Bail Your Kids Out of Debt? Marry a Slacker? Co-Sign A Loan? - Ellie Kay's Q&A

Ellie was on ABC NEWS, and others stations across the country again this past week. All the following people who asked questions will get a free copy of The Little Book of Big Savings!

Here's her answers to your questions:

Q. Our son is only 20 and has $4,000 in credit card debt. He’s not able to pay and wants us to bail him out. I warned him about his credit cards because I made the same mistake when I was in my 20s and he didn’t listen to me. But I feel like a bad parent if I don’t help him out. What do you recommend?

Tim from New Mexico
Submitted via Facebook

ELLIE: Sorry to hear about your son's decisions, Tim. NO, you should NOT bail him out. It sets a precedence and you'll have to do it again (or do it for other kids, friends or family members). You can come alongside him and help develop a recovery plan. Or, offer to go with him to a free financial counsling center. Go to my free tools and click onto the section about consumer debt for more help. Your love for your son is unconditional, but your money is conditional. He made his own choices, now he has to deal with the consequences. You'll support him emotionally, but you won't fund his mistakes.

Q. Our daughter has a used car that we bought her when she was 18. She’s now 22 and newly graduated with a $30,000 a year job. She has to pay rent, insurance and all her living expenses and wants to buy another car. The one she has now runs just fine, but since she got a new job she wants a new car. However, we would have to cosign on it, what do you think?

Christine Thomason, Minneapolis
Submitted via Facebook

ELLIE: Congrats, Christine! You raised a baby girl who not only graduated from college, but also found a good job right away--well done! Now, the next step is to help her learn delayed gratification. She WANTS a new car, she doesn't need one. The fact that she needs a co-signer indicates the bank does not consider her a credit worthy risk--neither should you. Instead, encourage her to set aside $350 to $500 per month (whatever her car payment would be) for a year. Then, she can sell her existing car, buy another nice USED car and pay cash. If she saves this way for another year, she can sell the 2nd car for a nicer used car (using her saved cash) and still pay cash. This way, she's driving her "dream car" for free with NO car payments!

Q. We have two kids that are 14 and 16 and are on competitive basketball teams. They take a bus two to three times a week to tournaments and other competitions. We have to pay for their meals on the road and they are burning through our cash constantly. They’ll spend $15 or more (each) for a fast food meal and we’re going broke. Is there a way to motivate them to cut back on how much they spend?

Thomas Evers, New York
Submitted via email

ELLIE: Thomas you've found yourself in the place where you are getting played by your kids. I know what it's like, I've found myself asking: "How did I get here?" when it comes to my teens running over me with their personal agendas. It's time to regain your lost ground and be the dad. Tell your kids that you are putting them on a food budget and they will now have $10 (each) to spend on fast food. If they were eating in a nice, sit down restaurant, it would be different. But they're not. Tell them if $10 is not enough, they can bring a sack lunch on road trips or pay the extra expense with their own money. Either way, they're not going to starve and you won't go broke.

Q. Our oldest daughter is suppose to get married in December. She is 24 with a good job and her fiancée is 30, has a degree in electrical engineering but doesn’t really have a job. He drives a truck off and on. It’s spooky, because when I got married, it was a similar situation and we ended up divorcing because I was the main breadwinner and he couldn’t hold a job. I don’t want her to make the same mistake. Do you think a couple has a “right” to know about each other’s finances and attitude toward money and work before they get married?

Donna Michaels from Oklahoma City,
Submitted via blog

ELLIE: History has a way of repeating itself. There are so many red flags in this situation, that you are right to be concerned as a mom. First of all, your daughter needs to go to premarital counseling with her fiancee and stress with the counselor that they want an emphasis on financial issues. If her fiancee will not go, then I think she should postpone the wedding. A couple of facts are clear: he is well educated and underemployed. The reason might be something legitimate like "the economy" and counseling will make that clear. But the other reason could be that he's unmotivated when it comes to providing a living--in other words, he could be a slacker. So if your daughter wants to be the main breadwinner and face a life of living with a man who is underemployed, then keep the December wedding date. Otherwise, get the wisdom of a third party involved to determine the real reasons for his unemployment.

