Dad Said He’d Match Whatever His Son Saved For A Car But Wants To Break The Promise After His Kid Saved $35K
“I don’t think he did anything except get stupid lucky.”
LightField Studios | Shutterstock In a post to Reddit, a dad confessed that he and his wife are ready to break a promise to their teen son because the financial gift they committed to giving him now seems irresponsible.
According to the dad, they told their son that they would match whatever money he saved up until his high school graduation to help him buy a car. The problem was that he saved $35K!
“Reasonably, we thought he’d maybe double his savings to $10K through jobs and ask for a $20K car,” the dad wrote. “He now has $35k to use for a car.”
A teen's parents are considering breaking their promise to ‘match’ the money he saved for a car.
“When he turned 16 and got his license, we allowed him to use an old car from a relative,” the dad wrote. “At that time, my son had around $5K in savings. We made him a promise.”
They agreed to “match” whatever money he could save between his sixteenth birthday and his high school graduation so he could buy a car.
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The dad explained, "He said he did have a little over $10k but that he bought smart stock options in April and now will have around $35k after tax (personally I don’t think he did anything besides get stupid lucky)."
The parents argued it’s irresponsible for a teenager to drive a $70K car.
When their son revealed the amount he’d actually saved leading up to his graduation, his parents admitted they were equally shocked and horrified — not because they couldn’t afford to keep their promise, but because they felt it was irresponsible.
“He is insisting we follow through with our promise,” the dad wrote.
“Financially, it's not a huge dent for us since he also surprised us with a nice merit scholarship (that he did earn). The problem arises in that we really don’t want to break the promise we made to him, but we also strongly believe that an 18-year-old driving around in a SEVENTY THOUSAND DOLLAR car is a very bad idea."
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Most commenters agreed with the dad to a point but they insisted the parents shouldn't completely go back on their promise. “Set up a trust fund with the remainder of the funds you promised,” one suggested, “and put the rest towards a reasonable car … Everyone is happy.”
Commenters debated about the ‘responsible’ way for these parents to keep their promise.
Having instilled the benefits of saving money in their son, it makes sense that they’d keep their financial promise to set him up for success and stability in the future, especially if they have the means.
“Personally, I think a $70K car for an 18-year-old is ridiculous,” one commenter wrote. “I’d match the $10K and invest the other $15K in something more long-term … like a down payment or a trust.”
Concerned about cultivating resentment in their relationship with their son, they considered that a healthy option while still acknowledging how disappointing it is for their almost college-aged son to give up on his dream of having a luxury car.
Ultimately, this isn't really a bad situation for anyone to be in — parents or son. The son showed great ingenuity and financial acumen, and the parents are thinking about the future. Perhaps the best solution is for them to sit down with options for the teen and give him the opportunity to decide what he wants. Between his savings and scholarship, it sounds like he's got a good head on his shoulders.
Zayda Slabbekoorn is a staff writer with a bachelor’s degree in social relations & policy and gender studies who focuses on psychology, relationships, self-help, and human interest stories.