They should have to keep it reasonably clean. Obviously you can't expect a teenager to dust behind EVERy corner, yadda yadda, but as far as keeping is vacuumed, swept, and picking their **** up off the floor, yes.

at 14, generally clean but not necessarily perfectly so. if they have a handicap, they might need some modifications. interesting that the other answer, by someone 0175 is on level 14, the same as the age in your question.

I had to clean mine, and i think it should be that way...I'd make my son clean his room at that age

It is a great service to young people to show the importance of structure, organization and cleanliness and to build good habits. Make it interesting. Explain things to these kids who really want to know even though they may fight about it. Give rewards, dole out the punishments within reason that kids can really understand. You will have better people as adults and they will thank you for it.

the room isnt their own space. its an illusion. your parents are paying for the room in some small way. you need to keep your room organized. its the proper way. otherwise folks will think you are a drug addict.

Well there's "messy" and then there's "MESSY"! I think kids should be expected to keep their rooms reasonably neat and clean .. how neat is up to the parents. It teaches the child responsibility and even though it's their room, it's still a part of the parents' home.

Their own space, really? How much rent is the 14 year old paying? I'm not a clean freak, but I think kids should follow some basic rules of housekeeping, and a neat room isn't unreasonable.

I think he or she should, at 14, they should be made to keep it clean. Its about responsibility, and taking care of one's things and personal space. Its about learning to become a tidy and a self-disciplined person, I think. In life we have to do things we don't particuarly want to do, and its a good little lesson in that sense, too. However - I am an anal neat freak myself, so that may be my reason for having that opinion. At 16, I assume that I would probably be a little more relaxed aboutn it, as long as it was not comparable to a scrap heap.

In my own opinion, everyone should have a standard level of cleanliness, kids need to learn things to prepare them for life, so yes they should still have some strict cleaning measures.

I think they should be taught the reason WHY their room whould always be clean, neat and organized, and then left to do things the way they were taught. If their room then turns out to be messy, they either they weren't taught well enough, or they need to be taught how not to be lazy.

A fourteen year old has only the rights his parents give him. So yes, if his parents insist that he clean "his" room, than he should. +6

+5 my parents let me keep my bedroom however i wanted but once a month by the 5th of month all had to be spotless till the next month was pretty much the rule of thumb.

I think a balance should be struck between basic sanitation and "creative space." So a thorough cleaning including vacuuming ever 2 weeks is required, but day to day I wouldn't fret about it.

IF the door is kept CLOSED so the smells of the dirty clothes etc don't come out into the house .... Then; yes ..let them keep it anyway that they wish ... However; IF that is the case , the 14 year old MUST do all his / her own laundry , go to school EVERY day , and keep at least a 3.0 Grade Point Average .... Just MY Rules +5

If I own the house everything needs to be kept clean if you want to have ur space disorganized that's fine, but it should be clean ie no rotting food, stinky clothes, dust etc

Well I think they should clean it because at the end of the day it's not there house. But I think they should be able to do what they want with the room. But cleaning sets them for when they grow up as well and if the room starts to small ect. it could make the house small. +4

I think there's a difference between dirty and messy. Are there things that are stinky? Is there garbage or rotting food? Those things certainly shouldn't be tolerated but I think there is some value in letting the kid live in their mess. It can teach some valuable lessons about personal responsibility. After all, he or she is 14, that is plenty of time to have developed good habits and a knowledge of how to clean right? Let the mess stand and don't rescue him or her. Sooner or later the kid will figure out that the mess isn't so much fun. When they can't find things, when their favorite shirt is dirty etc. It will occur to the kid eventually I promise. Don't clean up after them, don't do their laundry and don't nag. Your kid might wonder who kidnapped the mom who punished and nagged but sooner or later it will occur to them that keeping a clean room isn't about you imposing your standards and will on them but instead is about practicality and personal responsibility.

A 14 year old who is not taught that their own room is important to keep clean will most likely grow up to be a slob. When they become adults, not only will they have one room to clean but the rest of the house with it. It is important for a parent to have their kids clean up after themselves.