Please submit your questions and if I answer them in a blog, I'll send you a free copy of The Little Book of Big Savings!

Ellie Kay

America's Family Financial Expert (R)

What Should You Teach Your Three Year Old About Money?

Here we have the world's cutest four year old, three year old and 7 month old! But what should they be learning about money right now?

So how do you raise a kid that owns his car, debt free, owes no credit card debt and has a 760 FICO score upon graduating from college (no student loan debt) at the tender age of 22? We've been able to raise a kid (or two or five) that are financially fit. We still have some at home that we're working on! But you can raise financially literate kids, too!

It starts with a "Fiscal Report Card" and checking off what they need to know at various ages. Here's a partial report card you can review and if you want the full version (for free) just email assistant@elliekay.com and put "Fiscal Report Card" in the subject line.

Youngsters

Age 2 to 4
• Picks up toys cheerfully
• Is on a schedule for sleep, play, and work (or school)

Age 4 to 6
• Makes bed in a basic way (not necessarily neat)
• Picks up room regularly
• Brings clothes to hamper
• Knows how to set and clear the table
• Knows how to take out the trash


Middlers

Ages 7 to 10
• Knows how to sort laundry into whites, coloreds and darks
• Can fold laundry and put it in everyone's room
• Is given an allowance
• Has a savings account at home and at a bank
• Manages a fun kid budget (restaurant, zoo, amusement park, etc)


Ages 11 to 12
• Begins to do additional "jobs" for hire within the home and occasionally for friends or family.
• Has a savings account with at least $200 to $250 in it.
• Is learning the meaning of delayed gratification
• Can save up for half of a larger ticket item they want (bike, skates, video game, etc)
• Is regularly contributing to a community organization either through volunteer hours or donating goods (clothing, toys, money)

Teens

Ages 13 to 15
• Can manage and balance their own checkbook with supervision
• Has enough in savings to take out $200 to $300 to start a mutual fund
• Is able to do outside jobs for hire among approved "employers" in the neighborhood
• Regularly pays for outings (movies, theme parks, etc)
• Is saving for a vehicle
• Is aware of the fact their grades in high school will impact their ability to get into college and earn scholarships for college


Age 16 to 20• Can balance a checkbook without supervision
• Has an additional credit card (on parents account) and can use it responsibly
• Can manage and balance a clothing budget and personal financial budget
• Regularly works inside and outside of the home during breaks from school
• Has paid for 1/3 to 1/2 of the cost of their car
• Maintains a good GPA (or what they are capable of)
• Has a regular volunteer position (hospital, coaching, church involvement, etc)
• Can use social media to learn ways to save money

What are you doing with your kids that is working? Let me hear from you!

Ellie Kay
America's Family Financial Expert (R)

Atonement - How to Keep Your Kids from Making the Same Mistakes You Made

Can you atone for the financial mistakes you made and keep your kids from making the same errors? This week in national media, I'm talking about how to help your kids make right financial choices. Here's my main talking points.


Statistics indicate that the majority of high school graduates cannot pass a basic financial literacy test and end up accruing $3800 in consumer debt in college. In fact, a 2010 American Express survey of parents with children between the ages 6-16 revealed that:

• 71% of parents say their children understand we are in a recession.
• 91% of parents say they are committed to instilling lessons of financial responsibility upon their children, with 62% giving their children a weekly allowance.
• One in five children (20%) has indicated to a parent that "maybe we shouldn't buy that due to the recession."

Q. Ellie, in a day where foreclosures abound and consumer debt is at an all time high, there are many parents who are watching who want to help their kids avoid the mistakes they made. Have you ever made any financial mistakes?

