Several years have passed since my wife and I had any teenagers at home, but I can you we would have been all over the idea of 13- to 17-year-olds being able to have Uber accounts.
Uber says it will allow teens to open accounts on its ride-sharing app, with parental oversight. Great idea. I know we would have used this service when our boys were younger. Ride sharing for teens means less time waiting alone at transit stops late at night, and less family stress in getting everyone where they need to be on time. Using Uber might also be cheaper than insurance for a teen on a family car.
Ride sharing for teens also means more spending for parents, though. You can certainly tell your teens to take the bus, or choose Uber at their own expense. But my prediction is that busy parents will be all over Uber rides for their kids, no matter the cost.
Such is parenting in this age of technology. New apps and devices are seen as necessities, and parents pay up. Over the past decade or more, parents who can afford it have paid for phones and data plans, as well as computers with better household internet to accommodate massive amounts of downloading.
Uber for teens shows how technology costs lead to further costs. Your teen has a phone? Then let’s add an Uber account for convenience and safety.
Inflation for parents isn’t talked about much, but it’s happening. If you have any good examples of how the cost of having kids has risen lately, send them to me at rcarrick@globeandmail.com.
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Rob’s personal finance reading list
No price relief for travellers
The CEO of the travel booking website Expedia says there’s a lot of demand for flights and hotels. You know what that means – high prices.
A reality check on frugal living
I love this – real life commentary on some of the most common tips for cutting costs and living frugally. Makes you realize how patronizing and insensitive this advice can be. Some of the comments are emphatic, which is to say there’s profanity.
A to-do list if you’re laid off
Look, a recession could be on the way. If you lose your job, this list of tips will help you organize your finances.
Renos gone wrong
Finding a trustworthy, professional contractor is always a challenge when you want to renovate a home. So, it’s no surprise that some people took advantage of a Royal Bank of Canada program to connect clients with contractors. For at least two households, the results were not what they expected.
Ask Rob
Q: Can you explain to me what a GIC broker is and how you find one?
A: A GIC broker, or a deposit broker, can survey the broad market of banks, trust companies, and credit unions offering GICs to find the best rates and terms. They can also spread your money out among issuers so it’s 100 per cent covered by deposit insurance. GIC issuers pay the broker, not investors. You can find a deposit broker using a search engine offered by the Registered Deposit Brokers Association. Online brokerages typically offer a variety of GICs from various issues, but clients have to do the work of investing the money and making sure it’s fully covered by deposit insurance.
Do you have a question for me? Send it my way. Sorry I can't answer every one personally. Questions and answers are edited for length and clarity.
Tools, explainers and guides
How real estate commissions compare across Canada.
The money-free zone
I’ve been enjoying the music of Jean Goubald Kalala, who I heard about from my wife. She, in turn, heard his music in an Uber driven by a guy who, like the singer, is Congolese. Here’s a good introduction: A song called Emi.
Watch this
The dangers of sports betting, which is being promoted to an incredible extent on NHL playoff broadcasts.
From the Twitterverse
How a tax-free savings account is like a frying pan. Really.
ICYMI
What I’ve been writing about
- Still got some money to invest safely? GICs look interesting again
- Are Wealthsimple accounts offering $300,000 in deposit insurance, rates up to 4 per cent worth it?
- Who wrote the book on personal finance for youth? An 18-year-old from Kingston
More Rob Carrick and money coverage
Subscribe to Stress Test on Apple podcasts or Spotify. For more money stories, follow me on Instagram and Twitter, and join the discussion on my Facebook page. Millennial readers, join our Gen Y Money Facebook group.
Even more coverage from Rob Carrick:
- 🎧 Catch up on Stress Test: Why millennials and Gen Z are Alberta-bound for a more affordable life • Rising interest rates brought pain for new homeowners - and opportunity for house hunters • Why more Canadians are choosing to be childfree or delay parenthood • Love in the time of inflation: How to manage rising costs when dating • You're not bad at money - you're suffering from money shame • Retirement might look different for Gen Z and millennials. Here's how to plan for it • Recession-beating tips for the job market, housing, investing and the cost of life • Is the middle class dead for millennials and Gen Z?
- ✔️ The housing file: A house isn't special. Get your head straight about the reality of home ownership • The good, the sad and the unaffordable: Saving for a home downpayment in Canada's big cities • Property taxes are popping in some cities - how worried should you be about other tax hikes? • Our other real-estate problem - people have too much wealth tied up in houses • Borrowers and savers, here's how to time the eventual rollback of interest rates
- 📈 Investing: Canada's top digital broker is TD Direct Investing, with an assist from the TD Easy Trade app • 2023 Globe and Mail ETF buyer's guide part one: Canadian equity ETFs • For the ultimate in cheap investing, check out the Freedom .08 ETF Portfolio • Yes, there is risk in Canadian bank deposits for the unwary and complacent • CDIC covers bank deposits, but who protects your investments if your broker goes bust? • Answers to your questions about the low-risk ETF paying almost 5% • Happy fifth birthday to one of the all-time best investing products for everyday people • An investing strategy that wins cleanly over the long term by outperforming in bad years like 2022
- 💰 Your money: Mortgage holders, savers and GIC investors, it’s time to change your thinking on interest rates • How much debt is each generation of Canadians carrying, and how do you compare? • For the sake of their financial futures, young people should leave Toronto and Vancouver • This practical new spin on a savings account might just peel you away from your big bank • Rental fraud grows amid rise in fake, falsified tenant applications • Are Canadians worse off financially now than in the 1980s? • From groceries to auto loans, here’s how much more it costs to live right now • When saving for retirement, should you change your asset mix over the course of your career? • Do retirement income needs always rise alongside inflation? Not necessarily • When the bank suggests you lock in your variable rate mortgage, it has an angle
Rob Carrick