There's a point on (most of) everybody's lives that the time to leave your parents' house and start having a life of your own arrives...
This time has come for me.
I've been away from my "old home" for almost two mounths now, and most of this time I spent looking for a new place to stay, in this big city I came to study.
It's amazing this feeling of having a place of your own.
Now I have this apartment I can call home, and am studing for some exams I have to take by the end of the year to enter university, as well as looking for a job - my first job.
Of course this comes with problems too, such as having to pay your taxes and not being able to stay online too often :P (I just got internet access, BTW) - but, as everything, these problems are good to teach you other things; such as responsability.
I'd like to hear from you others that've gone through all this before: what kind of problems did you experience (so that I get prepared for them) and how this 'big change' affected your lives - for better or worse.
I guess this explains why I haven't been working on some things I said I would; which I plan to get back to ASAP ;)
-Felipe-
hehe...
well im a junior in college and I just went in on a deal with 3 of my friends on my first apartment. I haven't moved in yet, but I'm paying rent.
problems? I have plenty. My checkbook got confused last year and I overpsent by about a $1000. I got a subletter, but he screwed me...so that's another $1500 I wasn't expecting to pay. So, for me, this is new financial troubles I've never had before...
my advice...don't buy stuff you don't need.
sigh
Stuh: Yes.. Sex toys and Porno magazines are highly overrated.. Porn is free over the internet :)
So.. I guess what I'm trying to say is.. Spend your money wisely.. You may WANT a 3503409 Watt stereo, but you don't NEED it.. You may want the whole line of hookers down the street, but you only NEED one.. And.. Umm... Well, you get my point.
my first place was a tiny room in a smelly cellar, with thick concrete walls and mildew everywhere. I shared a claustrofobic kitchen with three other people, one of which was really slobby.
My second "home" was a nice big apartment which I shared with a girl in my age - we didn't know eachother from before, but came along pretty well. Unfortunately, I had to move from that town when I quit the civil engineering program.
Since almost three years I now live in a sort of student dorm, it's a small room but clean and bright, with a nice view and a good internet connection.
I've had my fair share of moving around, so to say
I've moved 11 times since 1996.
I've lived in nice places, I've lived in a few dumps.
There's something gratifying about doing your own thing.Ã, Even when I lived in less than nice places, I still enjoyed it 'cause I was doing it on my own.
I once lived in a room that was about the same size as a prison cell in a house with 4 other people.Ã, It was miserable, expensive, and far from ideal living conditions ... yet I love the memory of it.
[lgm] makes a good point.Ã, It's what I was going to say!Ã, Don't waste money on things you don't need.Ã, Always [try to] keep enough money in your account to make 2 months rent/utilities and you'll be fine.
Now ... I'll be the first to admit that's not always easy to do!Ã, But having nothing to eat except Raman noodles or mac'n'cheese for 3 weeks is all part of the experience of growing up :)
Good luck!
Ramen noodles are a whole food group. Get to know them... They'll be your best friend.
Ramen noodles are a luxury item when you move out!
When I moved out, we had to deal wih homebrand 2 minute noodles and plain spaghetti! No Ramen for us!!!
You damn kids have got it so easy these days!
I detect a rip off of Monthy Python's sketch at Hollywood Bowl?
"When we were young we got up at 6 am, two hours before going to the bed, and daddy chopped us with a knife!" ;D
Well i should say good luck then, but i think you have enough of it already :))
Now, GO BACK TO THE FORUMS AND WORK ON OUR GAME YOU SLOB!!!!
:P
Damn, Darth - 11 times in 8 years?
I've moved about 14 times since 1988 but at least that's less than once a year - and that includes all the different rooms I had at university.
My advice is - don't overspend on the credit card!
Moving out of home was the best thing I ever did. It's been about 3 years now since I properly moved out, and since then I've lived in 4 different towns, met lots of interesting people, and generally had a good laugh.
My current home is a fairly small room in a shared house with 4 other people. It's a bit of a dump, but it's cheap which means more of my wages are left over to buy beer and sticky tape ;)
Moving to a different area can be tough, because you effectively lose all your friends and have to start again (though the internet is a great way of keeping in contact with people) - but if you're just moving to your own place within the same town, no worries :)
What in the blazes do you need sticky tape for?? Apart from the old bodgy car repair?
I've moved out several times, but unfortunatly i always end back at my parents for various stupid reasons. I hate it and i want them to go away forever.... sort of...
I've just moved in to a three room apartment with my girlfriend. It's great!
Actually, I really am considering having to go for long periods of time eating food like ramen noodles, pb&j, or pasta. I'm going to be really poor. I'm kind of scared that I might harm my body...does anyone know any good cheap combinations that wont kill myself from lack of proper nutrients?
I don't necessarily agree about buying things you don't need...it's balancing your fun money with your rent money that's important. If I take ten dollars out of my paycheck every week I can save up enough to buy a dvd every once in a while. Just don't buy one every week.
Also, go to your grocery store. A lot of people go out to eat almost everyday, and that will add up quick. Now's your time to experiment with cooking, figuring out how mom or dad made things, or making your own things. 20 to 30 bucks will last me a week on food if I go to the grocery, sometimes it's even less. Not that you should go out to eat, just not all the time.