ELLIE: Yes, I’ve “been there/done that” and have the t-shirt to prove it. Our family had 40K in credit card debt when we were first married even though my husband had a good job. There were a couple of weeks when we didn’t have money for groceries, things were so bad. We were able to change our ways and became financially healthy and we don’t want our kids to make the same errors we did.

Q. Why do parents need to take responsibility for teaching our kids good money management, aren’t there new financial literacy programs, such as Jumpstart, that are making a difference?

ELLIE: I’ve spoken at Jumpstart conventions and they are a fantastic organization, but these programs aren’t available in every school and it’s up to parents to take that responsibility. In fact, I think that one of the greatest things we can do for our kids is to teach them about money management, something they don’t learn in the classroom. Since the number one reason cited in divorce is “arguments over money” teaching our kids to be financially literate can even help them in their future relationships.

If they don’t have to worry about debt, they know how to manage a budget and they learn smart ways to save money, then we’ve given them the best gift possible. We all know that kids learn most about how to manage money from their parents. And parents have a huge opportunity to teach kids healthy money management habits at an early age so they don’t make the same mistakes we made.

Q. What are your favorite ways to give your kids financial responsibilities without losing control?

ELLIE: There are several options out there for parents looking to stay in control of family spending while still extending financial empowerment to their teens and young adults. One of the things we’ve done is to teach our kids from a young age that if they “borrow” money from us, they pay it back at their next allowance, thus developing the habit of not carrying a balance from month to month. This concept is most closely identified with the Charge Cards that we have with American Express. In my work with their consumer education area, I decided to add additional cards with custom limits to our own account that is in the children’s name so we can teach them about the smart use of plastic and they can never spend more than the limits we’ve placed on the card. One of the reasons I believe in a charge card is that you have to pay it off at the end of each month. These cards are on the parents' account, not the teens, but we can go online and see how they spend the money and we can also set limits for each additional card. Once they turn 18, these cards, while still under our account, can be also used to develop our child’s FICO score.

Q. What are some of your favorite money management tactics?

ELLIE: One of my favorite money management tactics is to teach kids the art of managing an allowance. By getting an allowance, kids learn to manage their own money while they are still in our house and have the freedom to fail under our safety net. We teach them to give, save and spend smart. We’ve also used the tactic of a “Fun Kid Budget” where we set aside a certain amount for trips to the movies, zoo or an amusement park. They manage the money we’ve given them for the fun outing and the key is: they get to keep what they don’t spend. As they get older and become teens, their budgets expand to include a school supply budget, clothing allowance and a gasoline budget. A great option is to put their designated amount on a American Express PASS , which is a prepaid, reloadable card that once again, we control. That way, we don’t have to worry about them taking cash to the mall or using our debit card and the funds can be replaced if the card is lost or stolen. It’s like driver’s ed for the teen’s wallet but parents are in the driver’s seat.

Q. You have a “Family 401(k)” how does that work and what age do you start this kind of savings program with your children?

ELLIE: A “Family 401(k)” is a program where our kids have to earn half of the money for a large ticket item that they want such as a bike, videogame, roller blades, skateboards, etc. It may take months for them to earn their half, but once they’ve earned it and purchased the item, they take far better care of it than if we just bought it for them outright. They worked hard to earn their half so they’re going to make sure that videogame doesn’t get scratched and that they don’t leave their bike out in the rain. They can start this program as young as 6 or 7, depending upon the maturity of the child and their math skills. I remember our daughter, Bethany, saving for 8 months to get an American Girl doll, she was only seven years old but she was so proud of it and took such good care of it that it’s still in good shape and she’s now 20 years old!

Q. How can activities like back to school shopping help parents teach kids about money management?

ELLIE: A recent survey that examines consumer back to school spending intentions, notes that 39 percent of Americans plan to spend more on back to school shopping this year than in 2009, yet the majority (63%) say they will have a set budget and virtually all parents (94%) say they will look for ways to be resourceful and stretch their dollars.

