I moved in & got engaged to my bf before 20 💕
🐡 Backstory: So, me and my bf started dating when we were both 17. We both immediately realized we wanted to move in together— like— immediately into dating. So, we both got jobs WHILE we were in our senior year of highschool.
🐬 Timeline: We started dating February 2022, Started saving December 2022, Moved in together August 2023, Moved into our second apartment July 2024, and got engaged September 2024.
🐟: Our first apartment was a 2br/1b townhome, it was very nice and beautiful but the neighborhood was very very poor. The amount of robberies, homelessness and homicides (one i literally witnessed) were ridiculous.
We moved into our second apartment which was literally a culture shock for me. I grew up in projects and the ‘hood’ so— moving into a gated community at such a young age literally blew my mind. We have a pool, gym, washer/dryer in unit, dishwasher and assigned parking. Charcoal grills in-front of every building, it was literally like heaven— no i’m used to it lolz. Our second apartment is a 2br/2b 1000sqft flat. Ceilings are high asf, came with all black appliances and a private balcony.
🪼 Finances: Straight off the bat, my man knows how to work hard for real. I couldn’t have done any of this without him literally working every single day, no callouts and extra hours. He worked at Walmart and I worked at Circle K when we got our first apartment. I made around 400 hundred every two weeks, meanwhile he made around 800. Our apartment was 875 a month, so we had around 1.5k left over after rent alone.
- However, we had subscriptions too, we budgeted those by taking around 100 automatically, even if we didn’t use 100 for subscriptions— we just took it out.
- Then, we took out another 100 for wifi and an average of 150 per month for electricity. This left us with 1,325 after all was paid. See? that’s a lot of money left over right?
🐙: Things started to get real easy when I also began working with him at walmart. He got paid 14hr and almost always got overtime, I got paid 14hr and worked just 40hrs a week. Our average pay was 2,800 a month now, we had increased our left over money by 500 by just me switching jobs— now we decided it was time for a better place.
🐠: We first contemplated trying out houses, but renting a house plus paying for gas, water, trash and electricity— absolutely not. We set our new max rent to 1500, for god knows why, and found a nice gated apartment community. To say the least, this was going from the hood to the hamptons fr lol
🦑: Our new rent is 1399 a month, plus all the same subscriptions as before. So now, we budget to save 2000 every month for all our bills. He has a new job which is mostly tip based, but he brings home almost 100-200 a day, and on a busy day— it’s 300. He also gets paid 8hr for 40hrs a week. I also got a new job, which is 15.50hr, and I work around 25-30hrs a week.
- Our average monthly pay has been : 4,570. After rent and subscriptions, 2,570 to play with. We have furniture we’ll ever really need groceries aren’t a big issue for us and school fees won’t be an issue till we graduate. <3
#livingwithyourboyfriend #Lemon8Diary #2025 #homedecor #apartmentfinds
Planning to move out with your partner? Start by budgeting for at least $1,000 monthly rent. Both partners should ideally be working, whether at regular jobs or in tip-based roles. Don't shy away from 'lower-income' housing, as often they can be a great start. A good first step can be a 1-bedroom or a 2-bedroom apartment, ideally around 800 to 1000 sqft. If you're inexperienced with apartment living, consider ground-floor units for easy access and lower noise. The key is proper planning and being realistic about what you can manage financially. Use apps like Flex to split the rent and build your credit. Lastly, ensure you're both on the same page about your financial goals to avoid conflict in your relationship as you start this new chapter together.
