When you first come to college, you find yourself with plenty of new things to be responsible for that you never were when you lived at home. Juggling these new responsibilities can be stressful and hectic if you don't come up with a smart way to manage them. If you are a new student attending Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University and you live in an apartment near FAMU, chances are that this is something you are coming to grips with recently!
Prioritize Paying Bills When Receiving a Paycheck
Most people living in student apartments have a job to pay rent, utility bills, and other essential things to live a comfortable life. Paying bills on time is arguably the most important responsibility you will inherit as a college student. If you don't learn to budget correctly, you can find yourself taking out loans and getting reprimanded for not paying on time.
When you get your paycheck, try to understand all the things that you will need to pay for during the month. This could include, TV subscriptions, food subscriptions, phone bills, FAMU apartment monthly rent, and renter's insurance. If you have an apartment with utilities included, that bill will be included in your rent installment. That is one less bill to pay and worry about!
Enroll Yourself in the FAMU Apartment Autopay Option
Most if not all the best apartments in Tallahassee offer an autopay option for rent and other charges posted to your account. What autopay does is it allows you to put in a payment option that will be used every time the FAMU apartment rent and other bills are due. When it's time to pay, the payment option you selected will automatically withdraw from that account and you will get a notification if it goes through. If you have enough money in your account every month, the payments should clear without you needing to do anything.
This can be a painless and easy option for people who are very forgetful and need more assistance to be held accountable for going through with payments on time. If you are unsure if your FAMU apartment offers autopay, you can always call the leasing office for guaranteed confirmation.
If a payment doesn't go through correctly, don't worry! Most apartment complexes offer a 3–5-day grace period so people don't get evicted or penalized right away for missing an important payment.
Set Timers and Reminders for Payments
Although preset timers on your phone are not always consistent, they might be a good option for someone who looks at their phone often. The timers you set can be through the timer app or through a separate app on your phone meant for payment reminders. Budgeting apps are a free and helpful option for students that struggle with making payments on time.
One realistic setback of this option is that you could lose your phone, forget to set a timer, or not look at your phone in time to pay your bills. Ultimately, whatever payment reminder option works best for you is the one that you should choose!