Financial Tips for Millennials

Financial literacy is vital for individuals of all ages, but it becomes a must-learn thing for millennials. As a millennial, I tend to receive endless financial advice from older people. However, most of those counsels don’t appreciate the unique position and generation we are in.

Our financial problems are distinct because we’re currently living in the digital age. Most of us are crammed in cities, a lot of us are educated, and we tend to stick too long under our parent’s paycheck. Financial management can be a daunting task, particularly when hunting for a job, studying in school, or starting life from scratch. Below are smart financial tips that guide my financial journey as a millennial.

A Roommate or Head Home

The financial impact of renting an apartment is well-known. Luckily, my first job was in my home town, where I lived with my parents. Unlike my friends who had rented luxury apartments, I never needed to pay rental bills. With that said, I occasionally chipped in to offset other bills. Come to each end of the month, I had more cash at my disposal. After moving out of my parent’s home, I hunted for a house together with my life-long pal. We had resources available to us, from the best buy to let mortgages to the money we had saved beforehand, and it served us well. We moved in together and co-shared every bill, including rent and utility bills. This arrangement enabled each of us to save some cash.

Save Early

During our 20s, retirement might seem like a distant memory, but it’s inevitable. And the best way of planning for our sunset years is by saving today. The earlier we save, the more time we have to grow this money.

When we cease to work, or during emergencies, we will have enough backup cash to tackle these unexpected occurrences. We don’t need to save lump sums. As new entrants in the workforce, most of our salaries are at minimum wage. We can set a small percentage (about 10%) for savings and the rest on other things.

Prioritize

Some of us get jobs or errands to run after college or during summers. What’s interesting is that the Internet has brought and nurtured the freelance culture. We can now work several jobs in the comforts of our homes. With employment comes weekly or monthly compensation. We sometimes feel overloaded with cash, and the feeling of overspending kicks in.

When working, it’s important to set financial priorities. It might mean identifying the most pressing financial needs and solving them first. When I first started working, I used most of my salary to offset my student debt, pay car bills, and rent. By prioritizing these needs, I had little cash at hand that I rarely misused.

Be Cautious of Credit

When I got my first credit card, the feeling was a financial breakthrough and a quick solution to my early financial troubles. Were it not for my dad’s intervention, I would have been deep into money issues. This is because my credit card debts, together with my student loan debt, were piling up at an astonishing rate. I also had friends that wanted to borrow money from friends and family members, which got me thinking can i lend money and charge interest? The answer is "yes", it isn't just the bank that can loan money, you can lend money and charge interest to anyone. Though it is best to have a contract of some sort to ensure everyone knows where they stand. 

Every young person needs to build their credit responsibly. We can start by getting a credit line that doesn’t supersede our income streams. The interest rates charged should also be insignificant. We can gradually increase the credit line once we are capable of meeting our credit payment. This is the only way we can build our credit scores and increase our chances of getting credit for future investments.

Seek Help

Transitioning from being under our parent’s care to our survival is in no way straightforward. Handling financial decisions is particularly tricky at a young age. However, when we face difficulties, it’s necessary to seek help from parents, friends, or coworkers. The support doesn’t necessarily translate to monetary aid, but it could be how we can navigate a financial situation.