What Essential Items Should I Consider When Moving Out for the First Time?

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Discussion Overview

The discussion revolves around essential items to consider when moving out for the first time, focusing on practical needs for an apartment. Participants share their experiences and suggestions regarding what to bring and what to expect in terms of expenses and living conditions.

Discussion Character

  • Exploratory
  • Technical explanation
  • Conceptual clarification
  • Debate/contested
  • Homework-related

Main Points Raised

  • One participant lists items they already own and those they believe they need, such as kitchenware and bedding.
  • Another suggests considering a couch or chairs if the apartment is unfurnished, and mentions the utility of a fan for temperature control.
  • Several participants emphasize the importance of budgeting for small expenses that can accumulate quickly, such as toiletries and cleaning supplies.
  • There are recommendations for specific items like a mattress, storage containers, and extension cords, along with advice on sourcing furniture from garage sales.
  • One participant shares a personal anecdote about their initial living situation and the unexpected accumulation of belongings over time.
  • Another participant mentions the potential need for a roommate, suggesting it could alleviate some financial burdens.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants generally agree on the importance of being prepared for various living expenses and the need for essential items. However, there are differing opinions on specific items needed and the approach to furnishing the apartment, indicating multiple competing views remain.

Contextual Notes

Some participants express uncertainty about the inclusion of utilities in their rent, which may affect budgeting. Additionally, there are varying assumptions about the necessity of certain appliances and furniture based on individual preferences and living situations.

Who May Find This Useful

Individuals preparing to move out for the first time, those seeking advice on budgeting and essential items for apartment living, and anyone interested in shared experiences related to independence and first-time living arrangements.

  • #61
Smurf said:
If that were true everyone with a difficult childhood would be a strong person.

Nope, a lot succumb to it. Jason seems to have his wits together about it and sees the problems, and is breaking loose from them. But, it's also about attitude. If you look at things that have gone wrong in your life and sulk about it and just resent everyone for it, it gets you nowhere, but if you take every setback as a learning experience, and figure out how you can improve things so it doesn't happen again, or so you don't make the same mistakes others have made, then you are going to be a stronger person for it.
 
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  • #62
I agree.

I see many people with tough childhood and they still follow the same foot steps... sometime they run through those foot steps!
 
  • #63
Oh boy!

I really need to move!

It's killing me..........

I did a little tease thing for my girlfriend on Facebook and they jumped right on and was like... that's bad blah blah blah blah... leave me the **** alone. Drama every damn ****ing day.
 
  • #64
I think you need to spend a lot of time at the library studying for finals until you can move out. :wink:
 
  • #65
Moonbear said:
I think you need to spend a lot of time at the library studying for finals until you can move out. :wink:

I just never leave my room. :biggrin:

I tried the library thing before. I tried staying at school from 10am to like 8pm everyday, but I just couldn't do it. Food at school is digusting and expensive, and eating out of a lunch box out of for lunch and diner is not satisfying.
 
  • #66
Ok, some of the apartments I looked at are already gone. And the others came out more expensive than advertised.

So far, I have two possible ones at...

$475 plus utilities and $625 all bills paid.

The best location is the second one. I haven't checked them out yet, but I hope to on Friday. I have a scheduled visit for the second one, but not the first yet.

It's really hard to set this up because I can only call when no one is home. I can't have them call back because my mom would kill me if I planned on moving out. I have exams.

Annoying as hell. Sister should have moved out. Who doesn't move out when making $60, 000 a year. That's messed up.
 
  • #67
Ok, so I never got to move out. Money was just too tight.

Now, I just avoid being home when possible.

The problems getting even bigger now. The baby just cries like crazy now. I can't study in this house worth ****. My mom moved back in! She doesn't even have a room yet so she sleeps on the couch. So many people in the house.

Anyways, I talked to a Legal Advice Representative and he helped me out a bit. I'll have to go talk to a lawyer about it some more though. It sounds really bad, but I'm getting really screwed out of this.

Like I said, I never seen a dime for years when my dad was paying insane amounts of child support. That was the first mistake the representative (who is a real lawyer and not getting paid). They didn't pay for my schooling at all before either. Again, they make a combined income of $150,000. Anyways, I asked him that I just want support when I move out for my last year. I don't want to prolong the year to another because of crap going on in the house or what not. I went through hell to get here and my parents making loads of money just watched me go through hell and kept saying they had no money yet they went on trips, bought new cars, new furniture, new motorcycle, so quite honestly I'm sick of this ****. Like I said, and the lawyer agreed, that I'm only asking for minimal support to help me finish my last year. Although I've been screwed up the ass for like 4 years, that's all I want and I want out.