Drinking. It's fun, but once again, something you don't need to do everyday. And if you do get into the habit of drinking a lot, go a lighter beer. It might not taste as good, but you can keep that beer gut off, more succesfully.
Find a group of friends that you can just hang out with...where alchohol doesn't NEED to be involved. There are some people you're only friends with at a party, but you'll never get together for anything else. Which isn't a bad thing, just make sure not all of your friends are like this.
When all is said and done, it's all a matter of moderation. Just be smart, and you'll minimize some of the problems that'll come your way.
-MillsJROSS
Thanks a lot for the tips guys!
This is the first time I moved (I had lived my whole life in the same house, with my parents) so 'everything' is new to me.
I usually don't buy things I don't really need...
(who am I trying to cheat?)
Well, I did use to buy some things I didn't really need, but now I'm managing to "filter" things I want to buy, avoiding unnecessary spending.
Speaking of 'buys', one of the first things I bought when I moved was a BLUE CUP - my very first Blue Cup ;D
And I DO cook (the dinner, at least), which makes me save a lot of money. The thing is I don't have what you could call a 'balenced meal', since I usually eat noodles, eggs and meat; and then eggs, meat and noodles; and then, to change a bit, I make meat, noodles, and eggs...
God, I need to learn how to cook other things! ::)
About friends... well, apart from relatives that live in this city I knew almost nobody here... but with this classes I'm taking I'm meeting new people, and thus, making new friends (slowly, but I'm doing it).
Besides all the bad things, it's being great, and I'm really enjoying my "new life" :)
-Felipe-
Hi, Felipe!
Finding fine colleagues to divide the expenses (rent, phone, electricity, gas, water, etc.), is always a good alternative. So a bigger apartment is better, except if you don't have already people to share it with. And choose an apartment without lift(s), or else its condominium will always be a pain in the... er... wallet.
Also sharing expenses by cooking at home is almost a way of saving money, unless you eat at canteens. Can't cook othe things? Consider getting easy recipes (books, net sites, etc.) for a start.
Besides, common stuff (as toilet paper) must be bought by all of you. An idea would be to create a little "fund" for common urgent expenses, otherwise could be people not paying little expenses at all: but, dime + dime + dime + ..., could become a considerable amount...
Always keep all bills notifying you've paid something at least for five years: would be a good idea to keep them in dossiers (eg. phone; water; electricity; etc), to prove you've paid it.
I always keep in dossiers by year all bills I may deduce in my tributation; so I fill it up with no problems or headaches.
Always keep an emergency fund for possible expenses. As posted by Darth, two months rent/food is always good... well, at least one month is better than credit: if you use it, you will NEVER get rid of it!
Hope this may help you!
Quote from: Pumaman on Sat 05/06/2004 20:11:19
My current home is a fairly small room in a shared house with 4 other people. It's a bit of a dump, but it's cheap which means more of my wages are left over to buy beer and sticky tape
Don't you think tricking out your car with more tape to impress all the fly honeys is a waste of money?
oh second thought i'd love it if you taped your rims and taped the words "Str8 Playa 4 Realsies" on your hood
Quote from: Darth Mandarb on Sat 05/06/2004 13:36:04
Now ... I'll be the first to admit that's not always easy to do!Ã, But having nothing to eat except Raman noodles or mac'n'cheese for 3 weeks is all part of the experience of growing up :)
That's pretty much what my diet consists of right now, and I'm still living at home. :P
I'll be moving out on my own soon enough, though.
Good luck to you, Felipe.
Quote from: stuh505 on Sat 05/06/2004 21:17:02
Actually, I really am considering having to go for long periods of time eating food like ramen noodles, pb&j, or pasta.Ã, I'm going to be really poor.Ã, I'm kind of scared that I might harm my body...does anyone know any good cheap combinations that wont kill myself from lack of proper nutrients?
Well maybe you should think of saving some money for those A-Z vitamins. Ask at your local drugstore what is the best one (for a right price), and try to buy some milk-based products every now and then, and having fruit/veg. from the market isnt a bad thing (it's not all expensive).
Tips on living away from home.
1. Don't buy stuff you don't need.
2. The stuff you do need, borrow.
3. Get a sugar-daddy.
Tips on food.
1. Spiralina (sp?) contains most of the important ingredients.
2. Baked Potato and Baked Beans is a pretty well balanced meal, according to my dietician (again, sp?) friend.
3. Vegetarian diet is healthy, and lessens chance of food poisoning thru poor culinary skills.
Hugs
Iqu
I moved out of home at 16 (back in 1991) in a Student Halls of Residence: food included in price, so easy-peasy. But that was back in the days when the government gave you money to go to University rather than the other way around. Student loans had only just started and my summer jobsa nd aprents made up the shortfall (except when I wanted to buy a Psion 3a so I got into a total of 500 quid student debt, woo!)
