I moved home after obtaining my university degree and saved thousands

Like many pandemic graduates, my young adult Life has not started with a blow, but with a groan.

There was no big celebration, just a diploma recovered at the school office and a new job as an assistant editor in a digital based in Charlotte media business.

I graduated from UNC-Chapel hill In December 2020. My lease, signed with four roommates, run until the following summer. For the first half of 2021, I worked at a distance in the same house that I had lived during my first last year half. Professional life was not very different from my student life, but I was happy.

At the end of the lease, I was faced with three choices: moving to Charlotte in anticipation when my workplace returned to work in personFind new accommodation in Chapel Hill, or go home.

At that time, coated vaccines had been deployed, but the pandemic was not over. I did not want to move in a new city in these circumstances. With most of my friends who leave Chapel HillStaying was useless. Moving home was the cheapest and simplest option. I took it.

The savings are added, but I languished

I moved into my old room and shared meals with my parents, just as I had done before university. I worked at home, writing and modifying articles on Personal financing.

My parents did not bilish me rent or food. But, I helped home and I covered all personal expenses, such as my phone bill and various purchases.

Without rent or invoices, and student loan payments interrupted due to Cavid, I saved about three -quarters of my income. I invested part of this money and kept the rest in a High yield savings account.

But while my savings grew up, my personal life in Langui. My parents loved but often treated me like the child I was, not the adult I would become. After four years of independence in college, it was difficult for me to adapt.

I was also alone. St. Louis was my hometown, but I had no community there. My friends were dispersed across the country and the pandemic restrictions made new people difficult.

I knew I didn’t want to stay long-term in Saint-Louis. Building a life was useless because I planned to leave once the pandemic finished, but I did not know when it would be.

Moving to Charlotte was the new start I needed

After eight months of limbo, I finally found the motivation to leave the house when my workplace reopened for hybrid work. With the support of my parents, I moved to Charlotte in February 2022.

When I left the house, I made $ 15,000. This money was invaluable to launch my new life, which came with a surprising quantity of initial costs.

I had no problem paying for the security deposit for my apartment and the first month rent. When I did not find an appropriate car due to the car shortage 2022, I could increase my budget and keep the monthly payment manage with a higher deposit. I felt comfortable buying supplies for the apartment without deteriorating each expense. I even had several thousand dollars left for an emergency fund.

I did not pass in an extravagant way, but it was incredibly liberating to know that I could pay for the things I needed – now and in the future, thanks to my emergency fund – without going into debt.

Starting my life as a young adult without credit card debt and with a financial stamp has made it very stressful.

Was it worth it?

I am incredibly privileged – and grateful to my parents – to have the choice to go home while working full time. Not everyone has the opportunity, and everyone has no choice. I also had the chance to get a job after obtaining the diploma, a privilege that many pandemic graduates did not have.

But was it worthy of it?

From the point of view of my personal finance journalist, unequivocal yes. The money I saved implemented me in the long term financial stability And returned my first year to Charlotte so much easier.

From a personal point of view, it’s complicated. These months at home were not exactly the happiest, but I do not regret them. They taught me that to build a life that made me happy, I had to stop taking the cheap and easy way.

The year after having moved to Charlotte was one of the best in my life. My expenses increased, but I had freedom, the community and a better relationship with my parents despite the distance – everything was worth me more than for me.