Best Financial Moves In College Meme

I was tagged by Plonkee over at Plonkee Money for her upbeat and positive meme in which she asks people to share their best financial moves in college since there’s a lot out there about the mistakes we all make during that time.

Always one to enjoy looking on the bright side, I am happy to participate!

I’ll give a tiny bit of background on my college experience. It was not exactly ordinary. I attended 3 different schools in 3 different states but spent most of my college life in beautiful Colorado. I met hubby when I was 18 and was smitten and impulsive enough to move across the country to his hometown when I was 19. We settled in and started taking classes at the University there. One of the big problems was that I was paying out of state tuition and it was pretty steep. So the first thing I did was start the process to become a resident of the state so I could get in-state tuition. I established myself there with a job, and we bought a condo together (more on that later as it was another good financial move made during college) and I was able to get the in-state tuition for the remaining 2 1/2 years of my education. The tricky part was that I had to be emancipated from my parents financially and the only one responsible for my tuition payments but fortunately I was able to do that and get through school at an excellent institution for state school rates. There were a couple semesters that I had to pay the non-resident rate and that hurt – but was motivating to make the change. By establishing residency and becoming a resident, I saved a bundle in tuition payments.

As I mentioned, we also bought our first property at this time. I was 19 and hubby 22 but we wanted a place of our own and hubby had the vision/determination/desire to get into real estate at a time that turned out very well for us. We bought in 1998 and sold in 2001 and were able to sell it for 66% more than we paid for it when we moved back to my hometown.

The decisions made during that few years of my life taught me early to work hard for what I wanted – we both had to work a job or two while in school to pay our bills and be independent. It wasn’t always easy working two jobs – one evenings and one weekends – while taking a full course load but it was worth it to me as it was the first time in my life I felt responsible and independent and working toward not only my degree for my future but my financial future as well. The decisions made during that few years provided us with a foundation for our early adulthood and provided us with a nest egg that has helped us reach a very stable place financially today.

I tag Paid Twice
Mommy Gets PAID
This Wasn’t In The Plan (she’s gonna love me for all this blog content I’m making her provide!)