I have savings; I just don’t know how to do it!

Why not try moving in with roommates, says our elder. It’s a great first step towards independent living.

 

Dear EWC

I love my parents, don’t get me wrong, but I truly feel like I need to move out. Everything at home is getting so stressful and I feel confined. I struggle with Asperger’s and have never been very social, only having a few friends and spending nearly all my time with family. I am currently in college for construction management, used to live on campus and will again soon but am currently commuting to a different school part time. I have a full-time job working construction, and have a decent amount saved in my bank account. I’m really hoping to find a good way to move out on my own and become independent but I have no idea how. Any advice?

 

Ketchman replies

Thanks for contacting us. I’ll try to help.

There comes a time for most of us when we need to leave the nest and start to build our own lives. This may be that time for you. If I understand you correctly, at this time you’re living only temporarily with your parents and will soon be returning to live on campus. If that’s the case, you’ll soon be gone from your parents’ home and, for all intents and purposes, becoming independent of your parents. Perhaps I don’t fully understand your situation because it doesn’t seem to make a lot of sense to move out for the short time between now and when you’ll be returning to campus life.

A good first step to independent living, I think, is to find housing with some roommates who can share expenses and, as an additional benefit, perhaps become new friends. Your college might have a service that will help you find some fellow students who are looking for housing and there are also a number of online services, such as roommates.com offering that service. Please note that I am only mentioning that site as an example; I have no specific information about them and can’t make any recommendations, good or bad.

What might work, after returning to campus, is to do a bit of research as to who might be interested in sharing a rental, what’s available in the local area, and what to expect in expenses like rent, utilities, parking, etc. Finding an already existing set of roommates who might be looking to replace someone who is leaving might be a good option because you wouldn’t have to be concerned about all the other things necessary to start a new household like furniture, dishes, cooking utensils and such.

We can discuss this further if you like. If I knew a few more details I could, perhaps, offer some more specific thoughts. I do hope that I’ve been able to help, and that you’ll use us again anytime you’d like a bit of advice or second opinion about ‘most anything that might come up. I appreciate being given the opportunity to assist you.

Article #: 491312

Category: Family