You've walked the stage and cashed all of those checks your family wedged into graduation cards, now it is time to find a place to live. Unless you are moving in with grandma, your first decision is likely going to be what city, state or continent you want to call home. If you spent your college days in a dorm this may be the first apartment you are looking for and your options as well as the security deposit may be overwhelming! Hopefully the following primer to apartments can help you get your foot in the door to your lovely new one bedroom in the city of your dreams without suffering more regret than a one night stand.

When you start your search learning the lingo of apartments is important; your first step is to determine what kind of apartment you want. Maybe you looking for an efficiency or loft which typically consists of an open floor plan or something like a 2 bdrm with DW, WIC, W/D which nets you a dishwasher, walk in closet and a washer and dryer. The choices are sometimes daunting but after you look at a few units and assess your needs you'll quickly know what type of apartment you are looking for and can expand your search to location.

Just like real estate is about location, location, location; so is your apartment. You need to find an apartment that is in a neighborhood you feel comfortable in, both during the day and when you come in late at night. After you think you have nailed down a location before signing any paperwork, check out the location at night and see if it agrees with you, look for outdoor lighting and listen for trains, planes and noisy neighbors. After you sign a lease these issues will be much, much harder to deal with.

How many years has this debate been ongoing? Is it better to lease or to buy a car? If you ask your friends and family, you'll probably get a variety of answers, with people being adamant about their personal opinions. The truth is that over the long-term, buying is a much more cost effective option. The key is in buying and keeping the car for a long time, something on the order of ten years.

There are only about two times when leasing a car makes any sense. The first is if you're the kind of person who wants to have a new car every few years and have so much money that it really doesn't matter. This will be expensive, so it's not a fiscally sound choice. But if you know you're going to be replacing your car in a few years, leasing takes the risk out of the transaction. You know exactly what you're paying over the life of the lease, and you have no uncertainty with the value of the vehicle when you're ready to get rid of it. No haggling over trade-in values or trying to sell the car on your own.

The second time a lease makes sense is if you want a more expensive car than you can really afford. You will get a lower monthly payment on a lease than you would on a 3 or 5 year auto loan for a purchase, so you can get more car for your money. Obviously, this is stupid. If you can't afford the car, you shouldn't lease or buy it.