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HomeBlog Financial Literacy4 Decisions That Can Affect Your Financial Life After You Graduate
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4 Decisions That Can Affect Your Financial Life After You Graduate

May 21, 2016 by National Debt Relief

graduation cap and moneyWe all want to have a happy financial life. But do you know what it really means to have one? Now that you are fresh out of college, what direction will you take in order for you to have a great financial position?

The definition of having a great financial situation will depend on each person. It is influenced by your values, priorities, and future goals. Regardless of how your specific definition is, there are a couple of characteristics to make you happy with your personal finances.

  • You have a stable source of income.
  • Your debts are manageable.
  • You have an increasing net worth.
  • You are saving for your future.
  • You can afford to pay for basic necessities.
  • You have a budget for entertainment expenses.

These are only some of the characteristics of a great financial position. The other details will probably depend on your personal preference. Some people would feel like they have a happy financial life if they are able to buy what they need without going into debt. Some people would feel the same if they have the freedom to choose the career that they want to enter without worrying about the financial implications.

One this is for sure: it takes some work to say that you are happy with your personal finances. It is not something that happens overnight. This is why you need to start thinking about it and planning how to improve it early on in your life. It is also not something that naturally happens to you. It requires some work, dedication and a lot of good financial decisions.

4 decisions that will change your personal finances for the better

If you really want your financial life to take off, it is very important to start developing the right habits as soon as you graduate. The earlier you start, the faster you can reach your financial goals. Even if you are fresh out of college, that does not excuse you from the important financial decisions that you have to make. You are no longer a child and you are no longer expected to lean on your parents for help. In the first few months, that may be possible. But you cannot continue living like you did in the past.

To help you get started on building a happier financial life, here are 4 important financial decisions that you need to make as soon as you get your diploma.

Student loans

Let us start with the most pressing financial concern of new graduates – their student loans. According to an article published on StudentLoanHero.com, the Class of 2016 has an average student loan debt of $37,172. This is 6% higher compared to the previous year. Obviously, if you graduated with this type of debt, this will be your main financial burden. You do not have a home loan yet and it is not practical for you to buy a car. Most likely, this is the only debt that you have – unless you already amassed a sizable balance on your credit card account. If not, then keep a tight lid on your spending because you have to decide how you will pay off your loan. Study all the repayment plans that you can qualify for. You may be eligible to be forgiven of your debt in a couple of years. Make sure you know all your options so you can maximize your student loan payments. Otherwise, you will end up delaying a lot of financial investments just because your money is tied to this particular debt.

Living arrangements

This may not necessarily be a monetary decision but it can affect your financial life in the future. An article published on Time.com revealed that more young adults have decided to live with their parents after graduation for financial reasons. We can all guess that student loans have a huge influence on this decision – and it is proving to be a smart one. If you are worried about where you will get the money to pay off your student loans, you can choose to move back in with your folks while you are deciding. This does not mean you will be dependent on them. You still have to look for a job but sharing living expenses with your parents will make the transition easier. This can also benefit your parents if you will share in the household expenses. You can take advantage of this living arrangement to make bigger payments toward your student loans and to build your emergency fund. When you feel like your financial position is stronger, you can choose to move out of your parents’ house.

In case moving in your parents’ house is not a possibility, you can always choose to share an apartment with a close friend. As long as your living expenses will not bloat, you can expect more extra money to be used wisely.

Lifestyle

Choose a lifestyle you can comfortably sustain – even if it is not frugal. Sometimes, people force themselves to live a frugal lifestyle – only to do it wrong. They end up depriving themselves and when it becomes too frustrating, they splurge. This will not end well for your finances. Some people are happier living an expensive lifestyle and do not mind working more to make ends meet. If that works for you, then follow what your heart wants. The important thing is to choose a lifestyle that will not put you in debt.

Career

Finally, you need to make a decision about your career. Choose a career that you know will make you happy and fulfilled. Do not just choose because you have to pay for an expensive lifestyle – unless you are happy with your options. Some people force themselves in very stressful jobs that make them very unhappy. It may be true that they can afford to live expensive lifestyles but it takes away the quality of life that they really want to experience. Do not put yourself in a financial position wherein you have to depend on a high-paying job that makes you extremely unhappy. That could lead you to depression and despite the wealthy exterior, it will not be worth it.

