have you will you be buying your kids a car?

[Gruntina]

I had to buy my own car and insurance, My parents had the notion that I would take better care of the car and drive more careful if I had to spend my hard earn money on it.

However, they let me purchase the family car for a reasonable price and they help me set up the loan to practice understanding how loans works and making payments each month.

As for my future children... Not sure as it depends how financially sound we are at that time. We are just trying to stay up float in the expensive location of California.

[LuckyRobin]

Interesting thread so far. We are thinking of getting a used Vespa or some other type of reliable scooter, when our daughter is old enough. It won't be hers, but it will allow for her to drive. Both my kids are heavily involved in athletics and once she's at the high school the turnouts are 10 miles away. Since my son will still be in another school when she is 16 there will be a lot of going seperate ways.

By the time my son is 16 my daughter will be almost 20 so he can use the same Vespa or leave it for me and take the car. She plans to live with her grandmother while she goes to college and Grandma's house is on the bus line to the college so she won't need a car or scooter then. But that is a long way off.

[PrincessPerky]

cicy...my kid could buy a junker (like your 500 dollar car) right now if she wanted...she is 3...I am certain they will be able to afford a car if they want one at 16.....that would be where all the cash goes..or rather around half now, I will not hold them to half, but I will hold them to some saving, and now while they are young, I take full advantage of parental sway to get them to put it away....

[zakity]

We don't know quite what we are doing. We will either buy a beater and have them help fix it up or just make them buy their own car. We don't plan on helping them with insurance, gas, or upkeep. I am sure we will somewhat, but, sshh, don't tell them that.

My 10 (almost 11 year old) is already looking at the places around for jobs. He is looking at places he can walk to so that he can save up for a car and for college.

[cicy33]

Originally Posted by PrincessPerky

cicy...my kid could buy a junker (like your 500 dollar car) right now if she wanted...she is 3...I am certain they will be able to afford a car if they want one at 16.....that would be where all the cash goes..or rather around half now, I will not hold them to half, but I will hold them to some saving, and now while they are young, I take full advantage of parental sway to get them to put it away....

It wasn't a junker just not a super nice car. it ran and it was solid. but also keep in mind you are not the normal. I was on my own raising her and I sure didn't have the money when she was 3 much less later without seriously struggling. I really think that it is great that you can help your kids save but for us that literally have struggled paycheck to paycheck and just don't have the extra don't have that option. I took part of my income tax check to get the car for her. I couldn't do it on my normal salary. Now, 5 years later I am finally in a job where hopefully I can start serious saving. My income status has seriously improved the past couple of years but then no way.

[tinapbeana]

ok, my situation is a bit odd but i'll share anyways!

i grew up in the absolute middle of nowhere, a 25 minute car ride from my highschool. i was in orchestra, played soccer, and took/taught dance lessons. my family was lower middle class at best, and the activities i was involved in were in my parents eyes helping me get into college. in retrospect they were right. i taught dance so i could take dance for free, i'd had the violin for years and it was already paid for, and everythign but cleats & shin guards were provided by the soccer team.

my folks bought me a 25 yr old cadillac for $500 at 16 so i could shuttle myself around. it was huge, but i would've been safe no matter what i hit! it lasted till it threw a tie-rod.

i moved from home my junior year of HS to go to a magnet school 4 hours away. governemnt funded school, room & board provided, again part of that 'getting into college' thing. we were required to go home for a long weekend once a month, so my mom would have to drive 4 hrs down to pick me up on thursday, 4 hrs back that night, and then repeat the process on sunday to take me back. brutal!!! said school also did not allow students to work off campus, although we did work 3- hours per week around the school.

my folks bought me another car ($1000 honda civic) the next summer as i had to drive 60 miles round trip to my 'job' every day: working as a research assistant in a college lab as it was part of my high school requirements. said car also drove me to school my senior year and to all my college visits.

my parents paid for 2 cars ($1500) and the insurance on me, and since i lived away from home i got a $50 a month allowance for 2 years to pay for gas, my laundry, toiletries, school supplies, and whatever else i needed while i was away. this was, essentially, their contributions to my college fund because i got a scholarship, a loan, and worked 3 jobs to pay for my 25k a year college myself.

[PrincessPerky]

Zakity sounds awesome that your kid is already thinking about work.

cicy all the kids money came from gifts..not us, yes it is nice, and actually not very unusual for the area my nieces and nephews get the same gifts, but they have zero saved....they go to school with kids that get that much cash from mom and dad, not to mention the aunts uncles and such, and none of them have anything saved for a car...not unusual around here..course half their money is your tax money, but that is an argument for another day. My point was not that your kid should have money, my point was to your idea that no kid would have that kind of money(

Originally Posted by cicy33

There is no way people can expect a child to earn enough to pay for a vehicle at that point.

), many of them should. (what else is my one year old going to do with cash but save it?)

tina..in your situation I would buy you a car in self defense to get out of the round trip driving! there are situations where getting a kid a car is a cheaper better option, but automatically gifting such a large thing to me does not make sense. (though like grunt if you are ready to replace the current family car..or an Aunt or Uncle or Gma is...no sense making it hard on them)

[shelbylovesmelby]

I don't know that we will be getting the girls a car when they turn 16 but who know's that's over 10 yrs from now & depending on our finances we'll have to see.

But I do believe w/ privledge comes some extra duties around the house or getting a job to pay the insurance & gas for it.

My first car was a 79 nova, mind you I got my license in 94! But my mom weaseled the car from my grandma who didn't drive & my deceased grandpa owned the car died abt 1985 so it was sitting in a garage for abt 10 yrs & got driven once in a while. I ended up buying a new car abt 6 mo later & since my mom's car was junk she took over the Nova til we had to take the car away for medical reasons.

[LuxLiving]

Nope. My kids bought their own paying CASH that they had saved from working. Deal was that they'd been saving from the get-go a portion of EVERY little bit of money they ever got plus I agreed to drive them the first six months of their working lives, but then they had to buy their own vehichle and there could be no debt on it.

Hubster and I both bought our first cars w/cash as well and we paid our own insurance fees. Our kids also had to buy their own insurance. Hubster and I agree that it generally makes you appreciate and care for the car better if you pay for it rather than having it gifted.

FrugalSon was allowed to borrow $1000.00 from Mom & Dad to add to his cash-out when he sold the first car - BECAUSE what he got for the purchase price was an exceptionally well cared for and low mileage truck that will last him a long LONG time. He's almost thru with the pay-back. He had the $1000.00 in bonds and CDs that he could of cashed out at the time but I preferred he keep that money intact and he used it as collateral to us. Not that we thought we'd need it but to help him understand the loan process.