You got a decent paying job. Your savings are up. Your debt is down. Your love life sucks because your parents are always home. Time to move out, right? Should you be planning your way out the door right about now?

I can’t answer that for you because I really don’t know your full situation.

Let’s look over some common variables when it comes to what you need to consider before moving out…

How much money do you really have saved?

How much money do you really have saved and ready for your big move? What may seem like a steep savings account isn’t always that impressive when it comes to moving out. $10,000 may not get you as far as you think it will. Whether you decide to move out by renting or owning, you’re looking at spending decent money.

Where will you be spending money when you move out?

  • First and last month deposit.
  • Moving out costs.
  • New furniture.
  • Utilities.
  • Cable and Internet.
  • Increase consumption (in other words, having friends over to party).
  • Mortgage and ALL home related fees if you decide to own.
Do you have enough money saved up to cover all of these expenses? When you sit down to run the numbers it’s actually pretty scary.
Time to look at the next point.

How stable is your job?

So you got an amazing job after college. What if you’re only the temp? How stable is your job? This is important to consider because this is a common scenario. Someone gets a job, they move out to the nicest place, then they lose their job and are stuck scrambling for work.

I don’t want to see this happen to you. I want you to ensure that you have money coming in before you move out and are on your own.

What should you think about next?

Do you want to travel?

Paying rent for a place you’re not in for an extended period of time sucks. If you want to backpack through Europe or go visit long lost friends in Australia don’t let moving out of your parents place interfere with your goals. It’s lame to stay at home. However, it does depend on your life goals. If you want to see the world, you might have to stay at home for a bit.

Now let’s be realistic…

How good do you have it right now?

Free laundry, parking, food, doesn’t seem so bad. When you move out, everything will be on you. You have to pay for everything. Are you ready for all of this responsibility?

Your living situation.

This can be the final straw in the decision to move out or not to move out. All money saving and investing in the future aside, you need to assess your true living situation at home.

Do you parents leave you alone? Do your siblings bother you?

What’s your living situation really like?

I hope that by now you have more than enough to consider before moving out and taking that big leap.

Martin Dasko

Martin Dasko