Now more than ever, it’s become a necessity to ensure that your sons and daughters have something to fall back on when reaching adulthood. Uncertainty over what the future brings means that having some money set aside to fund education, housing and those days when paid work may be hard to come by is a must.
It might seem like a pretty small task right now, but setting up something where you can build up funds for your children until they come in useful can make a big difference later on. It is also important to start saving as soon as possible in the current climate, with an estimated 97% of savers’ accounts currently value at present.
While the need is clear, however, how exactly can this be achieved? Here are a few tips to send you on your way: –
Access Specialist Savings accounts
For little more than a token deposit, you can open a children’s savings account with your bank in the name of your child. This can be used for anything – university fees, a deposit for a home, holidays – whatever is important. All you’ll need is your ID and your kids’ ID – a birth certificate will do nicely.
Current accounts are useful too – they work just like an adult bank account, but your kids have limited control over when they can withdraw money from it. To add money to such an account, simply set up a payment schedule so that a small amount of, say, a few dollars, goes from your account to theirs every week or month.
Embrace New account types
Popular in Europe, child trust fund accounts were a little safer than their more basic equivalents, but they were phased out recently. How trust funds work is that they are effectively kept under lock and key from the day they’re opened until a child turns 18 or reaches another key milestone in their life like graduation. Their replacement is the junior ISA.
These are opened once a year and offer higher interest rates than your average savings account. To set up such an account, it’s worth reading the small print and knowing about any restrictions put in place. Companies like Tilney offer advice on how to open up junior ISAs for children.
Discover Children’s bonds
Another way of saving for your kids’ futures is to open a children’s bond. These are a little less hassle to open than junior ISAs, as you only need to open one every five years. You can invest up to a certain amount of cash per issue, but you need to be aware of when each five-year bond ends. These have higher than normal interest rates, although these vary depending on the rates available.
A riskier but potentially more rewarding way of saving money for your kids’ futures is to look at investing in the stock market. This involves looking for a company whose stock is on the rise or a commodity like gold where you can watch your money grow.
This method isn’t guaranteed to work, whilst a lot of research is needed. That being said, the potential rewards could be huge if you make the right choice. To err on the side of caution, a stocks and shares ISA may come in handy.
There are many options out there for savvy parents who want their kids’ futures to be secure. All you need to do is look at each one carefully, know how much money you need to save and when it will be needed by your children.
