Whether you’re a young person who recently graduated, just getting your career started or finally moving out on your own, it can be hard to keep track of your personal finances. Some of the biggest mistakes are also the most common and can seriously cost you in the long term. Here are the top ten, along with some tips on how to avoid them.
1. Misunderstanding credit cards
Services like Paypass are making them even easier to use. But credit cards are often misunderstood by young people, with small purchasing decisions often leading to long-term problems. Whether it’s cash advances, large balances, only making minimum payments, paying late or not paying at all, the small piece of plastic can be much more trouble than you realized. There’s also signing up for too many, unnecessarily increasing your limit and wrecking your credit rating.
“Credit card debt is spending your future income before you’ve earned it, and not magic money,” said Lisa Yanaky, a young woman from Toronto.
Read more from Financial Post