I come alongside my kids and teach them how to compare prices, recognize quality and shop the sales, even using a coupon on some of these items. For our teens, we let them use our smartphone while in the mall to local coupons and the best deals that are accessed on the phone and used at the register. For example, retailmenot.com will list coupon codes and special deals. The fact that we’re using their “language” which is technology drives the financial lesson home in an upbeat and lasting way.

One of the other things we do is to teach them that “we pay for the item but you pay for the brand.” So if my son wants the latest Air Jordans, then we tell him we’ll pay $50 for the tennis shoes and he pays the additional $70 (for a total of $120) for the brand. It makes them realize what’s a need and what’s a splurge, then they can decide if it’s worth it to spend their own hard earned money on a brand.

If we can help our kids do better, then you can, too!

Ellie Kay
America's Family Financial Expert (R)

Red, White and Scammed - Part II- Answering Your Questions

Here's a blast from the past--when our children were little & white tights were in!

This is part two of a series that is an effort to help military families. I've been on ABC News and KLOVE these past two weeks, answering your questions.

Here's a transcript for those of you who asked--Be sure to pass this link along to your military friends!


Q. Ellie, you came to our Army base to speak last November and I think that your message really helped me get through my husband’s deployment. Thank you for the work you are doing with military families. I did have a question about ordering items online. You showed us how to pay 40% less by using some websites, but how do I know if the website is legitimate?

Steph from Rothenburg, Germany
Submitted via online contact form

ELLIE: Steph, thanks for writing and thank you for what you do as a military family member, I admire you so much and know it’s a hard job! To avoid getting scammed online, make sure that you never respond to an email inquiry, but you find the site yourself on your own search. Then, go to BBB.org to make sure they aren’t listed and also check out the FTC.gov, plus the Internet Crime Complaint Center at IC3.gov, to investigate complaints against the company.

Q. I’m 19 and have been a soldier for 18 months. There are quite a few of my friends who regularly go to the payday loan business that is right outside our base. I keep telling them that they are losing a lot of money by getting a pay advance, but they say the interest rates are low and it’s no big deal. What do you think?

"Private Benjamin" from Ft Bragg
Submitted via Facebook

ELLIE: Private Benjamin, thx for your service and you’re the smart one. Tell your friends that some of these payday loan companies are charging as much as 500% interest. Even though the Defense Authorization Act of 2007 put a cap of 36% on interest loans to military members, many of these companies skirt the law by added exorbitant fees and calling the loans “revolving lines of credit” instead of payday loans in order to bypass the law.

Q. My husband’s hazardous duty pay was backlogged by red tape and didn’t arrive early enough for us to pay our bills. How am I supposed to pay things like our car loans while he is in the Middle East if I shouldn’t go a payday loan center?

Justine Long, Fort Drum, NY
Submitted via Facebook

ELLIE: In situations like yours, there are resources as near as your Army Community Services center where they can offer free financial advice. In extenuating circumstances, such as yours, you might even qualify for special programs offered by the Army’s charity, Army Emergency Relief or the AER. By going to these legitimate resources, you can avoid getting ripped off.

Q. Our community here in Alamogordo, NM is very supportive of the military and so is Las Cruces, which is a little further down the road. Many businesses carry banners that say, “we support our military.” Even so, a friend of ours bought a car from one of these places and it turns out that the dealership didn’t own the title and then went out of business. Now our friend has an $12,000 loan to pay and no car to show for it! How can we avoid being “taken” and who can we trust?

Heidi Rothenburg, Holloman Air Force Base
Submitted via blog

ELLIE: Heidi, I’m so sorry to hear of that situation, especially from a business that advertises its support of the military. Unfortunately, auto vendors are a huge source of complaints. In most cases, the salesperson will offer you “easy credit” but you pay jacked up prices, hidden fees and interest rates of 15% to 20%. Military financial counselors have files full of horror stories. Bad dealers have taken cars in trade, promising to pay them off and then they go out of business, leaving service members with two payments. Go to BBB certified dealers and if the deal sounds too good to be true, just walk away, because it usually is. Or go to your base's ACS, Airman & Family Readiness Center or Fleet and Family Support Center for local financial counseling.