Yes, especially if you tell them to. Your house, your rules. That being said, I remember this being a big issue when I was a kid. My mom was always on us to clean our rooms. And now it's the same with my kids...I sense a pattern here.

Wow, next you'll tell me that you don't punish your children because you want to be their friend. If you want them to clean their room, then tell them to. Until your 14 year old lives on their own and pays for the roof they sleep under, they don't have "their own space."

Yes they need to learn what it is like to have personal responsibility over their own belongings.

I don't think it has to be spotless and there should be room for their own personal way of doing things. It shouldn't ,however, be such a cesspool that it smells bad or is just flat-out unclean.

Yes, they should be made to keep it tidy.

PERSONALLY, I think it needs to be kept reasonably clean. (I wouldn't complain about clutter.) I've known a few teen rooms that you literally can't walk in because they're covered in clothes, magazines, or whatever else. The problem with that is that it is a SAFETY HAZARD- not just for a potential fall, but God forbid there were a fire- not only could you risk faster spread, but it would make it more difficult for rescuers to navigate. As for creative expression in a kid's room, I'm all for it. But it should be done with decor.

A room can be disorderly without being unclean. The 14-year-old should have to keep their room hygienic, but a certain level of "messy" would be acceptable. For example, an unmade bed isn't any dirtier than that same bed with its bedding rearranged. All that matters is that the linens are being laundered periodically in either case.

Honestly, I think they should be able to keep it messy. If they gather their laundry once or twice a week, I don't care if they are gathering it from the floor. If they know where everything is when they need it, I don't mind where they keep it. If a messy room starts to get in the way of daily life (Can't find needed items, don't have any clean laundry to be found) or if they are keeping it dirty (Dirty dishes, food garbage on the floor etc) then it is a problem, but I don't think a teenager should be bugged about the state of their room by parents.

A 14 year old's bedroom is in his/her parents' home and they make the rules. If the parent demands that the room be kept neat and clean, that is their prerogative and the teen should comply without attitude. To do otherwise is disrespectful.

There should be a balance.

That conflict is over since they have left home. What finally worked was that they had to have it cleaned perfect when I wanted the house to look nice. I gave notice, and the first time both were grounded to their rooms. +5

Unless he's paying for that space, he's just a kid growing up in his parent's house.

Kept clean Its not really their space until they start paying for it It also teaches them discipline and responsability

14 year olds are only occupants of the household. They are in no way a resident yet until they start dishing out money for their rented space. So it would be in their best interest to keep their space clean and tidy.

I think a teen should have one corner of the world they can call their own. Every other place they go, they are subject to adults' rules and whim.

I helped raise five children. I told each one of them that when they had their own house, paid their own mortgage, and did their own cleaning, they could do as they pleased. Live in my house, for which I pay the bills, and you live by my rules. No exceptions.

A clean room is better than a messy room...whether they realize it or not! So it is the parent's job to make them keep it clean their space until they realize it for themselves.

Well, it's not their house so yes. Respect other people's property.

They should be forced to keep it clean at all times. I was never forced to very often as a kid and I ended up having a messy room almost all of the time up until I was about 26 years old. Even still I have a hard time keeping it completely clean, but I do a decent job. Habits are much easier to learn when you are young.

It depends. I believe that a child is living in his/her parent's house, and usually is not paying rent, or paying for food. The least they can do is keep their room clean. However, I don't think that they should be made to keep their room absolutely immaculate. Neat and tidy, with no funky smells, is good enough. It doesn't need to be hospital-standard.

my rules of thumb are as follows: 1. No dishes/food/cups allowed to be left in the room ... 2. No dirty clothes on the floor ... 3. Anything I might break by stepping on it is your fault for leaving it there ... beyond that, he is free to have it anyway he likes it

That 14yr. is a part of a dynamic family! They need to respect the dwelling in which their "own space" is protected by; which is the home! It's also teaching something; which is: Everything has it's proper place and cleanliness IS important! My son is now in his 30s with his OWN family! He grew up learning and now appreciates ORDERLINESS!

