How to Save for Your Child's Future

Lately I have been thinking about setting up a bank account to save as much as possible for our children's future. The thought of how much money we will need to give them for that final boost into adulthood is a little scary. But if we start now at least it won't be quite such a shock 15yrs or so down the line! So what are the things we need to save for?

Driving Lessons

Living outside the M25 public transport is limited. Trains run into London well but getting around the local area you basically either walk or drive. Having two girls I think it is exceptionally important that they learn to drive and can get themselves from A to B safely, especially at night. Driving lessons are expensive but in my experience you learn much faster with professional instructors such those at  Pass'N'Go, than by being taught by your parents who have bad habits! Of course once your kids have passed there is the expense of the car and insurance to think about too.

University

Both Husband and I went to University but back in those days it was relatively inexpensive. Our parents paid the £1000 per year tuition fees and we both lived at home. Not having the weight of student loans on our back was a great start for us. These days with fees rocketing skywards University is going cost a small fortune. If my girls want to go then I need to be prepared to help them or they will drown in debt.

Gap Year

I wish I had seen a bit more of the world before I settled down. I'm not really the backpacking type if I'm honest, but I would love to have travelled further afield and experienced different cultures. There is still time for this as the kids grow up but I think you need the energy of youth to really do it properly! If my girls want to take a year out to travel I will thoroughly support it and hope I will be able to contribute financially to make it a little easier for them.

Weddings

One day they may want to get married, and we all know how much they cost! Luckily the days of the Bride's parents footing the bill for the entire wedding seem to have passed, which is lucky or we'd be destitute! There are lots of ways to make wedding more affordable but I'd love them to have the kid of day they want rather without getting into huge debt. Marriage is hard enough without starting out drowning in credit card and loan bills,

Own Home

Getting on the property ladder is much harder now than before the financial crisis. Gone are the days of 100% mortgages and it is all about how much deposit you can get together. Sometimes parents can downsize and release equity from their property to help kids get on the ladder but even if you can save a few thousand to help with solicitors fees it all adds up.
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So how do we save for the future when we don't really know how much we need? Well the universal advice seems to be start as soon as possible and save as much as you can afford. When it comes around you probably won't have enough saved to do everything for them, but the more you have the less they need to borrow and that is always a good thing. My parents taught me that if you can't afford it then don't do it. That is great advice to pass down to my girls and hopefully I can help enough to help them reach their dreams.

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