Q. My daughter just got commissioned with the Marine Corps and I’m concerned about the possibility of someone taking advantage of her financially. Are military members bigger targets for fraud than civilians?

Sue Simpson, Stillwater, OK

ELLIE: Military members have guaranteed paychecks and won’t ever get laid off. This makes them good credit risks. But it also makes them targets. Some people see the military as cash cows and they want to get their cut. One of the greatest evidence of this fact is that outside of any large military installation, you’ll see businesses that offer payday loans, pawn shops, and check cashers. These are the kinds of businesses that prey on unsuspecting military.

Stephanie, Phoenix, AZ
Submitted via email

Thank you to those who serve!

Ellie Kay

America's Family Financial Expert (R)

Red, White and Scammed - Tell Your Military Friends to Beware!

This week on ABC NEWS and KLOVE, I've been discussing how
thousands of service members engaged in fighting America’s battles overseas are now encountering a foe here at home. Enlisted men and women are easy marks for sleazy car dealers, insurance scammers predatory lenders, and identity thieves. So pervasive are the rip-offs and so troubling is the debt incurred by military personnel that US Department of Defense officials recently labeled the situation a threat to national security.

We have a long tradition of military service in our family. My grandfather was a bombardier who died in WWII, my father is a retired chief master sergeant in the Air Force, my husband, Bob, flew Air Force fighters for 25 years, our son, Philip, is a senior at the Naval Academy and will to cross commission into Marine Corp Aviation, our next son is headed toward the Air Force Academy next year and the youngest son wants to go to Westpoint and be in the Army. In fact, the photo you see is Bob, pinning on the Philip's Airborne wings--the very wings Bob earned 30 years ago when he was a cadet at the Air Force Academy!

Q. The DOD has labeled the fraud situation among the military as a threat to national security. How does getting scammed impact lives overseas?

ELLIE: It’s all about distraction. When military members are distracted, whether it’s worry over identity theft or trying to wondering if their spouse is able to deal with messy finances at home—then that’s when accidents happen. Distraction leads to worry which leads to accidents. And when accidents happen, then there is loss of life. So if we want to help save lives overseas, then we can all do our part to protect our military members by exposing rip offs and scams whenever possible.

Q. What kind of paycheck does a typical recruit make & what are some of the questionable ways that local businesses try to get a piece of that paycheck?

ELLIE: They earn about $1800 per month & these paychecks can be carved to bits by bad deals. For example, a computer store outside of Great Lakes Naval Training Center in Illinois employs attractive women to troll for new sailors. Once they get them inside the store, they are pressured into buying a very basic laptop for more than $4000, which is three times as much as the computer is worth. Then they finance the deal and the computer ends up costing even more with the store also making money on financing.

Q. What are some other common ways that the military is ripped off and people should be aware of?

ELLIE: There was recently a multistate investigation launched into life insurance scams that were being perpetrated against military members just before they took off to the Middle East. These scamsters sold soldiers extremely overpriced or misrepresented policies, taking advantage of the emotional situation of leaving families to go into harm’s way. This investigation ended with the companies offering more than $70 million dollars in refunds to thousands of service members. When it comes to life insurance, military members are offered SGLI or Servicemembers Group Life Insurance, which is a legitimate source for low premiums, so there’s really no need to secure other private insurance!

Q. Tell us about the “Red Cross” scam that is getting a lot of attention among military families?

ELLIE: This is fairly despicable, as it prays on the emotions of family members. A con artist claiming to be with the Red Cross will call a parent of a servicemember or their spouse, telling them their loved one has been injured and they need their social security number to authorize help for them. In some cases, they ask for an initial cash payment. Military members need to clear any report of injury through the chain of command or by contacting the base family community services.