My dad said he's willing to help out for sure. He doesn't seem concern at all. He's willing to put more than enough on his part although I told him I'm only asking for half.

I haven't talked to my mom about it yet. I want to talk to another lawyer to make sure my position is safe and she has to help support.

I know lots of you are like... go out on your own and stuff. But you know what, I did full-time schooling and full-time work for too long when the whole time they had more than enough to help me out... atleast just a little and they chosen not too. I'm done in one year and I'll probably never see them again. (Yes, it's that bad.)

Anyways, the lawyer said my options if they choose not to support is to sue them. Sounds crazy to sue your own family, but again, I'm asking for less than what I'm suppose to be getting right now! So, if they choose to cause all hell and like "kick" me out of the family or whatever because all I want to do is move out in a student housing for my last year for peace and quiet (live with serious students), then I'll ask for all that I can get and not give them any space or pity... because I'm going nuts over this crap. It's not healthy at all to stay here any longer. (The total amount way more than enough because of the 4 previous years of refusing or lieing about helping at all, which is in the thousands and thousands of dollars.) The cost to sue is zero because I'm a student.

Note: The baby is cute and everything, but I don't want the responsibility of a baby crying when I'm trying to study. Nevermind the dog that isn't even trained that barks all day and pees in the house. Or the cat that pees everywhere.
 
  • #68
Have you considered living with a few roommates? I live in a house with three other guys, and the rent is very, very cheap. You can get by with about $350 a month total (the winter may be a tad bit more expensive if you are careless with heat).

How are you going to afford a lawyer to sue your family? I wouldn't even bother. Just hit them up for the max amount of money they will spare, and put up the rest on your own.
 
  • #69
Maxwell said:
Have you considered living with a few roommates? I live in a house with three other guys, and the rent is very, very cheap. You can get by with about $350 a month total (the winter may be a tad bit more expensive if you are careless with heat).

How are you going to afford a lawyer to sue your family? I wouldn't even bother. Just hit them up for the max amount of money they will spare, and put up the rest on your own.

The cost is free like I said.
 
  • #70
JasonRox said:
The cost is free like I said.

Oh, I see, for some reason I thought you said the consultation with the lawyer is free.
 
  • #71
Maxwell said:
Oh, I see, for some reason I thought you said the consultation with the lawyer is free.

Yeah, the consultation is free and I asked him how much it would cost to sue, and he said it was free to bring it to family court.

The lawyer is supplied by the regional government.
 
  • #72
Danger said:
This slipped my mind until Bob's last post. I always like to keep a stash of nylon and/or aluminum screen around. It's cheaper than dirt, and has lots of uses. One of those is to stretch a piece through an embroidery hoop (about 50¢ at a craft or fabric shop) to act as a strainer. With a stick duct-taped on for a handle, this can double as an improvised fly-swatter, although you might want to wash it before using it for your pasta, or a badminton racquet should you happen to be invited to a match.
A bigger piece (aluminum only) makes a good safety guard when you're frying bacon naked, and you can make your own teabags out of little bits. Some of it scrunched up works as a 'scrubby' for cleaning pots and such.
Last, but not least, a bunch of it rolled up and stuffed in a paper-towel tube serves as a semi-effective silencer if you have to start shooting mice.
Danger, that's Genius! Do you have anything else that cool?
 
  • #73
JasonRox said:
I did a little tease thing for my girlfriend on Facebook and they jumped right on and was like... that's bad blah blah blah blah... leave me the **** alone.
Who what? You were teasing your girlfriend online? Who jumped on? I'm not even going taks. :confused:
Well, my parents fed the dog hamburger, not steak, but I was shocked when I was asked to dog-sit one weekend and they showed me all the burgers in the freezer and my mouth was watering envisioning some nice, juicy, rare burgers for dinner, and then they finished the sentence explaining that I should cook those for the dog!
Don't tell me you didn't first cook yourself a few and then pack some to bring back to your place :smile:
 
  • #74
Mk said:
Who what? You were teasing your girlfriend online? Who jumped on? I'm not even going taks. :confused:

Don't tell me you didn't first cook yourself a few and then pack some to bring back to your place :smile:

My mom and sister went all over it. They are pure drama queens.

It's way worse than I'm saying though. I can even describe it. People online normally say just move out on your own and that's how we did it back in the day... yadda yadda. The problem is I'm not even fully capable of describing how bad it really is. Friends parents agree that my parents should pay. They're the ones that suggested it in the first place because they see the crap going on and so on.

