What do parents owe new life thruout life?

[ysi]

Tangibles and intangibles, obligations and bonuses.

[kgb18]

Oh goody! We're going to have unintelligible threads here too!

[Anne_in_VA]

Yippee! A troll!

[kgb18]

I'm not sure he's a troll. Just someone who didn't get his message across very clearly.

[ysi]

I read oldtex's posting about his ?DIL? My mom shares his view that they owe us nothing. I think every generation has an obligation to leave something for the next generation. What we are seeing today is a generation living to such a great age that there won't be anything left to leave by the time they go. Should you spend spend spend in your old age or live conservatively and leave something for the next generation? Did the generation before you leave something for you?

The basics are food clothes housing up till your designated cutoff age. The intangibles many parents fail with one or another-and its different for every child. Then there are the issues of college education, downpayment help with first home, the new wave of moving back in after financial calamity, then there are the grandchildren and gifting, and at the end of life an estate.

Not a troll, what are your thoughts?

[kgb18]

I think parents owe their children a safe, loving environment to grow up in. I think children deserve the necessities, and some fun, frivolous stuff if the budget allows. I think parents should give their kids a good foundation in life, including teaching them about making responsible financial decisions. Parents should prepare their kids to go into the world and do well for themselves.

I don't necessarily think that parents "owe" their children anything financially as far as a college education, an inheritance, etc. I think it's a nice thing to do if you can, but not an obligation.

[8 Bit WWBG]

By simply substituting any other word for "owe", the response could be totally different.

[cronewitch]

They owe the offspring a decent childhood and a start in life assist if they can. To us that was being children until out of high school then parents being an emergency back up later until we were established. We were adults at 18, brother joined the services after high school and I was married young so we didn't lean on them. We didn't go to college young or stay within a few hundred miles of parents past high school.

My brothers had children and my parents let the wives and babies live with them free while they were out of country. Mom sewed dozens of diapers for them and bought some baby furniture. When the babies were school age mom took each one for a day of back to school shopping buying a complete outfit from shoes to coats to save the parents money.

Christmas gifts to the young adults were much more generous than from us to the parents. If we needed a loan dad would loan us money at 8% interest when Jimmy Carter was president.

Now the youngest kid is 61 and only one parent is remaining. He spent the money to buy a huge house so she has her own wing and takes care of her, she pays rent to him.

She was 80 when her mom died and left her and her sister about 65K. She would have rather seen her mom enjoy the money but grandma wanted to save for old age in case she needed it.
Mom has a few hundred thousand and we want to see her enjoy it if she wants to but she will probably leave us something.

If mom lives to 98 like her mom did the youngest kid will be 76 and she will have great grand kids over 30 so why should she do without to leave us anything? My brothers kids are already some of them 40 one will be 41 next week. Brother and his wife are retired or retiring next summer why should they do without to leave the kids who are 41 and 38 anything in 20-30 years?

The kids all had a decent start but when parents retire the kids should be on their own feet entirely and helping their own kids get established.