The library
Guides for parents
Plain answers about money gifts for a child: where to put them, how to ask for them, and how to keep the record of who gave.
By stage
- ExpectingWhat to read, in order, for expecting.
- The first yearWhat to read, in order, for the first year.
- Small children, 1 to 5What to read, in order, for small children, 1 to 5.
- School age, 6 to 12What to read, in order, for school age, 6 to 12.
- Teens, and the handover at 18What to read, in order, for teens, and the handover at 18.
Where the money goes
- Automating the Nest Egg: A Set-It-and-Forget-It Guide to Saving for Your ChildAutomatic transfers timed to payday are the most reliable way to save for your child. The behavioral science, plus a step-by-step setup for 529s and more.
- Comparing Investment Accounts for Kids: 529 vs. UTMA vs. Roth IRA vs. 530A Trump AccountCompare 529 plans, UTMA/UGMA accounts, custodial Roth IRAs, and 530A Trump Accounts on taxes, flexibility, 2026 limits, and when your child takes control.
- Custodial Brokerage Accounts vs. Parent-Owned Taxable AccountsCustodial UTMA account or a brokerage account in your name? Compare 2026 taxes, the kiddie tax, FAFSA impact, and control over your child’s money.
- Finding the Funds: How to Budget $50 to $100 a Month for Your Child’s FutureNew parents can free up $50 to $100 a month for a child’s nest egg without a spending overhaul. Tax moves, easy trims, and the math for 2026.
- How 529s and UTMAs Impact the FAFSA: A Tactical Guide to Financial AidA 529 you own counts at no more than 5.64% on the FAFSA; a UTMA counts at 20%. See how each account affects your child’s aid and how to protect it.
- How to Claim the Federal Seed Money Pilot: Your Child’s $1,000 Trump Account DepositThe $1,000 Trump Account deposit isn’t automatic, even if Treasury opened your child’s account. Who qualifies, how to request it, and what to do if it stalls.
- Liquidating Safely: How to Withdraw Your Child’s Savings Without Costly MistakesWhen to move college money to cash, which account to tap first, the 529 rules that trigger tax, and how a custodial account hands off at 18, 21, or 25.
- Naming Successor Custodians: Who Takes Over If You Can’tIf you die or can’t manage your child’s UTMA or 529 plan, who takes over? See what happens with no successor, how to name one, and whom to choose.
- Navigating 530A Employer Contributions: How Your Employer Can Add Up to $2,500 a Year to Your Kids’ Trump AccountsEmployers can add up to $2,500 a year to Trump Accounts, per employee, not per child. How matches, pre-tax payroll, taxes, and the $5,000 cap work.
- Protecting Assets in the Event of DivorceIn a divorce, a UTMA account belongs to your child, but a 529 usually belongs to its owner. Learn who keeps control and how to keep your child’s savings safe.
- Setting Realistic Goals: How to Balance College Savings and General WealthSet a realistic college savings goal with 2026 cost data, then split your child’s savings between a 529 and flexible accounts with three simple frameworks.
- Teen Brokerage Accounts vs. Custodial Accounts: How Much Control to Give Your TeenFidelity Youth, Schwab Teen Investor, Greenlight, or a UTMA? Compare who owns the money, who trades, taxes, financial aid, and what happens at 18.
- The 530A Trump Account Explained: Rules, Taxes, and the $5,000 LimitHow the Section 530A Trump Account works in 2026: the $5,000 limit, no earned income needed, tax-deferred growth, automatic accounts, and the rules at 18.
- The Complete Guide to 529 College Savings PlansHow 529 college savings plans work in 2026: state tax deductions, tax-free growth, the new $20,000 K-12 limit, Roth rollovers, and how to choose a plan.
- The Custodial Roth IRA: A Parent’s Guide to Roth IRAs for KidsHow a custodial Roth IRA works in 2026: earned income rules, the $7,500 limit, 50 years of tax-free growth, and early withdrawals for college or a first home.
