So Now You’re 18, Time To Move Out Right?

So you’ve just turned 18 years old, and you think you’re ready to move out of your parents’ place, huh? You’ve made Assistant Manager at McDonald’s, and you’re rolling in the kind of money only an $8 an hour pay rate can provide. At your grown up 40 hours a week, you making almost a grand a month (after taxes of course), sweet! That’s plenty to live on, especially because you get a free meal everyday at work, right? Wrong! “But… but… why?” you sob, well, I’ll tell you why.

 

First, and most importantly: because you’re going to quit your job in a few months, and you have no savings, and there is nothing more humiliating than having to move back in with your parents after tasting the sweet, honey like taste of freedom. “But wait,” you say, “I have perseverance! I’ll stick with my job until I make Manager!” No, you won’t. It’s not your fault, nobody does. One can only bear the fast food industry so long. It’s like the post office, you can only handle it for so long before you go on a rampage, killing customers and coworkers mercilessly, all while screaming “WOULD YOU LIKE SOME LEAD WITH THAT!” It’s inevitable.

 

Second: because, as much as you think you can, there is no way to survive on $1,000 a month. I’ll prove it, let’s do the math. First off, rent: if you’re lucky, you can get a roommate and live in a crappy apartment for $300 month. Now, add $50 for water, $100 for electricity, $50 for internet, and $50 for cable. Split two ways, that’s still $125 a month, just for you. Now what about food? Even assuming you get that one free meal a day at McDonald’s, you’re still going to be paying at least $10 a day on food and drink, and that’s a very conservative estimate. So, over the course of the month, you’re up to $300 in food. What about the cost of maintaining your car? Even if you live close to work, you’re still going to be paying about $25 a week for gas. That’s another $100 a month. Now we’re up to $825, add on the other miscellaneous items, like toilet paper, soap, laundry detergent, beer, crack, and whatever else you need and you’re pretty much up there at $1000.

 

“So what?!” you scream, “I’m still within my budget!” Well yes, you are. Right up until you get sick, or want to go out to the movies, or your car breaks down (and trust me, it will). As soon as an unexpected expense comes up, and there are a lot of them, you’ll have no way to pay it. That’s why you need to have enough extra every month to save. I’m not talking about 20 bucks a month, you’re not in grammar school anymore, you need to be saving at least $200 a month. You also need to have at least an extra $200 a month for those unexpected things, because there will be a lot of them, and you don’t always want to dig into your savings.

 

Which brings us to the third point: you will need stuff. There are a lot of things you’ll have to buy when you move out, that you took for granted at your parents’ house. Do you own furniture? Your little twin bed you’ve had since you were 8 won’t cut it anymore; girls don’t like having to sleep on the floor when they come over. How about a washer and dryer? Not all apartments come with those, you might need to buy or rent some. Even the small things like towels, a blender, dishes, curtains, lamps, and clothes hangers add up. You will need to buy all of these things, right when you move out, unless you’re planning on not taking showers, or eating. So you will need to have $1000-$2000 saved up just for the basics when you move out.

 

At this point, it probably seems like you’ll never get to move out and taste that sweet freedom honey, right? Wrong again! That’s the beauty of living with your parents, you don’t have to pay for anything while you live there. So take your time, and save your money, even after only two months at your degrading job as Assistant Manager you should have enough saved up to move out, as long as you don’t waste your money on unnecessary things. Now, there is still the problem of how much money you’re making, but there is hope! There are plenty of businesses that will pay $12 an hour just for you to type, or take calls, or strip. Try and find those, they’re usually harder to find, and get, than your job at MickeyD’s, but it will be well worth the effort.

 

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