Overnight, the world treats you as an adult, you can vote, sign, decide, and stand on your own. The flip side: the people who used to handle things for you can’t anymore, not without your okay. Even your parents lose the automatic right to talk to your doctors or step in during an emergency.
It’s a real milestone. And like every milestone, it’s not just the moment, it’s all the stuff attached to it. The questions, the decisions, the details. Handle a few of them now, and the day stays yours. And remember, every path is unique; these are suggestions, not advice.
Decide who can step in for you. You’re in charge now, so choose who you’d trust if you ever couldn’t speak for yourself.
Name someone to make medical decisions on your behalf, a Health Care Proxy.
Choose someone to handle finances in an emergency, a Power of Attorney.
Keep your ID, insurance card, and key records together in your Gentreo Digital Vault.
Almost no 18-year-old sets this up. It’s the one thing that matters most on the day something goes wrong.
Apply for a license and a passport if you might need either or both
- If you don’t have one, apply for your driver’s license and passport, and store a copy in the Gentreo digital vault.
Care for your money and health
- Open checking and savings in your own name.
- Start building credit while you’re young, a starter or credit-builder option from your bank or credit union or get added to your parents’ card.
- Did your loved ones set up a 529 plan for you? Now is the time to leverage it.
- Confirm you’re still covered on a family health plan, and learn your details.
- Start the habit of periodically checking your credit. As you grow your financial history, this should improve – watch it to make sure you are on track and addressing errors credit rating agencies may see, or fix problems early so they do not impact your long-term score.
Cover what’s yours
- If you drive, make sure you’re properly insured, your own policy or a family one.
- Lock in low-cost term life while you’re young and healthy.
Consider your first big financial moves – purchasing a car
- If you are considering purchasing a car now or within the next few years, now is a good time to prepare for it by saving up for a down payment, monitoring your credit, and looking at various loan alternatives with your credit union or bank.
Don’t forget the small stuff
- Register to vote.
- Complete Selective Service registration, if it’s required of you.
- Turn on identity-theft monitoring as your financial life begins.
You won’t do all of this in one afternoon, and you don’t have to. Start with the foundation. Gentreo helps you handle the rest as life unfolds.
Documents to consider
More celebrating. Less figuring it out.
Gentreo is not a law firm or a substitute for a law firm or attorney or an attorney’s advice. Gentreo provides self-help services at your specific direction.
