I’m not planning on giving any spending money to either of mine. That’s what their summer jobs are for. Maybe I’ll drop them the one off gifts, but not monthly.
Our S18 has always been the most responsible and ‘wealthy’ of our three – quite a saver and is observant of siblings’ missteps. I am a pretty hands off parent, but my husband and I will still offer him what we can. I want him to be able to budget and plan on his own, but I also want him to know that what he has saved will provide a nice start for him when he finally leaves college.
My S18 now has a part time job so he gets a weekly check. He saves half, tithes, and does what he wants with “his” portion. He will not use a bank on campus but will keep his same account and we’ll transfer money as needed. He deposited his paycheck last week and met with the branch manager, who answered questions, etc.
It was funny this week to buy something (new shoes) with his “own” money. He took forever comparing prices, fit, etc. He said it’s different when it’s his own money.
He plans to work on campus, so I doubt we’ll do spending money. That may change though.
Spending money… we haven’t figured that one out yet. S’s scholarship leaves him with around $100/month for incidentals. He’ll also have almost a thousand dollars in accumulated allowance money, birthday and graduation gifts, etc. I’m leaning toward being there financially if something unexpected happens, but also telling him that if he wants more pocket money, that’s what jobs are for.
We will probably send him well supplied, but with only his scholarship money and his own savings and see how it goes for several weeks. We’re open to the idea of a small monthly amount ($50 - $100), but we also think that it’s time for him to start making steps toward financial independence*-999999999999999999999 (my cat says Hi), cultivating a good work ethic, etc.
By the age of 6, he was able to add up his allowance and figure out how many weeks he’d need to save in order to buy a Bionicle, sales tax included, so he’s pretty frugal. We’ll be paying for things like his cell phone and car insurance, but he might be on his own for pizza money.
@melvin123 other than tuition, room and board, car insurance and phone, we are not giving my daughter any money except as holiday or birthday gifts. She has known that she will be responsible for her own personal spending money, which includes gas, clothes, toiletries and going out with friends. She has $300 per month saved. Which should be plenty.
My DS is pretty tight with his money too. I stocked him with cleaning stuff, snacks and toiletries when we dropped him off. He has a credit card that he can use for “approved” expenses and I told him he could set up an UBER account if he needs to go somewhere (or has arrived somewhere with friends and doesn’t feel comfortable leaving with them because of drinking or drugs). We also cover cell phone and all insurances (they’re all family plans) and deductables and dry cleaning. His summer program gives him a stipend of $500 for the two months plus includes the full meal plan and even includes some weekend activites. Laundry is free at his school. He has a good amount in both savings and checking from b-days, graduation and working as a tutor the past few years. His bank has an ATM on campus and he’s used to doing most of his banking electronically anway so he should be good without an allowance.
Our S has money from birthdays, ect. in his bank account now. He has a 3K work-study, so he should be in good shape when it comes to spending money.
I was thinking $500 a month in SF as things are so expensive there. She will have a meal plan. The $500 will be all in - so if she wants to go to concerts, events etc, or buy clothes or travel on weekends - she can save from the monthly to save up. Is this too high? Sounds like average here is much lower…
@Clementine7624 I think that sounds reasonable considering the COL. I live in NYC and my kids get $500 per month allowance, as long as they’re working (summer job) & helping out at home.
DS is at Bama, so we (I) stocked him w/ everything for his suite/apartment that I could possibly think of when I dropped him off. With meal plan, he was covered except for the occasional trip to a restaurant. Told him if he needed anything major to let me know. He never did. He used his graduation money/savings for entertainment.
DD will be at West Chester and she has a few friends going to schools in Philly. They are already talking about getting together, so I think she will be more likely to need spending money. She is now working part time for the summer, so I will have her save most of that for spending money when at college. She likes her fancy coffees and take out, so that can eat up money real fast. I think she is going to be in the middle of her sibs with spending habits.
