Please post anonymously: How old were your kids when you started leaving them home alone for a few hours or overnight? Is very mature 12 and 11-year-olds too young, in your opinion? We live in safe suburbs, kids have cellphones, and the home has security cameras inside and out I can access from my iPhone anywhere.
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Check with your local welfare laws. A lot of places have an age of 13 set as what’s acceptable to be left alone. Over night, I would wait until they were 15-16ish. A lot can happen over night.
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It depends on your state laws on when they can but my son is very mature for an 11 year old and he wants to stay home alone all the time.
I wouldn’t over night. Have someone watch them. If you must leave over night. Better safe then sorry
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To run to the store about 12 and sleeping out 16.
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12 and 11 is too young to stay home alone over night.
Even being mature…
Even running drills for emergencies…
Even having cameras and security systems…
…doesn’t prepare them for things that could happen.
And not having an adult around leaves the extremely vulnerable.
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It may be illegal in your area. I think it’s 13 or 14 in most areas for overnights.
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My kids are 14/12/9 and they stay home 3 night a week because I work midnights
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They are fine.
Double legality. But they should be perfect okay
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I would say 11 and 12 is too young. I would say 16
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Omgosh I personally can’t imagine leaving an 11 or 12 year old overnight. I mean, that’s just my opinion as my son is only 1.5 years old, but I can say with confidence, regardless of how mature he is… he would not be staying alone overnight until probably 16ish! Lol 
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I have an 11 and 12 yr old and although mature enough to leave them home together for a couple hours I would never leave them over night at this age there’s too much that could happen regardless of having cell phones and security cameras
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Too young overnight. You hear horror stories about kids being taken from their beds. I just couldn’t do it. I couldn’t live with myself if something happened to my children that could have been avoided. Be safe now so you’re not sorry later.
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I was 14 before my parents let me stay at home alone all night but i also had a brother who was 18
That’s way to young for that many hours. I would/was comfortable with 3-4 hours tops. During the day.
Maybe just to go to the shops but not overnight something awful could happen and you’d never forgive yourself and I’m sure it’s classed as neglect we cannot leave our kids home alone at all until they are 14 in NZ
I’d say 14 before I’d feel comfortable leaving overnight
My opinion is 11 and 12 is to young
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I think I was probably 16 before my mom let us stay home by ourselves overnight
Our 10 year old is left home alone sometimes but never more than 30-45 mins & has a way to communicate with us (iPad for calling or texting iPhones)
Defiantly not over night for any Time Frame
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What’s the difference between day and night? Least at night they are sleeping and not destroying the house
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My 17 year old stayed home alone last summer for the first time but she had a friend over the whole time. 9 I think is fine for Walmart runs. We also have german shepherds so that made me feel more at ease.
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Absolutely too young
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I would check with your state. Some say under age of 16 it’s neglect/abandonment.
Why would you want to leave them? For work because you need to and there’s no one ti watch them? Then you have to make a choice but if you’re leaving them to go on a trip and not take them, then no way.
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Too young…16 maybe
I think it’s better maybe around 14 or 15
Definitely too young and potentially illegal depending on your state.
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My kiddos aren’t old enough yet. As a minor, I was never left at home alone more than a couple of hours…I’d say no more than 4 or 5. My aunt lived right across the street until I was 16, so she could check on me any time… The first time I was left alone all night was my first night in my own place when I turned 18 and moved out.
The very first time I was left alone I was probably 10 or 11. It was only for like an hour or less at a time back around 1999/2000 (a much safer time). We had a home alarm system that I was taught to arm/disarm and how to use the panic button. In this day and age, I don’t see myself letting my kids stay at home alone until they’re much older…maybe around 15 or so. Even then it won’t be for very long.
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Lol i was 10 when my mum left us at home alone for just a few hours. I was with my sister who was 3 years younger. My mum put Annie on for us to watch and told us not to unlock the door for anyone and we survived just fine 
#90sparenting don’t say your 90s mum never did things like this too lol
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I have a 12 year old I let her stay home when I run to the store or something. Maybe a couple hours. I haven’t considered overnight yet. Probably not for quite some time.
