My Son Has Been an Investor Since He Was 18 Months Old — Start Teaching Money Early
My son has been an investor since he was about 18 months old.
Yes, one.
I started working at TD Ameritrade at the end of 2017, when my son was just over a year old. Once I had the opportunity to establish investment accounts for myself and my family, opening an account for him was one of the main things I chose to do.
He's had a brokerage account ever since.
For me, it was never just about putting money into an account. It was about creating a financial foundation early, before he was even old enough to understand what investing meant.
Honestly, I believe we should be thinking about our children's financial futures before they're even born. We prepare for cribs, clothes, diapers, childcare and everything else a baby will need. Why shouldn't saving, investing and building their financial foundation be part of that planning too?
I've Been Talking About This
A few years ago, I recorded a TaxCity Bag Talk video called “3 Accounts That Your 3-Year-Old Should Have.”
The message was simple: we don't have to wait until our children are grown to start thinking about their money.
Watch: 3 Accounts That Your 3-Year-Old Should Have
And I practice what I preach.
My son had the account before he understood the lesson. As he's gotten older, I've been able to teach him why the account exists.
Today, he understands the basic idea: you work to earn money, save some of your money, and eventually invest some so that it has an opportunity to grow.
The account came first.
The understanding came as he grew.
That's Why Trump Accounts Caught My Attention
When I learned about the new Trump Accounts, one thing immediately stood out to me: qualifying newborns can receive a $1,000 government contribution to begin investing for their future.
I wrote a separate TaxCity article explaining the program, so I won't repeat all of those details here.
What interests me is the bigger conversation.
We're talking about establishing an investment account at birth.
That's huge.
Many adults don't seriously begin investing until their 20s, 30s or even later. Imagine what changes when a child gets introduced to investing at three years old, or younger.
That's years, even decades, of additional time to learn about money, experience the market, develop good financial habits and understand what it means to own investments.
Read next: Trump Accounts for Newborns? Why This Could Be Bigger Than Politics
Baby Buffett Started Early
Here's the funny part: my son shares a birthday with Warren Buffett.
So naturally, I call him Baby Buffett.
Now, Baby Buffett didn't pop out of the womb with billions. 😂 He isn't sitting around studying annual reports and making million-dollar investments.
He started small and he started early.
And most importantly to me, he started earlier than I did.
That's progress.
As parents, we don't have to know everything or have done everything perfectly ourselves before we start giving our children a financial foundation.
Maybe you didn't start investing until you were 30.
• Your child doesn't have to wait until 30.
• Maybe they start at 10.
• Maybe they start at three.
Maybe, with some of the options families have today, their financial foundation begins from birth.
Whatever accounts you consider for your child, educate yourself first. Understand the rules, ownership, taxes, risks and purpose of the account.
Then, as your child grows, educate them too.
Because the goal isn't simply to hand them money one day.
It's to give them something even more valuable: more time and more knowledge than we had when we started.
Baby Buffett has plenty of time.
And that's the whole point.
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