Is it really possible for a teenager to buy their own new car? Well, “new” isn’t the wisest choice, given that most starter cars get a little banged up. However, a car that’s new to them is entirely within reach. Your child can learn early on how to plan, budget, and reward themselves by employing one of these strategies toward getting their first set of wheels.

1. Get a part time job. To the average adult, getting a job is the obvious answer. But fewer and fewer teens work than was the case in generations past, for multiple reasons. If the demands of school mean that your kid doesn’t have the right schedule to get hired at the usual places – like fast food restaurants – suggest freelance work.

It might not seem like weekends spent babysitting and mowing lawns can fund an entire vehicle, but this is where valuable lessons about saving come in. If you help them open their first savings account, and encourage them not to touch what they’ve earned, they will have enough for a decent used vehicle in a year or two.

Just be sure to remind them that continuing with their part-time work is necessary to pay for insurance, gas, and other auto-related expenses.

2. Work at home. Some parents don’t mind getting a new car for their teen at all, but they’re concerned they’re making life just a little too easy for them. You can reward their hard work and give them a preview of the fact that nothing in life is free by “hiring” them yourself.

Leave duties like dishes, vacuuming, laundry, and more up to your teen. Make it clear that as long as they carry out these responsibilities reliably, you’ll finance their first car for them. It can be tough, as you have to stick to your word and refuse the vehicle if they don’t take their “job” seriously. Still, it’s a good way to help them out – without spoiling them.

3. Begin in middle school. From cars to college, planning a child’s future is expensive. If your family has trouble affording these needs, impress the importance of saving money even earlier on. Get your 11-year-old a piggy bank where they can stash coins. In five years, this alone can net them a modest used car.

Every six months, take the coins they’ve picked up to the bank, and deposit them in a savings account, where the money can gain interest as well. It might not be exciting for every child early on, but they’ll definitely appreciate it when it’s time to get their license.

Once they get old enough to start really looking forward to hitting the road, they can begin adding in their birthday and babysitting money to improve the value of the car they buy.

Have you been thinking about getting an extra job so you can afford to buy your kid a car? Teens are at the age where they need to begin learning what it takes to sustain themselves financially. Give them support that will matter years down the road by teaching them how to work, save, and budget for their own car.