7 Tips for Simplifying the Common Hurdles of Adulthood

Barreling through adolescence and into adulthood can feel like an incredible achievement to many or even most. However, the downside to this wonderful breakthrough is the realisation that many of the trials and tribulations of the teenage world do literally nothing to prepare you for the realities of adulthood.

These “hurdles” are common things, like taxes or how insurance works, but they’re still complex and they’re still important to know how to navigate. For instance, how do you know which car loan providers, such as Latitude finance, want to give you the best deal possible, and which don’t? How do you work out a viable saving system that doesn’t restrict your lifestyle while swelling your savings account?

To help with these questions, we’ve made a list of tips for simplifying the common hurdles of adulthood.

Savings

First thing’s first, building up a savings account. There are several ways to go about this, but often the easiest way is to find a bank that offers good interest rates on savings accounts and establish an account with them. This should not be the same bank you use for everyday transactions, because it will be harder to take money from your savings here and there if there’s a delay on any transaction.

Make an automatic transaction to send an amount when payday comes through, and you’ll forget about it altogether while your savings grow in the background.

Credit Rating

Credit rating is a bit tricky to navigate, but there are easy ways to bolster your credit rating without too much risk. Your credit rating is shared across all businesses, and you have a ranking based on how much you’ve borrowed in the past and how reliable you were with paying it back.

An easy way to start with a good credit rating is to get a credit card with a very, very low limit and use less than $50 on it at a time. Pay it back every time you get paid, and your credit rating will very slowly grow. Borrow more and pay back more to speed it along, but be careful not to borrow more than you can afford to repay.

Taxes

Hiring a tax accountant come tax time isn’t a bad idea, but using “taxation businesses” is cheaper and just as reliable, if you can’t afford a private accountant. Many of these businesses just instruct their employees on how to fill out the main portions of the forms and submit them without understanding the complexities, but if you have simple tax returns the complexities won’t matter anyway.

Loans

Loans are usually gotten for big ticket items, like cars or boats or holidays, but they don’t have to be. Loans operate on the credit rating system we mentioned before, so you’ll only be able to borrow a small amount to begin with, but by paying back everything you borrow you will soon be able to borrow significant amounts. Go for low interest rates and you should be fine with repayments.

Insurance

Insure the things you can’t afford to buy another of immediately. If your phone is old or breaking and you’re paying insurance on it, stop that payment and get yourself a new one that you insure instead. The new one will work better and will be worth more, therefore making it worth insuring. The same goes for cars and belongings – insure if you can’t get a replacement one without too much trouble.

Renting

Renting is what most people will do when they leave home for the first time. Living in a house owned by someone else for a pre-agreed upon amount of time in exchange for money every month.

A tip for successfully renting is to pick a place that will charge less than a third of your monthly wage and move in with roommates you have spent an extended period of time with previously, like a holiday. These two rules will ensure you don’t end up fighting mercilessly with your friends and that you aren’t completely broke all the time from paying rent.

Travel

Finally, travelling is made easiest by way of saving up for a holiday and buying everything up front. Plane tickets, accommodation, spending money and a buffer zone of emergency cash should all be ready and waiting before you step out of your front door, otherwise you might be caught out.

With these tips in mind, adulthood is less daunting than before, and you’re able to navigate it successfully.