Easter is traditionally the time when we feel the urge for a ‘spring clean’– from de-cluttering the house, to getting in shape ready for the summer, for many it’s seen as an ideal opportunity to start afresh. Kids too can benefit from a spring clean – especially when it comes to their money. With the reopening of shops just around the corner, before we know it they’ll be out and about browsing the high street with their friends. With that in mind, now could be the perfect time for refreshing the children’s finances, so they are ready to take ‘normal life’ by storm.
Here are some of our top tips for better children’s finances:
Encouraging your child to review how they spent their pocket money pre-lockdown is a good place to start, as it’ll refresh their memory of their regular expenses – giving you both a useful indication of where any problems could arise as they head back to the high street. With the nimbl app it’s easy to check back through statements to get an idea of where the card has been used, and how much has been spent.
As a spring-cleaning challenge, why not ask them to break down into percentages how they allocated their monthly pocket money or allowance when the shops were open, assessing which category they spent most with: food, clothes, beauty and healthcare or gaming? As well as being a handy way of practicing their maths skills, it will identify what they spend the most money on, and encourage them to think carefully before they make their purchases.
Armed with a clear understanding of where their pocket money is going, a natural next step could be to set new spending goals – but this time, rather than focusing on set amounts, to help them develop ‘healthier’ spending habits you can suggest they try and shift the percentage ratio instead.
For example, if they used to put just 5% of their monthly allowance towards savings, but would consistently devote 70% of their money for new clothes or gaming products, task them with the goal of matching the amount they spend on their favourite ‘category’ with the amount they save. Hopefully, this will encourage them to strike a more equal balance between treating themselves and building a strong savings net.
For many, cutting back on spending has been a lot easier over the past year, given the restrictions in place. So, as part of your big spring clean, it could be worth sitting down with your child (or children) to revisit nimbl’s microsaving feature, which is easy to use via the mobile app.
By turning on the feature, every time your child spends with their nimbl card a set amount – which you can both agree on – will be automatically transferred into their savings pot. This’ll make any savings goals you’ve agreed a lot easier to meet – given the cash is instantly put aside for them – and will help them keep building on any lockdown savings they may have stashed away.
We hope these tips and tricks proved handy, and for more ideas on how to help your kids become masters of money, why not take a look at our previous blog here! If you have any other top tips for better children’s finances, send us a message on Twitter, Instagram or Facebook!