If your private student loans are in default, you're not out of options. Go to whyrefi.com slash Ramsey.

Today's question comes from Tim in Pennsylvania. Our daughter is 19 years old and failed her first year of college.

She applies her jobs but has a bad attitude that I'm sure shows up in interviews.

My wife and I are both successful in our fields are in baby step

six and have one million in retirement funds, so it's not like she hasn't had a good example at

home. What little savings she has is dwindling away from eating out and subscribing to useless

phone apps. We've recently told her that she will have to start paying $150 rent starting next

month. She says we are being unfair because she doesn't have a job, but we explained if we lose our

jobs, the bills still have to be paid and no one gets a pass.

Are we being too harsh charging a nominal rent, which will go into a college fund for her

if and when she decides to go back?

I am sure this isn't a unique problem as this seems like a

generational thing, but we want to help her launch into adulthood. Well, a couple things here.

You know, my personal parenting style on this is I'm not going to fund her for anything, zero,

until she figures out how hard life is with a really, really bad attitude.

I think that's the first thing.

I don't mind you charging her rent and putting more pressure on her to act like a young

adult.

So I don't think you're being too harsh.

I feel like you've probably been a little bit too lax on this situation.

But the more you can not bail her out, the more that you can just let her fail, failure is life's best teacher. And it's going to be hard to stand by as parents and watch it. But I think that's what's necessary here. And there's a lot in this that we don't know. There's a lot under the surface here. So really hard to fully go at the source of this, but that's my take on this particular specific question.

First and foremost, you and your wife have to be in lockstep. No way can you be separated by this child who is misbehaving.

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