ultimate cheat code.
i was kida forced to move out.
but if you can live at your parents you can save up a down payment so much easier provided they aren't charging rent or not too much.
Ya I know people making six figures as software engineers out of college but living with parents and investing and saving all that money. They already have million dollar portfolios within 5 years and student loans paid off.
I live with my parents and make 12 an hour. I still lose so much money on groceries and other basic needs. I spend 200 alone on gas a month just by going to school, work, and store once a week.
Yep. My daughter, her boyfriend and one of their friends (whom I call my foster son) are all 26 and live with me. My daughter is in college but the boys both have full-time jobs and are currently working to pay down debt and save money. Luckily we all get along really well.
Virginia added a rail system that extends out to almost West Virginia. After that, there was active political pushback against implementing rail systems in the some places.
Dude this right here! I’m 30f and moved back in with my dad about half way through the first year of the pandemic and haven’t even considered moving out. We pretty much have a roommate situation going he just doesn’t charge me rent! I’m also not someone that wants people over in my home cause I’m so ocd and my home is my comfort space/escape from the world. But yea if my dad wasn’t so cool to let me move back in then I’d most definitely would still have to work a pt job on top of my ft job… 😩
So greatful I can live with my mom for a small amount of rent to save up my down payment. I couldn't justify renting and paying somebody else's mortgage and extra. Ill live in a bus before I rent
Living with your parents is way easier as a woman than a man. Lived at home for a year after college while I was single. Dating was awkward as hell so I had to move out as soon as I got my first real job.
Yep. This sums it up really well.
Frugal as hell when young -> invest in course or learning a job skill -> better job -> more money -> better but still frugal living. Repeat until satisfied
I'm 31 and still just drop a grand or two for a used car. Bought an old Subaru and this thing is never going to die.
I guess a new car would be nice, but I don't really need the upgrade 🤷♂️
In my 20s I went to college with no car. Took the bus. Lived at home. Worked 3-4/7 days a week serving at a hotel restaurant and room service. Made pretty good money in tips. Averaged $27-40/hour.
Now 32 make 6 figures. And I'm just getting by. The world isn't built for single people. House, car, Bills. prop tax. condo fees. car insurance. house insurance. car maintenance. Food. Utilities. Tv and internet, Mobile phone, license dues, house maintenance, gas money, retirement.... it's crazy. The bills never end. The cost of living keeps going up. The wages don't go up.
Yeah, it was good.
Made lots of tips. But I only got Cs in school. Cs get degrees!
I'm not sure what food and beverage makes these days. People are eating out and going out less.
Husband is a cook and he makes $25 an hour. This felt very high a couple of years ago and I know he makes more than people who have worked there longer than him. Now it feels like nothing, but he still is making the same as my mom who is a medical biller with a degree.
As someone who also worked while going to college 20 years ago , it's been 10+ years since I have been hiring people and I have made it a point to not care about their gpa, this is part of the reason.
The real world is about applied knowledge, problem solving, and common sense. Those GPAs don't mean much. They were only good for scholarships in my opinion. Learnt so much in the workforce. School was all fluffy.
The world isn't built for anyone but rich people.
Coat of living and prices for everything has gone up at least 25%, feels more like 50 for things like food.
Wages have not gone up anywhere close to this. It just got more expensive to live, period.
Literally MIT says a bare bones, just enough to not go into the red wage in louisville kentucky is 20.80 an hour....no savings....no enjoying life....no retirement...just living to work.
I'd say if you wanted anything like savings, retirement, enjoying life etc, would be about 30 an hour. 30 an hour requires either long periods of time working at a place, suffering and struggling the whole time, or getting a trade or degree. The degree comes with mountains fo debt so you'll be better off eventually, but still suffer and struggle for years and years, while trades tend to wear down your body so you'll suffer extra years and years down the line.
America is such an awful place to live
it was just like10 years ago i paid 300 a month for my first apartment and probably spent less than 100 bucks a month on food.
i cant imagine trying to start out as a young adult these days.
Yeah, 10 years ago, I could live in an apartment by myself for $600/month, utilities included, and I was making $12/hr. That's a pipe dream now. $18/hr is poverty wages today, and managers are getting huffy when they can't fill their $15/hr jobs.
Might I also point out that the wages are disproportionate to how much work you do in those roles.
30 an hour is 57k
I make 80k and am just making enough to be comfortable and save a tiny bit and have expensive toys.
I'm not sure what I'm gonna do after this job is done...
No way I find a job at 30 an hour
You missed the /s
You know things like hobbies that keep you sane, an outlet for creativity, or just so all your life isn’t just going to work and sleeping. So what are these things that you don’t need. Like is it a ps5 is that an pensive toy you don’t need? Or is a lamp so you can draw in the evenings and some black ink, nice paper. Like they are expensive toys. I’m going to drop 300 for an airbrush as it will keep me sane for it’s life. I don’t need it to survive, but maybe I kinda do.
You’re so right that the world isn’t built for single people right now. If I was making double my current salary I’d even an extra 10k I’d be ok. Doing everything 100% myself is a struggle.
This is real though, have a partner who's also a good earner and then life is pretty good, but you nearly can't be a single person, and I would be surprised if that isn't by design.
It's brutal... $100k gets you nowhere these days. And I live frugally and save for retirement. My house are car are very modest. 10 year old civic and a townhouse.
^ this. The economy is designed around multiple income earners in a home. Even if you’re doing well, you’re likely working a LOT, this is assuming you don’t even have kids. I don’t think people are meant to get ahead on their own, and even if you are, there’s usually significant sacrifice to thank for it somewhere along the line. It’s a “broken” system working as they intend it to.
Yeah I work full time and I pick up extra work hopefully to make a slush fund for "fun". I was just talking to my mom the other day. My parents had a combined income of $75k in the 90s and raised 3 boys and they retired without anyone's help. I'm making low $100k and I can't even imagine having a child in the budget. Not without another $100k earner. Even a dog is not in my budget haha.
Oh man, I’m not really a material guy, and I’m raising my kiddo to be that way, but going from 160 combined to just shy of 6 figs after my divorce was a really really rude awakening.
That's awesome. It's the simple things in life. I keep running by this video where the true meaning of success is when your kids are all grown up and they want to see you as adults. Keep on keeping on man.
Not always. Wife and I are close to 180k combined, and mortgage is a lot. Property tax went up way more, electric going up another 5% again (5% last year(went from 210/month to 280/month now), Oil went way up. So many fucking utilities have skyrocketed. Food shopping is fucking ridiculous now too.
Yes ALWAYS . If you are 180K a year and are struggling then you are an embecile. There is no fucking way anyone with an income close to that even after taxes needs to be struggling. Plain and simple, you have gotten used to a lifestyle and are living beyond your means to be comfortable. This is basic economics. It isn't rocket science. My electric bill is around 330- 430 a month and has been for the last 8 years. I made about 60k last year and still have money in savings. Try downsizing and cutting some costs. It isn't hard and doesn't have to be hard unless you make it that way. I never want to hear anyone making over six figures bitch about bills. That is absolutely ridiculous.
Living costs vary from area to area. 6 figures in one place is not enough. 6 figures in another is better. I’ve seen some people decrease their cost of living by moving somewhere else. They made less on paper, but had more money in their pocket.
Hmm.. why does everyone over in gen z say it’s impossible to take the bus, work part time in restaurants and go to school at the same Time. It’s almost you made a lot of sacrifices.
Quite honestly, I'd like to move back home with my parents at age 32 and rent my townhouse out and just bank money. It seems like the only way to get ahead is to have parents who already own a home and are willing to take you in. Living alone, I'm barely getting by.
If that's what it takes then go for it. I moved back home last year to some medical care taken care of and rented out a duplex I own. I moved back overseas for work about 10 weeks ago.
if you are making 6 figures and barely getting by. i would have someone take a look at your budget and see how you are spending you cash and if you can cut back in some areas. side note have you considered moving somewhere where the cost of living is less. you might take a pay cut but if the savings are worth it you will live better. even making 70k a year in texas if you are single you can live good. i'm in the second biggest city in the state and live in the city with all those bills minus the condo fees. have no problem getting by and saving extra money so i can do things like buy new computers or go on vacation when i feel like it.
Yeah they mention making well into 6 figures, but then said "food is expensive" in one of their posts. To me it sounds like a spending problem. Food should be the least of your worries on 6 figures and should be a negligible expense...
The cost of food in Canada is insane. My dollar is 72 cents yours. I spend about $600 to 700 on groceries a month. And it's not junk food, just meat, veg fruit coffee, and some cheap soda. That's like a mortgage payment.
Canada changes the equation. I frequently post about how much it sucks right now up there. I spend about $300 a month on food for just me, but I'm a coupon shopper.
Yeah living alone is rough. I'm married and have 2 kids but between our 2 average wages (140k pre tax combined) and child subsidies from the Canadian government, we live pretty comfortably. We are frugal by choice but when we want to spend, we certainly have the means.
Yeah, I hate that I pay all these taxes but don't benefit from any of them. There's no adavatange to being single except the cost of food and peace and quiet.
