Completing college is an exciting time! Your education is finished, you are qualified and eager to start your working life; probably with a host of ideas. This is also the best opportunity you will have to start saving for retirement. This may seem like a distant goal, but those who start saving in their early twenties will have nearly fifty years to accumulate a suitable pension pot and will be able to enjoy a very good retirement.

To organize your financials and start saving early and regularly follow these steps;

Organize your budget

It is essential to sit down and draw a budget of your incomings and outgoings. You should firstly list all your income streams and how much you receive after tax; your take home pay. You then need to list all your current spending and assess how much, if any funds you have left over. Excess funds should be used to pay down any debts and to save for retirement. The final part of a budget is tracking your expenditure to ensure you stay within your predefined budget plan.

Focus your attention on savings

Part of developing financial sense is to build several financial goals; the following are essential:

• The emergency fund, ideally three to six months worth of living expenses. This will provide you with a financial cushion should you lose your job or you car breaks down and needs an expensive repair.
• Contribute to any company pension plan that is available; they will also contribute and, in effect, be giving you free money for your retirement. You can use an auto deposit scheme where the funds are debited directly from your account when you are paid. This will avoid the temptation to spend it!
• Insurance need to be budgeted for; this may be for your vehicle or home. You should also consider establishing a policy which will pay out if you are taken seriously ill or become disabled; it may protect your long term finances.
• Saving for specific, short term goals. These are items which you aim to, achieve within the next three years, it could be a deposit for a house or paying for a wedding.
• Investment planning is a longer term goal but something that you are never too young to think about. In order to be comfortable in retirement an investment plan is essential, you should become adjusted to living on approximately seventy percent of your salary. This will leave you funds to build your emergency fund, clear student debts and, ultimately, build a nest egg.

Debt – be careful and try not to jump in on investment deals you know very little about

Obtaining credit is exceptionally easy and often leads to a lifestyle where your wage cannot support your living habits. Thus can often become a spiraling issue and will seriously damage you savings and investment plans. The best approach is to not spend money until you have it in your hand. This is particularly important when you have just graduated and have no funds coming in.

Ask for assistance from a financial advisor

It can be extremely beneficial to enlist the help of someone you know well and trust. This may be your parents, your boss or even a financial advisor; preferably someone who has already been in your shoes. Ask for their advice and what they did at your age; most importantly, learn from their mistakes!

Credit reports should help you stay organized

You are entitled to a free credit report from each of the main credit reference every year. You should request these periodically to check that the information remains correct. If it does nit then you will need to resolve it as soon as possible.

Establishing good financial habits when you are young will ensure you have good financial habits for life; this will make a huge difference to your financial well-being. New grads should focus on saving more rather than spending. It’s tough to save money when there are so many temptations lurking around. However if you want to live a comfortable life in your early 20s, then you may have to make some sacrifices.

By Christopher Austin and Synaptic.co.uk!

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New College Graduates: Tips from Pros to Get a Better Grip on Their Finances