Three Tips For Teen Summer Paychecks

1. Do direct deposit.

John recently wrote us:

“My 15 year old son is about to start a summer job with a direct deposit option for his paycheck. Is there a way to direct deposit into his FamZoo account?”

Yes, indeed! Send it right to the card. That’s what my teens did for their summer jobs.

Each FamZoo card has its own routing and account numbers for direct deposit. Parents can find the numbers on the Card Information screen. From the Accounts screen, just click or tap on the balance of the desired card to drill down to its Transactions screen. From there, you’ll see the Card Information link. It’s in the left hand sidebar under the Actions section if you’re on a laptop/desktop browser. It’s in the mobile menu in the upper right corner if you’re using the app.

If the employer insists on a physical direct deposit slip, contact us. We can send you a printable PDF.

2. Send it to savings first.

Pro Tip: Add a separate savings card for your teen, and send the paychecks there instead.

To move money from saving to spending, your teen can issue a transfer request for your quick approval. Just that little extra step — including filling out the Reason field — does wonders for damping impulse spending.

As a powerful incentive to save, sweeten the pot by setting an aggressive parent-paid interest rate on the savings card. My teen gets 0.16% every week. He pulled in $1.19 last Thursday. Easy money!

Lastly, turn on activity alerts for positive reinforcement. Your teen will receive a motivating text message every time the interest payment lands. Cha-ching.

3. Rev up the Roth.

Super Pro Tip: At the end of the Summer, open up a Roth IRA account for your teen and start a “Family 401(k)”. What’s a Family 401(k)? It’s the smartest financial move I ever made for my 5 teens.

See what, how, and why HERE.