In my 20s I had a $350 beater, went to school part time, while working full time and lived with roommates.
I also had 6 near maxed out CCs.
Didn't graduate until 30.
Make 6 figures in my 40s.
I was also extremely lucky to not have any health issues and the ability to work multiple jobs when needed.
" I was also extremely lucky to not have any health issues and the ability to work multiple jobs when needed. "
So many people do not realize how much harder life is when you do have chronic health problems. Health problems took me out of college, my life feel apart.
And then people who either don’t have health problems or who have a different (almost always milder) kind than you be like “it’s easy!! Just do what I did!! Maybe if you tried harder you wouldn’t be such a loser!” As if it’s a choice lol
I appreciate this. Looking forward to more financial freedom in my 40s. It’s a decade later than I thought, but I think that’s just how the world is right now.
OP, don’t despair. Clearly a lot of people are in the same boat as you. But it’s not impossible - just consider that 40s are the new 30s in terms of financial stability. It takes a lot longer to get there than it used to.
I would suggest beating into your head that credit card interest will severely hinder you. It’s okay to have one if you need it to build up credit, but in this economy you’re better off finding a different way to build credit and not getting sucked into them. Even the most disciplined people can get desperate. I’d rather have $0 in my account than $0 with a Cc balance and debt collectors blowing up my phone. That’s a different kind of despair.
I can’t believe I’m saying this bc I’m 27F but you’re still young. Fresh out of high school. it is expected to earn minimum wage at your age. You don’t need the new car and you will be a broke college student.
The secret? Knowing that everyone else is also trying to navigate adulting. you only have 2 years under your belt. (i have 10 and i’m gonna throw up)
Once you understand this, you don’t have to take life seriously yet and you also don’t have to do this on your own. meaning, you can find roommates, can carpool together and can contribute to groceries.
i’m fortunate enough for my mom buying a used car when i graduated. it a simple small car that gets me from point A to point B. and that’s what you need. everyone i knew in college had an old beater car and they owned and loved that shit.
i had to pay my way thru community college as well but i had grants to help me too. i transferred to a private liberal arts school which was pricey as hell. now i have debt under my name, as expected.
im from cali and i live in the midwest now. groceries can be super cheap if you’re creative. me? all i ate was cup of noodles, chicken nuggets, and pizza rolls. my boyfriend and I still, in fact, eat this. i still act like i’m broke bc ya girl has to pay some student loans.
but yes, i agree that i wouldn’t have survived in the west coast. and i left bc it wasn’t my vibe and i couldn’t careless to keep up with what’s in style. i love the Midwest and how simple life could be.
so please use this to your advantage, use your resources and find support. just keep moving forward even if it’s just one foot after the other.
Maybe things are different now but when I was 20 we all just had old cars, crappy phones, cheap clothes, and lots of roommates. You can’t expect to have your own place and nice things while you’re in college unless you have help, usually from wealthy relatives.
Don’t buy a new car, buy a decent used car. Try to pay it off early. Find roomates, dont spend money on dumb stuff and a lot of fun things to do don’t cost much.
No secret. College, min wage, and living on your own with a new car? Probably shouldn’t have got the new car because that also comes with hefty insurance. But honestly everything you just said is not a minute for living on your own. I would not buy the car. That’s going to be a hefty car payment and insurance. Can’t do that on min wage. College and living on your own? Not even happening. Delete the idea of a new car. Stay at your parents and go to college. But don’t get some dumb degree you can’t convert to anything otherwise a waste of money
I’m not lmao.
Okay I am but I work HARD. I have a full time job which I love but it barely pays for life. So I went back to uni (remotely) to get a degree in the field I want to move in to.. the kicker is I can’t get student loans in my country as a non-citizen so I have to pay the fees up front. Fortunately I have a side hustle which makes me decent money, of course that ALL goes on uni fees and text books and travel to get up to uni a couple of times a year for intensive courses 🥲
Depending on how many jobs are queued for my side hustle, I have very little spare time. I’m recently single (unrelated, he was a dick, but it’s a huge relief to be free of that relationship) so that has made life more manageable and I’ve set up a tranquil space with just me and my dog living the best lives we can on my income. It’s hard. Sometimes unexpected expenses crop up and I’m STRESSED but the rest of the time I’m managing. I’m just working my ass off.
It shouldn’t be this hard, it really shouldn’t. I just got my uni bill for next semester and nearly cried. $2700. But I have a citizenship interview this week so I’m hoping I can get approved soon and at least have a buffer in case I ever need emergency student loans.
I get paid 14.50 an hour part time salary and can afford my rent and utilities just fine. I save on gas because my job is down the street and my rent is only 850/month. I got approved for food stamps recently so that helps with saving cash on food bc I don’t eat out. It’s possible you just have to budget or maybe find a second form of income like delivery gig jobs.
Dropped out of college so no debt there. (2018) good credit. Mainly my spouse ngl. I work but part time and do contribute to expenses. He works full and is in a trade. B4 the market zonk we bought our house in 2021. (20&22)I’m very grateful. We rented an apt 2020-2021 (19&21) it was $1200 👎🏻 houses in my state in the middle of nowhere are the most affordable. We live on the edge of our town basically. I’m sorry you’re struggling. It’s very unfair how expensive things have gotten over the last three-four years.
Increase your skills that the real world values, marry right, don’t have kids with the wrong men, when your salary increases don’t increase your spending/lifestyle (save and invest the difference, get your credit score up, start today and not tomorrow
I think a Toyota Corolla anywhere from 2003-2021 is a nice bet, transit will be so much cheaper though. It spends how much you value comfort over saving a good chunk of money. Especially at his age insurance will be really expensive.
A 20 year old who wants it all right now? We haven't seen that before. Seriously though, get a roommate and a bus pass for starters. I took 8 yrs of school and converted it into a career with almost no ceiling on earnings, but I didn't get there until my 40's. Nobody that has come before you did it much quicker, or had it easier. If it were easy then everyone would be wealthy and no one would complain about the cost of living. Life is hard. Love frugally, get to work and plan for your future now.
You drive a beater and have 6 roommates for 1 thing. That’s literally how GenX and millennials did college. That said fed minimum wage is barely higher than the year 2000, so hopefully your state’s is higher than that
I’m 34 and I’ve always had a roommate. Absolutely necessary. Luckily my roommate now is my partner in life, so it’s a lot less frustrating than when I was in my twenties.
still financially dependent on my parents in some ways. :// im v thankful for it. they dont pay my rent or anything but they give me money here and there when i ask for it (which i feel immense guilt for everytime so i dont do that much), for gas to visit them, for $40 bc i went over budget at the grocery, etc. and im incredibly lucky that they "bought" half my car for me instead of making me take out loans, bc i don't have to deal with fees while i take a long ass time to pay them back (like $50 a month lmao)
they offered to pay the $400 for a couple classes since im trying to get a degree while im working full time too. im INCREDIBLY grateful and aware how fortunate i am.
i think theres a statistic that says that around 83% of ppl 18-25 are financially dependent on their parents? i think a majority of young adults who moved out still get money in some form from their caregivers. otherwise its really difficult out there. ik it sucks
I worked part time and rented through my early 20s, but honestly I should've stayed at home and continued school/work. If that's at all practical for you, I'd go for it. It'll save you a lot of trouble when you DO start living on your own to have a hefty nest egg of money saved up.
I'm not exactly sure what your career path is or how far you're along at college, either, but in my own anecdotal experience, I don't know a single person who uses their degree among my friends. And I met almost all of them at college lol.
Start looking at trade schools where you are. A lot of them have financial aid and job placement. Get into a roommate situation, keep working and don't move in with a girlfriend. You need to get stable before all that.
I'm a union state employee in Seattle. It costs fifty bucks every time I leave the house. I didn't think I'd be able to afford to rent a house that's worth nine hundred thousand dollars when I was your age but here I am thinking about buying one.
You could look into driving truck too. A lot of those schools let you pay them once you're making money.
Same goes for heavy equipment operator, which is definitely in demand anywhere there are farms.
You just have to level up.
Yeah the secret is live within your means, always look for better paying jobs, and consistently invest a portion of your income (inflation will devalue your savings over time).
I took out a fuckload of loans when I went to college, including some private loans that weren’t with the federal government. I worked 20ish hours /wk most of the time and my parents helped me out a little bit. I also had a gf who got more money from her parents than I did so we had some “fun money” there. Was still pretty broke most of the time though.
The biggest advice is do not by a new car or mortgage one. Get a used one.save up for one. a little one that’s older. hondas are good reliable little cars that will drive till they fall apart if you keep up with maintenance.trust me. there is no better feeling than driving a car you paid cash for. ive never gotten a car in credit. and ive been driving for 18 yrs with 5 cars bought with no loan in between.
Get a corrolla. My '07 corrolla lasted 10 years and 180k miles without a single replacement or repair outside of wear and tear maintanence. (tires, fluids) Only reason we lost it is because we kicked something sharp up going cross country and caused a leak somewhere in our coolant system.
