Did you or would you buy your teen their first car?
We have not bought our teens a car, we bought an extra car for them to use but they had to buy their own car. Out of four kids, we're down to the last one and we're not buying her a car either. Our plan is to buy another family car and let her take the one we're using now to college.
I'm not sure exactly what we want to do. We are going to have an extra car for everyone to share, once drivers licenses roll around. 14 here you get a learners permit where you can drive from 8am to 8pm. My daughter wants to get a job as soon as she turns 14 and save up for a car. I think working a few hours a week wouldn't be bad as long as she understands that most of that will go into savings. I would on the other hand like them all to have something reliable for when they go to college. It's probably the only way to ensure they come home to visit. I think we will probably help pay for a car when they graduate if they choose to go to a state college. Private college will require more financial help from us, and if they don't go to college they can get a job and get their own car.
Our approach has varied a bit with each one. We always had an extra car that they could use. Three of them worked, they had to pay the increase in our insurance while using the car, plus their gas and whatever tickets they got. Two of them went off to school so they didn't need a car after graduation. The other got our old car which was put in his name, which he dogged and left abandoned. He had to pay for his next.
We got one son a used car for several hundred dollars, after HS graduation. He was responsible for the tags and insurance and everything else. He left that one in the pound and couldn't afford to get it out. He hasn't had a car since, but that's another post.
We have bought some used cars for ourselves and ended up selling them for a small fee to our children. They had to pay the transfer fees, etc.
The next to youngest used our car. He didn't work so he couldn't pay for anything. He went to the military and his biomom is letting him have their old car. Our last child ,15 y.o. will probably use our car. If she doesn't have a job, she won't have to pay anything. If she does work, she will. She's planning on going to a community college first, so we'll have to figure out how to handle this then.
It all depends!
Ours is getting the jeep for her first car. She drives at 16 and I want her car to be in a steel cage roll over bar proof get me thru the teen years type vehicle. If she manages to get thru college without damaging the thing, then we will get her a new car. DH and I had our fist accident at 18. I think all teens do. I would get her a safe car for the first and then a new one after college. Good luck with your decision. But this is ours.
Jill
Parents Of Tweens Starting 6th Grade
Camping And Loving It
We bought our oldest son(now 18) his first car at the age of 16...He got his license in Aug. and we bought the car in Feb. It was a 2007 Scion tC....It was new, but a leftover from the previous year. We took care of everything financially pertaining to the car...Pmt, Ins, Upkeep...He had to pay for his gas and provide his own frivolous spending money. We will, if financially able, do the same for the younger two.
He has since bought/sold/traded 13 other cars on his own...all Honda's...He buys, fixes up and sells for profit. He has one that he has kept along with the Scion...He must pay for the insurance and upkeep on that car...It is mainly for racing and his full responsibility.
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I'm ready to pull the earbuds out of his ears and put them somewhere less comfortable.
- mumsy2three
on Feb. 15, 2010 at 10:34 AM