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My son 9 is left home alone for maybe 10-15 min and that’s it if I no im not gonna be gone long if im gonna be gone long ill take him with. I write down my fone number for him if he needs to get ahold of me
I would not allow them alone overnight. During day 12 is ok…but not overnight in my opinion.
I haven’t yet, my older ones are 15 and 13 and we live on a rez, very safe and everyone knows everyone… but I wouldn’t leave them over night. Not anytime soon. 12 and 11 is definitely too young. Mature or not, you have to realize they have to be able to react in terrible situation. Not panic and freak out. What if there’s a fire? Someone trying to break in? One of them starts choking etc… even adults panic and don’t react in the best way, children wouldn’t be able too.
I was 12 and babysitting my younger siblings my parents went to Tennessee for a weekend to help move a relative to Michigan (where we were) I had numbers in case things happened but my siblings were young like 8,3&4 if I remember right it’s up to you! You know your kids I did just fine at 12 with others to look after. Just sharing my personal experience.
No too young to leave overnight 
for an hour or two in the day would be OK. I’ve left my 13 year old home alone during the day for a couple of hours. However I’ve only left my 13 and 10 yr old alone for 10 mins to run to the shop quickly… I don’t trust them alone together
For a few hours that would probably be fine but I wouldn’t do it for overnights.
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My family left kids at home around 8yrs old. We were responsible kids and they taught us how to make simple things in the microwave so we didn’t use the stove.
I was 15 before my parents let me stay home by myself but my grandmother lived next door to me didnt let my kids stay by their self until my oldest was 15
For a couple hours i would say it’s fine as long as the door stays locked, cell phones fully charged and I would honestly get a doorbell camera. But most certainly not overnight!!!
My daughters 15 I wouldn’t let her stay alone over night and she is responsible and mature.
My parents left us alone over night when my brother and i were 12 and 10. We survived 
would i leave my own kids alone? Mmmm probably not. I think 12-13 is more appropriate
I believe it all depends on maturity level as well as the reason for being left home.
My children are 12 and 8 and are home for a couple hours after school till I get home from work. They both have phones and know what they can and can’t do. I would never leave them over night though. It all just depends on the children and circumstances.
They are too young. Likely illegal in your state too.
Nope. These days I would not leave a child at that age alone. Maybe an hour or 2 tops but def not overnight. Idc how safe you think your area is, anything can happen.
In Tennessee the legal age to stay home alone is 12 years old. I was 6 my sister was 9 when we were left home overnight by ourselves
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I guess I’ll be the odd ball out. 
I was babysitting by myself at 10. And overnight babysitting by 12. My oldest is 8 and I leave her for Walmart runs and fast errands. I couldn’t imagine not giving my kids some since of responsibility and maturity until the 16 plus yrs old and then sending them into the world at 18.
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Overnight I wouldn’t do, but we started leaving my son alone for a few hours during the day at 11. And now we’ll leave him for a few hours at night as well. He’s 13 now. Won’t be leaving him alone overnight anytime soon for sure.
My kids are 15 and 12 and they still haven’t been left alone overnight. For a couple hours so I can run errands…sure. Book Club meeting (when I had them)…sure.
Me an my siblings survived without mobile phones only a home phone an no security cameras
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My kids are 12, 15 and about to be 17 and I have never let them stay home alone overnight. I’ve never had a reason to, really but I would say maybe around 16 is ok. I moved out of my parents house at 16 so it’s not a big deal to me. Lol
Mine are 12 and 14 and we haven’t done overnights. We’ve done 4-5 hours at night (long enough for dinner and a movie) but not overnight.
I don’t leave mine home alone over night. Mine are 15,14,11 and 5. I do leave the two older ones ( sometimes 3 older ones) for a few hours whenever I need to. I usually take the 5 ye old with me. I will leave him if it’s less than an hour, he can be a handful.
Check your state laws and go from there. But I do believe thats to young
Never would I leave my children alone not at that age always get baby sitter you think there responsible but accidents can happen
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That age seems ok it depends on the kids and no company plus have an emergency plan.
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Probably 15 for the older one, but even over night i would be too worried. A few hours i could do now at 13.
