It’s no secret that for a lot of families, it’s pretty tight right now financially. Parents are having their hours cut back at work or worse yet are being laid off and are completely out of a job.
This is a tough spot for a teenager to be in, because obviously you care about your family and want to support your parents any way you can. Here are a couple of things I want you to remember…
Oftentimes all we talk about is how the recession is hurting us left and right. Lay offs, less scholarship money, lower pay at work, school budget cuts, the list goes on and on.
But what we forget is that there are ways to take advantage of tough times and make the recession work in our favor. Here are some ideas…
Yesterday, I read a new survey that was released in Seventeen magazine regarding Teens & Money.
Yes, I subscribe. Please don’t judge me.
Anyway, it was a survey of 2,000 teenagers across the U.S. Here were some of the findings with my 2 cents…
YOUR 2 CENTS – Any observations you have from these numbers?
Unless you’ve been living in a cave for the last 12 months, you’ve probably heard (and noticed) that the economy isn’t in the best shape. Maybe the current economic conditions have peaked your interest and you’ve started paying a little more attention to the morning paper or the evening news.
If so, you’ve probably heard the stock market referred to as an animal…either a bull or a bear. A little strange, I agree. But what do they mean?
Given the current state of the economy, there are a lot of families feeling a lot of pressure dealing with their finances. While generally it’s parents who are in the thick of it with money challenges, those problems obviously affect the entire family. When money is tight, tensions are higher, tempers flare, and the overall tone of the family is stressful.
So how can a student better help their parent during these tough times? Here are a couple of principles and ideas…
You’re exactly right that the interest rate you can earn from the average bank in a savings account doesn’t hardly even seem worth it right now. So what are your other options?
CDs (Certificates of Deposit) may give you a little better return, but I don’t think they’re worth it for a few reasons.
You may have noticed that college is slightly expensive. And each year it gets worse.
According to The College Board, the average cost of tuition at a private college is up 5.9% and public college tuition is up 6.4%. Even the cost of two-year community colleges is up 4.7%.
But why? If college is supposed to be this great institution to help students prep for the real world, then why does it cost so much?
Here are a few reasons why the cost of college is so high…
First of all, you have to realize that jobs are scarce right now. In the past, teenage summer jobs have been everywhere, but this year, it’s been a little more challenging. So if you can get a summer job, consider yourself lucky.
That being said, you can still make above minimum wage. The challenge is we all know the stereotype about teenager workers…
They’re lazy. They don’t follow instructions. They don’t listen. They show up late. They have a bad attitude.
It makes sense. If you need more money and you have the power to print more, then why wouldn’t you?
It sounds good in theory, but you’ve got two concepts working against one another.
Supply & Demand VS. Inflation.
Let me briefly explain both.
Supply & Demand – There is always a correlation between these two and how it affects prices in the economy. If supply is up and demand is down, prices will be lower. If demand is up and supply is down, prices will be higher.
Inflation – This is what happens in the economy when the dollar isn’t worth as much. In 1959, a gallon of gas was $.25. Today, in 2009, the average gallon of gas this week is around $2.10. So why the $1.85 difference? Inflation. It costs more today to buy the same thing.