Q. It seems that our military is very young, what is the average age of a service member and do they receive any kind of personal finance education as part of their training?

ELLIE: Yes, they are young, in fact, the average age range of military members is between 22 and 28 years old. Of the groups I routinely speak to around the world, I’d say that the average 22 year old has an even younger wife and a baby as well—so it’s a lot of responsibility for someone so young. The good news is that since 2004, service members learn about personal finance as part of their early training. When I go to give my “Heroes at Home” message I teach about finances and also encourage them to use the resources they have available to them on base. Army Community Services, Airman and Family Readiness Centers, Fleet and Family Support Centers—all of these have personal finance counselors there who are ready and willing to give free financial counseling to service members and their families. It’s what I call my $300 tip, because a couple hours with the caliber of financial professional at any of these centers is equivalent to paying $300 to a CFP or CPA.


Ellie Kay
America's Family Financial Expert (R)
http://www.elliekay.com/

Back to School Savings Tips

Back to School Savings Tips

I've been on KLOVE lately sharing these tips

• Loving The “Two For One” – (Financial Literacy and Back to School Budgets) – Why not teach your teen two things at once such as financial literacy by using a back to school budget? Set a spending amount on a prepaid card or their own supplemental card (I added cards on my American Express account) and coach them on what their limits are for the shopping season. Whether the budget is $50 for your teen to buy school supplies or $500 for your college student to buy dorm room essentials, you can monitor how they are spending and coach them on the best ways to use their budgeted money.


• Layer the Savings – In today’s economy it is no longer enough to just save by buying something on sale—today, you have to layer the savings. For the store, this means buying items on sale when you also have a coupon. Go to couponmom.com to see what is on sale in your neighborhood and the matching coupon.
For online shopping, look for sale items where you can also use a coupon or coupon code to save on the price, shipping and more. Go to RetailMeNot.com or CouponCabin.com to find the right code. It requires a little research, but it can also translate into hundreds of dollars of savings for your back to school season.


• Loss Leaders – When shopping for back to school, take advantage of the loss leaders that retailers are offering. You may get that name brand shoe for 50% off and they are hoping you’ll do the rest of your shopping at their store as well. If you take advantage of all the different stores’ loss leaders by shopping at places that honor competitor’s ads, you’ll not only save money, but you’ll save gas and time.


• Little from Big – When planning for kids school lunches this coming fall, buy lunch staples in larger sizes to save by buying in bulk, then repackage them into smaller sizes. For example, take that 5 pound bag of mini carrots and put them in snack sized plastic bags for a healthy and affordable option for lunch at a 30% savings over buying the smaller pre-packaged sizes


• Logistical Savings – When our kids went out of state to college and we had to buy items for their dorm rooms, we chose online retailers who also had physical stores in the town where they went to school. These vendors had site to store options where they would send the products to one of their local stores and not charge a shipping fee. This option allowed us to shop at our leisure online, incorporate all the savings factors we could, and have the convenience of our kids going to their local store to pick up the items we ordered. For example, Walmart's site to store program offers free shipping to the local store for pickup.


• Limited Spending Plan – One technique we’ve used for all our children, whether they are in elementary school or college is to make saving money a family affair. We give the kids a spending plan, telling them how much money we will give them for their back to school budget. The fun comes in when we tell them that they get to keep what they do not spend. So if we’ve budgeted $75 for tennis shoes and they find them on sale for $35, then they get to pocket the extra $40. It’s amazing how our kids can distinguish between “needs” and “wants” when it comes to this added motivation of learning ways to spend less and save more. This fresh idea not only saves our family money, but it has trained all our children in money matters, making them more adept as young adults.

• Lengthen The Shopping Season – One of the reasons families overspend for back to school items is because they are locked into the idea that they need all the school supplies, clothes and gadgets the first week of school. In reality, the majority of these items will be on sales or clearance, especially clothing, within the first month after school starts. So consider letting your child start the year with just enough clothing to get a good start and f inish out their wardrobe as key items go on clearance. The same can apply to backpacks, lunch boxes and sporting equipment. As long as they have a prepaid card or a supplemental card with their limit, you’ll find yourself right on track and get more for less.

