Mum makes her seven-year-old son pay rent and bills every month

Some commenters praised the mum for teaching her child the value of money, while others argued that she "should let kids be kids".

A mum on TikTok has shared that she's helping her seven-year-old son prepare for the real world by making him pay for bills and charging him rent. 

The mum, who goes by @craftedandcozy on TikTok revealed that she's been trialing it for the past two months and it's been "extremely successful."

But not everyone is convinced her approach is a good idea.

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Image: TikTok

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He has two buckets: fun money and bill money

"He has a daily task list that he must complete on a daily basis," she begins. 

"Should he complete everything on his task list, he gets $1.50 per day. Then, at the end of the month, he realises he has bills to pay and he pays those bills to me," she continues. 

Her son has to pay rent, electricity for his room and internet for his iPad. 

"He then understands that throughout the month, he has two buckets. He has his 'fun money' and his 'bill money' and he has to categorise his money and work out where he's going to put it."

The mum says that she "doesn't do anything with his money" but rather puts it right back into his savings account.

"It has taught him the value of money and responsibility. I am so pleased with the results," she concludes, urging other parents to give it a go.

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So, what's on her son's daily task list?

She later shared some of her son's tasks he needs to complete. 

The list included, 'make the bed', 'brush your teeth', 'clean your bathroom' and 'put your dirty clothes in the laundry basket'. 

She explains, "If I see that he's being challenged in any area, for instance, if he gets out of the shower [and] drops the towel right next to the towel hook, it's going on his task list next week."

The mum then explained that she charges him $8 rent/month, while electricity and WiFi are $3 each/month. 

"Why worry him with this sort of stuff?"

Some commenters praised the mum for her idea while others argued that 'kids should be kids'.

"I don't care what age he is, this is so smart because some people still don't understand this even as adults," someone wrote.

Then people took the hack even further, suggesting she should introduce a late fee "because that's what happens in the real world."

"This may seem extreme to some but financial literacy is not taught at school so where is it going to be taught? At home! This is a good way to start," a different woman expressed.

"I get it, teaches them the value of money and hard work - good that you're showing him responsibilities. 

On the other hand, someone argued, "Why worry him with this sort of stuff? Do it when he's a teenager or something."

"He can worry about bills when he's older," agreed someone else. 

Originally published as Mum makes her seven-year-old son pay rent and bills every month