Put it this way, I don't even feel comfortable bringing girls or friends over. Nevermind throwing a little party or something.
 
  • #75
mess

Sounds to me like you're in for the long haul. Get your degree and get a job. Unlike your sister, don't have children. Also, save as much money as possible. When that's all said and done with, you can use your new paycheck to get an apartment. In a decent neighborhood, decent location -- at a decent price. Until then, just be a student... stay away from home as much as possible... get involved in activities at your school. FINISH! As quickly as possible. Join a fraternity. Party. Be a kid, and don't go home to do anything but sleep and eat.
 
  • #76
JasonRox said:
It's way worse than I'm saying though. I can even describe it. People online normally say just move out on your own and that's how we did it back in the day... yadda yadda. The problem is I'm not even fully capable of describing how bad it really is. Friends parents agree that my parents should pay. They're the ones that suggested it in the first place because they see the crap going on and so on.

I'm sort of in similar situation with my family. Except unlike you, I decided to "move out on my own" like back in the days. My family situation wasn't quite as difficult, but in my opinion, still intolerable.

So anyway, I'm 19 and I moved out over a year ago, thinking I would just start my adult life, whatever it takes. Of course, my parents refused to pay for school, so I took the year off. Then when I tried going back this fall as an in-state student, they told me I needed financial independence. I told them I was, but they checked my taxes, and it turned out my family was still claiming me as a dependent, even though I lived on the other side of the country with no financial support. So I contacted my family and threatened to sue if they didn't refile their taxes. That took months to straighten out, but eventually did. Turned out I needed two years of independence though, so now I have to wait another year...

I wanted to go back to school, so i said f-that. I've decided to pay triple the cost for out-of-state, figuring I can get loans. NOPE. So, in order to filie my FAFSA I need my parents financial information for the expected family contribution. Of course, my parents do make a fair amount of money, even if they won't give me a dime. Even though I'm independent according to the government, I'm not according to the US public school system. You're only independent if you have a bachelors or are over 26. So, despite fighting for the better part of a year for independence, I'm not. And now they expect my family to pay 18k for my education... which is more than tuition costs... which makes my loan prospects quite slim.

So bottom line is that even though I tried to be responsible for myself, and not hurt my family, it didn't matter. Society no longer is set up so that kids can move out and become adults at a young age. You're all but forced to depend on your parents anyway. It sucks that things aren't easy for you, and I truly emphasize. Get your parents to pay for it. They should, and its not fair that you should have to anyway. Once you have your degree, life will be easier, you can get a good job, leave your family behind and start your life on your own. Good luck!
 
  • #77
Gale said:
I'm sort of in similar situation with my family. Except unlike you, I decided to "move out on my own" like back in the days. My family situation wasn't quite as difficult, but in my opinion, still intolerable.

So anyway, I'm 19 and I moved out over a year ago, thinking I would just start my adult life, whatever it takes. Of course, my parents refused to pay for school, so I took the year off. Then when I tried going back this fall as an in-state student, they told me I needed financial independence. I told them I was, but they checked my taxes, and it turned out my family was still claiming me as a dependent, even though I lived on the other side of the country with no financial support. So I contacted my family and threatened to sue if they didn't refile their taxes. That took months to straighten out, but eventually did. Turned out I needed two years of independence though, so now I have to wait another year...

I wanted to go back to school, so i said f-that. I've decided to pay triple the cost for out-of-state, figuring I can get loans. NOPE. So, in order to filie my FAFSA I need my parents financial information for the expected family contribution. Of course, my parents do make a fair amount of money, even if they won't give me a dime. Even though I'm independent according to the government, I'm not according to the US public school system. You're only independent if you have a bachelors or are over 26. So, despite fighting for the better part of a year for independence, I'm not. And now they expect my family to pay 18k for my education... which is more than tuition costs... which makes my loan prospects quite slim.

So bottom line is that even though I tried to be responsible for myself, and not hurt my family, it didn't matter. Society no longer is set up so that kids can move out and become adults at a young age. You're all but forced to depend on your parents anyway. It sucks that things aren't easy for you, and I truly emphasize. Get your parents to pay for it. They should, and its not fair that you should have to anyway. Once you have your degree, life will be easier, you can get a good job, leave your family behind and start your life on your own. Good luck!

OMG! They still filed you as a dependent. I would have freaking flipped out beyond belief. It's kind of funny how you live on the other side of the country because that's where I'm planning on moving after school. :biggrin:

My situation is bad and so is yours. I really hope your education plans start turning around. I believe you're officially starting this September? Right?