A lot of millennials need a little help when moving out of their parents’ home for the first time. Although their salaries are on the up and unemployment rates are falling, more and more millennials are choosing to live in their family homes for longer. If you’re sick of living as a dependent and want to finally get your own place, here’s some of the best advice I can offer to any millennial…
Get Some Practice In
Millennials looking to leave home can help themselves a lot by developing good financial habits in the family home. Understandably, a lot of parents won’t want to charge their own flesh and blood rent, but offering to pitch in can work miracles for your financial mindset. If your parents are letting you live in the home rent-free, or charging you way under the market rate, start saving any earnings which would otherwise be spoken for. Draft a practice budget, including what you’d need to spend on groceries, utilities, transportation and so on. If you’re planning on borrowing to get your own place, take some time to learn about your credit rating and how you can keep it in a good state. Companies such as DirectLendingSolutions offer some great advice for this. Living independently requires shrewd financial management, so get some practice in now!
Kick-Start Your Job Search
You may be employed already, but how comfortably will you be able to cover your living expenses on your current salary? You’re going to need a decent level of income to call yourself truly independent, so if you’re planning to move out soon, there’s no such thing as starting your job hunt too early! There are countless openings available to capable millennials, but employers are only becoming more and more picky about the people they hire. In the best-case scenario, you’ll land your dream job, giving you professional satisfaction and more than enough money to cover independent living. In the worst-case scenario, you’ll get a lot of valuable job hunting and interview experience. The whole job search may put things in a clearer perspective, and prompt you to stay at your family home longer while you develop your marketable skills. You can read an insightful article on job hunting as a millennial at CNBC.
Set a Deadline, and Stick to It
Once you’ve done some financial planning and decided it’s time to move out, you should make it all official by setting yourself a deadline. Your next birthday is generally a good marker. Once you have the date marked on your calendar, you can start working out how much you’ll need for your security deposit, the first month’s rent, furniture, moving expenses and so on. You can then translate this into a plan for regular savings, and ensure that you’ll be able to move out comfortably ahead of time. This last little window will give you some wiggling room to adjust your expectations. If you need to ask your parents for a loan to make it all happen, set yourself a repayment deadline too, no matter what they tell you!
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