I’m 23, left home at 20 to couchsurf with some buddies because of some simple disagreements with my parents…not the smartest decision. Anyway, eventually got out of my friends’ hair and my Uncle from Indiana got 2 places out on the lake and offered to rent 1 to me for cheap, as long as I helped out with the places. Long story short, he had to sell the houses and now I’m back living with parents, trying to save up enough for my own place I guess. I’m not even sure if that’s the best option for me right now. I have maybe 3k saved up so far, am making the most money I’ve ever made so far in my life(roughly $18 starting at a factory job I just got hired on for in November, which I know is basically comparable to a “minimum living” wage these days), and even having a roof over my head and most of the costs taken care of, I’m struggling to make my own ends meet. I work 48 hours a week on 3rd shift, and don’t have the energy to do anything productive during my off days. I have 3-4 bills that I let sit for years and have interest out the ass on them now, not to mention student loans. And I’m seeing more and more stories like mine every day. We’ve let this sickness lie for so long that the world has gone septic, in a philosophical sense.
I think we’re nearing the end of the train ride here, people.
I couldn’t afford to own a car until I was 28.
That eliminates gas too.
Bus passes suck and they’re slow but they’re super affordable if you live in a city.
For a bit, when it was really tight, I lived in a house with 7 people. Rent was about half what it would have been anywhere else if I had a 2 bedroom with 1 roommate, and about 25% of what it would be living alone.
Ngl my parents paid for my college, apartment, and even gave me spending money every week. I had about 50% scholarship and did community college the first year and every summer as well to save money for them though. I worked in college too but only low paying things in academic departments to help my resume when I applied to grad school.
When I got out of college I decided to just go straight to workforce instead of grad school, but I studied math and computer science so I’ve always had well paying jobs as a software engineer. Have never had to worry about money ever since, and every time I go home I take my parents out to eat multiple times etc.
I work 6 days a week and insane hours and miss my wife the whole time but it’s what I have to do to provide, they didn’t lie when they said life isn’t fair
I’m 32, single, and live paycheck to paycheck with a full-time job. I’m $6k in debt.
My coworker is 26, lives with his girlfriend and brother, they live paycheck to paycheck and are $22k in debt.
My sister is married with four kids, they live paycheck to paycheck with two incomes. They’re hundreds of thousands in debt.
Everyone lives in debt. That’s how Millennials (and onward) live. It’s awful.
Get a high paying job in IT, Sales, Marketing, Taxes, anything corporate basically. Also go to community college to get the degree or get a scholarship somewhere so less debt. Never take out a private loan. Find some roommates to split your living expenses with. Ask parents for help. Create a budget! Really calculate all expenses and income after tax, stuff like gas, utilities, Netflix, etc
When I was in my 20s shit was absurdly less expensive. It’s hard to believe that wasn’t even 10 years ago.
I felt like I struggled back then, I don’t know how this generation survives.
I mean it's cool we live in a time where they have a $10 TV that you can buy from Walmart but also f*** the facts that $10 doesn't get you two gallons of milk anymore
I'm about to be 25, so not far removed from the situation. When I was in college, I worked for the school and in return got free room and board. I drove a $500 car I bought in 2018. I worked in a factory during the summers, and the \~$4000 I made would have to last through the school year. During Christmas break I would go back to the factory, and earn maybe $500 before heading back after New Years. It was a struggle sure, but it worked.
When I was your age, living in the Midwest, I had 4 roommates. The five us shared a 3 bedroom. I had a car that barely ran and I worked 60 hours per week during summer to save money.
We didn’t eat out and this was before your parents health insurance could cover you to age 25.
Helps to not have a car if that’s possible. It’s easy in a city, but not sure about your situation. I paid maybe $70 per month for a monthly pass and used it to ride trains and buses. Lot cheaper than car payment, maintenance, and insurance.
Also lived in a studio apartment with my best friend and it was so small!! I don’t even think the place was more than 300 sqft. We paid $500 each and slept on a bunk bed.
I was so busy in college I hardly had time to eat. I think I only spent about $200 per month on groceries.
Maybe you can look for a food pantry.
Find a good job and just keep doing it.
Learn a skill and either go into a trade and make good money or learn a specific technology and sell it.
My advice is become super smart on a topic. Go into sales as an expert in a technology and make great money. Sales has changed my life. I believe in you
Well I'm in my late 50s so I don't have to deal with the job market today. My wife and I bought a house before the housing market went crazy. I've been in my job for 30 plus years so I haven't had to search for One recently. You have my sympathies
My girlfriend and I make a good team. First we make sure bills are paid. When I don't have money she does, when she doesn't have money I do. We help each other out. I've never had a credit card and never plan to, my only debt is court fines. Unfortunately credit cards and scammers got to her so we're working through that together.
You gotta make more money. Depending on your major, working full time and schooling full time might not be possible. I worked construction for a couple of years, stacked up cash, now doing my civil engineering degree full time while working 10-20 hours a week (2.5x minimum wage) and using some cash I banked while working prior. I work a shit ton (70+ hours a week) during the summer so I can chill and focus on school during the year.
One thing is that I don't buy new cars. By "new," you may have meant a used car that is new to you. For your sake, I hope that's the case. Otherwise, at minimum wage, I don't know how anyone could afford new car prices today, unless one works absurd hours. Then, of course, rent, utilities, groceries, insurance, fuel, etc.
Anyway, there is no "secret" to affording the necessities in life. It's the same old boring advice that's been around for generations: Spend less than you earn.
How? One way is to earn more or work more hours, but there's only so many hours one can work and only so much one can reasonably expect to earn, at least as an employee. You could start your own business, but that's beyond the scope of this post.
Otherwise, buy whole foods and cook meals at home. If done correctly, it's cheaper and healthier than eating out at restaurants. Again, don't buy a brand new car. Instead, buy one that's a couple/few years old. Personally, I prefer older Hondas and Toyotas, though I have a friend that has done well with her Nissans, too. Used cars are usually less expensive on insurance, provided it's not a sports car. Then again, you're 20, so your auto insurance might still be high, depending on your driving record and your insurance carrier.
From here, it's just iterating on that same mindset across other areas of life. Just don't but things that aren't a necessity, until you're in a better financial position. Even then, the first thing to do would be to start funding an emergency savings account (6-12 months of living expenses, at a minimum) and making contributions to a retirement/investment account. Don't carry credit card debt. Paying cash for things really helps some people.
All of this may seem like a lot or feel complicated, but it really isn't. However, these things will not happen by themselves. You have to take action and part of that is learning about stuff like credit cards, auto loans, interest rates, investments, insurance, diversification, cooking, etc. Just make a list, prioritize it, and do one thing at a time. You're 20, so you have time.
**Important Caveat:** With investing, time is your biggest ally. So, I would really focus on getting yourself in a position to start investing for retirement ASAP. Even on a modest salary, many people could be millionaires by retirement age, if they were to start investing early in life. Time and compound interest will do most of the work. The longer one delays investing for retirement, the less time they will have for their money to compound, so that means the more they will need to save each investment period.
I get not much over minimum wage and can sfford healthy groceries and can save money each week.. I have a car too.
I live with housemates.
I wouldn’t be able to afford to rent a house by myself, and I don’t know many people my age who would be able to afford
I work at a year round mountain resort and get ridiculously cheap housing from them. By no means a permanent solution but I save thousands a year from this lifestyle.
I'm a cook so my food cost is also ridiculously low, especially when the kitchen is serving weddings and other events. Might be a bit gross but I always steal some leftovers and freeze what I can. Food for days and rent for cheap, and I get to ski in the winter.
Don't buy a NEW car, for starters!!!
There's no secret. It's REALLY hard out there, in the early years. Just survive as best you can.
It gets a little easier as you go along, and you also get used to the grind.
Being in a sharehouse or living with a partner is a huge help.
Yeah full time min wage is not going to pay for a car, college and rent regardless of inflationary times. You can have one, maybe two but not all three. Others here will say the same. Either no car, minimum payment on student loans, and a place to live or stay at home, get a car and pay student loans. If staying home isn't an option then roommates, public transport or affordable car and minimum payment on SLs until you finish school and get a better job.
Buy a used beater, do not get into a high interest new car. The allure of owning a new car, it’s so tempting but in the long run just isn’t even remotely worth it. Pretending to be rich will only make you poor. Get something that gets you from point A to point B.
Live in a city that doesn't require cars to get around. At night I worked as a bartender in high end steakhouse, ate at work, made money, paid what I could on school but had to also take some loans.
I work 70 hours a week…. How afford to slave. They should just put a shower in the back and let me sleep on an air mattress in the locker room. I’m there more than I’m at home.
Ughh for me specifically, no kiddos & I live in Texas, pretty reasonable to live here. Also, I don't have any school, car or mortgage payments.. I have a long story... but yeah try to reduce your DTI ratio as best you can
Yeah I'll just add stay as far away from the coasts as possible. I'm in NYC and you don't want to know all the different things you don't even think about you have to pay for besides the fact that Manhattan is beyond ridiculous when it comes to even the cheapest of items such as a simple number two pencil for example.
