By Eric Stock

BLOOMINGTON – When it comes to finances, father and mother usually know best, but mom and dad aren’t always the ones teaching their children about money.

Four in five surveyed by Country Financial say parents should bear the responsibility of teaching their children about money, but fewer than half consider their parents their primary source for learning about their money.

Joe Buhrmann, Country’s manager of financial security field support, said that can lead to learning lessons the hard way.

“Mom and dad are not having those conversations with kids,”Buhrmann said, noting 36 percent of those surveyed taught themselves most of what they have learned about money. “Sometimes those can be really hard lessons to learn.”

Buhrmann said the most important lesson is developing a budget, but parents generally say living within your means matters most.

“The important thing is to start those conversations early, having them often,” Buhrmann said. “As a parent, you are always looking for those teachable moments.”

Buhrmann suggests teaching the 50-40-10 approach. For every dollar you children gets either through an allowance or a gift save 50 cents, spend 40 and donate 10.

One in three surveyed believe parents should stop supporting their children when they get their first full-time job, one in four say they should support them until their child graduates college or technical school.

Eric Stock can be reached at [email protected].