Parents are often seen as the nearest branch treasury or, better yet, an automatic teller machine. Some teenagers feel that all they have to do is submit a request and the amount will be delivered. Meanwhile, you see your vacation and retirement funds supporting every clothing merchant in the country! Teenagers tend to complain about never having enough money, while you try to explain your financial situation, complete with graphs and bank statements. Talk about different agendas!

Parents tend to get involved in this issue by telling their teenagers about how they had to work for everything they got. “You kids don’t know how easy you have it!” Since teenagers tune out this story in less than two seconds, let’s look at the value of an allowance and how you can use it to teach your teenager something about responsibility.

Some parents avoid the topic of allowances entirely by simply giving their teenager money whenever the need arises, but then they tend to complain about how it is spent. Other parents who are financially secure just don’t think about the money, giving it freely without any consideration for what their teenager is learning about handling money. An allowance is a way to teach your teenager about the value of money, which will be essential when he or she is an adult and living independently.