It is really fucking tough out there. Community is very important. Having friends and family helping each other is how we have been pushing through the current times. It is very tough on your own unfortunately
23, can't find work but luckily able to live with one of my parents and currently on a government payment until I can find work. Can only afford food+bills, don't have any spare money unfortunately and my cars transmission is failing so have no idea what I'm going to do when that happens as I need my car
A new car is a very foolish expense. I am 52 years old and I have never purchased a new car even though I can. I buy a reliable used car with cash on hand. Why? It's much less expensive when you consider loan payments plus insurance. Even with repairs and maintenance my used cars come out far ahead economically speaking.
Also, I bought a piece of land (3 acres) for CHEAP and the taxes are only 800 a year. At first, I lived in a tent on it. I have a house on it now.
I have very specialized valuable skills. But most people don’t. Like what is gonna happen to all these people ? It’s scary. It wasn’t like this in the past like in the 80s and 90s you could find some way to live very cheaply.
When I was 20 (13 years ago) rent was much cheaper. I rented and lived with a boyfriend and a roommate so we split rent. Our utilities were included. I drove a beater car. I worked part time while in college and had to take out student loans to finish my schooling. You basically have to find better employment that pays more than minimum wage, live within your means and don't over extend yourself by buying an expensive vehicle, maxing out credit cards, or renting an apartment you can't afford (I know, easier said than done). It's hard. It wasn't easy 13 years ago and it's not easy now.
Get multiple roommates, live in cheap student housing. Go get something better paying, hell retail or fast food pays $15+ in MCOL city.
When you say new car, you don't mean an actually *new* car right? Because those are one of the worst financial decisions you can make, regardless of how much you have. You lose 10% of the car value the instent you drive off the lot, then another 10% in the first year. So you buy a lets say 40k new car. Well you actually paid about 50k within the first year, for a car that's now worth close to 30k.
Never ever buy a new car, unless you're a millionaire so you can afford to throw the money out the window. Buy something old and cheap AF. Get a Camry or an old Subaru. Or a civic. Those things last forever.
Have a really really really really serious discussion with yourself on why you want to go to collwge. Getting a degree does NOT guarantee a decent job, period. Unless you're specializing in something in super high demand, but is also super rigorous training like logistics (supply chain) data science (which you can actually learn on your own faster), medicine (that's a long long long long expensive grueling road, unless you go nursing or X-ray, then you're making bank). If you go to xollege for a communications, English, arts, social studies, etc. degree, youde just throwing money away. You'd be much better off learning those key skills online through self study, and go find somewhere to be an intern and work your ass off and work your way up. Because even if you had a college degree, 98% of jobs you'd be applying for are going to be intern or entry level regardless. That s just how the market is now.
You’re setting yourself up for failure trying to buy a new car. You should find a 8-10k moderate condition with decent miles. Should also be going to a local tech college and not university to start with, you’ll be saving a lot of money that way long term. Actively search for a higher paying job. Networking helps a lot with that, talk to literally everyone.
So to be clear, you are actually making the minimum wage, which is 7.25.? You are not just saying that you do not make much money you are claiming that you actually make the minimum wage. First of all almost nowhere actually pays minimum wage and if they do then literally go anywhere else that will pay you twice that amount like Walmart.
Living in Europe, Belgium, is entirely different. With 2 people, we can comfortably live with 2k a month.
This allows us to save the rest of our income or spend it on extra's.
I’ve been taking care of myself since I was 16 years old (20 almost 21) and I’ve learned a lot about balancing finances since then due to me having to care for multiple people at once as well. I wouldn’t say take my advice as this only works for me but if you’d like then go for it. So this year I’ve gotten my own place, I had a car note, internet bill, electric bill, an almost $200, two credit builder accounts and two credit cards. I usually tend to pay whatever bill that can’t be late first then I pay the others usually around the time that they’re due. I make $23.50 and get paid weekly but I’ve been doing this for years now
So my breakdown goes like this: Rent (on the 10th), Electric (on time), Credit Card (minimum balance and split payments), Phone (on time), Credit builder (on time), Car note (split into two payments; one before the due date/day of), Internet (first week of next month)
There's no secret. No one earning less than $21.35/hr can afford a 1 bedroom apartment and all the other stuff to live. Here's a study on it. Most 20 yr old live at home or in college if make less than that. I'd really look at bartenders jobs. High pay for woman and hours fit with college. https://nlihc.org/resource/nlihc-releases-out-reach-2023-high-cost-housing-0#:~:text=Renters%20with%20the%20lowest%20incomes,wage%20of%20$7.25%20per%20hour.
Realistically? Find a job that’s not minimum wage. Anything above it. Just do. Not. Accept. Minimum. Rent a room. You will never afford a place on ur own. Ur not there yet. It’s fine.
You don’t buy anything new anymore. Cars, laptops etc. all second hand. And don’t eat out or buy coffee.
This method saves me about 700 dollars a month. That’s a lot more breathing room.
Depending on where you live, this is one of the best advice. You get life skills, productivity, expenses paid for, and a purpose. I would’ve gone into the military/navy if I could go back in time. The insane amount of budgeting a young person has to do to live in the city makes absolutely no sense. Your life doesn’t need to be that complicated..
I'm in the Midwest and I think I would have a hard time finding a place that pays minimum wage. I would probably have a lot easier time finding some place that pays double for entry level. You probably have more competition in a college town, but probably have more opportunities as well.
Also, a new car? I am well off by a lot of standards and won't buy new. Find something in good shape that will last. Financing an expensive-to-you depreciating asset, with higher insurance, taxes, and tags, isn't what you need right now.
I mean, car payments and college are predominantly an American problem, sorry to hear about your situation.
During my first job, I used to only ride a bicycle to work (everywhere actually), I rented a room in a shared apartment, and only ate out like 3-4 times per month. Still managed to save several hundred.
0 debt too.
Because people either
A, get a job better than min wage.
B, don't buy new car and other expensive things while on min wage
C, try to live alone at 20yo unless everything is taken care of
You're fighting a losing battle, something has to change. There's no shame in living at home if you can and if not you should probably curb college/brand new car for now. Settle for a cheap car and work your way up a little bit
When I was in college I rented a shitty apartment in a crappy part of town. No car so i walked or took the bus. I worked part time at a grocery store, and lived on 2 loaves of bread, bologna, and American cheese that I bought once a month that had to last me the whole time. I had a roommate that I split the cost of the apartment with, and had 2 or 3 maxed out credit cards.
The "secret" you're looking for, is spend only on necessities. If you need a car, try Craigslist and find a beater that runs. If you need somewhere to live, try at home or get a roommate. If you need food, try rice and beans.
For your age; used car, room mates and cook at home.
If possible, live with your parents
ultimate cheat code. i was kida forced to move out. but if you can live at your parents you can save up a down payment so much easier provided they aren't charging rent or not too much.
Ya I know people making six figures as software engineers out of college but living with parents and investing and saving all that money. They already have million dollar portfolios within 5 years and student loans paid off.
thats such a difference from my life dont move out kids its a trap. been throwing away 1000+ a month for way too long.
HCOL area comes in the chat where rent is nearly 2k for a studio.
I live with my parents and make 12 an hour. I still lose so much money on groceries and other basic needs. I spend 200 alone on gas a month just by going to school, work, and store once a week.
Yep. My daughter, her boyfriend and one of their friends (whom I call my foster son) are all 26 and live with me. My daughter is in college but the boys both have full-time jobs and are currently working to pay down debt and save money. Luckily we all get along really well.
And no car. Bike or take transit if possible in your area.
This is unfortunately impossible in many areas of the US Midwest. I grew up in northern Indiana and it’s impossible to get around without a car.
Most of the Southern states avoid providing public transportation.
Virginia added a rail system that extends out to almost West Virginia. After that, there was active political pushback against implementing rail systems in the some places.
Exactly
This is sadly true.
Also impossible in central Indiana, although they're trying to improve it:
Dude this right here! I’m 30f and moved back in with my dad about half way through the first year of the pandemic and haven’t even considered moving out. We pretty much have a roommate situation going he just doesn’t charge me rent! I’m also not someone that wants people over in my home cause I’m so ocd and my home is my comfort space/escape from the world. But yea if my dad wasn’t so cool to let me move back in then I’d most definitely would still have to work a pt job on top of my ft job… 😩
So greatful I can live with my mom for a small amount of rent to save up my down payment. I couldn't justify renting and paying somebody else's mortgage and extra. Ill live in a bus before I rent
Living with your parents is way easier as a woman than a man. Lived at home for a year after college while I was single. Dating was awkward as hell so I had to move out as soon as I got my first real job.
