Shaping Your Child’s Financial Future Through Saving

As a parent, we all want to ensure our child has the best chance for a positive financial future. But it may be hard to know how or when to start. A good jumpstart toward a stable financial future is simply helping them open their own youth savings account.

As children get older, it’s easy to wonder if they should have started saving earlier or learning more financial basics. The good news is it’s never too late. You can still help them develop a good relationship with money and establish habits that lead to success.

Good habits last

As with any habit, taking the first step in a new direction is sometimes the most difficult. By opening a savings account in your child’s name and letting them participate in depositing money—even if it’s just $5 per month—they will begin to establish a pattern for a successful financial journey.

Your children don’t have to have a job or make money to learn about saving. Teach them to deposit money from holidays, birthdays or their allowance as early as three or four years old and explain how interest will make it grow. Let them participate in checking the account and watching the balance increase over time! When they get older and start their first job, they will already be saving like a pro.

They grow up so fast

Children grow up fast! Whether it’s their first car, college tuition or some other purchase, saving their own money for something can give them a sense of satisfaction that all the hard work and sacrifice is worth it. Hopefully, these good saving habits become a regular occurrence and, before you know it, they’ll be practicing good money habits without thinking twice.

If you didn’t set up a savings account for your children when they were young, that’s okay! Mountain America also offers teen savings accounts for kids between the ages of 13 and 17. This is a great way to teach young adults how to manage their money—they can get a debit card to make purchases and withdrawals, all under your watchful eye.

Developing your financial relationship

A child’s or teen’s first savings or checking account provides an early opportunity to develop a personal relationship with a financial institution and better utilize the many services they offer. Credit unions and banks provide essential resources that we all use throughout our lives like auto and home loans, debt consolidation services, budgeting tools and financial education.

Mountain America Credit Union seeks to meet your needs with every transaction. As your trusted financial guide, our members and their families can confidently manage their money and make smart financial decisions well into the future.