford it with the money in your bank account. It needs to be in a great area that is thriving and has an infrastructure in active development. It should be in an area where the crime rate is low, and the community spirit is high to encourage buyers to invest. Or tenants to choose it as their new place to live. Most importantly of all, it should have massive potential to increase dramatically in value. How do you find a property like this? The best way is to get in contact with a property broker. They will present you with the best investments on the market right now that match your budget. Thus, you can make sure that you find and take advantage of a fantastic opportunity.

Fixing It Up

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Once you’ve bought the property you then need to think about fixing it up and making it look attractive. Either to tenants who are looking to rent it out or to buyers who are hoping to turn into their own dream investment. You can fix up a property with very little trouble at all. You just need to make sure that you are hiring licensed contractors and designers. This will ensure that any work you complete on the property is above board and legal. It will mean you can avoid getting financial headaches further down the road. It’s always a possibility but one that is easily avoidable if you hire the right team to work on your property. One thing you want to avoid is too much DIY work. While this can seem like a way to save money, if you’re not skilled or qualified it can lead to the same problem.

Managing The Property

If you’re investing in a property to lease it out you do need to think about management. But this can be easy too because you can use a residential property management service. This will ensure that your property is always well maintained and looked after even if you don’t have time. We know what you’re thinking. Is that just another additional cost? Indeed, but it will save you from the financial issues that develop when a property needs emergency work. With the right service, it will never reach this point.

Keeping It Modern

Lastly, you do want to but a small amount of cash to the side each year for upgrades and improvements the property. This will ensure that you have enough to keep the building looking modern and contemporary. Depending on the size of the building, a few thousand should be enough to cover this.

That’s all there is to it. You see, investing in property can really be so simple you could put your child in charge of this investment.

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