Living INdependently
Find help for living on your own.
Living on your own can be tough, especially when you feel like you have no support or family to turn to for advice. We’re here to help guide you through the experience of learning to live independently. Find information about opening your first checking account, job interview do’s and dont's, apartment hunting, preparing a quick and cheap meal and much more.
Budgeting
Use a budget worksheet to record your income and expenses, and to organize your bills, statements and receipts. Budgeting is usually done on a monthly basis, so do not include expenses or income that you do not receive every month on the worksheet.
Check out the Budget Worksheet
While working on your budget, remember that you should put your savings aside first, not last. As soon as money comes in, savings should be banked or put out of reach. Below is a chart of expenses. It tells the percentage of take home income that most people should spend on basic expenses.
- Housing: 15%-25%
- Savings: 5%-10%
- Food: 15%
- Utilities: 10%
- Medical: 5%-10%
- Transportation: 4%-10%
- Recreation: 5%
- Clothing: 5%-10%
- Miscellaneous: 3%
Now that you’ve got the basics of working with a monthly budget, it is a simple step to use the spreadsheet or worksheet to figure out how much you can afford to spend on that new apartment, new car or great vacation. Enter all of the budget figures for every expense except the one you’re interested in. Now use the “Net Income” figure to determine if the new expense is within your budget.
Living Independently
Did You Know?
A daily trip to Starbucks will run you almost $800/yr.