I know how hard and confusing it can be to be a young adult, you got your first job and suddenly you have money. What do you do? Do you move out directly and learn to live on your own? Do you save up money and wait to move out of your parents' house? There are probably so many things you haven't thought of but life got the better of you. Hopefully I can give you some useful tips to guide you through the unknown.
First of all, be as frugal as possible. Whether you decide to move out or still live with your parents, try to save up as much money as possible. Trust me, you don't need that new fancy car or that cool house in a nice neighborhood, once you have a roof over your head and food in your belly you're good to go. Be wise with your money, they may seem like a lot since you don't have as many things you're obligated to pay but that can be really deceiving. Always live your life like you barely have any savings.
If you still want to move out don't shy away from finding a roommate. You can cut the rent cost in half and still learn how to take care of yourself on your own, your roommate will not act like your mother (well, most of them don't). This way you can live in a decent apartment for half the cost and also make a few friends, it never hurts to build relationships at an early age.
Make sure to get raises as often as possible. As a young adult you have room to grow, you should expect yearly salary rises, especially if you're in a competitive field like IT. Don't be shy about it, make a shortlist of why your boss should give you a raise and then demand it. At the same time don't be too reckless, you can end up hurting yourself in the long run if you ask for more money but what you provide isn't worth the bonus. You will figure that out once you're in that position though.
Pay your debt as soon as possible, start with the one that has the biggest interest rate. It may seem like you are poor for a while if you tackle them aggressively but it's better to be miserable for a little bit of time than struggling to keep up with payments for years. Interest rates will kill your savings, especially if you just finished college and have a lot of built up debt from it. You can lose thousands of dollars per year from interest alone.
Last but not least, don't be afraid to spend more for better quality. It's a much better idea to spend $1k on a good laptop that will last you for years than spending half of that on a subpar laptop that doesn't have the same specifications, build quality and probably will break down sooner. Always make your research when you're about to spend large amounts of money, if you end up buying expensive things just because they're considered luxurious you're only going to dig your own hole.
I lived with my parents until I relocated abroad for work. It just doesn't make sense to pay for rent when my parents aren't forcing me to move out anyway.
but I try to keep a balance.
