<prompt> Human: Are you just starting out your independent life, and looking for financial advice on how to adult? Have we got a forum for you! Heres a collection of pointers to topics of interest to many 18-year-olds; the specifics pertain to the US in some cases. These are topics we get a lot of questions about in rpersonalfinance. If you dont see your favorite topic here e.g. houses, retirement accounts, investments, etc, stay tuned for additional posts coming shortly, oriented towards 22-, 30-, and 40-year olds. Heres ELI22- To start out, you can benefit from this article with planning and education advice for those in high school, and recent grads.- The big change in your life at 18 19 in AlabamaNebraska is you are now legally an adult for contractual purposes, so time to get bank accounts in your own own name, i.e. not with your parents. You want a savings account and a no-monthly-fee checking account. Small banks and credit unions typically have better customer service - Youre not going to get rich off interest, sorry! But you can find better savings interest rates 1! at online-only banks Put away savings as soon as you can, its a good habit to get into, and starts your emergency fund Well cover investments and retirement savings in future posts; with limited or part-time income, savings are a better bet for now.- You can apply for a credit card once you have income. This is different than the debit card your bank will provide with your account. This has pros and cons, but is a reasonable move for many people. Its the best way to independently establish credit without paying interest. A secured or student card is probably your best option. Pay the balance in full every month! If you cant do that, then you are not ready to use a credit card.- If you need money to continue your education, learn about student loans This is a complicated topic with many options. Be careful what you do here, since these loans will be yours your parents until they are paid off! People who find themselves in trouble later usually took out bigger loans 100,000 vs. smaller loans 20,000.- For cost-effective education, its hard to beat community colleges If youre not sure what to do about continuing your education, look into two-year degrees as well as taking credits that transfer to four-year colleges - You may find yourself working part-time or even full-time. This is a good time to learn about your rights and responsibilities as an employee, including how you are paid and taxed as well as what your employer can legally do with your hours and even when you can be let go. Fortunately, taxes are low for most young people if only because their income is low..., and you may even get a refund if you file taxes! While your lifetime income is the single biggest determinant in your personal finance situation, at this age, your priority is not on current income as much as preparing for the future, thus the focus on education. - This is also the time to start learning about budgeting if you have significant responsibilities; more on this in future posts. - If you want to save money, live with your parents as long as you can. Seriously! But there comes a time when you want to have to leave, and youll need to rent a place. Landlords will want to see that you have income so try to keep payments below 30 of your takehome pay You may need a co-signer if you have minimal credit history. Youll need first months rent and a security deposit up front, and even utility deposits sometimes. Read your lease before you sign it, and know your rights and responsibilities as a tenant, and what organizations can help you if you encounter issues. - Roommates are a popular way to save money on rent. Be aware of the issues that can come up with roommates though, since circumstances change, and you may be on the hook for their share. Have all roommates on the lease. You might even want a roommate agreement Perhaps Sheldon Cooper has it right after all? Alternatively, consider renting a room from someone who owns their own house.- Aside from rent, cars are the biggest expenditure for many young people. You can save a lot of money if you dont need to pay for one! Its not just the purchase cost. Theres gas, repairs, and especially car insurance which is very expensive for young people, typically at least 100month, and can even be 200month in some places, or if you have a tickets accidents. - Your best bet if you do need a car is to save up 5000 or so for a reliable used car then pay cash, so you can avoid finance charges and make your own insurance choices. If you do need to finance a car, be very careful of financing offers for young people. Double-digit interest rates are a Bad Thing. You do not want to build credit that way! The loan and the car are different things. You cant give back the car and be done with the loan, since you will typically be underwater and owe more than the car is worth. - Choose your spending wisely. Money spent is unavailable for anything else. Make sure it was your highest priority use of that money.Thats all for now. Stay tuned for the next installment, ELI22 about more on these topics, as well as retirement accounts, repaying student loans, health insurance, and other such fun things. Assistant: Suggestion: Can you do something like this for people right out of college? Like transitioning from school to your first job, things to look out for, how to get all of your ducks in a row with loans, living on your own, when you can afford to get a carhouse, flex-spend accounts, etc etc. That wouldve been sooo helpful for me a couple of years ago.Human: See last line of the OP :  <response>: Graduating in December, a few years behind as I am turning 25... But definitely looking forward to that post, I dont know shit about adulting. 