One College Student's Path to Financial Independence

In today's society the amount of success a person is seen with is definitely correlated to the ability of that individual to gain financial independence and financial prosperity. I realized that more than anything I want to gains financial independence. I want to be my own person and be able to live independently and not rely on others if I don't want to. I realized that my path riches will lie in real estate.

I've read success books and real estate books for years and always wanted to get started, but I never could motivate myself to get off my couch. Now that I'm in college I realize how I need to have my own house because right now I'm paying as much for housing as I could be paying in amortization for a house. I've finally realized that if I want this dream to become a reality I need to realistically sort out how much money this is going to require and make myself a plan to follow to achieve the goal.

It's easiest to save by making savings automatically transfer to your savings account. ING Direct and Emigrant Direct both offer savings interest rates of around 5% which happens to be nearly 5 times the national average. I plan to add $500.00 a month to this savings account, every month until closing on the house I buy. Also, if possible it works well to make the transfer to your savings account automatic. With 12 months a year I will have saved $6,000.00 and that's not even including interest, but I won't even calculate that because I know I'll need extra money at some point, I go by the saying "Always Allow". As in always allow a little something in case something unaccounted for comes up.

Next, I realize I will need credit. Not just any credit, because I'm just now opening my credit accounts. This means that my credit will have to be exquisite because I have such a lack of history on my credit report. I plan to apply for 1-2 credit cards. On these credit cards I make sure there are no erroneous fees and pick companies whose interest rates are good and companies you think you might want to do business with again in the future. I realize that it's probably a good thing to build a relationship with a bank to get on their good side and try to make a mortgage a little bit easier to obtain.

On these 1-2 credit cards I plan to spend only the amount that I have in cash in hand. This way I never overspend because I'll just tell myself to go put that money in the bank - for some people I realize this can be difficult, but it won't be for me because I realize the discipline involved and I'm committed to making this work so I won't. Also, I will pay the check for when me and my friends go out and just get cash in hand at those and deposit that all the next day. I hope that this will be enough to convince the banks that I am not a liability and that they can give me the type of mortgage I want.

Another thing to decide is mortgage, but I'll write an entire article about this shortly. For now I'm simply discussing what exactly I have to do financially to be able to secure a mortgage.

At this point, if all goes according to plan because I was mentally tough and disciplined enough to keep to the plan then I think I'll be in a very good situation for buying my first house. I also plan to make additional contributions to the amount of cash on hand that I have when I'm going to purchase. I will probably try to raise an additional $5,000.00 by working during the summer and next school year. Currently my occupation with which I believe I can earn $500.00 a month at is freelance writing for Associated Content. So, all goes well I plan to, in one year, accumulate around $11,000.00 dollars of cash in hand and good credit (with a short history, but I can't help that).

I wrote this article because I feel like I've had this revelation to become financially independent and I hope that this article helps spread the revelation to others. Too many people in America are in debt and have no savings. The easiest way to gain financial independence is through investments- and the most steady annual % return on investment has always been real estate. The average homeowner has 34 times more net worth then the average person who rents. Don't let your lack of self-discipline and mental toughness prevents you from accomplishing your aspirations for financial independence. It's possible if I stick to the plan and you can make your own plan and stick to that too.

I carry around a quote in my wallet that says "A Man can be as great as he wants to be. If you believe in yourself and have the courage, determination, dedication, competitive drive and if you are willing to sacrifice the little things in life and pay the price for the things that are worth while." - Vince Lombardi