• Leverage High Tech Savings – One thing that I’ve learned as a mother of seven is that I only have a limited amount of time to teach my kids the things that matter most in life. By making back to school shopping a family effort, I’ve been able to train our kids in money matters in fun ways that incorporate their strengths. For example, I let our teenagers shop in a different part of the mall, encouraging them to do their online research by comparing store prices with other deals on their smart phones. For example, they see a scientific calculator in the electronics store for their algebra class, they can search mysimon.com to see if it’s the best price. Then they text me the numbers and I give them approval to buy it, which empowers them to contribute to our family’s economic well being while allowing them to learn financial literacy as well.

• Long run Lessons – Every year, I’ve used back to school shopping as a key opportunity for my kids to learn financial literacy lessons. By setting them up with a budget through the use of a PASS or SUPP card, I’ve been able to teach them how to spend wisely and then helped them start to develop a good credit score when they are 18. They key is that I get tomonitor and track their spending so they can’t fail. The result is that my children have great scores at young ages. In fact, my 22 year old son, had a 750 credit score when he graduated, good enough to prequalify for a townhouse mortgage!

Look for Scholarships -- Millions of dollars of scholarship money go unclaimed every year. This is free-lunch money that parents or prospective students who are willing to do some detective work may find more quickly than they think. Salliemae.com has over 1.9 million scholarships to research valued at 16 billion dollars! You child, for example, could write a 500 word essay on skateboarding or other areas of interest—there are thousands of scholarships that go unused every year because kids don’t apply for them. Don’t forget to have students apply to local civic organizations and community scholarships as well—the high school counselor should have a list of these scholarships.

: Locate Discount Books - Buying your books from a used bookstore can save money, but buying them online can save even more. My son, a journalism major, bought had a book that was $150 new, $30 at a used book store and he found it for $1.50 at amazon.com. You can also try Campus Books or Abe Books to compare prices across the internet to find the best values. Just be sure to buy them two weeks before classes start. As soon as you get your book list, begin your search because the early bird gets the best value on books!
Happy Back to School Savings!

Ellie Kay
America's Family Financial Expert (R)

The Family Road Trip

This week on ABC NEWS NOW, I talked about how to take a Family Road trip that won't traumatize your children! I remember my dad stuffing us kids in the back of a VW bug and traveling from TX to IN, making about 600 miles per day. Need I say more?

Here are some ideas that will make your family trip a lot more fun and affordable.

Q. First of all, let’s look at a question that many families are asking: is it cheaper to take that long family road trip, or is it more cost effective to fly?

ELLIE: It’s all in the numbers including how far you have to travel, how many family members and how many nights on the road. It’s going to be pretty easy for you to calculate the bottom line for flying versus driving. Just go to costToDrive.com to calculate the mileage, gas, travel time and carbon footprint of anywhere in the US. You’ll also need to go to hotels.com to add that expense to your total. Then, go to bookingbuddy.com to find the best price on airfare. This site will compare the prices from other travel sites such as expedia, orbitz, Travelocity, cheaptickets and more. Don’t forget the rental car if you’re flying, you can research that on hotwire.com .

Q. One of the greatest expenses while traveling down the highway is for snacks, lunch and dinner. It can not only get pricey, but these purchases can also take a toll on health as there seems to be an emphasis on eating fast food while on the road. Do you have any ideas on other options?

ELLIE: If your children are little, the stops you make on the road are essential for them to be able to get out and stretch their legs—adults need that, too. When our kids were little, we packed a lunch for the first day on the road and stopped at roadside parks. It’s easy to plan these stops with the assistance of your GPS or your smartphone, just locate a parks along the way and plan accordingly. To save money on snacks, pack some healthy options in individual bags for each family member and include options such as carrots, grapes, cherries, pretzels or trail mix.

