Parents have more questions than answers about building kids' financial independence,
but financial expert
Mydoh, the money management app for kids and teens powered by RBC, partnered with Ipsos to poll hundreds of Canadian parents with children aged 6 to 17 about their family's allowance habits.
Among the findings?
- 47 per cent of Canadian parents give their kids an allowance, which means that for every Canadian family with an allowance routine, another family is opting out of allowance altogether.
- Canadian parents are evenly split on whether withholding allowance is an effective tool for discipline.
- B.C. parents pay their kids the least at an average of
$17.80 /week, whileOntario parents are the most generous at$23.90 /week (an annual difference of more than$300 ). - B.C. parents also wait the longest to start paying an allowance. On average, kids in that province start receiving an allowance when they're almost 11 years old. Parents in
Manitoba andSaskatchewan , on the other hand, start offering allowance two years earlier at almost nine years of age.
"We know parents want their kids to learn money management skills, but this report highlights the uncertainty many Canadian parents feel around the role an allowance can play in building good financial habits," said
In fact, almost a quarter of Canadian parents say they're unsure if they're even using an allowance effectively. To help, Mydoh has partnered with financial expert and accredited Financial Counsellor
"First and foremost," says Moorhouse. "I think it's important to make clear that, assuming it fits in your family's budget, an allowance can be an incredibly important tool in teaching kids healthy money skills. Giving a regular allowance can open up powerful conversations about money and give kids low-risk ways to build real-world experience with budgeting and money management. But we need to approach giving an allowance with purpose."
Specifically, Moorhouse suggests:
Autonomy
Although 78 per cent of parents surveyed for Mydoh's report say kids should be required to save a specific percentage of their allowance (and 32 per cent say kids should be required to put at least a percentage aside for charity), Moorhouse cautions against parents making too many of the decisions around how allowance is used or spent.
"Allowance is a safe way to teach kids about financial independence," she explains. "Your child may impulsively spend a month's worth of allowance at the candy store, but it's a powerful opportunity to teach a lesson about saving." The more parents dictate what happens with their kids' allowance, the less kids have an opportunity for active learning.
Buy-In
Key decisions like how much and how often to give allowance should be made by each family based on their individual financial situation and their child's needs. Once those decisions are made, parents should ensure kids understand the rules and guidelines.
Moorhouse encourages families to think of allowance as an agreement, with kids having a say in how it works. "If a child has a choice and is actively involved with the terms of their allowance – even having the ability to opt-out if they want to – they're more likely to feel engaged, leading to positive associations with money in the long run."
One-in-four respondents to Mydoh's survey said although their kids receive an allowance, there isn't a clear understanding of what kids are responsible for buying themselves. Will you still pay for a new pack of trading cards if your kids get an allowance? What about a cool new pair of running shoes? Make sure kids know what is and isn't expected of them financially and keep the conversation going, using open-ended questions to get kids to talk about their financial goals.
Consistency
Almost 40 per cent of parents who give their kids allowance say they forget to give allowance regularly. "While missing a week of allowance may seem inconsequential to you, it can lead to confusion and cause long-term negative associations for kids," says Moorhouse.
Similarly, withholding allowance as a form of punishment is a financial no-no, according to Moorhouse. Limiting access to money as a way to control behaviour can have negative effects on feelings about money.
Automating the allowance process can help create simple, yet effective routines for parents and kids. According to survey results, 81 per cent of parents are still paying allowances with physical money, but in an increasingly cashless world, it's unsurprising that 26 per cent of parents say they often don't have the cash on hand to pay the week's allowance.
Digital money management tools like Mydoh – which recently went subscription-free – allow parents to set up automatic allowance deposits or send money to kids as, and when, they need it. Kids and teens can securely spend their allowance using an age-appropriate, reloadable prepaid
View the full version of Mydoh's Canadian Allowance Report here.
Survey Methodology
These are some of the findings of an Ipsos poll conducted between
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