My wife and I were split on this with myself falling solidly in the "if he wants to live in a pig sty, let him" camp. My wife wouldn't hear of it, and always asked that he clean his room. He moved out a couple of years back to a place with two of his friends. One day, during a visit home, he thanked his Mom for insisting on him keeping his room clean. "The other guys leave their rooms messy and I have to argue to get them to pick up the living room." He moved out later as he couldn't stand it. He now lives with his girl friend and has for the past three years. His ex-roommates still share their apartment with filth (and an X-Box). I've been converted. "Get them to clean their rooms or else..." I say now. Hope this helps.

IN MY OWN OPINION, EACH CHILD ABOVE THE AGE SEVEN SHOULD ALWAYS KEEP THEIR BEDROOM AT THE END OF THE DAY CLEANED-UP BY EACH OF THEM, IF PARENTS ALLOW THEM TO LEAVE IT, THEN LATER IN LIFE THEIR HOMES WEILL ALWAYS BE MESSY.

Yes, a 14 year old is still a child that needs to be given the responsibility of caring for their space in preparation of being an adult. If they refuse to keep their room clean, they start losing priviledges.

I believe that they should be able to experiment with organization. Also, if they learn how to keep their room clean (with lots of pratice)they will know how to when they move out.

Oh My Goodness... 14 years old is a grown up kid and is capable of keeping a room clean. My daughter is 12 and she knows if her room is messy she will get no friends because they will come and make it even messier. Parent must enforce her teen to keep a room clean on a REGULAR basis. It's a parent responsibility to teach a child to be tidy and clean. A child grows into an adult and by then will develop good habits.

It is up to the parent. I don't make my son keep his room all that neat and he is younger than 14. However, it needs to be neat enough to clean on occasion. I don't mind messy, but I don't want dirt and stink. Also, if you can't keep track of your dirty and clean clothes, then don't come crying to me when you don't have anything to wear.

Yes, when it starts to stink, yes. On the other hand if it's only messy, well, what the heck, no skin off my teeth.

I assume you must be the Mom. If it bothers mom to have a messy room in her house, then the 14 year old should keep the room clean. It is part of showing respect for Mom. The space is mom's, not the child's. Mom just lets the child use it because she loves the child. The child acknowledges that love by cooperating with Mom. Children need to learn that they have responsibilities that go along with the "privileges" in the family. Mom and dad are not "obligated" to feed them, do laundry, etc. regardless of how children act. It takes mutual love and respect (and that is shown by everybody doing their part). It is easy to overdo it, but reasonable rules consistently enforced almost always work (the key is consistency). If necessary, it can be fairly simple to enforce - "you want dinner (or to play video games, or whatever else gets their attention), you clean your room." In all my years counseling, I have seen many children fight against reasonable rules, but I have never seen one at this age miss more than three meals because of it (and no, they won't starve, Mom). So, be sure your rules are reasonable (and be willing to listen to other points of view expressed calmly and rationally), enforce them consistently (even when you are tempted to "let things slide" - children crave consistency), and show them you love them (tell them, hug them, support their good attributes, praise their progress).

as long as it dont affect others it should be up to them, they shouldnt have it so messy that they get mice from it

they need to keep it clean cause if they dont they might get bugs that will go all over the house

Yes because as a parent I am not a servant. If they live in the house and make use of the facilities they should be expected to help keep it reasonably tidy. To put it in perspective, you are asking them to clean their room not go into the forest and slay a deer to feed the family,

Their room is for privacy. Whether that is home work, phone calls or masturbation. They have the right to close the door and expect someone to knock. That room, however, is part of the house that belongs to the parents or whoever's name is on the mortgage. Unless that teen is paying the mortgage or a percentage of it the rules for cleanliness are exactly the same as for the rest of the house. It has to be picked up, laundered and not stinky from dirty clothes or old food. Its that simple

i think they should keep it clean since its your house