Budgeting & Managing Personal Finances after College

Graduating college brings many emotions and excitement: a new job, a new city, new friends, and more independence. What it can also bring is the pure realization that you have officially entered the real world. No more late nights on campus with the safety net of calling your parents in a panic that you maxed out your money for the month and are in a bind. Instead, the new realization of monthly bills, utilities, rent, filing your taxes, remembering to renew your insurance policy and renew your car registration, etc. It can be overwhelming!

One thing that initially brought me stress that I was not prepared for post-grad was learning how to budget and manage my new expenses with an income. I wanted to explore Denver with my friends and do all the fun things in the city, travel and visit others, but did not have a good grasp on what I could or could not afford. I thought since I was making my own money of which I earned, I could spend it how I pleased.

I had not worked a job since being a hostess in high school and was excited to see my paycheck hit the bank every other week, but surprised to see how quickly it went away. All the while trying to build up my savings and start saving for retirement (it is a funny thing thinking about starting to save for retirement on your first week of working a 9–5). When it was the end of the month and I reflected on what I was able to save, I was surprised to see the number so low. I didn’t understand where all of my money was going and it was frustrating to think I wasn’t where I thought I would be.

What really helped me was to start tracking what I was spending my money on, starting with fixed expenses. I laid out how much I knew would immediately leave my bank account each month — things like rent, Wi-Fi, trash, utilities and apartment parking. From there, I was able to back into what would be leftover for the month from my net income (my salary less taxes and my retirement contribution that is automatically deducted). As I was able to see trends month to month on my personal spending, I was able to make a budget for each category on what to aim for each month. Below are a few of my top tips for managing budgeting and savings:

Budgeting Website/App

Mint is a great site that will link to your bank accounts and track all of your expenses by category. You can set up a budget for yourself for each category (i.e. budgeting to spend $350 on groceries per month), and the app will let you know how you are tracking towards your goal throughout the month. Another great thing it will do is notify you along the way — when you get paid, when a bill is due, and when you are getting close to going over your budget for the month.

Credit Card Recommendations

I like to put most of my expenses onto a credit card that provides benefits (for me, travel is a big one, so after research I picked the Southwest Chase Card which provides me Southwest points based on my spending with the card). At the end of each month, I spend time reviewing my credit card statement to make sure all of the expenses make sense and look correct, and then I pay it off from my checking account. This helps my credit grow as well as provides the additional benefits from the credit card. NerdWallet is a great website that can help you navigate and compare various credit cards based on what is important to you.

Savings Goals

A good rule of thumb to initially aim for is to start saving for 3–6 months of expenses in an emergency fund. This safety net should be the amount you always have in a savings account to plan for unexpected expenses.

Stay Organized

I like to put expenses in my calendar so I can plan ahead of expenses that I can control. For example, I have an annual reminder on when my car registration payment or insurance renewal is due. This way it is not a surprise to me when it comes up and I am able to plan accordingly.

When fresh out of college, you are balancing a lot. Although you may initially feel more freedom with the excitement of not having to go to class or studying every night, you are dealing with figuring out life. Learning how to adjust to a new city, working a brand-new job and putting in the long hours, juggling keeping up with friends who have moved away. Staying organized and on top of your monthly expenses will help you feel more confident and on top of your finances and give you the ability to spend your time after graduation the way that you hope to. Always know that your community you grew while being at Leeds is here to support you! Go Buffs!