25 Secrets to Ruining Your Financial Life Before You Are 30:
I’m all for following your passions, but if your passion only pays $35,000 a year, please reconsider borrowing $100k to get the required degree.
2. Trash your college enemies on Facebook and Twitter.
Might be funny now, but your future boss probably won’t see the humor in it. Remember, the Web is an open book, and down the line things you say online can and will be used against you.
3. Trash yourself on Facebook and Twitter.
The picture of you half-naked partying on the beach at Spring Break will probably get you a few more followers, but remember that future boss?
4. Just get a degree…in anything.
Don’t “just get a degree” for the sake of getting a degree. Learn something, and prepare to apply it in the real world.
5. Accept a job you hate right out of school because it pays a lot.
This ties in with student loans. Many graduates are so saddled with debt, they have little choice than to go after the biggest salary, even if it isn’t the best opportunity.
6. Form a partnership with three old fraternity brothers from college.
It’s been said the only type of ship that won’t float is a partner-ship. Let the one with the most capital start the business and hire the other two. Much cleaner, and if the business fails, you can all walk away and still be friends.
7. Borrow thousands to start a new business.
Entrepreneurship is the spirit that built this country, and I’m all for it. However, consider saving and starting up with cash.built this country, however, consider saving and starting up with cash.
8. Accept your first job offer without negotiating.
A little wiggle room often exists in salary ranges, schedule flexibility, paid days off, etc, but you have to ask.
9. Spend $2,000 on your new corporate wardrobe before getting your first check.
One of the classic mistakes by new earners. As with most things, it pays to pay with cash. Buy a couple nice outfits for interviews and your first day on the job, but beyond that, make do with what you’ve got until you get your first check or two. Then pay cash to add a new outfit to your wardrobe over time.
10. Cosign a car loan for your best friend.
I no longer borrow money to buy cars. And I especially wouldn’t borrow money to buy someone else a car, which is essentially what you do when cosigning a car loan. As a cosigner, you are on the hook if they default. And if they need a cosigner, there’s a good chance they will.
11. Give up credit virginity for a free t-shirt.
You know those booths before games that offer free shirts and towels if you sign up for a credit card? Don't, it's cheaper to pay $12 for the shirt than have the credit card sit and build interest.
12. Pay off a credit card with a credit card, without closing one of them.
Performing a balance transfer from a particularly high-rate to a low-interest rate credit card makes sense in the short run. That is, unless you fail to close the old credit card. If you leave both accounts open, chances are you’ll eventually wind up with double the debt.
13. Borrow money from your parents.
What kid wants to borrow money from their parents? Not only does it change the relationship between parents and kids, it makes it tough to declare financial independence when we constantly have to turn to the First National Bank of Mom and Dad.
14.Buy a car because you can “afford the payments.”
Ever wonder why car dealers advertisers the cost of a car in monthly payments? It’s because writing $32,000 in window paint isn’t quite as catchy as $379 a month (for 60 months with a balloon payment at the end). See, it just doesn’t have the same ring to it, does it?
15. Spend six months of salary on an engagement ring.
If you have to spend half a year’s salary on an engagement ring to impress someone, you might want to think twice about your choice of partner.One months salary is sufficient and pay cash!
16. Blow thousands you don’t have on a wedding.
If you are debt free, and are marrying a partner who is debt free, stick to a reasonable wedding and avoid putting yourselves, or your parents, deep in debt.
17. Buy a house without an emergency fund.
Something interesting happens you buy your first home. Right away, your name is put on a list of those who should be tested, financially. I’m being a little sarcastic here, but it does seem like the minute you stretch to buy a home without proper savings, something will break causing you to immediately reach for the credit cards.
18. Share a mortgage with your boyfriend/girlfriend.
I’m not being a prude here. Even if you decide to share living quarters with someone before marriage, please avoid sharing a mortgage (or lease) with them. If you split up, and chances are you probably will, the financial impact is a lot messier with joint ownership.
19. Sign a long-term lease based on the salary you think you will earn out of college.
Wait until the ink has dried on that first job offer letter before signing a lease (or a mortgage) for your first place. Better yet, wait six months to make sure you really can afford the payment, else you risk being house-poor right out of the gate.
20. Don’t put any money down on that new mortgage.
As many have discovered the hard way, homes can lose value. If you finance 100% of your new home, you have zero breathing room should your home lose value and you be forced to sell. Buying a new home is not cheap, but try to buy yourself a little breathing room by putting 10-20% down (close to 20% is best to avoid paying private mortgage insurance).
21.Stretch to get into a new home because it is a good investment.
Repeat after me – my home is not an investment. We need to break this thinking that all young people should buy homes because they are a great investment. Yes, they can increase in value, but like all investments, they can lose value, too. The difference is, when your shares of Apple go down, you aren’t putting the roof over your head at risk.
22. Shop for clothes with labels that impress your “friends.”
It’s time to be a grown up. Impressing your friends with clothes is something we did in high school.
23. Eat out every single meal. Eating out has its benefits.
No preparation, no clean up, more social interaction, etc. However, it will clean out your wallet a lot faster than cooking at home. If you are a horrible cook, spend the difference on a few cooking classes.
24. Buy a television that consumes 80% of the square footage of your apartment’s living room.
Unless you sit 30 feet from your television in a giant living room in a McMansion, it’s hard to justify a television worth more than your vehicle.
25. Don’t set up a monthly budget. “If you fail to plan, you plan to fail.” Nothing could be truer when it comes to managing your money. Get over your fear of creating a personal budget and spend a little time telling your money where to go.
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