Financial advice for a college student.

**photo** · 09-03-2011, 09:38 AM

$150 is not bad at all. I have two kids in college right now, and the dollar signs are enormous.

Originally posted by GTGearZero View Post

I plan to pay my phone bill which is $80,69.

That is a lot for a phone bill. If you're talking about a cellphone, can you add a line to your parents' account? My plan allows an extra phone for $10 a month. If not, shop for cheaper rates. You should be able to get one line for half of that amount.

Then I plan on transferring $60 to my savings and living on the other $60 until payday and I then plan on going on from there hoping to rebuild my money resevoir. Does that sound like a good plan?

You have to have a cushion fund for unexpected expenses, no doubt. However, after you have just a little cash built up, you really should pay off that credit card debt as fast as you can. It has to be at least 10% interest, if not more. And that money could be in your pocket instead.

**maat55** · 09-03-2011, 09:46 AM

I would drop the cell phone.

How much do you owe on the CC?

**GTGearZero** · 09-03-2011, 10:39 AM

The Cell Phone is contract, and I'd have to pay a termination fee to do so. So, I don't know what to do there.

I owe $450 on my CC. My total credit limit is $1000.

**photo** · 09-03-2011, 11:26 AM

You may have to just live with the high cellphone rate, but when the contract is up, it's in your best interest to shop around. Compare companies and always ask if they have specials or if they have any better deal. Many people just pay the prices they're quoted, but when you ask, you may be given different figures.

What is the interest rate on your credit card? Fortunately, it's not extremely high, so it won't take forever to pay it off, but in the future, never charge anything if you don't have the cash to pay the entire bill. Use the CC only for convenience. The interest, especially for higher amounts of debt, can be debilitating for some people. If you get out of cc now and never return, you will be so much better off in the long run. Every penny you pay in interest is a penny you can't invest for yourself to make even more money.

**Nightfly** · 09-03-2011, 11:45 AM

When the cell contract is up, dump contracts for good. Go with no-contract prepaid plans like Straight Talk (Wal-Mart), and I believe Boost along with a few others exist. You could just "walk away" from the cell contract but that will ding your credit and they'll send collectors after you - eventually. Just throwing it out there; cell companies are pretty obnoxious and so are onerous contracts. I may be wrong on this - but haven't some states outlawed cell contracts? Worth looking into.

I think you're smart to set some cash aside rather than throw it all towards the CC debt. Always good to have cash around, even it that means some outstanding debt doesn't get paid, IMO.

**jteezie** · 09-03-2011, 01:37 PM

Agreed regarding the cell phone contract.

Here are some recommendations:
-You can save a lot of money by going on a family plan (with people you trust who won't overuse minutes).
-Check if your school is entitled to some sort of discount (you could save 10-20%).
-If you have a few months left on your contract, I'd just leave it alone, but if you just opened the account within the last 1-3 months, I recommend you get out of the contract by driving out to an isolated area with bad reception and calling customer support to complain about how your new place doesn't get good reception/isn't covered. If it's bad enough (test this out by calling friends first), they will offer to cancel your contract and waive the termination fee. You could also try explaining your situation and the person might be nice enough to cancel for you and waive the fee, but I don't know how the customer service has changed over the years. (I understand why there are contracts, but I think these cell phone contracts are so unethical)

**JoshuaHeckathorn** · 09-06-2011, 09:41 AM

I'll chime in and reiterate the fact that you need to get rid of your credit card balance (before it gets any larger) and make a commitment to yourself to never carry balances on your credit cards again. If you stick to this principle now while you're in school, it will most likely stay with you for the rest of your adult life. It's so important for college students to get started on the right foot in this regard.

The high balance in relation to your $1,000 credit limit is hurting your credit scores as well, so that's just another reason to pay off this debt. I would take any extra cash you have starting next month and allocate it towards the credit card debt. If you have an extra $60-70 or so each month, you should be able to knock it out in about 7 months or less.

**Frugal** · 09-06-2011, 11:01 AM

I would save money and not eat out or go to the movies. Maybe you could save money by renting videos, or perhaps checking them out from the college or public library instead? I have been where you are before. It is best to try to build up your savings as soon as you possibly can, because when you only have less than $100 and owe on some debt, you really have no safety cushion to fall back on. I was working my way through college and I know it is hard, so best of luck (or good wishes) to you.

**KennySoward** · 09-07-2011, 06:09 PM

Ah,the good old days.

A lot of good advice here, especially about the alternative cell phone plans. My g/f is in school and the biggest piece of advice I give her is to try to make it through college with the minimal amount of debt. You don't want to be done with school and have a bunch of CC bills.

You sound like a responsible person. Keep it tight and you'll be fine!

Financial advice for a college student.