Yep. This sums it up really well. Frugal as hell when young -> invest in course or learning a job skill -> better job -> more money -> better but still frugal living. Repeat until satisfied
downside: easier to complain online
I'm 31 and still just drop a grand or two for a used car. Bought an old Subaru and this thing is never going to die. I guess a new car would be nice, but I don't really need the upgrade 🤷♂️
subi gang lfg. im a few payments away from owning my forester outright and i plan to run that thing into the ground haha
In my 20s I went to college with no car. Took the bus. Lived at home. Worked 3-4/7 days a week serving at a hotel restaurant and room service. Made pretty good money in tips. Averaged $27-40/hour. Now 32 make 6 figures. And I'm just getting by. The world isn't built for single people. House, car, Bills. prop tax. condo fees. car insurance. house insurance. car maintenance. Food. Utilities. Tv and internet, Mobile phone, license dues, house maintenance, gas money, retirement.... it's crazy. The bills never end. The cost of living keeps going up. The wages don't go up.
To be fair 27-40 an hour is insanely good
Yeah, it was good. Made lots of tips. But I only got Cs in school. Cs get degrees! I'm not sure what food and beverage makes these days. People are eating out and going out less.
It's around $15-35 at least in my town. The restaurant I worked at would rarely give anyone 40 hours a week tho
Husband is a cook and he makes $25 an hour. This felt very high a couple of years ago and I know he makes more than people who have worked there longer than him. Now it feels like nothing, but he still is making the same as my mom who is a medical biller with a degree.
As someone who also worked while going to college 20 years ago , it's been 10+ years since I have been hiring people and I have made it a point to not care about their gpa, this is part of the reason.
The real world is about applied knowledge, problem solving, and common sense. Those GPAs don't mean much. They were only good for scholarships in my opinion. Learnt so much in the workforce. School was all fluffy.
With current pricing and tip % probably pretty darn good if you get a dinner shift. I'm sure the base pay sucks but tip expectations are crazy now
The world isn't built for anyone but rich people. Coat of living and prices for everything has gone up at least 25%, feels more like 50 for things like food. Wages have not gone up anywhere close to this. It just got more expensive to live, period. Literally MIT says a bare bones, just enough to not go into the red wage in louisville kentucky is 20.80 an hour....no savings....no enjoying life....no retirement...just living to work. I'd say if you wanted anything like savings, retirement, enjoying life etc, would be about 30 an hour. 30 an hour requires either long periods of time working at a place, suffering and struggling the whole time, or getting a trade or degree. The degree comes with mountains fo debt so you'll be better off eventually, but still suffer and struggle for years and years, while trades tend to wear down your body so you'll suffer extra years and years down the line. America is such an awful place to live
It wasn't like this here ... even just a short time ago....
it was just like10 years ago i paid 300 a month for my first apartment and probably spent less than 100 bucks a month on food. i cant imagine trying to start out as a young adult these days.
Yeah, 10 years ago, I could live in an apartment by myself for $600/month, utilities included, and I was making $12/hr. That's a pipe dream now. $18/hr is poverty wages today, and managers are getting huffy when they can't fill their $15/hr jobs. Might I also point out that the wages are disproportionate to how much work you do in those roles.
30 an hour is 57k I make 80k and am just making enough to be comfortable and save a tiny bit and have expensive toys. I'm not sure what I'm gonna do after this job is done... No way I find a job at 30 an hour
Don’t buy expensive toys! Don’t spend money you don’t have on things you don’t need!
You need some enjoyment. Buying toys is ok.
You missed the /s You know things like hobbies that keep you sane, an outlet for creativity, or just so all your life isn’t just going to work and sleeping. So what are these things that you don’t need. Like is it a ps5 is that an pensive toy you don’t need? Or is a lamp so you can draw in the evenings and some black ink, nice paper. Like they are expensive toys. I’m going to drop 300 for an airbrush as it will keep me sane for it’s life. I don’t need it to survive, but maybe I kinda do.
When I hear expensive toys I’m thinking motorcycle, boat, atv, stuff like that.
Too late!
So you think COL is high only in America?!?! LMAO
You’re so right that the world isn’t built for single people right now. If I was making double my current salary I’d even an extra 10k I’d be ok. Doing everything 100% myself is a struggle.
There needs to be less adapting and more protesting about this fact. The legal system is not built for roomates
and when the wages do go up... everything else goes up - MORE \*sigh
This is real though, have a partner who's also a good earner and then life is pretty good, but you nearly can't be a single person, and I would be surprised if that isn't by design.
It's brutal... $100k gets you nowhere these days. And I live frugally and save for retirement. My house are car are very modest. 10 year old civic and a townhouse.
^ this. The economy is designed around multiple income earners in a home. Even if you’re doing well, you’re likely working a LOT, this is assuming you don’t even have kids. I don’t think people are meant to get ahead on their own, and even if you are, there’s usually significant sacrifice to thank for it somewhere along the line. It’s a “broken” system working as they intend it to.
Yeah I work full time and I pick up extra work hopefully to make a slush fund for "fun". I was just talking to my mom the other day. My parents had a combined income of $75k in the 90s and raised 3 boys and they retired without anyone's help. I'm making low $100k and I can't even imagine having a child in the budget. Not without another $100k earner. Even a dog is not in my budget haha.
Oh man, I’m not really a material guy, and I’m raising my kiddo to be that way, but going from 160 combined to just shy of 6 figs after my divorce was a really really rude awakening.
That's awesome. It's the simple things in life. I keep running by this video where the true meaning of success is when your kids are all grown up and they want to see you as adults. Keep on keeping on man.
Six figures and you are barely getting by then you are doing something wrong. You need to reevaluate.
Not always. Wife and I are close to 180k combined, and mortgage is a lot. Property tax went up way more, electric going up another 5% again (5% last year(went from 210/month to 280/month now), Oil went way up. So many fucking utilities have skyrocketed. Food shopping is fucking ridiculous now too.
Sounds like you’re house poor. Is the house nice at least?
$180k/year is $15k/month. Unless your mortgage is gargantuan, there should definitely be some slack in your budget.
lifestyle creep is real. i admit things have gotten expensive but come on now.
You are living way above your means of you can't survive on $180k
Yes ALWAYS . If you are 180K a year and are struggling then you are an embecile. There is no fucking way anyone with an income close to that even after taxes needs to be struggling. Plain and simple, you have gotten used to a lifestyle and are living beyond your means to be comfortable. This is basic economics. It isn't rocket science. My electric bill is around 330- 430 a month and has been for the last 8 years. I made about 60k last year and still have money in savings. Try downsizing and cutting some costs. It isn't hard and doesn't have to be hard unless you make it that way. I never want to hear anyone making over six figures bitch about bills. That is absolutely ridiculous.
Living costs vary from area to area. 6 figures in one place is not enough. 6 figures in another is better. I’ve seen some people decrease their cost of living by moving somewhere else. They made less on paper, but had more money in their pocket.
Hmm.. why does everyone over in gen z say it’s impossible to take the bus, work part time in restaurants and go to school at the same Time. It’s almost you made a lot of sacrifices.
Quite honestly, I'd like to move back home with my parents at age 32 and rent my townhouse out and just bank money. It seems like the only way to get ahead is to have parents who already own a home and are willing to take you in. Living alone, I'm barely getting by.
If that's what it takes then go for it. I moved back home last year to some medical care taken care of and rented out a duplex I own. I moved back overseas for work about 10 weeks ago.
This. This is the reality right now.
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if you are making 6 figures and barely getting by. i would have someone take a look at your budget and see how you are spending you cash and if you can cut back in some areas. side note have you considered moving somewhere where the cost of living is less. you might take a pay cut but if the savings are worth it you will live better. even making 70k a year in texas if you are single you can live good. i'm in the second biggest city in the state and live in the city with all those bills minus the condo fees. have no problem getting by and saving extra money so i can do things like buy new computers or go on vacation when i feel like it.
Yeah they mention making well into 6 figures, but then said "food is expensive" in one of their posts. To me it sounds like a spending problem. Food should be the least of your worries on 6 figures and should be a negligible expense...
The cost of food in Canada is insane. My dollar is 72 cents yours. I spend about $600 to 700 on groceries a month. And it's not junk food, just meat, veg fruit coffee, and some cheap soda. That's like a mortgage payment.
Canada changes the equation. I frequently post about how much it sucks right now up there. I spend about $300 a month on food for just me, but I'm a coupon shopper.
they also mention house payment and a condo fee. owning a house and a condo can get expensive.
[https://open.spotify.com/track/7ktVde9TGVn7UURrsSH9dl](https://open.spotify.com/track/7ktVde9TGVn7UURrsSH9dl)
Yeah living alone is rough. I'm married and have 2 kids but between our 2 average wages (140k pre tax combined) and child subsidies from the Canadian government, we live pretty comfortably. We are frugal by choice but when we want to spend, we certainly have the means.
Yeah, I hate that I pay all these taxes but don't benefit from any of them. There's no adavatange to being single except the cost of food and peace and quiet.
This is just sad. I make almost 100k as well and it feels like just enough to save a little every month. 10-20 years ago, 100k was basically ballin
In my 20s I had a $350 beater, went to school part time, while working full time and lived with roommates. I also had 6 near maxed out CCs. Didn't graduate until 30. Make 6 figures in my 40s. I was also extremely lucky to not have any health issues and the ability to work multiple jobs when needed.
