Get your bank account ready for summer

It’s June, and that means school is quickly coming to an end. Aside from the daily countdown, I’ve been listening to a lot of this:

“Where are we going this summer?”

“Will we get to go to family camp?”

“Can we go to the beach?”

It goes on and on with different requests of varying expense. For kids summer means sunshine and good times, but for parents it can mean a lot of extra expenses. Childcare, sports and vacations add up quickly, and parents need to find a way to pay for it all.

According to a recent survey from TD, 71 per cent of Canadian parents with children under the age of 18 who incur additional costs for their child during the summer spend up to $999 per child, and half (51%) find budgeting for these additional summer costs stressful.

It is a type of stress that I think all parents can relate to. It isn’t just financial stress, it is about our children’s well being and happiness. They need to be well cared for while parents are working. We want them to be engaged and active in sports and activities, and we look forward to family vacations as much as they do. So how can parents make ends meet over the summer?

TD offers these top five tips to help parents avoid the financial heat that summer can bring:

1. Check your rewards balance – redeem some of your loyalty rewards, such as points from your First Class Travel Credit Card, to help fund activities and travel
2. The early bird gets the worm – some organizations may provide a discount on early registration
3. Budget and start saving early – save a little money each month and put into your TFSA. Online budgeting tools can also help you determine how much to save each month
4. Shop around – municipally run activities through community centres or the parks and recreation department often offer lower cost programming
5. File your receipts – some summer costs could be tax deductible as a child care expense or under the child fitness tax credit on your tax return

A little planning goes a long way, so even if you can’t do everything you want this year, you can get on track for next summer!