Think about all of these decisions carefully so you can set up your financial life and point it to the right direction.

Important financial activities for new graduates

Apart from the important decisions that you need to make, there are also a couple of activities that you need to implement in order to build a strong and secure financial position. Here is a couple of them.

  • Learning how to budget. Start by learning how to budget. If this is something that you never implemented while you were in school, now is the time to correct that hindsight. The benefits of budgeting are beyond the financial aspect – it can also help you live a stress-free life.
  • Saving for the future. Another thing that you need to work on is your savings. You have to start saving as early as you can so you can reach a lot of financial goals. You need to think about your retirement, dream house, and even that vacation. Do not rely on credit if you can save up for it.
  • Building an emergency fund. The third activity that you need to immerse yourself into is building up your emergency fund. This fund will help you with various unexpected expenses. You do not have to borrow money in case you are faced with an emergency situation.
  • Monitoring credit. Finally, you want to make sure that you will monitor your credit all the time. According to a survey done by Bankrate, 46% of Americans have checked their credit score within the past 12 months. Another 14% said they checked their scores in that past 3 years. There are many benefits in checking your credit report regularly. You can check for errors that can bring your credit score down. You can also check for incidents of identity theft. This has to be reported immediately if you want to protect your finances.

All of these activities will help you build a strong and secure financial life. Make sure that you develop the right habits that will allow you to make smart decisions about your finances.

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National Debt Relief is one of the largest and best-rated debt settlement companies in the country. In addition to providing excellent, 5-star services to our clients, we also focus on educating consumers across America on how to best manage their money. Our posts cover topics around personal finance, saving tips, and much more. We’ve served thousands of clients, settled over $1 billion in consumer debt, and our services have been featured on sites like NerdWallet, Mashable, HuffPost, and Glamour.

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Easy National Debt Relief Caller: Austin Transcribed WE 1/17/2021 Austin: Our call may be recorded. What led you to National Debt Relief and why did you choose National Debt Relief over a different company? CARA: Honestly, it was just kind of on a whim. I just saw a commercial, I think, and then looked it up. And we were just tired of living paycheck to paycheck and not feeling like we were getting anywhere with our debt. Austin: What were your thoughts and was wondering as far as like the enrollment process, what process or where are you at this point in the process? CARA: We are almost done. Well, they've paid off almost everything or we've paid off almost everything. We're working on our last credit card. So I think our last payment will be in December, so nearing the end. Austin: Do you remember the name of the negotiator? I'm sure you've probably worked with a couple of people, but what's the name of the negotiator that you worked with? CARA: Well, I didn't really, I guess really work one on one with like one negotiator. I don't think. We just got email saying, "This is where we're at with this. Do you agree?" you know, type situation. Austin: Do you feel that there's anything that maybe the negotiator did well or anything that they could have improved? CARA: No, I don't think so. Nope, I don't think so. We've been happy with everything so far. Austin: Have you seen any positive impacts from working with National Debt Relief, just to kind of notice any changes to your life? CARA: I mean, definitely less stress, and then we've just been able to be better about our spending and our budget and everything. It helped get us on track. Austin: How would you rate your experience with National Debt Relief on a scale of one to five, where five means you would recommend to friends and one means very dissatisfied? CARA: I'd say 5. Austin: Would it be okay if we shared your comments as a review on our public site with a first name and city only, they're for National Debt Relief and to help other consumers make good choices? CARA: Probably not. I live in a smaller area. If anybody were to hop on and say Cara from Beddington, they would probably know. Austin: We can definitely remove that 'cause we very much respect your privacy. So we can either remove the name and just do a ‘C’ or completely remove the city and just do like ‘Cara from the USA’ whatever -- mainly comments than identifying you, I guess would be important. CARA: Yeah, I don't care if you use like my name and just put USA. I just don't -- where I live, it's not a very big area. Austin: I can totally respect that. Not a problem at all. CARA: Yes, we are a little bit of ashamed of having to go this route, but it was what was best for our family at the time. Austin: Would you like us to email you a link to that review whenever it's published? CARA: Yeah, that'd be great. Austin: Our call may have been recorded.

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