Finance Menu
Banking
Bankruptcy
Career/Work
Education
Family/Home
Insurance
Investing
Loans
Real Estate
Retirement
Taxes
Articles
Resources
Reviews
Sitemap
Videos
Five Ways Kids Can Make Money
Kids are enterprising people. When they need more money, they will actually ask what they can do. Teach your children the value of a dollar earned with these five tips for them to make money.
1. Find work around the house. These additional jobs do not have to include their usual chores. Resist creating a job just for them to make the money. This is the same as opening your wallet and handing the cash over to them. Examine what already needs to be done and choose an age-appropriate task. Asking what they need the money for can drive the fee paid for the service. Don't make it unreasonable, though. Cleaning out the closets may be worth ten dollars but certainly not thirty or forty.
2. Start a needed service in your neighborhood. Parents have the responsibility of upkeep inside and outside the house. As soon as your child is old enough, they can begin a lawn care business. You will need to help them. Create flyers and deliver them door-to-door or put them in mailboxes. State your services and the fee. Elderly neighbors and those that are too busy to do the work make ideal clients. Monitor your child at each job. Only help when they need you to pitch in.
3. Create crafts to sell on eBay. Your child may be the type that enjoys making crafts. If they have the knack, there is a market to sell their wares. EBay offers a no-pressure situation where kids can see business in action. Follow the policies for setting up an account. If they are too young, you may have to own the account. Take pictures of the items and assist your child in writing a description of them for a viewing audience. Selling on eBay introduces kids to the art of owning and maintaining a business.
4. Enlist their help in monitoring younger siblings. A child of seven or eight is old enough to keep an eye on a three year old while you are in the house. This is not a babysitting job, but a monitoring one. If you need to cook dinner or finish some other household chore, hire your youngster to keep an eye on their brothers and/or sisters while you do so. Stress the main points: Keep toys out of their mouths; keep them away from the stove; go where they go. Too many instructions will have your child zoning out.
5. Hold a yard sale. If a child wants some extra cash, they can get rid of toys and clothing that they don't play with or can no longer wear. Enter the yard sale. Yard sales are an excellent way for kids to make a few bucks and clean their rooms at the same time. Instead of throwing away these items or storing them in the attic, let others derive the same benefit that your child received from them.
Kids are hard workers. Asking for more work is a sign that they are learning how valuable money can be to their lives. These five ways to make money are a start. Add more of your own as you think of them.
Subscribe to "Your Finances."
Our monthly personal finance newsletter, helping you with your finances.
Don't worry--your email address is totally secure.
I promise to use it only to send you "Your
Finances."