HOW TO:
Stop Overspending on Your Kids
Choose Activities Carefully
Be Thoughtful About Birthday
and Holiday Gifts
GILROY • MORGAN HILL • SAN MARTIN
SPRING 2020
Sources:
“4 Ways to Stop Overspending On Your Kids”,
SingleMomsIncome.com/4-ways-to-stop-over-
spending-on-your-kids/
Nesbit, Joanna, “For a Happier Family, Stop
Overspending on Kids”, MNN.com/family/
family-activities/stories/happier-family-stop-
overspending-kids
“Don’t Go Into Debt Overspending on Your
Kids”, Family Circle.com/featured/Debt-
KidsSpoiling
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Many parents go for the “wow” factor
when buying gifts for their children and
wind up going way over budget. This
year, try to plan an affordable and rea-
sonable gift list ahead of time. Keep in
mind that gifts don’t have to be extrava-
gant or numerous to be meaningful. If
you’re thoughtful about what your kids
really value that would make a bigger
Taking advantage of sales, coupons, and
discounts is a great way to give your
child what they want or like without
breaking the bank. Discounts for kids
are everywhere, from kids-eat-free
restaurant deals to reduced admission
for movies and theme parks. You can
fi nd coupons online from places like
Groupon, or clip them out from the
local paper.
When you avoid overspending on
your kids, you’re teaching them the
value of budgeting, savvy shopping,
and putting needs before wants. Not
only does it improve your finances, but
it might mean you’re able to afford that
special family trip somewhere, to have
a college or emergency savings fund, or
save for retirement. When your kids see
the benefits of not overspending they’ll
be more likely to follow your example
when they get older.
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Parents often assume that private
schools will provide better education
for their kids than public ones, but that
isn’t necessarily true. Two researchers
have shown that public schools outper-
form private ones when comparing like
child to like child. One reason for this
is that public schools are more open
to trying new approaches and profes-
sional development for teachers, while
private schools tend to rely on dated
curricula and weary teaching strategies.
Ultimately, children’s academic success
is less about the school they attend and
more about their parents’ involvement.
The money that you’d be spending on
a private school could be better used
towards college.
Use Coupons/Child Discounts
Summer camp, dance classes, music
lessons, and sports are all positive and
healthy activities for kids, but the cost
of the special equipment, uniforms,
and other fees quickly add up. Instead
of having several extracurriculars, fi nd
out what your child genuinely enjoys
and focus primarily on that. Try to let
your child lead the way in terms of how
involved they want to be in it as well.
You might want to go all-in in the hopes
that your child will be the next Olympic
gymnast or sports star, but ask yourself
how you’d feel if they quit. Statistically,
seventy percent of kids quit extracur-
riculars by the age of thirteen because
it stopped being fun or school got too
demanding.
You can also find other opportunities
to save, like carpooling, volunteering as
coach to get a reduced registration fee,
or buying gently-used gear or music
equipment.
Education
impact than the “wow” factor gifts.
There’s also no reason why that fancy
new laptop that they need for school
can’t double as a birthday or Christmas
gift.
Kids will often claim that they “need”
that new toy or that new smartphone,
but do they really? Sit down with your
kids and help them decide which things
are more important, new shoes for
school or that new toy. Help them con-
sider the affects of their decisions, and,
regardless of which one they choose, let
them learn the consequences of those
choices. After you’ve taken care of all of
the needs, then you can indulge in a few
of their wants.
Kids are always asking for the lat-
est smartphone or the newest game
console, and that’s in addition to the
laptops, calculators, and other gadgets
that they need for school. Technology
is pricey and trying to keep up with
the latest and greatest can easily lead to
debt if you don’t set limits and manage
your child’s expectations. Figure out
what your child needs, not wants, and
don’t be tempted to spend more on a
product because it’s upgraded or has
special features. Also be wary of the
“educational” excuse. Studies repeat-
edly show that children develop their
language and interpersonal skills from
face-to-face interactions, not screens
and fancy games.
Prioritize Needs Over Wants
Set Limits on Tech
O
ur children’s happiness is
important to us and we
want to give them every
opportunity to succeed, but
we often fall into the trap of thinking
that showering our kids with pricey
things is the best way to show our love.
Regularly spending on your kids doesn’t
necessarily make them happier and it
can quickly lead to unwanted debt.
Here are some tips to help you avoid
overspending.
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