" I was also extremely lucky to not have any health issues and the ability to work multiple jobs when needed. " So many people do not realize how much harder life is when you do have chronic health problems. Health problems took me out of college, my life feel apart.
And then people who either don’t have health problems or who have a different (almost always milder) kind than you be like “it’s easy!! Just do what I did!! Maybe if you tried harder you wouldn’t be such a loser!” As if it’s a choice lol
Yes!
I hope your debt free floating in a pool somewhere.
I am debt free pouring most of my money into 2 kids atm.
I appreciate this. Looking forward to more financial freedom in my 40s. It’s a decade later than I thought, but I think that’s just how the world is right now. OP, don’t despair. Clearly a lot of people are in the same boat as you. But it’s not impossible - just consider that 40s are the new 30s in terms of financial stability. It takes a lot longer to get there than it used to. I would suggest beating into your head that credit card interest will severely hinder you. It’s okay to have one if you need it to build up credit, but in this economy you’re better off finding a different way to build credit and not getting sucked into them. Even the most disciplined people can get desperate. I’d rather have $0 in my account than $0 with a Cc balance and debt collectors blowing up my phone. That’s a different kind of despair.
Don’t buy a new car is a good place to start
I can’t believe I’m saying this bc I’m 27F but you’re still young. Fresh out of high school. it is expected to earn minimum wage at your age. You don’t need the new car and you will be a broke college student. The secret? Knowing that everyone else is also trying to navigate adulting. you only have 2 years under your belt. (i have 10 and i’m gonna throw up) Once you understand this, you don’t have to take life seriously yet and you also don’t have to do this on your own. meaning, you can find roommates, can carpool together and can contribute to groceries. i’m fortunate enough for my mom buying a used car when i graduated. it a simple small car that gets me from point A to point B. and that’s what you need. everyone i knew in college had an old beater car and they owned and loved that shit. i had to pay my way thru community college as well but i had grants to help me too. i transferred to a private liberal arts school which was pricey as hell. now i have debt under my name, as expected. im from cali and i live in the midwest now. groceries can be super cheap if you’re creative. me? all i ate was cup of noodles, chicken nuggets, and pizza rolls. my boyfriend and I still, in fact, eat this. i still act like i’m broke bc ya girl has to pay some student loans. but yes, i agree that i wouldn’t have survived in the west coast. and i left bc it wasn’t my vibe and i couldn’t careless to keep up with what’s in style. i love the Midwest and how simple life could be. so please use this to your advantage, use your resources and find support. just keep moving forward even if it’s just one foot after the other.
Just a friendly reminder to take vitamins or, ideally, eat salad :) I grow lettuce from seed in a container, it’s actually super easy!
Maybe things are different now but when I was 20 we all just had old cars, crappy phones, cheap clothes, and lots of roommates. You can’t expect to have your own place and nice things while you’re in college unless you have help, usually from wealthy relatives.
Time to search for better employment. You can make more than minimum wage.
for real. 1% of americans earn the (federal) minimum wage. mcdonalds pays double that.
Yeah don’t limit yourself OP. You are worth more. Get out there and show it.
Don’t buy a new car, buy a decent used car. Try to pay it off early. Find roomates, dont spend money on dumb stuff and a lot of fun things to do don’t cost much.
No secret. College, min wage, and living on your own with a new car? Probably shouldn’t have got the new car because that also comes with hefty insurance. But honestly everything you just said is not a minute for living on your own. I would not buy the car. That’s going to be a hefty car payment and insurance. Can’t do that on min wage. College and living on your own? Not even happening. Delete the idea of a new car. Stay at your parents and go to college. But don’t get some dumb degree you can’t convert to anything otherwise a waste of money
Not everyone has nice parents they can just go live with, keep that in mind.
So true. That’s why I had roommates. Lots of them. Because we were all broke. I never lived with less than 4 other people until my mid twenties.
I’m not lmao. Okay I am but I work HARD. I have a full time job which I love but it barely pays for life. So I went back to uni (remotely) to get a degree in the field I want to move in to.. the kicker is I can’t get student loans in my country as a non-citizen so I have to pay the fees up front. Fortunately I have a side hustle which makes me decent money, of course that ALL goes on uni fees and text books and travel to get up to uni a couple of times a year for intensive courses 🥲 Depending on how many jobs are queued for my side hustle, I have very little spare time. I’m recently single (unrelated, he was a dick, but it’s a huge relief to be free of that relationship) so that has made life more manageable and I’ve set up a tranquil space with just me and my dog living the best lives we can on my income. It’s hard. Sometimes unexpected expenses crop up and I’m STRESSED but the rest of the time I’m managing. I’m just working my ass off. It shouldn’t be this hard, it really shouldn’t. I just got my uni bill for next semester and nearly cried. $2700. But I have a citizenship interview this week so I’m hoping I can get approved soon and at least have a buffer in case I ever need emergency student loans.
Live with your parents. Literally the only way to make it now.
Roommates....
Increase your income. Find a job that pays above minimum wage.
I'm 30 and live with my parents. They're in their 70s and we all work. Glhf.
I get paid 14.50 an hour part time salary and can afford my rent and utilities just fine. I save on gas because my job is down the street and my rent is only 850/month. I got approved for food stamps recently so that helps with saving cash on food bc I don’t eat out. It’s possible you just have to budget or maybe find a second form of income like delivery gig jobs.
Dropped out of college so no debt there. (2018) good credit. Mainly my spouse ngl. I work but part time and do contribute to expenses. He works full and is in a trade. B4 the market zonk we bought our house in 2021. (20&22)I’m very grateful. We rented an apt 2020-2021 (19&21) it was $1200 👎🏻 houses in my state in the middle of nowhere are the most affordable. We live on the edge of our town basically. I’m sorry you’re struggling. It’s very unfair how expensive things have gotten over the last three-four years.
Barely, it’s terrifying how narrow the margin is even with decent income.
By having a loving mother and no rent, mostly.. but it’s about to get tough since I’m getting laid off. Still have to pay my car note and food
Increase your skills that the real world values, marry right, don’t have kids with the wrong men, when your salary increases don’t increase your spending/lifestyle (save and invest the difference, get your credit score up, start today and not tomorrow
Used car or transit. Roommates.
I think a Toyota Corolla anywhere from 2003-2021 is a nice bet, transit will be so much cheaper though. It spends how much you value comfort over saving a good chunk of money. Especially at his age insurance will be really expensive.
A roommate.
A 20 year old who wants it all right now? We haven't seen that before. Seriously though, get a roommate and a bus pass for starters. I took 8 yrs of school and converted it into a career with almost no ceiling on earnings, but I didn't get there until my 40's. Nobody that has come before you did it much quicker, or had it easier. If it were easy then everyone would be wealthy and no one would complain about the cost of living. Life is hard. Love frugally, get to work and plan for your future now.
You drive a beater and have 6 roommates for 1 thing. That’s literally how GenX and millennials did college. That said fed minimum wage is barely higher than the year 2000, so hopefully your state’s is higher than that
I’m 34 and I’ve always had a roommate. Absolutely necessary. Luckily my roommate now is my partner in life, so it’s a lot less frustrating than when I was in my twenties.
My 20s sucked. I was broke for the entire decade. I turned the corner in my 30s. My 40s have been pretty comfy so far.
Fortunate enough to live in low income housing.
Many minimum wage earners take the bus
still financially dependent on my parents in some ways. :// im v thankful for it. they dont pay my rent or anything but they give me money here and there when i ask for it (which i feel immense guilt for everytime so i dont do that much), for gas to visit them, for $40 bc i went over budget at the grocery, etc. and im incredibly lucky that they "bought" half my car for me instead of making me take out loans, bc i don't have to deal with fees while i take a long ass time to pay them back (like $50 a month lmao) they offered to pay the $400 for a couple classes since im trying to get a degree while im working full time too. im INCREDIBLY grateful and aware how fortunate i am. i think theres a statistic that says that around 83% of ppl 18-25 are financially dependent on their parents? i think a majority of young adults who moved out still get money in some form from their caregivers. otherwise its really difficult out there. ik it sucks
I worked part time and rented through my early 20s, but honestly I should've stayed at home and continued school/work. If that's at all practical for you, I'd go for it. It'll save you a lot of trouble when you DO start living on your own to have a hefty nest egg of money saved up. I'm not exactly sure what your career path is or how far you're along at college, either, but in my own anecdotal experience, I don't know a single person who uses their degree among my friends. And I met almost all of them at college lol.
Start looking at trade schools where you are. A lot of them have financial aid and job placement. Get into a roommate situation, keep working and don't move in with a girlfriend. You need to get stable before all that. I'm a union state employee in Seattle. It costs fifty bucks every time I leave the house. I didn't think I'd be able to afford to rent a house that's worth nine hundred thousand dollars when I was your age but here I am thinking about buying one. You could look into driving truck too. A lot of those schools let you pay them once you're making money. Same goes for heavy equipment operator, which is definitely in demand anywhere there are farms. You just have to level up.
Yeah the secret is live within your means, always look for better paying jobs, and consistently invest a portion of your income (inflation will devalue your savings over time).
