I believe we all agree that our kids need some form of allowance to help them get a grasp of how to handle money. Now we move on to discuss how much they can get. There’s no one amount that’s appropriate for all kids. The amount you decide on should be sufficient to provide your child with some extra money so he’ll learn how to handle it. There’s no educational benefit in setting an allowance at an amount that you have already pre-determined how it will be spent.
Many factors go into fixing an allowance. The four main ones are as listed:
– Your child’s age: Obviously, the older your child, the bigger the allowance (up to a certain point, at which your child may become too old for an allowance). I know it is possible some families give the same allowance to all their kids even though they’re of different ages while most give more money to the older kids compared to the younger ones. Using a rule of thumb to set an allowance is only a starting point. An allowance of N500 per week may be okay for a 10 year old, but N750 may not be enough for a 15 year old. Defining what is realistic is really a function of what you want the allowance to achieve for them.
As your child gets older, you’ll have to adjust the allowance. Part of this adjustment is simply because of added age. Because your child is older, he or she must pay for more things and needs more money to do it. For example, being in the university means your child will begin to pay for many of the things you used to buy when he or she was at home. You should also consider things like inflation and the economic situation in your environment so that your child’s buying power isn’t eroded.
What if your children are of different ages? Generally, you’ll want to give them an allowance appropriate to their age. If they’re close in age—say, two years or less apart—maybe you’ll give the same amount. A child may complain that it’s not fair that her older brother gets more than she does. Fairness doesn’t mean that everything has to be equal, though. It’s fair to base allowance on several factors, with age being an important one.
– Your family income: Only you know how much your family can afford to allocate to allowances. Your head and your heart may want to pay a generous allowance to your child but your family’s limited resources may dictate otherwise. You have to be realistic about what you can afford to pay as an allowance and work around what is possible.
– Where you live: Maybe keeping up with the Joneses isn’t high on your list of priorities and you frequently tell your child, “I don’t care that Ife, Musa or Adaobi has this or does that.” But, realistically, the neighborhood you live in can certainly influence how much allowance you give your child. What your child’s best friend receives may not be a deciding factor, but it’s a factor nonetheless. You can bet that the kids who live in VGC, for example won’t receive the same allowances as the kids in most other places. This sounds like another way of saying that a family’s income should influence the allowance, but there’s more at work. Peer pressure is at work here. It’s your call to decide whether your environment should be a factor or not.
– What the allowance is supposed to cover: If you expect your teenager to buy all his own clothing from his allowance, then the amount paid to him each week or month must be sufficient to allow for this extensive purchase. If you supplement an allowance with spending money, then a less generous allowance may be in order.
It’s possible you can’t afford to pay an allowance or set it at the amount you really think appropriate. If this is so, be honest about it. Explain to your child that family finances is what is preventing you from giving your child the amount you’d prefer. This will also help you teach your child that one lives within one’s means without compromising on important things like savings, giving, etc.
Gbonjubola Sanni 