At just 17 years old, New York high school student Dave Lee has taken on the role of financial adviser for his immigrant family, guiding his parents through investment decisions and helping manage household finances. Lee, who turned 17 in May and is preparing for his senior year, currently holds $26,000 in a brokerage account and hopes to assist his parents in securing a comfortable retirement.

Lee’s parents immigrated from Korea before he and his siblings were born and later opened a restaurant in Queens to provide their family with better opportunities. With limited English proficiency, his parents relied on their children to translate bills and navigate financial matters. Over time, Lee’s involvement deepened, and he successfully persuaded his mother, Mi Jeong Yoon, to open her first brokerage account, helping her overcome initial skepticism about investing.

Motivated by witnessing his parents’ hard work and modest living conditions compared to his peers, Lee’s interest in personal finance began in middle school. His older sister, Annabel, introduced him to financial literacy concepts through Robert Kiyosaki’s “Rich Dad Poor Dad” and related games. He also utilized online resources, including YouTube, to expand his understanding of credit, mortgages, and investing.

An early practical example of Lee’s financial insight came when he accompanied his parents to purchase a car. Noticing the dealership was offering a nearly 7% interest rate on a loan, Lee researched typical rates on his phone and identified that 4% was more standard for new vehicles. His intervention resulted in his parents securing a lower interest rate.

After opening a custodial brokerage account at Charles Schwab with his sister’s help, Lee began investing his earnings from the family restaurant and developed a keen interest in the stock market, focusing on major tech companies such as Apple, Microsoft, and Nvidia. The pandemic market rally further fueled his enthusiasm as his investments grew.

Lee then applied his knowledge to assist his mother in starting her own investment account, advocating a strategy of regular contributions to diversified holdings like an S&P 500 ETF and individual tech stocks. Although initially cautious, Yoon now reports having approximately $10,000 invested along with her husband. Recently, Lee has been discussing retirement savings with his parents, though his 55-year-old mother remains hesitant to open a Roth IRA.

In addition to managing family finances, Lee’s dedication led to his selection as the youngest member of his high school’s personal finance team, which won the state championship and placed third nationally in the National Personal Finance Challenge.

Looking ahead, Lee aims to save enough to attend college out-of-state without needing to work part-time and has taken a summer job at a local bakery earning $18 per hour. He plans to invest his summer earnings, targeting $10,000 in savings. His family has also asked him to contribute toward a down payment on a new car, prompting him to allocate some funds accordingly.

“My goal is just to aggressively save,” Lee said, underscoring his commitment to supporting his family’s financial future and building on the sacrifices his parents have made.