- The Hand-Off: Safely Withdrawing and Transitioning WealthHow to withdraw your child’s savings for college, hand over custodial accounts at 18, 21, or 25, and pass on control in stages so the money lasts.
- The Infant Years (Ages 0-2): Your Baby’s Financial Setup, Step by StepYour baby’s first two years, step by step: the Social Security number, insurance, the $1,000 Trump Account seed, a 529, and automatic investing.
- The SECURE 2.0 Act: Rolling 529 Funds into a Roth IRA, Step by StepHow the SECURE 2.0 529-to-Roth IRA rollover works in 2026: the 15-year rule, the $35,000 lifetime cap, the $7,500 yearly limit, and each step of the move.
- The Ultimate Guide to Building a Generational Nest Egg for Your Child (2026)Learn how to build a nest egg for your child in 2026: compound growth, 529s, UTMAs, Trump Accounts, custodial Roth IRAs, and a simple 5-step plan.
- The Ultimate Guide to Legalities for Custodial AccountsWho legally owns a custodial account, what a custodian can and can’t spend it on, and how UTMA law protects your child’s money, with real court cases.
- Understanding Trust Funds for the Middle ClassDo middle-class parents need a trust? When a custodial account is enough, how a living trust with a child’s sub-trust works, what it costs, and its limits.
- Using Custodial Funds for Life Starts: A First Car, a Wedding, or a First HomeHow to use a custodial account or your own savings for a first car, a wedding, or a home down payment, with the tax, gift, and lender rules to know first.
- UTMA vs. UGMA: What’s the Difference?UTMA vs. UGMA explained: what each custodial account can hold, when your child takes control in every state, how taxes and FAFSA work, and the 2026 update.
- What Happens at the Age of Majority?When a UTMA or UGMA account reaches your state’s handoff age, the money becomes your child’s to control. See every state’s age and what changes that day.
- What Qualifies as “Earned Income” for a Minor’s Roth IRA?Babysitting, lawn care, W-2 jobs, chores, and family-business pay: which count as earned income for a custodial Roth IRA in 2026, and the records to keep.
Asking for money, and giving it
- Building Your Village: How to Crowdfund Your Child’s Nest EggHow to rally grandparents, relatives, and friends behind your child’s savings: where gifts should go, the 2026 gift tax rules, and a step-by-step plan.
- Discussing Wealth with Grandparents: Scripts for Asking for Gifts That GrowScripts for asking grandparents to give to your child’s 529 or savings instead of more toys, plus how to handle pushback and the 2026 rules for big gifts.
- Milestone Contributions: How to Turn Your Child’s Big Moments Into Investments That GrowBaby showers, bar mitzvahs, quinceañeras, graduations: where to invest each milestone’s gift money for your child, plus the 2026 gift tax rules to know.
- Structuring Milestone Contributions: From Baby Shower to Graduation DayHow to weave college fund and savings gifts into baby showers, baptisms, bar and bat mitzvahs, sweet sixteens, and graduations, with wording for each.
- The “Match” Program: How to Match Your Teen’s SavingsHow to match your teen’s savings: choosing a match rate and cap, the Roth IRA earned-income limit, when a UTMA fits better, and the 2026 tax rules.
- The GoodNest Guide to Asking for Investments Instead of ToysWarm, ready-to-use scripts and email templates for asking family to give to your child’s college fund or savings instead of toys at birthdays and holidays.
- The Impact of the 2026 Gift Tax Exclusion: A Family Guide to the $19,000 LimitHow the $19,000 gift tax exclusion works in 2026: when couples can give $38,000, when Form 709 is required, and the rules for 529 plans and Trump Accounts.
Keeping the record
- A Story Is Not a WillA letter can keep the story of a watch, a ring or a recipe box. It can’t decide who gets it. What a letter can do, what a will does, and free ways to make one.