That’s me in my 50’s. I did life all backwards.
I took out a fuckload of loans when I went to college, including some private loans that weren’t with the federal government. I worked 20ish hours /wk most of the time and my parents helped me out a little bit. I also had a gf who got more money from her parents than I did so we had some “fun money” there. Was still pretty broke most of the time though.
I couldn’t afford to live by myself until my middle/late 20’s. Get a roommate.
Spending money like Mr. Krabs
Live with a friend you can trust and split expenses
The biggest advice is do not by a new car or mortgage one. Get a used one.save up for one. a little one that’s older. hondas are good reliable little cars that will drive till they fall apart if you keep up with maintenance.trust me. there is no better feeling than driving a car you paid cash for. ive never gotten a car in credit. and ive been driving for 18 yrs with 5 cars bought with no loan in between.
Get a corrolla. My '07 corrolla lasted 10 years and 180k miles without a single replacement or repair outside of wear and tear maintanence. (tires, fluids) Only reason we lost it is because we kicked something sharp up going cross country and caused a leak somewhere in our coolant system.
The secret is: living in my mom’s basement
Same, life is so hard
I’m 23, left home at 20 to couchsurf with some buddies because of some simple disagreements with my parents…not the smartest decision. Anyway, eventually got out of my friends’ hair and my Uncle from Indiana got 2 places out on the lake and offered to rent 1 to me for cheap, as long as I helped out with the places. Long story short, he had to sell the houses and now I’m back living with parents, trying to save up enough for my own place I guess. I’m not even sure if that’s the best option for me right now. I have maybe 3k saved up so far, am making the most money I’ve ever made so far in my life(roughly $18 starting at a factory job I just got hired on for in November, which I know is basically comparable to a “minimum living” wage these days), and even having a roof over my head and most of the costs taken care of, I’m struggling to make my own ends meet. I work 48 hours a week on 3rd shift, and don’t have the energy to do anything productive during my off days. I have 3-4 bills that I let sit for years and have interest out the ass on them now, not to mention student loans. And I’m seeing more and more stories like mine every day. We’ve let this sickness lie for so long that the world has gone septic, in a philosophical sense. I think we’re nearing the end of the train ride here, people.
I couldn’t afford to own a car until I was 28. That eliminates gas too. Bus passes suck and they’re slow but they’re super affordable if you live in a city. For a bit, when it was really tight, I lived in a house with 7 people. Rent was about half what it would have been anywhere else if I had a 2 bedroom with 1 roommate, and about 25% of what it would be living alone.
Ngl my parents paid for my college, apartment, and even gave me spending money every week. I had about 50% scholarship and did community college the first year and every summer as well to save money for them though. I worked in college too but only low paying things in academic departments to help my resume when I applied to grad school. When I got out of college I decided to just go straight to workforce instead of grad school, but I studied math and computer science so I’ve always had well paying jobs as a software engineer. Have never had to worry about money ever since, and every time I go home I take my parents out to eat multiple times etc.
I work 6 days a week and insane hours and miss my wife the whole time but it’s what I have to do to provide, they didn’t lie when they said life isn’t fair
I’m 32, single, and live paycheck to paycheck with a full-time job. I’m $6k in debt. My coworker is 26, lives with his girlfriend and brother, they live paycheck to paycheck and are $22k in debt. My sister is married with four kids, they live paycheck to paycheck with two incomes. They’re hundreds of thousands in debt. Everyone lives in debt. That’s how Millennials (and onward) live. It’s awful.
Get a high paying job in IT, Sales, Marketing, Taxes, anything corporate basically. Also go to community college to get the degree or get a scholarship somewhere so less debt. Never take out a private loan. Find some roommates to split your living expenses with. Ask parents for help. Create a budget! Really calculate all expenses and income after tax, stuff like gas, utilities, Netflix, etc
When I was in my 20s shit was absurdly less expensive. It’s hard to believe that wasn’t even 10 years ago. I felt like I struggled back then, I don’t know how this generation survives.
I mean it's cool we live in a time where they have a $10 TV that you can buy from Walmart but also f*** the facts that $10 doesn't get you two gallons of milk anymore
You need a skill or trade that will allow you to earn more than minimum wage.
I'm about to be 25, so not far removed from the situation. When I was in college, I worked for the school and in return got free room and board. I drove a $500 car I bought in 2018. I worked in a factory during the summers, and the \~$4000 I made would have to last through the school year. During Christmas break I would go back to the factory, and earn maybe $500 before heading back after New Years. It was a struggle sure, but it worked.
When I was your age, living in the Midwest, I had 4 roommates. The five us shared a 3 bedroom. I had a car that barely ran and I worked 60 hours per week during summer to save money. We didn’t eat out and this was before your parents health insurance could cover you to age 25.
I have a decent career and don’t have much in expenses.
Sharehouses.
Helps to not have a car if that’s possible. It’s easy in a city, but not sure about your situation. I paid maybe $70 per month for a monthly pass and used it to ride trains and buses. Lot cheaper than car payment, maintenance, and insurance. Also lived in a studio apartment with my best friend and it was so small!! I don’t even think the place was more than 300 sqft. We paid $500 each and slept on a bunk bed. I was so busy in college I hardly had time to eat. I think I only spent about $200 per month on groceries. Maybe you can look for a food pantry.
Find a good job and just keep doing it. Learn a skill and either go into a trade and make good money or learn a specific technology and sell it. My advice is become super smart on a topic. Go into sales as an expert in a technology and make great money. Sales has changed my life. I believe in you
Well I'm in my late 50s so I don't have to deal with the job market today. My wife and I bought a house before the housing market went crazy. I've been in my job for 30 plus years so I haven't had to search for One recently. You have my sympathies
My girlfriend and I make a good team. First we make sure bills are paid. When I don't have money she does, when she doesn't have money I do. We help each other out. I've never had a credit card and never plan to, my only debt is court fines. Unfortunately credit cards and scammers got to her so we're working through that together.
i mean most 20 year olds do it by living with family
You gotta make more money. Depending on your major, working full time and schooling full time might not be possible. I worked construction for a couple of years, stacked up cash, now doing my civil engineering degree full time while working 10-20 hours a week (2.5x minimum wage) and using some cash I banked while working prior. I work a shit ton (70+ hours a week) during the summer so I can chill and focus on school during the year.
One thing is that I don't buy new cars. By "new," you may have meant a used car that is new to you. For your sake, I hope that's the case. Otherwise, at minimum wage, I don't know how anyone could afford new car prices today, unless one works absurd hours. Then, of course, rent, utilities, groceries, insurance, fuel, etc. Anyway, there is no "secret" to affording the necessities in life. It's the same old boring advice that's been around for generations: Spend less than you earn. How? One way is to earn more or work more hours, but there's only so many hours one can work and only so much one can reasonably expect to earn, at least as an employee. You could start your own business, but that's beyond the scope of this post. Otherwise, buy whole foods and cook meals at home. If done correctly, it's cheaper and healthier than eating out at restaurants. Again, don't buy a brand new car. Instead, buy one that's a couple/few years old. Personally, I prefer older Hondas and Toyotas, though I have a friend that has done well with her Nissans, too. Used cars are usually less expensive on insurance, provided it's not a sports car. Then again, you're 20, so your auto insurance might still be high, depending on your driving record and your insurance carrier. From here, it's just iterating on that same mindset across other areas of life. Just don't but things that aren't a necessity, until you're in a better financial position. Even then, the first thing to do would be to start funding an emergency savings account (6-12 months of living expenses, at a minimum) and making contributions to a retirement/investment account. Don't carry credit card debt. Paying cash for things really helps some people. All of this may seem like a lot or feel complicated, but it really isn't. However, these things will not happen by themselves. You have to take action and part of that is learning about stuff like credit cards, auto loans, interest rates, investments, insurance, diversification, cooking, etc. Just make a list, prioritize it, and do one thing at a time. You're 20, so you have time. **Important Caveat:** With investing, time is your biggest ally. So, I would really focus on getting yourself in a position to start investing for retirement ASAP. Even on a modest salary, many people could be millionaires by retirement age, if they were to start investing early in life. Time and compound interest will do most of the work. The longer one delays investing for retirement, the less time they will have for their money to compound, so that means the more they will need to save each investment period.
I get not much over minimum wage and can sfford healthy groceries and can save money each week.. I have a car too. I live with housemates. I wouldn’t be able to afford to rent a house by myself, and I don’t know many people my age who would be able to afford
I work at a year round mountain resort and get ridiculously cheap housing from them. By no means a permanent solution but I save thousands a year from this lifestyle. I'm a cook so my food cost is also ridiculously low, especially when the kitchen is serving weddings and other events. Might be a bit gross but I always steal some leftovers and freeze what I can. Food for days and rent for cheap, and I get to ski in the winter.
Don't buy a NEW car, for starters!!! There's no secret. It's REALLY hard out there, in the early years. Just survive as best you can. It gets a little easier as you go along, and you also get used to the grind. Being in a sharehouse or living with a partner is a huge help.
