Charging your teenagers rent

roundthebend

Yo
We have two sons, 18 and 16. The eldest has been working since he was 17 barring a few months gap recently but he's back into a job which seems to be going well.

Although he's not a naughty lad, quite the opposite, he does give us an enormous amount of grief at home. Typical teenager stuff but on a scale that I never believed was possible.

Anyway, we're running out of ways to incentivise a better attitude so think we might try charging him rent. I'm not sure how that would work exactly, but I think it would start to make him focus on how he budgets his money which might then teach him a bit about how we have to budget our money, time, energy etc.

What's the going rate? Should I take 25% of our mortgage from him? 15% of his monthly wage? A flat £100?

I'm thinking I'll put the money into a separate account and decide later if we release it back to him.

DiscoStu

My folks charged me £125 a month all in, back in the early/mid 90s.
I was happy with that and felt good to be contributing.

BloodEagle

Its a good idea and can see the potential benefits, but what happens if he doesnt pay?

breakstuff

When I was eighteen, thirty years ago,I was paying my parents £25 a week on £120 a week wages.I thought this was quite fair.

My eldest who is also eighteen earns £160 a week as an apprentice mechanic and we agreed on him paying £20 a week.Extremely fair,considering I was paying £5 more thirty years ago. Now he's hitting the pubs and bars he now thinks he shouldn't have to pay anything and we should fully support him.

And who said kids today aren't entitled.

Sporky

I paid my mum rent when I moved back after uni (well, second job after uni) until I got my own place, at which point she gave me all the rent back as a moving out present.

Which was awfully nice of her.

octatonic

Hopefully the resentment will have died down by the time it is to find you a nursing home.

Matt_McG

I paid rent to my parents when I was 16-20 (when I left home). It wasn't a huge amount, I think about £100-150 a month, but that was 1989-1992. So, if you added in inflation, that's more like £250-300 a month in today's money.

Way less than you'd need to pay for rent from a private landlord, or a flat share, but a reasonable chunk on a lowish wage. It was about 15-20% of my wage (by the end of that period).

usedtobe

Don’t young people living at home, pay board, now?

menamestom

Thinking of charging my lad rent as well. 

The fact he's 9 and has no source of income is the main stumbling block at the moment.   The glimmer of hope is open fires are coming back so the demand for chimney sweeps is likely to rise.

Kilgore

Charge him the market rate for your area. It will teach him self reliance, the value of money, etc and you'll be quids in. Everyone's a winner.

roundthebend

I should add that he is also still a student, though his course is "full-time" which apparently means 2 days at college and 5 days sleeping.
So, he isn't earning a full-time wage but he could be earning more.

slacker

I paid £10 a week on £32 a week gross, it was a part of the then non existent relationship with my parents.So my 3 never paid rent as such.

bloodandtears

Be warned this could backfire.. it could invite the attitude to to further treat the family home as a hotel given he's paying for digs.

It may also incite a desire to leave home.

roundthebend

bloodandtears said:

Be warned this could backfire.. it could invite the attitude to to further treat the family home as a hotel given he's paying for digs.

It may also incite a desire to leave home.

I don't think there's any hotel services he isn't already using! We could just about suck it up, if he didn't complain about the fact we bought the wrong milkshake for his bodybuilding diet, or expected us to measure out his spaghetti for his post-work dinner.

Phil_aka_Pip

When I left school and started earning my parents asked me to contribute to the household kitty. I think that was fair, and right. I can't remember what they asked me for; it wasn't burdensome but not trivial either. It was probably a fair estimate of the cost of feeding me washing my clothes and keeping clean that part of the house that I'd messed up.

57Deluxe

my first take home pay was £30 a week in 1976 and my Mum took £5 religiously and without fail. Also, when was saving for a car, they helped by LENDING me the money for the insurance but at the market rate of then 7%

I never got anything for nothing from them when was past 18.

But within 2 years I had bought this brand new:



and 2 years later this

https://i.pinimg.com/originals/8e/b0/ef/8eb0ef3470b85a8fd6f8d01c030ac7c5.jpg

roundthebend

@57Deluxe ;
the first one looks more aerodynamic ;-)

ESBlonde

I took money from my boys once they were earning and out of further education.
It helps them appreciate what you provide and gives them a proper perspective, if you don't they'll stil be living there when they're 30 complaining about everything and paying nothing.
I too gave the money back later (one way or another). I should point out that both my lads are quite different and always have been. One can't hold cash without blowing everything and the other can't spend his or my money on anything but essentials. They were both brought up the same.

LuttiS

Once i graduated i was charged rent for living at home. Can't remember how much but it wasn't a lot.. It was something like £120pcm..

boogieman

I had to give my parents money for my keep as soon as I started full time work. No idea how much now but it was enough to make me move out and get a flat share with some mates. 

strtdv

Charge something low but noticeable, £150-200. 
I paid board when I stayed with my parents during my first job.

If you're feeling particularly generous you can set it aside and give it towards moving costs if/when he moves out.