British kids believe studying in university is cheaper than buying a car
Not as cheap as it seems: British kids estimated prices on goods. Source: pexels.com
According to Halifax Pocket Money Survey, children aged between 8 and 15 estimate university comes in at a median cost of ￡9,000, whereas a car will set people back ￡10,000.
Tuition fees are actually around ￡28,000 for a 3-year course, with variations depending on where study takes place, alongside eligibility for grants. So, disappointment may be waiting for the 8% of kids who believe university costs are significantly cheaper, at ￡100 or less.
Meanwhile, 17% of young people who believe courses will be more expensive, between ￡30,000 and ￡99,999.
Kids in Wales and the South West were most likely to anticipate higher education being pricey, with over a quarter of Welsh and West children (28%) thinking the cost will be ￡30,000 or more. Only 13% of Scottish children held the same view.
On the contrary, nearly a fifth of kids think a car will cost somewhere between ￡20,000 and ￡39,999, perhaps an indicator of car preference over reality. Interestingly, older children – those aged 12 to 15 – were slightly more likely than younger children to say a car could be secured for under ￡100 (10% vs 8%.) In reality a small car is priced between ￡12,000 and ￡17,000.
Youngsters were also a little off when it came to estimating house prices. On average, children believe ￡150,000 will be needed to buy a home, 42% lower than the average ￡258,204 house-buyers will actually need. Just over 1 in 10 thought they’d need to find half a million or more, with a fifth saying they can secure a property for ￡20,000 or less. Over a third of children in Greater London said they’d need ￡500,000 or more for a property, in contrast to Welsh and South West kids, where just 7% agreed with this assessment.
A popular pandemic choice – a new puppy – came in at a median cost of ￡300. Whilst 20% thought a barking buddy would be ￡100 or less, a more extravagant 5% believed at least ￡3000 would need to be found, to secure a canine companion.
Children in the South East and East of England were more likely to estimate this higher amount, whereas those in Scotland and the North West, were most likely to plump for the cheapest option of sub ￡100. Overall kids are underestimating the price of a new household hound, with a dog purchased during the pandemic costing households around ￡1900, on average.
Kids also had different views on everyday essentials. When asked how much a loaf of bread would cost the median was a reasonable ￡1. However, a sixth believe a single loaf will be ￡3 or more whilst 3% think they can secure the sliced stuff for 50p or less. Children living in Greater London were the most likely (31%) to believe a loaf will set them back at least ￡3.
When it comes to the weekly shop 33% of kids thought it would come in between ￡100 and ￡119.99. Almost a sixth (13%) think they’ll need ￡200 or more to keep the cupboards stocked up, whilst 5% anticipate they’ll need ￡20 or less for seven days’ of family food, plus necessities. Almost a fifth (22%) of kids in Greater London thought the shopping would come in at the over ￡200 price point compared to just 6% of children in Wales and the South West.
We’ve reported that over half of Aussie millennials don’t have regular savings plan.
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