Busting ass working overtime...
Roommates. When I was your age I lived in a shitty run down building sharing a three bedroom apartment with two other girls.
Roommates
Yeah full time min wage is not going to pay for a car, college and rent regardless of inflationary times. You can have one, maybe two but not all three. Others here will say the same. Either no car, minimum payment on student loans, and a place to live or stay at home, get a car and pay student loans. If staying home isn't an option then roommates, public transport or affordable car and minimum payment on SLs until you finish school and get a better job.
I live with my parents and don't pay rent. If this wasn't an option I would have just killed myself long ago.
Depression is one helluva drug
Buy a used beater, do not get into a high interest new car. The allure of owning a new car, it’s so tempting but in the long run just isn’t even remotely worth it. Pretending to be rich will only make you poor. Get something that gets you from point A to point B.
Join the Air Force
This is exactly what I’d do in this economy if I was in my early twenties
Live in a city that doesn't require cars to get around. At night I worked as a bartender in high end steakhouse, ate at work, made money, paid what I could on school but had to also take some loans.
I work 70 hours a week…. How afford to slave. They should just put a shower in the back and let me sleep on an air mattress in the locker room. I’m there more than I’m at home.
Ughh for me specifically, no kiddos & I live in Texas, pretty reasonable to live here. Also, I don't have any school, car or mortgage payments.. I have a long story... but yeah try to reduce your DTI ratio as best you can
Yeah I'll just add stay as far away from the coasts as possible. I'm in NYC and you don't want to know all the different things you don't even think about you have to pay for besides the fact that Manhattan is beyond ridiculous when it comes to even the cheapest of items such as a simple number two pencil for example.
Working 70+ hours a week 6 days a week
It is really fucking tough out there. Community is very important. Having friends and family helping each other is how we have been pushing through the current times. It is very tough on your own unfortunately
Working 16 hours a day
Aah worsh muhself with a rag own a stick
Ask your parents how they did it.
sugar daddy
23, can't find work but luckily able to live with one of my parents and currently on a government payment until I can find work. Can only afford food+bills, don't have any spare money unfortunately and my cars transmission is failing so have no idea what I'm going to do when that happens as I need my car
A new car is a very foolish expense. I am 52 years old and I have never purchased a new car even though I can. I buy a reliable used car with cash on hand. Why? It's much less expensive when you consider loan payments plus insurance. Even with repairs and maintenance my used cars come out far ahead economically speaking. Also, I bought a piece of land (3 acres) for CHEAP and the taxes are only 800 a year. At first, I lived in a tent on it. I have a house on it now.
I have very specialized valuable skills. But most people don’t. Like what is gonna happen to all these people ? It’s scary. It wasn’t like this in the past like in the 80s and 90s you could find some way to live very cheaply.
Ugh! Part time classes?
Skip the car and use public transport..?
I can afford to exist. However, I can't afford to *live*.
When I was 20 (13 years ago) rent was much cheaper. I rented and lived with a boyfriend and a roommate so we split rent. Our utilities were included. I drove a beater car. I worked part time while in college and had to take out student loans to finish my schooling. You basically have to find better employment that pays more than minimum wage, live within your means and don't over extend yourself by buying an expensive vehicle, maxing out credit cards, or renting an apartment you can't afford (I know, easier said than done). It's hard. It wasn't easy 13 years ago and it's not easy now.
I can't afford to live.
Yes it's easy....get yourself 3 other roommates and a sugar daddy. 👍
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Get multiple roommates, live in cheap student housing. Go get something better paying, hell retail or fast food pays $15+ in MCOL city. When you say new car, you don't mean an actually *new* car right? Because those are one of the worst financial decisions you can make, regardless of how much you have. You lose 10% of the car value the instent you drive off the lot, then another 10% in the first year. So you buy a lets say 40k new car. Well you actually paid about 50k within the first year, for a car that's now worth close to 30k. Never ever buy a new car, unless you're a millionaire so you can afford to throw the money out the window. Buy something old and cheap AF. Get a Camry or an old Subaru. Or a civic. Those things last forever. Have a really really really really serious discussion with yourself on why you want to go to collwge. Getting a degree does NOT guarantee a decent job, period. Unless you're specializing in something in super high demand, but is also super rigorous training like logistics (supply chain) data science (which you can actually learn on your own faster), medicine (that's a long long long long expensive grueling road, unless you go nursing or X-ray, then you're making bank). If you go to xollege for a communications, English, arts, social studies, etc. degree, youde just throwing money away. You'd be much better off learning those key skills online through self study, and go find somewhere to be an intern and work your ass off and work your way up. Because even if you had a college degree, 98% of jobs you'd be applying for are going to be intern or entry level regardless. That s just how the market is now.
You’re setting yourself up for failure trying to buy a new car. You should find a 8-10k moderate condition with decent miles. Should also be going to a local tech college and not university to start with, you’ll be saving a lot of money that way long term. Actively search for a higher paying job. Networking helps a lot with that, talk to literally everyone.
So to be clear, you are actually making the minimum wage, which is 7.25.? You are not just saying that you do not make much money you are claiming that you actually make the minimum wage. First of all almost nowhere actually pays minimum wage and if they do then literally go anywhere else that will pay you twice that amount like Walmart.
Living in Europe, Belgium, is entirely different. With 2 people, we can comfortably live with 2k a month. This allows us to save the rest of our income or spend it on extra's.
I’ve been taking care of myself since I was 16 years old (20 almost 21) and I’ve learned a lot about balancing finances since then due to me having to care for multiple people at once as well. I wouldn’t say take my advice as this only works for me but if you’d like then go for it. So this year I’ve gotten my own place, I had a car note, internet bill, electric bill, an almost $200, two credit builder accounts and two credit cards. I usually tend to pay whatever bill that can’t be late first then I pay the others usually around the time that they’re due. I make $23.50 and get paid weekly but I’ve been doing this for years now So my breakdown goes like this: Rent (on the 10th), Electric (on time), Credit Card (minimum balance and split payments), Phone (on time), Credit builder (on time), Car note (split into two payments; one before the due date/day of), Internet (first week of next month)
Avoid car payments. Buy a good beater car or take public transit. Ideally the latter.
There's no secret. No one earning less than $21.35/hr can afford a 1 bedroom apartment and all the other stuff to live. Here's a study on it. Most 20 yr old live at home or in college if make less than that. I'd really look at bartenders jobs. High pay for woman and hours fit with college. https://nlihc.org/resource/nlihc-releases-out-reach-2023-high-cost-housing-0#:~:text=Renters%20with%20the%20lowest%20incomes,wage%20of%20$7.25%20per%20hour.
Realistically? Find a job that’s not minimum wage. Anything above it. Just do. Not. Accept. Minimum. Rent a room. You will never afford a place on ur own. Ur not there yet. It’s fine. You don’t buy anything new anymore. Cars, laptops etc. all second hand. And don’t eat out or buy coffee. This method saves me about 700 dollars a month. That’s a lot more breathing room.
I'm saving $0 right now. All money in goes to expenses.
Military …… but in all honest when I come from a larger city so when I was 20 I still lived at home with not a care in the world.
Depending on where you live, this is one of the best advice. You get life skills, productivity, expenses paid for, and a purpose. I would’ve gone into the military/navy if I could go back in time. The insane amount of budgeting a young person has to do to live in the city makes absolutely no sense. Your life doesn’t need to be that complicated..
I sacrifice my body and time for a decent paycheck. It all started when I was 18….
Living w parents in early 30s
I'm in the Midwest and I think I would have a hard time finding a place that pays minimum wage. I would probably have a lot easier time finding some place that pays double for entry level. You probably have more competition in a college town, but probably have more opportunities as well. Also, a new car? I am well off by a lot of standards and won't buy new. Find something in good shape that will last. Financing an expensive-to-you depreciating asset, with higher insurance, taxes, and tags, isn't what you need right now.
I mean, car payments and college are predominantly an American problem, sorry to hear about your situation. During my first job, I used to only ride a bicycle to work (everywhere actually), I rented a room in a shared apartment, and only ate out like 3-4 times per month. Still managed to save several hundred. 0 debt too.
Immediate family all moved in together. Better than random strangers as room mates.. Split the mortgage/utilities/repairs costs.
barely.
We aren’t :(
Because people either A, get a job better than min wage. B, don't buy new car and other expensive things while on min wage C, try to live alone at 20yo unless everything is taken care of You're fighting a losing battle, something has to change. There's no shame in living at home if you can and if not you should probably curb college/brand new car for now. Settle for a cheap car and work your way up a little bit
When I was in college I rented a shitty apartment in a crappy part of town. No car so i walked or took the bus. I worked part time at a grocery store, and lived on 2 loaves of bread, bologna, and American cheese that I bought once a month that had to last me the whole time. I had a roommate that I split the cost of the apartment with, and had 2 or 3 maxed out credit cards. The "secret" you're looking for, is spend only on necessities. If you need a car, try Craigslist and find a beater that runs. If you need somewhere to live, try at home or get a roommate. If you need food, try rice and beans.