But some of those places I stayed in were pretty poor, as a student. Once place I woke up and saw my breath misitng in front of me one day. We found dead mice in the grill and the immersion heater took so long to heat up the water in the morning I got used to washing with cold water. Brrr!
Then there was Bristol where I stayed in Redland most of the time in rented stuff until buying my first house in Wolseley Road when I got married. Bought for 80000, sold for 128000 18 months later... and now our house in Edinburgh is now apparently worth 50% more than what we paid for it, (around 165000).. I dunno what you guys are complaining about... get on that property ladder! (Of course, most of the value of the house actually belongs to Nationwide building society)
Thanks again for the tips!
Primus:
QuoteFinding fine colleagues to divide the expenses (rent, phone, electricity, gas, water, etc.), is always a good alternative.
At first I'd rent an apartment or maybe find something to share with friends, but thanks God (and my parents) I managed to BUY one (since my mom inherited a small flat in Rio from her father, and with it's selling (sp?) we managed to buy this apartment here, in Porto Alegre) so I can say int's MINE!
This is sooo good, having a place of your own!
Anyway, this means I don't have colleagues to share expenses, but then, I don't have to pay rent, either. :)
QuoteAnd choose an apartment without lift(s), or else its condominium will always be a pain in the... er... wallet.
Heh, well, this building does have lifts, however, since there are many apartments here, the condominium isn't 'high' at all. Furthermore, I bought it with a "garage", too, and since I don't have car I'm renting it to a building-mate (or whatever you call it) wich helps me paying the condominium.
QuoteConsider getting easy recipes (books, net sites, etc.) for a start.
That's something I planned to do and forgot...!
Now that I have internet access... uh, does anyone know a site with nice, cheap, easy-to-make recipes?
QuoteAlways keep all bills notifying you've paid something at least for five years: would be a good idea to keep them in dossiers (eg. phone; water; electricity; etc), to prove you've paid it.
Thanks for the tip!
I've kept them but they are a mess... I might do what you said about putting 'em in dossiers when I have the time.
QuoteHope this may help you!
It does, thanks!
QuoteGood luck to you, Felipe.
Thank you! ;)
Iqu:
Quote3. Get a sugar-daddy.
What's a "sugar-daddy"???
QuoteTips on food.
1. Spiralina (sp?) contains most of the important ingredients.
Sorry again for my lack of vocabulary... but what's "Spiralina"?
Quote3. Vegetarian diet is healthy, and lessens chance of food poisoning thru poor culinary skills.
I know that... but I just can't live without (red) meat!!!
But thanks for you tips!
QuoteBought for 80000, sold for 128000 18 months later...
Wow, nice sale!
I bought mine for R$84000 (Reais, which would be about $28000 Dolars - we earn less here so [some] things cost less) but it was an excellent buy, and I know I can sell it for more if I want... but it's great and I really love this place, so that's not for the near future.
-Felipe-
QuoteWhat's a "sugar-daddy"???
I think he means, a "sugar mama"...? Not sure. ???
All this advice about only buy what you need is fine to a point, but sometimes you need to splash out on spoils or life would get boring. Besides, once you get a job you should be able to buy your food and have plenty left over to spend on what you like. Especially as you don't have any rent to pay!
QuoteWhat's a "sugar-daddy"
http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=sugar-daddy&f=1
IS SUGAR-DADDY WHAT I THINK IT IS!??
I'd rather have a Sugar-mama, then! ;D
But I really don't need that. I'm handling pretty well my new life; and each day I like better my neighbourhood and all. I could even discribe it so that different people would like to come here, for example:
- For the "night-lover", I'd say there's a disco (one of the best discos in the city) in my block and another excellent one 4 blocks away.
-For those "more sensitive", I'd say that through my bedroom's windows you can see one of the most beautiful sunsets in the city, when sometimes all the sky gets coloured in pink and the sillouete (sp?) of a church and a "styled building" in front of the horizon make a postcard-worth scene...
- For the "women-lover" There's one of the top... how can I say it... "red-light houses" one block from here - with wonderful chicks - place where famous people, specially football players - like Ronaldinho (when he lived here) - use to visit quite regularly. I think I don't need to say that JUST TO ENTER the house you have to pay about $50... If only it was cheaper I would go there too, at least twice a week I can't stand those places that are against the Lord's laws!
Anyway, I could go on and on talking about the "advantages" of my neighbourhood...
-Felipe-
Wow, now I know what to do and what not to do when I move out. :) Which could only be a few years away. Still, I feel like a youngster reading everybody elses posts. I still can't figure out if the idea of moving out is scary or exciting.
Quote from: Raggit on Sat 12/06/2004 02:22:18
I still can't figure out if the idea of moving out is scary or exciting.Ã,Â
I'd say both, really.
At first it can be quite scary (like missing your old house, parents, friends, etc) but if you just realise you've done the right thing, and take it as another part of your life it's quite exciting! 8)
My advice if you're moving to other city is, get to know the city before you move, I used to visit this city every year and I'd spend my holydays here (sometimes a month or more) so I didn't FEEL that much the change; however, if all of a sudden you move to a city you've never been before, and where you know anybody it can be REALLY scary...!
-Felipe-