Disclosing Income to Child ...

SEA_tide
Sun, 17 Jan 2010 19:41:11 +0000

Nikkil, I agree that it would be very difficult to prove fraud.

I understand some of the reasons for hiding finances from your kids, like divorce or that the kid would want more money, but the excuse that they don’t need to learn about money until later is not an excuse. When a child turns 18, they are an adult and are legally responsible for their finances. Part of the reason why there are new credit card laws being enacted is that students who didn’t understand money were getting themselves into mountains of credit card debt. While many students cannot understand many of the numbers put into FAFSA or Profile, they need to be told about them. I’m a finance major and cannot fathom a classmate coming in and telling me they don’t know anything about the stock market or opening a CD. How can they manage the investment package they will get with their new job? Good credit and an understanding of money is one of the best things a parent can give to their child, it’s the gift that keeps on giving.

IMHO, both the student and parent should fill out FAFSA together. If in college, have the student fill out the info while you talk to them on the cell phone. It’s interesting to hear about how each family discusses finance. My parents actively disclose their finances with me and have me talk to the banks because I know what to ask. As for my [younger] siblings, they know very little about the family finances and it causes difficulties.