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Definitely too young
Way too young legally for overnight. IDC how mature you think they are.
My older kids were 18 when I left them overnight alone (then you worry about the parties).
My 15 year old is an honor student and has a job and I still wouldn’t leave her home alone. We’re in the woods in the country but you never know what could happen.
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I would be afraid if someone decided to break in knowing that this is the certain day that you leave them alone. For money or for other worse things… crazy/ disgusting people EVERYWHERE.
Aroosha Omer read the comments
Sophia Poulos 
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Way too young for over night
With this whole pandemic fun we started leaving my 12 year old to watch my 9 year old when I had ob appts because they couldn’t come and had no school. We have the cameras and I can talk to them whenever they needed me but I wouldn’t do overnights. The longest I ever did was 3 hours and they played their video games and ate a crazy amount of snacks
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Thats definitely too young, maybe and only maybe 16 and older.
I wouldn’t leave my 12 yo son alone all night but he’s caught the microwave on fire before and broke the ceiling fan one time so he’s too accident prone to be left for too long it’s ultimately up to you, you know them best. We were left alone at that age and honestly they’re safer now with cell phones and home security.
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My kiddos are younger so not something we’ve had to deal with yet, but as a kid (I’m 30 now for context) we lived in a safe area, suburbs, and had security system and by 11-12 I stayed home alone for a few hours often. I also started babysitting around 12-13 so then I was watching other kids without adults home for several hours late into the night. My parents didn’t leave me overnight home alone, but because the situation never came up. We knew our neighbors, I had access to a phone, knew what to do if an emergency, and wasn’t allowed to play outside/go ride my bike when I was home alone. You know your kids best, if you think they are mature enough (and state law allows it) then I don’t see any issue for a few hours. Probably wouldn’t be comfortable overnight until a little older like 14ish and only if you had a close neighbor you trusted in case of emergency.
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Maybe I’m a bit overly protective in some ways. My son’s didn’t even have a sleep over at a friend’s house until around 10yrs old (unless family, even then they didn’t stay with grandparents until the age of 3) staying by themselves for a couple hours didn’t happen until in their teens (oldest 15 youngest 13) over night by themselves my oldest (18) was an adult a was able to watch over his younger brother while we were in Hawaii. Just never was an issue with us or our children. They have grown to be extremly independent adults!!
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I watched my little brother at that age regularly, and stayed overnight by myself. I personally think if you’re comfortable with it it shouldn’t be an issue.
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One thing to consider. Even if they were mature. The child might feel abandoned or like you don’t care enough to be there for him. I know it’s a stretch but leaving a child alone at home overnight is putting a lot of pressure and responsibility on them that they might not be able to or be too afraid to handle.
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b4 leaving them I would get them to take some kind of course, I know they offer babysitting and being left alone as courses for kids… lok into them!!! good luck.
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They might be responsible in most cases, but are they responsible enough of handling a major medical emergency? The fear or emergency of an intruder? Sometimes those are the questions people dont think about. And even if they could handle those things physically, what about mentally? Remember, most people who want to rob a home tend to target the better off neigborhoods, they have more to gain. Just my thoughts.
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I was baby sitting and aloud to stay home by myself at 13. I was pretty mature for my age (or so my parents were told over and over, I thought i was normal lol) and even then it just like mom and dad left at 8 and were home by 8 the next morning. If that makes sense
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my 11 year old is very mature and has watched his 6 year old brother regularly for entire work shifts, so i guess that’s really not any different than doing it at night. but they need a sure way to contact you. both of my boys have cellphones. i was 9 babysitting a 7 year old
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My youngest is 15. Have never left him overnight alone and don’t think I will for another year or two. He’s fine for a few hours tho. And he’s very mature and we live in a small, safe town. I just know boys.
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Where I’m from children under the age of 14 arent allowed to be left at home unsupervised, imo I would wait til 14/15 to leave them home overnight
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In most cases thats way too young to leave them.overnite alone . I dont think that age is even legal in most states. But your kids your business. Can you live with yourself if god forbid something happened and they panicked and didn’t know what to do ? Theres no reason they cant go to a friends family neighbor take em with you etc even my mature kid I wouldn’t have that young personally
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I didn’t leave him home alone all night. I did leave him for the few hours between getting off the bus and my getting home - but he had options for safety.
