Is your teen planning to live independently soon? This story from Chapter 9 in Financially Independent Teens highlights information that may be helpful in finding a place to live.
“Hakim and his three friends were getting ready to start their junior year at college and wanted to live off-campus. The market to rent a reasonably priced house in walking distance to their school was very competitive; they missed the chance to rent several houses they liked. Finally, they were among two groups to call on “the perfect house”. The landlord did not want to deal with the parents, so Hakim took over. Hakim had to convince Tim, the landlord, to rent to his group. The first question Tim asked Hakim was, “What is your credit score, and do you pay any of your own bills?” Hakim’s credit score at the time was 710 and he said, yes, that he had been paying his own credit card since he was 16. After the conversation, Hakim’s group jumped to the front of the line. Hakim needed to help the other roommates fill out the applications, but none of them had a credit score and only one had a bill they paid every month, which was a credit card in the parent’s name. This meant that Hakim had to put all of the utilities in his name instead of sharing the responsibility with the other tenants. Hakim then asked the other boys for a $75 utility deposit each. The boys complained and Hakim said, “When you get a credit score and can put the utilities in your name, we can do it your way. Remember, if I did not have a credit score, we would not have a house to rent.” Many parents think since they are paying the bills through college that the kid’s credit does not matter. It does; this is just one example.”
Financially Independent Teens includes many stories as the book covers the basics of what every young person should learn about money, budgeting, credit, investing, their first job, entrepreneurship, and how to plan for a successful financial life after graduation.
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