Teach Your Teen Budgeting Skills with a Prepaid Debit Card

Kaiku prepaid debit cards for under 18, as well as other prepaid debit cards that are specifically designed for minors, are a great choice if you're looking for a secure, convenient, and "realistic" approach to teaching your teenager about handling money. The majority of teenagers are simply interested in spending money (preferably yours), and even if they're working part-time, they might not give much thought to just how much work goes into earning a paycheck. Budgeting skills are not necessarily acquired naturally, so do your teenager a good service and consider setting them up with a prepaid card.

Prepaid debit cards for teens are a better choice than cash because you, as the parent, will be able to keep tabs on what your teen is doing with the card. Together you can create a budget, determine how the card will be funded (you can add funds via bank transfers, direct deposit, and sometimes in-store reloading with cash), and give your teen ideas on how to best manage the money. Work on prioritizing needs over wants, such as by requiring your teen to pay a portion of the family cell phone plan, and recommending that they purchase their own clothes and school supplies before deciding to go to a concert or buy a bunch of video games.

Today's prepaid debit cards offer the ability to reload in person, over the phone, through the mail, and even online. Online accounts for both teens and their parents means it's easy to check in on funds and transactions, and monitor balances as well as create and tweak budgets. And with many smartphone apps available, on-the-go banking with a prepaid card is also a useful function to take advantage of.