Archive for November, 2011
The Budget Test before You Leaving Home
Before you start packing your bags or making a final decision to move out of home, you must do a budget. I have heaps of friends who haven’t bothered to take the time to put together a rough budget to help them estimate how much it is really going to cost them to move out of home, and they have really regretted it.
There’s reasonably good news here.
• Full-time students can earn up to $236 per fortnight (before tax) without it changing their allowance.
If you’re in a major city, probably not, as most of you will only be getting $150.85 per week. Even in country areas, where rents can be as low as $160 to $200 per week for a one-bedroom place, that’s still going to be very tight.
People who:
• Are studying full time (that includes having a part-time job) whose parents do not exceed the means testing levels.
• Are in full-time job search whose parents do not exceed the means testing levels.
It’s okay to work out if we’re emotionally ready to move out, but the big thing to remember is that it all has to be paid for! Before we do a more detailed budget, let’s just work out roughly how much money you have.