Sometimes the best parenting advice is also the most practical: if your kids won't do something important, do it for them. That's the approach Chris Camillo, author of "Laughing At Wall Street," took with investing.

"I wanted my kids to invest when they were way younger," Camillo told Graham Stephan and Jack Selby on the Iced Coffee Hour podcast. "They just wouldn't do it, so I started accounts for them. I'm crushing it in their accounts."

The Financial Advantage of Starting Early

Investing for your children gets them started years sooner than they might on their own, building a significant financial cushion by the time they graduate college. Camillo's experience aligns with a broader trend he's noticed in his wealthy neighborhood. When he asked a real estate broker about a recently listed expensive home, the answer was revealing.

"Every single person I've shown that house to is getting money from their parents," the broker told him. "Every single one."

Stephan shared a similar observation from selling his Los Angeles home. Most buyers received financial help from their parents. The takeaway isn't just about teaching kids to invest early, but positioning yourself to provide that financial support when it matters most.

From Tuition to Down Payments

Here's where things get interesting. Camillo and the Iced Coffee Hour hosts predict a shift in how parents financially support their children. Traditional college savings may increasingly go toward down payment assistance instead.

The logic makes sense. Side hustles now let people earn full-time incomes without college degrees. If universities become less essential to career success, why not redirect that tuition money toward a home? Camillo sees college as carrying significant financial risk in today's world.

"If you are a kid that is coming into the world in their 20s with no money and a bunch of debt from college, you are not starting at the same level as everyone else," he explained. "You are starting 10 levels below everyone else."

Investing as Youth Culture

Camillo's kids might have been reluctant investors initially, but that seems to be changing across the board. He noted something surprising about today's young people.

"Investing is part of the culture of being young now, especially for young males," he said on the podcast. "If you don't do it, it's almost like, 'Wait, you're not doing this?' You're not trading?"

This cultural shift means kids who start with accounts their parents opened can learn from both parental examples and peer influence. The combination creates a powerful foundation for building wealth faster than previous generations.

The Bottom Line

Camillo's strategy is straightforward: open investment accounts for your kids, manage them well, and set aside money for future down payment assistance. Whether they're enthusiastic about investing or not, you're giving them a head start that compounds over time. And if investing becomes part of their social culture anyway, they'll have real accounts with real gains to learn from, rather than starting from zero when interest finally kicks in.

It's never too early to invest in your children's financial future. Sometimes being a good parent means making the smart financial moves they're not ready to make themselves.