I have a year and half left to go on my degree and am not currently considering a Master's degree or anything. After I graduate I plan on moving into an apartment and not back in with my parents. How much money in savings did you graduate college with? Based on what I have now and what I'm likely to earn in the next year and a half, I feel like I'm in pretty good shape but then again I don't know what's "normal." What were you able to do with your money? Were you able to afford rent, food, gas, and various insurances? Merely curious as I don't want to be blindsided when I enter the real world.

Also, I won't have any student loans to pay off once I graduate, so that's one thing I don't have to worry about cutting into my savings.

What is the average rent for the area you want to live in? I'm going to grad school in Washington DC right now where average rent is well over $1000/month for a studio apartment. There is no way I could afford hat on my own and luckily my parents are helping. My friend that is going to grad school in my hometown and pays half of what I pay (we both have roommates in 2 bedroom apartments). Location makes a big difference. Will it be very cold or very hot where you live? Heat and air conditioning can really add up. Are you willing to share an apartment with a roommate or move into a town house? We can't really answer your question about how much to save until we know the location and what type of living situation you are looking at. As a general rule of thumb, you should have at least 3 months saved before moving out, and your rent should be more than a 1/3 of your paycheck. Of course thats not always possible especially in this economy, but it's the best way to not end up in trouble.

I'd like to live without a roommate, and rent for 1 bedroom apartments in my desired area are going from about $850/month. Heat/AC would vary seasonally (A/C needed at times during summer, heat mostly needed through winter). I knew about the 3mo rent rule, but if I only needed to graduate with 2,500 I'm well above 'average' or 'normal.'

Most gas/heat/water/electric companies will release information to you about average costs. Or ask the current tenants when you are touring.

I'm living off of student loans right now so can't contribute much more than that!

The three month thing is a bare minimum for starting out. Personally, I wouldn't move out unless I had a job set up already or had parents ready to bail it once I ran out of savings. Most leases where I live you have to sign for a year and the penalty for breaking early is astronomical. You can't just up and leave if your money runs out. Will you need to buy furniture, cookware, etc.? Budget that in, a long with groceries and transportation costs. If you'll be driving you need to thik about car payments if the car isn't paid off, as well as possible parking fees at your apartment and your job, car insurance, gas, and maintenance fees. If you'll use public transportation, estimate how much a ticket costs back and forth each day, keeping in mind it'll probably cost more in a year. As for health insurance, you might still be covered under your parents (they'll have to pay a premium though, it won't be free to them) with Obama's health law from I understand, but a year and hlf from now we could have different president. Your employer should aso offer health insurance assuming you have a full time job. I hope this helps a bit.

Okay, you should only pay 1/4 of your monthly salary on rent (that is about one weeks pay). Are you going to be making $3,400 a month? I would not live on my own unless I was making enough money to do so despite how much is in my savings.

Are you going to have a job right after graduating? What field are you going into?

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I had I think about $700 (less than that probably) in my savings when I graduated (Aug 2011). I make about $400 a month at the moment, that will change soon. I now have $1,000 in my savings. I live with my parents.

I had pretty much zero in savings but I had a pretty sweet professional job lined up post-graduation.

Unsolicited advice, if you do have a job lined up...I would advise you not to go crazy post-graduation in terms of upgrading your life. I definitely did that, just because I'd been living without for so long, so I overloaded on things like magazine subscriptions, clothes, TV packages and a more expensive apartment. After the fever wore off, I'm pretty much back to my college-standard of living (no cable, small apartment, saving pretty hardcore so my income feels more limited) and I'm much more in control of my finances now. Stay modest for as long as you can and upgrade stuff that matters (like fresher, healthier food or getting more reliable transportation).

Dani