Before long, college-aged kids will be heading back to campus or moving in for the first time. This can be an anxious time for parents, especially financially speaking. This is a good time to teach your kids to be responsible with money because they will likely be coming out of their college experience with debt.

Be sure your child is ready financially before they go
off to college.

We’ve come up with a list of things to talk to your college-aged kids about when it comes to money:

“With more independence comes more responsibility”- let them know you’ll always be there for them, but that they are in charge of their money. Their ability manage it successfully will help them, while being loose with it could have severe consequences.

“Save a portion of all the money you make”- college can be a pressure cooker when it comes to wanting things that others have. Teach your child that while instant gratification can feel great, saving pays off more when push comes to shove.

“Not everything has to be new”- buying used is a great way to save money through college. Whether its textbooks (new ones are horribly overpriced) or a bike to get to class, teaching them the value of save a few bucks here and there by buying used items is a lesson that sticks around for life.

“Use the resources available to you”- this is particularly important if your child has a debit or credit card, or has their bank account set up online through your bank. Online banking offers 24x7 visibility to bank accounts and is a very useful tool to track and manage accounts.

“Don’t be afraid to ask for help”- money can be confusing and hard to talk about, especially if your child has messed up. Let them know that you’ll support them and be there for them (to a certain point) if things get bad.

You can also make sure they have the phone number for your Lincoln Savings Bank saved into their phone or our website bookmarked on the computer.

We know sending your child off to college can be hard, but hopefully having conversations like the ones above can bring a little relief. If there’s anything we can do to help your child financially through college, please don’t hesitate to let us know.