Mom Sparks Debate Over Whether To Charge Rent For Children Living At Home
These days a lot of young people move back home after college and live with mom and dad until they can get on their feet. And while some parents will let their kids live with them rent-free, others think they need to pay their own way, which is something one mom on the Internet just doesn’t understand, and it’s caused a huge debate online.
According to The Daily Mail, a mother recently shared on Mumsnet that she doesn’t “understand” parents who charge their children rent to live at home. “Wouldn’t you rather help them by allowing them to save as much money as possible (especially in this current economy),” she writes, “instead of taking money from them, which may reduce the amount that they can save each month, resulting in it taking them a bit longer to move out?” While she does understand charging if the parents are on a “lower-income and genuinely need the money,” she wondered why others would charge their kids.
Well, the question sparked a lot of back and forth over the subject, and she did have many people agree that they, too, don’t get why parents would charge their kids rent.
“I also wouldn’t charge my daughter rent and would just request she puts an amount into a savings account,” one person wrote. “I’d feel privileged to be able to help her and see being a parent as a lifelong responsibility, not one that ends at 18.”
But there were plenty who said there’s good reason to charge their kids, mainly, so they don’t get too comfortable.
“Not at that stage yet, but my DC will definitely pay “digs” if they stay at home while earning from a job. Why?” one person wrote. “Because they need to learn that life costs money and bills/rent need to be paid first before fun!”
“I charged my adult daughter rent when she lived here as she is an adult, and adults pay their way,” another added. “I didn’t raise her to sponge off people, especially not her parents.”
Several others noted that they charged their kids’ rent, but held it for them and gave it back once they moved out.
Source: Daily Mail
