Guide to Financial Freedom
We’ve all heard it before: Live below your means. Spend less money than you make. Start saving for retirement as early as possible. This all seems pretty impossible for college students, especially when we have to spend money out of our pockets to cover textbooks, supplies, car expenses, and most importantly, clothes. Here are some words of wisdom from my experiences as a cheap, independent, responsible college student.
Student Loans
Keep your borrowing to a minimum. When you graduate, you don’t want to be overwhelmed with thousands of dollars that need to be paid back. If you have a job, consider taking out a smaller loan than usual (or no loan at all), and paying for some of your tuition up front. Ah, the joys of less debt.
Budgeting
Write down how much money you make per month, and make a list of all the bills you pay. Then figure out how much extra you have per month. Find out how much you can comfortably save up for an emergency. Unexpected expenses are bound to come up, and you’ll be glad to have some extra cash.
Find Cheap Activities
Sure, shopping, bars, concerts, lunch with friends, nail salons, and seeing movies are all fun things to do, but things like this add up fast. Instead of going out this weekend, have a night in with friends. Make dinner and rent a movie. Or have a beach day. Living in Florida, we have access to several great beaches, and you need only pay for parking.
Make Coffee at Home
If you make a habit of grabbing coffee on the way to class in the morning, consider how much you spend in a week on the stuff. If it scares you to think about how much coffee cash you throw down per month or even year, you need to start making coffee at home. Set aside the money you are no longer spending and save it for something more fun!
Couponing
No need to go all extreme couponer, but clipping a couple coupons every week can be very beneficial. Buy a Sunday newspaper and start skimming the coupons; you’re bound to find some for items you purchase regularly. When you go to the grocery store, keep an eye out for store coupons you may find there. At many stores, like Publix, you can “stack” coupons (meaning you can use a manufacturer coupon and a store coupon for the same item.
Housing
Paying rent as you go through school will be better in the long run than covering it with student loans. Finding an affordable residence in a good area may be tough, but will be well worth it. Don’t take the cheapest apartment you find before doing some research. Make sure the neighborhood is friendly (you do NOT want to end up stuck in a lease somewhere you will be afraid at night) and find out what utilities are covered in your rent.
Textbooks
Find out what textbooks are required for your classes well in advance, and search online for deals. Amazon.com and half.com are great sites to find used textbooks. Even books I don’t need for school I usually find for a fraction of the cost of bookstores.
Banking
If you are paying a fee every month for just having a checking account, stop. Close your account and find a bank that respects you for who you are, a college student. There are still banks out there that are not caught up in charging all their customers for everything. Some still offer free checking accounts to students.
There you have it. I’m that rare college student with no student loan debt–although I work nearly full-time to make that happen–and I intend to keep it that way. Grants and scholarships are amazing, and a huge help to me, as an independent with no parental assistance. I make sure I live cheaply day to day (which isn’t too painful considering my love for nature, thrift stores, and reading books). So take advantage of student discounts, cheap entertainment, and avoid evil student loans if at all possible.
photo source: mgspada.com