The first time mom and dad let you stay home alone is a rite of passage for any kid. But if you ask three different parents how young is too young, you'll get three different answers. Some say as young as eight, while others put the limit at 13.

Steven Vonedwins of College Park recommends the tween years.

"I would say at the lowest limit 10 years old, and that's pushing it," said Vonedwins. "Maybe even 12 is probably the youngest. They've gotten to the point where they can start being responsible. They really know what's right and wrong, and you can begin to trust them."

But actually that's not the age set by the state.

"Here in the state of Florida there is no designated or legal age which determines when a kid is old enough to stay home alone," said Carrie Hoeppner, the central region communications director for the Florida Department of Children and Families.

Hoeppner says it's up to individual parents to decide when their children are ready for this step.

"Children develop and mature and grow at such various paces and ages that the decision of whether or not a child is ready to be home alone is left up to a parent," said Hoeppner. "Even among sibling groups parents will tell you that this child at this age was ready for these responsibilities, while another child at a certain age was not."

Hoeppner recommends that parents see how their child handles being left alone for a few minutes or a few hours before leaving them for the whole day. She also says parents have to set firm ground rules about what a kid is allowed to do when they're home alone, and they have to trust that their child will follow those rules.