Some states have age regulations. And if they don’t it really depends on the maturity of the child and if you can trust them.
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That’s way too young, I don’t care how grown up you think they are, kids act very differently when parents aren’t around. Give it a few more years til you get your life back!
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Mine are 16 and 14 and I won’t leave them alone after dark. Eeekkk I’m to scared. But who are we to judge what you choose to do with your kids.
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WAY to young. 15-16 is a little better. At 11 and 12 they might not know how to react to a house fire or a burglar. Just in general if something happened and 911 needed to be called they show up and you’re not home that will probably warrant dcf being called.
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11 and 12 is too young IMO.
What if the house catches fire, would they make it out? Know what to do?
For me, I wouldn’t risk it. Hire a sitter.
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They could stay home alone but not overnight… just my opinion
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No matter how mature they may seem to be, they are still children. If you can’t take them with you, or if there isn’t an adult that they can stay with, it’s not important. Things happen so fast and life can’t be replaced. They are too young. Predators are everywhere.
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Only question is would they know what to do and not panic if there was a fire? Or if a stranger was trying to break in? I definitely wouldn’t leave my children alone while sleeping bc it’s my responsibility to ensure their safety. Hard call Mama good luck
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I’m not a parent but I was allowed to stay home by myself at 11 or even before that I think. If my parents were worried they’d call me every hour and sometimes even had a neighbor check in on me or give a call if they couldn’t. If you have a neighbor you trust you should give them the kids phone number and have them check up on them if you’re worried
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That’s too young. No matter how mature could they have possibly learned to handle adult situations if something were to happen. Regardless of security cameras are you able to stop an intruder? No, even if there you’re not so why would you think a child could? Could you stop a fire? Wake them if if they fire karma go off and they’ve already inhaled too much smoke? Why risk such events? Get a babysitter!
my son was 13 when i used to go to work in the evenings, inwouldnt get home till midnight and he was fine. when he was 14 i started working through the night and left him at home by himself, he would just tale himself to bed at whatever time he wanted and could always phone me if there was an emergency.
Honestly, it’s all how mature they r. I have a 11 year old that hunts… depends on what you have taught them to do for themselves… Now I would leave my 6 year old home by herself before I’d leave my 9 year old by himself… 
Not saying I would leave my 6 year old by herself. Never have.
Thats to young. Would check the laws where you live but in Florida if you leave kids under the age of 12 alone over night like that and something happens and the police get called they can report you to DCFS
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My kids were 10 10 11 an 12 the older ones did cpr training and are mature is all about what your comfortable with
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I think a few hours at that age would be fine but I personally wouldnt feel comfortable overnight until older
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Not over night …but at 11 or 12 …I thinks it ok for a few hours …a evening out …they could call you or 911 any moment if needed…you home has security system. Just talk to your child about it and if they are OK with it and not scared and feels safe I don’t see why not …Check your laws oh where you live before oh … dont want to cause unneeded problems with cps…and monitor what they are doing while your out …you have cameras.
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My daughter was 16 when she stayed overnight alone for the first time. Every child is different so it just depends really.
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Personally to be left during the day for a couple hours at that age is ok…in my opinion. But after dark is something else. I still don’t like to be home alone after dark.
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12 years old is way too young to be left home alone overnight.
Should be at least 16 in my opinion.
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I leave my 12 and 10 year old home for a few hours but I wouldn’t feel right leaving them alone over night
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Look. You can live in the best neighborhood and have the best security in the world but I know for a fact even with an alarm cops don’t show up until a while. My son is 12 and I can say for a fact he wouldn’t even know how to act in the event of a burglary or let alone something else. I used to stay and watch my younger siblings since I was 8 by myself but I can tell you I didn’t know what the hell I was doing. So I personally don’t think this is a good idea. I would just find someone I can trust and feel a little more at ease.
17 would be ok but a 12 yr old never. 12 yr old I would only leave 4 hrs max. My 14 yr old is very mature but still would never leave him over night.
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