A young entrepreneur shared how she was given a monthly allowance of $140 AUD (£115) from the age of seven.
Hannah Koumakis, now 24, received this pocket money without having to do chores until she turned 14. At that point, she started earning her own cash by washing neighbours' cars and walking their dogs.
However, there was a catch – Hannah had to manage her finances carefully, recording all her expenses in a book and buying almost everything she needed herself.
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For over a decade, she divided her 'income' into different categories – long-term savings, short-term savings, spending money, and donations for the local church.
Hannah's friends thought her family was wealthy, but in reality, she and her two sisters used their allowances to pay for essentials like clothes, meals out with the family, and school trips.
Each month, she would put $70 (£58) into long-term savings, $20 (£16.50) into short-term savings, and $14 (12) towards donations, leaving her with $36 (£30) to spend. The money Hannah saved over 11 years went towards buying a house.
Now a self-employed podcaster and business owner based in Auckland, New Zealand, Hannah says her early experience with budgeting made her feel independent in managing her business expenses, owning her own house and car.
She said: "Spending and saving are such important lessons. I don't think there is enough education around it, and I feel very lucky to have had that growing up.
"It has helped me masses in life. You're never going to not use that skill; parents should do it if they can. In 2007, $140 was a lot more than now. Our dad would make us write all our finances down in a book."
Hannah and her sisters were taught at home from the age of seven to 14 by their mum, while their dad worked selling men's clothes.
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She said getting pocket money made her really thankful for things when she was young because she had to buy most of what she needed herself – so she knew how much things cost.
Clever Hannah said this was even more obvious at Christmas. "My family is Christian, and so at Christmas time, I remember my sisters and I getting really excited over new socks," she said. "They were just plain socks, but we could appreciate it as we didn't then have to spend our money on them.
"I mean most kids would not get excited over socks, but that's why the way we were given pocket money was so important. People assumed at school that we were rich because of our pocket money, but we weren't.
"People couldn't get that most of my pocket money as a kid was spent on things parents would usually buy for kids themselves. Our money was even used on our holidays. So, from seven to 14, any time spent travelling we would use the money we had been given too."
Even though Hannah thinks her dad's method is great, she warns parents who want to try this idea to really think about how much they will give their children.
The mum advised: "Obviously, $140 was a lot back in 2007 when I was saving, but that's changed now," and added: "I would advise that you fully work out how much everything to do with your child costs you first, and work from there. It is important you give enough for your child to get by, and to monitor and guide them through their finances."
* This article was crafted with the help of an AI tool, which speeds up Daily Star's editorial research. An editor reviewed this content before it was published. You can report any errors to [email protected]
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