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👨‍👧 Parent Contributor

Seth O.

For parents raising money-smart teens

I'm Seth — Elliana's dad, and the parent half of TeenMoney. Watching my daughter get genuinely excited about saving and investing convinced me every teen can be a money kid — with a little help from home. I write the practical, been-there guides I wish I'd had as a parent.

1Teen at home
5Guides written
20+ yrsManaging a family budget

Why I write for parents

Most money advice for families skips the hardest part: the actual parenting. It's easy to say "teach your kids about money" and a lot harder to know what to say at the dinner table, how much allowance is reasonable, or whether a 16-year-old should really open an investment account. I've wrestled with all of it in my own house.

My daughter Elliana writes the teen side of this site — the guides aimed straight at kids. I write the other half: the guides for us, the parents, who want to raise capable, confident young adults without lecturing them into tuning us out. Everything here is what's actually worked (and what hasn't) in our family.

What I believe: your job isn't to hand your teen money — it's to hand them the habits. Do that early, while the stakes are small, and they'll carry it for life.

What I write about

Practical, parent-facing guides on the money moments every family with a teenager runs into:

Topics I cover

👨‍👧 Teaching teens about money 💵 Allowance 📈 Investing for your teen 💼 First jobs 📊 Family budgeting

Guides by Seth

Practical, parent-to-parent guides for raising a money-smart teen.