Young Adults Should Handle Own Finances

Age 21 and Beyond: Ready to Launch

Once your kids are college seniors and you're confident they've learned to make their spending money last for a whole semester, they're ready to apply for a credit card -- on their own. My rule: Don't put your kids on your accounts or, even worse, co-sign for their obligations. That puts you on the hook if they don't pay up. Besides, it isn't necessary. Even with today's tightened credit standards, my 19-year-old son gets several credit card offers a week.

If you and your children have been talking about money all along, you'll move seamlessly into adult topics.

Who else are they going to ask for advice on buying health insurance, starting a 401(k) plan -- and, yes, making big bucks in mutual funds? It's even more gratifying when your money-smart kids don't need your help. When our 23-year-old daughter moved 3,000 miles from home to take a new job, my husband offered to subsidize her apartment. Claire declined. "I'd rather do it myself," she said.