Prepaid debit cards teach kids the wrong lesson
DEAR DAVE: I’ve seen lots of companies marketing prepaid debit cards for kids. They seem to position them as a way parents can set spending limits for their children. Do you think these are a good idea? It seems to me they are just a form of conditioning to get kids to rely on cards.
— Keith DEAR KEITH: I agree with your assessment. I don’t recommend prepaid debit cards for children, except in very unusual situations. Let’s say your kid was going on a trip and you wanted him or her to have something in his pocket for limited access to cash. But if the child is old enough and responsible enough, I’d rather him have a traditional debit card attached to his own account.
What I really want parents to do is teach their children how to work, give, save and spend wisely. It’s all about teaching your children to become good adults and handling money is part of the equation. How does that apply to something like a prepaid debit card for a kid? For children, they’re looking at it like Mom and Dad are an ATM. They don’t equate it with real money unless they put their cash into the card.
I suggest helping them open a checking account with a debit card attached about age 15 or 16, provided you have taught them — and they have demonstrated — wise money management practices up to that point. Teach them to reconcile and balance the account and walk with them when they do this so they don’t slip into the idea a debit card is some magical portal to free money.
DEAR DAVE: I’ll be getting married in a few months and I just finished reading some of your books. You make a lot of sense, but now I’m wondering if I need to talk to my fiancee about postponing the wedding until I pay off all my debt. How do you feel about this?
— Nick DEAR NICK: First, congratulations on your upcoming wedding! I admire your desire to get out of debt and take control of your finances, but you’re talking about marrying the woman you love. You do not have to be debt-free to get married.
If you guys are on the same page when it comes to money and you’re both willing to work together on paying off any debt after you’re married, there’s no reason to postpone the wedding. You two shouldn’t be paying each other’s debt before you get married, but once the rings are on your fingers, and you’re pronounced “as one,” then everything shifts from being “mine” and “hers” to “ours.”
Follow Dave on the web at daveramsey.com and on Twitter at @DaveRamsey.