Q. One of the tips you share is to set realistic expectations. So how long can you realistically expect to travel in a car with a three year old?

ELLIE: I think that you shouldn’t try to conquer more than 300 miles a day with a preschooler, because they’ll arrive tired and cranky at your destination AND SO WILL YOU! You need to know your child(ren) and adjust your expectations accordingly. Are you one of those blessed families whose kids sleep as soon as you get in the car? Then you can probably handle a few more miles a day. Does any of your family members have health issues that require frequent stops, then add some extra time to your trip so you aren’t stressed. Setting realistic expectations will help you and your family have a better trip.

Q. Another challenge for families is keeping the kids occupied. Older children can use their Ipods to stay busy and everyone enjoys movies on the way. But even these options can lead to the inevitable boredom as kids start to get restless. You’re a mother of many, what do you suggest?

ELLIE: I think this is where creativity comes into play. When our kids were all school aged and we had a long trip (or a military move), I shop ahead of time for small games, books, activity puzzles, little toys and other trinkets I knew they would like. Then I’d wrap these “surprises” in gift paper and put each child’s name on it. At the top of every hour, if they were good on the road, we would give them their individual present. Sometimes, a grouchy child wouldn’t get his because he wasn’t co-operating. He’d watch his siblings playing with their gifts and it would motivate him to behave. I also think that an adult should be in charge of not only disbursing the surprises, but also handing out the individual snacks at certain times as well. You can give them out at certain mile markers that the kids can look for and it becomes an effective way of passing the time.
This is also the time to develop your own traditions. My older kids liked creating Mad Libs and played slug bug or I Spy. But our younger kids developed a game called, “Name that movie line” which became a tradition in our family. We still play it when we get together and find it creates family bonding moments and is a unique Kay Family Tradition.

Q. How do you feel about souvenirs? Do you think that saving money means you just say “no” to the t-shirts, coffee mugs, statues and commemorative books?

ELLIE: I think that souvenirs are an important part of any vacation time but it’s also important to not overspend on these category. We give our kids a budget for souvenirs and let them choose. We also encourage them to pick things that are of a better quality and yet inexpensive such as spoons, shot glasses, or magnets.

Q. What if you haven’t taken a vacation yet and don’t know if you can afford it. Do you have any creative ways to save money on a place to stay on the family road trip?

ELLIE: If you have friends that you like a lot and think your friendship can survive the test of a family road trip and vacation, then double up with that family and cut your bills in half. For example, the normal price of a week-long mountain cabin rental with three bedrooms in Manitou Springs, CO was $900. If each family pays $450 instead of the full price, they may be able to afford a vacation that might not have been available to them otherwise. You can go to vrbo.com or www.findrental.com. Suite hotels that offer extra rooms are also an option such as the ones found at orbitz.com or cheaphotels.com. For those who love the great outdoors, sharing campsite fees or RV rentals can split the price of a camping adventure. At RVRental.com we found rentals across the country that ranged from $117/day to $385 per day. Depending on the owner of the RV, other charges to consider are hospitality kits, kitchen kits, and/or emergency road kits. Cleaning fees will apply if the RV is not returned in the condition in which it was rented.

Q. What about saving money on food and entertainment once you get to your destination?

ELLIE: I recommend you go to entertaimnent.com and enter the zip code of where you’ll be traveling in order to preview their entertainment books for that destination. These are currently on sale and you can find discounts on food, movie tickets, amusement parks, hotels and much more. Also go to restaurant.com and enter the zip code to get gift certificates for half price and while you’re there, see if they have any sales. I recently bought $25 gift certificates at that site for only $2. Plus, use your smartphone by entering the attraction’s name to see if there are any coupons or codes you can download on your phone and use on the spot.

Enjoy your Family Road Trip!

Ellie Kay
America's Family Financial Expert (R)
www.elliekay.com