Raising children can be a financially daunting task, which sometimes even leads to parents falling into debt. In the Czech Republic, one in every seven parents has had to take on debt to meet their children’s needs, according to a survey by KRUK. This includes covering essential needs such as education and extracurricular activities. The issue is particularly prevalent among families struggling to balance their budgets.
Approximately 15% of Czech parents have had to take out loans for their children’s needs, with women doing so more often (19%) than men (11%). Almost half of these loans, precisely 45%, were used to cover education-related expenses such as tuition, school supplies, school activities, accommodation, and overseas education.
Many parents also borrowed money for their children’s clothing, club memberships, and consumer electronics, mainly mobile phones. Unemployed parents, in particular, often resort to loans to cover their children’s educational expenses, said KRUK director Jaroslava Palendalová.
Interestingly, about 13% of people, often older parents, took out loans to pay off their children’s debts. Every fifth person in this group is 65 years or older. Palendalová warns that elderly parents risk facing complicated financial situations due to these loans, as they often mistakenly assume their offspring will repay their debts.
In regional terms, people in the Ústí nad Labem region are most likely to take out loans for their children, with nearly a quarter of families doing so. The lowest occurrence was in the Hradec Králové region, where about every tenth family has taken out a loan, similar to the Olomouc region and Prague.
A small percentage of these loans, about 10%, are used to help children attain their housing. At the same time, a minimal amount is borrowed by parents to support their children’s entrepreneurial plans or to finance their holidays.