Money Skills for Kids

We recently decided it was time for our 3 young boys to learn the value of money and the importance of managing it. This was motivated by a need for them to understand how money is earned but also to start giving them small responsibilities in our home and life skills for the future.

We work so hard to ensure our children develop good manners, confidence, empathy along with many other important personal traits. Earning pocket money and taking care of it can teach a child to become independent and to make decisions for themselves.

A few ways to get them started…

1.    An opportunity to earn pocket money

Decide on a list of chores they can complete depending on their age. Pick a day and time to complete the weekly chores but also include some simple daily tasks to be completed e.g. Clearing the table after eating, emptying/filling dishwasher or washing dishes, putting rubbish into the bins. Agree on how much pocket money they can earn and a day that they will receive it each week.

2.  Set a budget... save vs spend

This will help them to understand the rewards of saving and being able to budget perhaps for something they would really like to buy in the future. Decide where they will store their pocket money and set out some goals using two separate pots.

• Spending Pot: Perhaps they would like to spend a fraction of their pocket money each week on something small, so help them to decide on an amount for this pot.

• Savings Pot: They may decide to save for something they would like to buy at some stage in the future or to maybe have spending money for holidays or a day out. If they have a goal amount, see if they can work out how much and how long they may need to save to get to that goal.

3.  Open a savings account

A savings account can be ideal for older children. It can help familiarise them with different financial terms used such as deposits, withdrawals, interest. It also brings a satisfaction if they can see their savings figure increase each week. Another option is to set up a Revolut junior account where you can transfer pocket money to their online account, and they can use a prepaid card. This would be handy now with the preference of contactless payments. They can also use the junior app to view their account balance, while parents have full control of the account.

Did you know....?

Did you know... Multi-Claim Protection can pay out multiple times for different illnesses over the lifetime of the policy and it can also trigger multiple claim components for one illness.

Did you know... Life insurance pays out a lump sum if you die or suffer a critical illness (depending on the type of cover you hold). Death in service is similar. Death in service may be offered by companies as part of an employee’s benefits package. It’s paid out as a tax-free lump sum if you’re employed by the company (i.e. on the payroll) at the time of your death.

Did you know... When you apply for life insurance, you may be asked to complete a medical exam and the life company will pay for this medical exam. It might be a good opportunity to avail of a complimentary check up!

Did you know... Key Person Insurance is a business-specific life insurance (also known as Business Protection) which can compensate a company for the financial loss and other consequences of the death or serious illness diagnosis of a key member of the business.

Did you know...  Income Protection policies and some Life Assurance policies allow you to claim tax relief at either standard tax rate (20% or 40%). This means if you are paying €100 monthly, you may get as much as much as €40 refunded on this premium

Did you know... When structuring life assurance for cohabiting clients and their family, it is important to remember that cohabitants have no automatic rights to their deceased partner’s assets under the Succession Act. By setting up an individual Life Assurance policy on the other person (i.e. Life of Another) with the premiums being paid from their individual bank accounts, this can help avoid a potential inheritance tax bill.

Did you know... If you are self-employed, Shareholder/Directorship Protection is an arrangement between company directors, which allows for a deceased’s directors share of a company to be bought by the remaining Directors.

Did you know... by reviewing your Mortgage Protection policy, you may be able to obtain more cover and additional benefits for the same or reduced price than with your original policy.

Did you know... the application process has become a much easier process these days with the availability of editable PDFs and Docusign …one pro to come out of the current situation!

Did you know... For any change in lifestyle (e.g. New house, starting a family) it is a good practise to review your financial needs and check if you are fully covered or to see where you may require additional protection.

Financial planning is more important than ever….

As a small, self-employed company, these past few months have been a challenge for numerous reasons. But when faced with a challenge, an opportunity can present itself. While I have been unable to meet clients physically, I have been arranging Zoom meeting consultations that are becoming more and more popular and are simple to set up.

The one thing that many people have had for the last 3 months, is time to review their finances and take stock of what exactly they want to do in life. Can you retire earlier than you thought? Pay off your mortgage early? Do you have enough savings? How much is enough life cover? There are many more questions I have been asked and I have been working with clients to try and help them achieve their goals.

As a result, I am finding it now that more and more people are requesting a full Financial Planning review of where they are right now and looking at different options for the future. This process is a lot more straight forward than people might imagine and further information can be found on https://www.drumgoolebrokerage.ie/planning.

1.    You fill out a financial planning statement online, clarifying your personal and financial goals. This is a comprehensive planner and will include anything from the cost of your utility bills to the cost of birthday presents.

2.    Once you have submitted the planner, I review and prepare recommendations and advice.

3.    We discuss these goals, your current financial situation, and strategies to make your goals attainable.

Following this, you decide what step to take next. This plan is just the first stepping-stone and once you have a strategy put in place, we can review this annually with you to see how it is progressing.

I find that one way to handle your personal finance is to treat it like a business. You (and your partner) are the directors of your business. A good business will forecast what is due to come in and out on a monthly basis. It will also have a reasonable idea of what to expect in the longer term, while ensuring that it has the correct provisions and protection in place to carry them into the future….even with some bumpy, challenging times along the way.