Hello, beautiful people from across the lands! Generational wealth is the new wave that is actually not that hard to ride. There are foundational things we can do now to set our loved ones up for success. One is providing our children with a financial head start in life with simple wealth principles.

It’s time out for not knowing the basic wealth strategies. With building wealth you have to keep in mind its money+compound interest+time that equals the end goal. In this post, I am going to share the very simple steps to set up a custodial account for your child. It does not cost as much as you would think to get started. Let’s get into it!

Choose A Brokerage Account  

I talk about how to do this in this blog post How to Invest For Beginners. In short, you want to do your research on the brokerage accounts that are out there. A custodial account is an investment account that is not set up like a checking or savings account. Finding a broker that meets your needs and money goals are important to consider. Pay attention to if there are fees to open or maintain the account. It’s helpful to look for online brokerage accounts that have no fees or minimum deposits. This will allow your child to start investing with a small amount of money.

Gather Important Documents

Be sure to have both you and your child’s social security numbers, birth dates, possibly employment info, and bank account information to link for deposits. The setup process will take anywhere between 10-15 minutes. It’s very simple and straight to the point.

Make A Deposit 

Depending on the brokerage account there may be a minimum deposit. However, there are online brokers that do not require a minimum. Either way, put some cash in there. There are a variety of ways this account can begin to grow. With the custodial account, you will have the option to invest in stocks, bonds, mutual, and index funds. Be sure to include your child in the process. Do not overthink, these kids are smart! I’ve seen 2-year-olds manage electronics better than many adults. A child’s growing brain is truly amazing. Do not count them out, trust me they can learn this. 

Action Steps to Take NOW

1st Step: Choose an online brokerage account with no fees or minimum deposit requirement

2nd Step: Gather important documents to open account

3rd Step: Make a deposit 

Conclusion

Building generational wealth is not as complicated or out of reach as you may think. I know for myself I shied away from this due to my lack of understanding. The more I began to learn the basics the more excited and action-oriented I became.

It is important that not only we gain a greater understanding of financial literacy but we pass that down to our children and family. Setting your child up for financial stability now will pay off tenfold later. Imagine the head start they will have later because you made the investment today.

Until next time, dream, believe and achieve.