Honestly, I never even considered spending money for concerts or events and I wouldn’t fund them. However, she would like to go abroad at some point, and I would rather funnel money into that. Will have to see how things go her first semester.
When S16 had an unlimited meal plan, I think we sent him $50/month for miscellaneous stuff, but we stocked his dorm well before we left, and sent some items in care packages. With a partial meal plan, we sent him $150/month. Next year he’ll need more because of separate utility bills.
For DD, we’ll prob send $50/month since she has a summer job and some savings. If either of them needs/asks for extra $ for something special, we usually provide it, but we want them to learn to budget.
Right now, in S18’s scholarship/FA portal, it shows him receiving extra $$$ over the estimated cost of tuition, room, board, fees and books. That should cover all his living and entertainment expenses. We are discussing his saving some of that money for use in the summer or even to build a small nest egg for post collegiate expenses.
We aren’t giving any spending $$. Dd has a ton of money saved and her scholarship gives her $400/month. Between those two she has more than enough to last her 4 years, even if she didnt make another penny. I told her we will buy necessities, books over and above her scholarship, clothes, medical, cell phone etc. She hates shopping for clothes I know it will only be as needed. Her biggest expense will be food. She loves to go out and get a milkshake or treat etc.
Speaking of clothes, anybody else dreading a new wardrobe due to differences in climate. It does not rain where we live. I have been tracking Tuscaloosa weather … it rains …
DP Jr. is not prepared for that…
@DavidPuddy It rains here in Central Texas but DD has never really had to deal with the elements as her high school was one huge climate controlled building.
DD is going to Huntsville. Like you, I have been looking at the weather - we added rain boots and a light rain jacket to her shopping list as well as it gets a bit colder there in the winter but she thinks she will be fine with her assortment of hoodies and denim jacket. I figure if she needs to go coat shopping mid year, that’s not a major issue.
Couple of things that were suggested to me were a poncho type rain cover for her and backpack or a large umbrella along with some sort of water proof shoe. Another suggestion was just a rain cover for the backpack as that is where they tend to store books, laptops etc.
Our S is going to Ithaca, so he’ll definitely need a heavy coat, warm hat, gloves, and snow boots. He really hasn’t needed those much in the DC area.
Those of you sending their kids to upstate NY and New England or any other colder climate…be prepared, a lot of the kids wear “Canada Goose” jackets…they are very expensive but supposedly really keep you warm. We have not given in yet to my daughter in her New England climate…
Oh yes, going from Oklahoma to Montreal requires some serious wardrobe changes. @-) We are working on it!
D registered for classes today. At McGill they register for both Fall and Winter semesters at the same time (in Montreal it’s Winter semester, not Spring!). The interface for registration is glitchy and confusing, but it seems that’s just part of the McGill experience. D ended up with a much different schedule than she’d planned, despite having priority registration, but she is very happy with the end result. She opted for no waitlists, so it should all be set. Thankfully, her AP credits give her some flexibility. She’s majoring in CogSci, minoring in German.
Fall:
Intensive Intermediate German (6 credit hours)
Calculus 2
Intro to Linguistics
Arts and Sciences Integrative Topics
Winter:
Intensive Advanced German (6 credit hours)
Linear Algebra and Geometry
CS Foundations of Programming
History and Philosophy of Science
She has also connected with her probable suitemate, and they’ve been busy getting to know each other over text. They know which dorm they’ll be in. It’s so real now, and D’s emotions are all over the place.
We are going from a moderate climate, nerver too cold, rarely super hot to Texas. So, we are going to be shopping for shorts, t’s and tanks. If she needs some warmer stuff we will get it when she comes home for Thanksgiving.
S18 has been wearing a uniform all through elementary, middle and HS, so college will be the first time he gets to wear whatever he wants to class. We have been slowly building up his wardrobe this year, but he is still going to need a few things. Off to orientation today!