Hey guys, I need a little bit of financial planning/budgeting advice here.
I’m a year out of college, make 60k a year, and currently have no rent payments since I’m living at home working off my college loans. I don’t have much savings since my first job out of school paid pretty poorly, but at least it set me up for my current job which is at a very reputable firm doing good, challenging work while making a fairly competitive salary for a recent grad.
After taxes I make around $3615 per month, and I pay about $1700 a month for loans (a lot, I know – I went to an expensive school – but I’m getting a little ahead of it by paying a little bit extra each month). Currently, this leaves me about $1900 income per month. I’m also planning on buying a new car within the next month or two (this is a need, not a luxury, since the car I’m driving now is 15 years old and has over 200k miles tread on it). I expect that this will bring me back another $450 a month or so inclusive of the cost of car insurance (planning on getting a new 2017 Honda Civic for its reliability and longevity, plus low maintenance costs). This would leave me at around $1450. In addition, I’ve also projected about $400 or so per month on miscellaneous costs (food, work clothing, gas, leisure, trips, etc.), which leaves me right around $1000 disposable income per month.
The loan breakdown is as follows: I have one loan from the Department of Education at about 300 dollars per month. The total value of the loan is $27000, and it is interest-free I believe. I began payments on that one about 5 months ago. The other sector of loans is under my dad's name through Affinity, and I pay him about $1400 a month. There are two separate loans, one for 700 a month and the other for about 500 a month. I give him an overrun of about 150 a month (which I guess is also part of my "rent" for living at home).
My question is: what can I do to grow this money/manage it effectively? I come from a very middle class family, and my parents are supportive and smart people. What bank accounts can I put it in? I’m currently working with a conventional PNC checking account. Is refinancing my loans an option? What investments should I go after? In general, what steps should I take so I can grow my savings and earnings potential and move out within the next year and a half while remaining comfortable with my financial standing? Any help or advice would be much appreciated. Thank you.
Submitted May 24, 2017 at 08:43PM by crunchtimecarrot http://ift.tt/2rSqSoM
