Adulting

1/29/2024

I am a 21 year old baby adult. If you don't know what that means, read it again. When you turn 20, the first thing you want to do is turn 21. The second thing you want to do is independent. And that's basically how I lived my life for all of 2023.

No one teaches you how to start investing, how to fill out a W-4, or even how to open a credit card. I did all of these things and now I'm going to show you how I did it.

If you know how to do all of this, share some things below that others may not know how to do. You may think its stupid easy, but it may be an honest struggle for others. You can also comment your tips on my reddit post below.

Investing

Let's start with investing. I have 3 investment accounts. I have my Acorns account, My Charles Schwab account, and my E-Trade account. I have experimented with Robinhood but it just wasn't for me.

My Acorns account is a "Don't touch it until you're 30". I've created this account to help me pay mortgage when I buy a house, "big girl" stuff as you may call it. I have it set up so that I automatically invest $15 every Wednesday, so that I don't have to think about what it is I'm actually doing. In Acorns you can set up the way you want your account to be. I set mine up to be an aggressive risk (as I'm only 21). You can also choose no risk or moderate risk. I invest 100% in Stocks which includes VOO (large company stocks), IJH (medium company stocks), IJR (small company stocks), and IXUS (international company stocks). I suggest starting off with an aggressive risk account, with just $20. It may not seem much but if you have other forms of investment, you have nothing to lose.

My Charles Schwab account, on the other hand, is a Roth Contributory IRA. This is a different type of investment account, similar to a 401K, but through Schwab you can take out your money tax-free and interest-free. For this, I have a $10 automated deposit every week as well. I use SWVXX which has a 5.22% 7 day yield and no minimum initial investment. It's super easy to switch things around and buy different stocks and great for beginners (like myself).

My E-Trade account I am 100% new to. Since I just turned 21, it's not in my dad's name anymore, it's in mine. It is an individual brokerage account. If you don't know what that is, it's an investment account that allows you to buy and sell a variety of investments, such as stocks, bonds, mutual funds, and ETFs. Again, not going to touch this account.

I honestly don't touch any of my accounts except my Huntington savings account (which I again, deposit money into every week), and that's only if I have to.

W-4

I've worked various jobs in the last couple years ranging from part-time internships to working at a bakery part-time. I've filled out a W-4 a few times. It is fairly simple, since the boxes say exacly what you need to write in them but there are still some parts that are confusing so I will explain them to you.

Step 1: Enter your personal information

This is self explanatory. First name, last name, SSN, are you married?

Step 2: Account for all jobs you and your spouse have

Again, self explanatory.

Step 3: Claim your children and other dependents

If you have kids OR you make less than $200,000 a year, you will need to claim a dependent.

Step 4: Make other adjustments

You can withold money from your paycheck to collect more money from your refund at the end of the year, or if you want your deserved amount without a withholding, there is a lesser chance that you will get a higher refund on that job. Sorry if that doesn't make sense.

Step 5: Sign and date your form

Sign and date, that's it! It's easy to fill out a W-4. If you are married or have kids, you can comment and I can set up a call with you to show you what you need to put in each box. Wow maybe I should become a tax advisor.

Opening a Credit Card

So I just opened up a credit card last November. Like it's so recent I don't even know what my credit score is yet. The card I chose was the Discover Student Credit Card. Why? You guessed it! Because I'm a student.

This card allows you to do a few things. First, it gives you cashback at different places every few months. For example, Jan-Mar I get 5% cashback on Restaurants and Drug Stores. I can use this cashback to later pay my credit card bill. Second, you can check your credits core for free. Now, usually when you get your credit score checked, it goes down a little bit. But not through the Discover credit card! Third, you can earn rewards. Through the cashback program, you can get gift cards, and you can use it to purchase things on Amazon and other websites.

So to open your credit card, you need your name, your employment status and total gross income, and your monthly housing payment. That's it! You read the terms and aggreement and then you wait to get your credit card request approved! That is all it takes to set up a credit card.

Of course, there are a bunch of other things that take being an adult. And it's not like I'm the best one. But this is what I've learned so far and what I think would help some of my readers. As always, thanks for reading and I'll see you next time. Ciao!