4 Budget Hacks for College Students To Cut Back-to-School Costs
Vivian Tu of Your Rich BFF fame recently took to YouTube to offer up advice for college students looking to save themselves a bundle while heading back to class.
During an episode of "Networth & Chill," Tu discussed retailers’ propensity to push hard on college-aged shoppers, creating urgency to buy products ranging from new outfits to textbooks. This, in turn, leads to often-unnecessary debt.
Check It Out: Do These 9 Things Before the Year Ends To Boost Your Savings
Don't Stop Now: 9 Low-Effort Ways To Make Passive Income (You Can Start This Week)
Tu also underscored the importance of searching for deals on used necessities, as well as setting up educational investment funds sooner rather than later. Much was discussed during her category-based breakdown targeting how to save money while doing some serious back-to-school (BTS) shopping. Let’s get into it.
Utilize Old Tech and Student Discounts
“Whether it’s a new laptop, a tablet, a phone — tech is always a bigger-ticket item that can run you thousands of dollars,” Tu began, pivoting to suggest that taking advantage of common trade-in programs was wise.
By offloading your old tech for store credit against the purchase of new items can save you hundreds of dollars, the money influencer noted. You can also shop inventories of pre-owned or refurbished tech items (Tu mentioned phones, specifically) which might be a way to save a bit of money.
Pile on any applicable student discounts — Apple offering one, for starters — and you’re golden when it comes to stretching your dollar on tech buys. Back Market and UniDAYS were some of the platforms Tu mentioned, as well as extensions such as Honey, Capital One Shopping or Rakuten.
Buy Used Textbooks, Find PDF Copies, or Simply Visit the Library
It’s no secret that textbooks are wildly expensive, and Tu had a few thoughts on how college students might cut this bill down to a more manageable size.
“I hit the secondary markets. You can search on PDF-sharing sites to see if anyone has uploaded a scanned copy of the reading you need,” Tu said, adding that visiting the school library to see if a copy of a text was available for free (something too often forgotten by students, despite it seeming a common-sense proposal). Clubs, fraternities and sororities also often play host to their own internal libraries of textbooks — available to members.
Facebook Marketplace can also be a great resource for college kids looking to score a sweet deal on used and not-yet-obsolete textbooks. Not only are these textbooks usually sold on the cheap, but meeting up with the seller could yield class notes or other valuable insight into the curriculum.
Dodge the ‘Dorm Essentials’ Trap
With retailers and brands pushing a plethora of products at college students, Tu instead called for the “wait until you get there” rule.
“Remember, you’re going to be living with a roommate […] if you both go hard on the BTS shopping, you’ll end up with a ton of duplicates,” she said.
To dodge overspending, talk to your future roommate to see if dividing purchases makes more sense. After you settle in, Tu highlighted, necessities will easily separate themselves from nice-to-haves.
Never Undervalue a 529 Account or ESA
Tu strongly emphasized leveraging a 529 account, or even an education savings account (ESA).
The 529 account is “a tax-advantaged education savings plan that lets money grow tax-deferred and can be withdrawn tax-free when used for qualified expenses,” Tu stated, noting that this means no taxes on gains, nor purchases on a huge variety of eligible items — including most of those mentioned above. Lodging also counts as an educational expense.
On the other hand, the ESA sees withdrawals as tax-free when put toward educational expenses. There are few caveats, however — while more flexible in terms of investment options, contribution limits are lower and income restrictions are more strict.
Parents who are planning a future college education for their children would do well to get started early on the above options, according to the “Networth and Chill” host.
This article was provided by MoneyLion.com for informational purposes only and should not be construed as financial, legal or tax advice.