Allowance for a 12 year old

[IMGONNABE40!]

Do any of you give an allowance to your pre-teens? We used to give DS $5 per week but for reasons I won't go into, we suspended it. Now we are approaching DS's 12th birthday and thinking it may be time to reinstate the allowance. I am thinking either $6 per week (.50 for every year of age), or just going with $10. The thought will be that he tithe 10%, save 50% and get the rest to do with as he pleases. What do my friends out on the dis do about this issue? What types of things do your kids buy with allowance, and what do you still buy for them?

 

[CookieGVB]

Since I still buy just about everything for my son, he only gets $5 per week. I keep telling him I'd love to bump it up a little, if only he would do the things he's supposed to without a song and dance routine. If I have to ask him more than twice to do something, he usually loses a bit of it, or if there's too much attitude, he won't get a dime! Money and bedtime are big issues - when he faces losing time or money, he's generally a little more cooperative.

 

[Tink03477]

I tried the allowance thing when my son was around 10 or so, but it didn't last long. I didn't see the point since I bought what he needed anyway. He has always done chores, even laundry in the summer. I don't have him do laundry during the school year. But he vaccums, does dishes, kitty litter, trash, keeps the house neat & clean. Basically, he helps me. I see no reason to pay him for that, it's just required. I'm a single Mom and always have been. He also did not see the reason for an allowance. I bought him what was needed or wanted (within reason) and he helps out. If it's something pricey he wants, he gets it for his B-day, Christmas or a joint gift from relatives. I think everyone has a responsiblity in the household and shouldn't be paid for what is normally expected. I never had an allowance either, and I never felt deprived of things. My parents never charged us rent when we got jobs or even when I had to move home with my small son due to getting laid off. My son is now 15 1/2 and has a part time job at Dairy Freeze for the summer. This is where he's going to learn more financial information. I do, and have; kept him informed financially over the years, more as he gets older. Hopefully he will learn from some of my mistakes.
Good luck in your decision. Every child and every family is different and only you can truly make the choice.

 

[nemo1987]

when i was younger neither my brother or i got allowance. when we cleaned the entire house we got a reward which was usually 5 bucks but we hardly did that and when i got to be 11 and up i babysat and that is how i got my money. once in a great long while my parents would give some money to go see a movie but i had to earn my money to be able to get stuff and i am now better for that. i have a job now and i pay for gas, insurance, and upkeep on my car. good luck with your decision!
**Sarah**

 

[aprilgail2]

Right now my daughter is 4 and is getting $4.00 a week. We use the 1.00 per year of age and will continue that way for a while until she becomes a teenages and needs more cash. Right now she saves most of it for toys she wants or trips we are taking so she has her own spending money.

 

[The Mystery Machine]

Started giving dd an allowance when she started middle school. She already does chores but we do not conncet the two. It was just practical for us since she could manage her own money for the small things she might need at school or fun.

 

[IMGONNABE40!]

Thank you for your input, all. I was kind of thinking the way you are, Mystery Machine. DS does a lot of chores and we tell him that it is his responsibility as a member of the family yada yada yada. The allowance will not be tied to chores, but will hopefully give him a bit of responsibility with money and save us from being "dollared to death" as my mother would say. We will still buy most of his stuff and pay for trips and the like.

 

[LadyTrampScamp&Angel]

Here's a link about allowance at pediatrics.abou.com:

http://pediatrics.about.com/library/quiz/blcalc_allowances.htm

below the calculator there are some article links.

I did this a while back and the calculator gave me this whole thing about what a $ buys today vs what it bought when I was a kid. In the end I think it recommended $1 for every year of age. I've still been giving my 7 year old $5 a week but I am thinking of raising it. I like giving allowance because when we go to the store and he asks me for something he usually has to buy it out of his allowance, or save up his allowance for it. It eliminates a lot of the "Please Mom, buy it for me" and whining. He has to figure out how to buy it himself. I'm talking about things he "wants", not needs. We still buy his "needs" and pay for going to the movies that kind of thing. He uses allowance for toys, trading cards, magic tree house books . . .

 

[ZachnElli]

We started at age 5 for both our kids and $1 per age. They have to save half of it. I got allowance from an early age and it really helped me learn how to count money and how to spend/save it. When I was a teenager, I bought my first car with cash and it was $1500 and I had $4500 left in my savings that went toward college. (That was also babysitting money and part-time jobs) I saved half of every bit of money I ever received. Hope my kids do the same.

 

[Lanshark]

We give the kids an allowance equivalent to their grade in school.

 

[taekwondo mom]

our 11yr. old DD recieves $20 every 2 weeks..

 

[tiggrbaby]

What I do with my boys is give them a "lunch allowance" during the school year. For each day of school, they get a set dollar amount, ranging from $2/day for grade 5/6 up to $5/day for HS. Then they have the opportunity to use that money to buy lunch, or make their own lunch and save the money for going out with friends or buying video games.

I had started early with the you-do-chores-because-you-are-a-member-of-the-family, but I will occasionally offer special jobs for money. I also had them save some of their gift money as a long term savings, which is only used for vacations. This way they can buy whatever they want, and I have never had a problem with them wanting everything. Since my oldest now gets a paycheck, he is required to put at least half of every check in the bank. He also keeps some money aside for a car.