- Thank You Notes and Portfolio Updates for Grandparents and FamilyHow to thank family for college fund and savings gifts, with note templates for every age and a yearly update that shows how their gifts have grown.
Money concepts for parents
- Building a Target-Date Glide Path: How to De-Risk Your Child’s College Savings Year by YearHow to build a glide path for your child’s 529 or custodial account: sample stock, bond, and cash mixes by stage, the four-year ladder, and the rules.
- ESG Investing for the Next Generation: How to Invest by Your Values Without Sacrificing ReturnsHow to invest a child’s savings by your values with ESG or faith-based funds, what decades of data show about returns, and which accounts allow it.
- Fractional Shares: How Small Slices of Familiar Companies Teach Kids the Stock MarketHow fractional shares let kids own slices of familiar companies from $1, which accounts can hold them, the fine print, and activities by age.
- Grade School (Ages 6-10): Allowances and the Four BucketsHow much allowance to give a 6- to 10-year-old, whether to tie it to chores, and how to split it into spend, save, invest, and give buckets.
- High School (Ages 15-18): First Paychecks, a Roth IRA, and the Sprint to IndependenceAges 15 to 18: how to read a first pay stub, open a custodial Roth IRA, avoid debt, and get your teen ready for financial independence at 18.
- How Does Compound Interest Actually Work for Minors? A Plain-English Guide for ParentsPlain-English examples of how compound interest grows a child’s savings, why the earliest dollars do most of the work, and what they can become by 18 and 25.
- Index Funds vs. Stock Picking for Minors: Why Simple Beats Clever Over 18 YearsWhy low-cost index funds like FXAIX beat stock picking over a child’s 18 years: SPIVA results, fees, taxes, account rules, and how to start.
- Middle School (Ages 11-14): Debit Cards, Stocks, and a Yearly Portfolio ReviewAges 11 to 14: how to choose a first debit card, teach the stock market, and run a yearly portfolio review with your middle schooler.
- Navigating the 2026 Kiddie Tax Thresholds: How Your Child’s Investment Income Is TaxedHow the 2026 kiddie tax works: the $1,350 and $2,700 thresholds, who owes it, Form 8615 vs. Form 8814, and smart ways to cut the tax on kids’ investments.
- The “Oxygen Mask” Rule of Parental Finance: Why Your Retirement Comes FirstWhy parents should secure their own retirement before funding a child’s nest egg, what “on track” means in 2026, and a step-by-step savings priority ladder.
- The “Wealth Transfer” Conversation: What to Say Before the Hand-OffA step-by-step script for the talks before your teen takes over a custodial account: what to share, what to say, and how to write a plan together.
- The Age-By-Age Playbook to Financial LiteracyWhat should kids learn about money, and when? A stage-by-stage plan from birth to 18, with the lessons, habits, and accounts that fit each age.
- The Cost of Waiting: What Delaying Your Child’s Nest Egg Really CostsStarting at birth instead of age 10 can leave your child with over three times as much by 18. See the math, adjusted for inflation, and how to catch up.
- The Early Years (Ages 3-5): Coins, Waiting, and a First Savings JarTeach a 3-, 4-, or 5-year-old about money with safe coin play, waiting games backed by research, and a first clear savings jar your child can watch fill.
- The GoodNest Guide to Investment Strategies & Portfolio Allocation for Your ChildHow to split a child’s savings among stocks, bonds, and cash: time horizon, risk, glide paths, rebalancing, and the rules for 529s and Trump Accounts.
- The Psychology of Generational Wealth: Why Time in the Market Beats Timing the MarketMarket drops feel scarier when it’s your child’s money. What the research says about volatility, emotional investing, and why steady, automatic saving wins.
- The Role of Bonds and Fixed Income: When and How to Add Them to Your Teen’s PortfolioWhen to add bonds to your teen’s portfolio, which kinds fit college money, and how to shift a 529 or custodial account without costly mistakes.