Introduction:

Walter and Anna want a home of their own. When Walter's real-estate agent friend offers him what looks like the perfect house, he and Anna buy it. The house has many problems; structural, plumbing, electrical.but these problems only come to light after they've moved in. Hence, the house is a 'money pit'. The Long Island mansion from the 1986 flick “The Money Pit” has become a real-life money pit. This Nassau County home — which played the role of a falling-apart Gilded Age property that.

Excited about starting college but slightly nervous too?

Read this first.

Many real estate investors are purchasing condo units as investment properties to rent out to tenants or Airbnb guests. However, condo restrictions may quickly have real estate investors feeling like they purchased a “money pit” because they cannot rent out the unit and generate cash flow. As Chicago’s real estate market continues to slump to 20-month lows, Chicago Home Inspectors have revealed that unethical “quick flippers” are building on the city’s housing issues with a far more dangerous problem: dangerous, so-called renovations. The Chicago Tribune has already warned of a bubble in the city’s house flipping “frenzy.” According to Real Estate.

Starting college is like entering a whole new world…

…and there’s so much to think about:

Will I make friends?
What Major should I pick?
How will I juggle everything?
What should I bring?

And, lot’s more.

That’s why we’ve created this list of the top 10 things you need to know before you (or your child ) start college.

Let’s get started!

1. What to Take With You to College

(You can skip this if you are living off campus – but it’s still good to read.)

For most students, going to college is the first time they live away from home.

So, the question is:

What do you take with you when moving into a dorm?

Before deciding…

Get in touch with your college and ask for their approved and prohibited items checklist. Every college will have one and each college will have slightly different guidelines.

Some colleges won’t even allow a power strip!

So…

Make sure you contact them before spending money on things like mini-fridges and microwaves.

Another thing to consider is space.

Freshmen tend to underestimate how much space they need, and dorm storage space is notoriously less than it seems at first.

(quick tip – find out the exact dorm room dimensions and measure any larger items you want to take figure out how much will fit –good to know before showing up in a U-Haul!)

A good rule of thumb is just only to take what’s necessary:

Comfortable clothing for class.
A formal outfit & shoes for special occasions and job hunting
Laptop & phone (obviously)
Bathroom supplies
Bedding (sheets, pillows, blanket)
School supplies i.e. pens, rulers, calculators, sticky notes, etc.
Eye mask, ear plugs, and pain medication (just trust me)

Of course, there’s more, but these are the essentials.

Many students wonder if you can bring your car to campus. This is something you will need to check with your college. Some allow cars; others don’t.

Talking about transportation ….

2. Things to Do On And Off Campus

Think about what you would like to do with your spare time (and how you will get there).

College campuses and their surrounding areas are packed with things to do.

Almost every college has plenty of clubs, events, and activities on offer for students.

So…

When you’re on the phone with the college and asking about what things you can take with you, make sure to find out about things to do on and off campus.

You will also want to get off campus now and then.

Do a google maps search using the college’s address to find out what there is to do out and about the college.

For example, you could search for:

Starbucks near [college name]
Restaurants near [college name]
Movie theaters near [college name]
Comic Conventions near [college name]

And so on…

These kinds of places know that students love their products and services. So chances are they will be located around the college.

Then…

You need to know how to get there!

Once you know where you want to go, make sure that you come up with an idea of how you can get there by bus, train or bicycle (if you have one).

Knowing how much it costs to get where you want to go is also an important element in making your weekly budget…

…which we will talk about later.

In the meanwhile:

3. What Classes You Will Take

Maybe you have already chosen your Major, maybe you haven’t.

Either way:

If you look around the room on the first day of college, statistically up too half of them haven’t chosen their major either.

Even then…

Two-thirds of all college students who have picked their major, change it at least once before graduation.

(Plus most colleges don’t require a firm choice of major until the Sophomore year anyway.)

Having said that:

You should look into which classes you will be attending in your first semester. Because you will need to prepare beforehand.

You will need to buy books for example. However, don’t order them just yet, we’ll give you a few tips about saving money on books later.

More importantly…

Did you know that you forget almost 82% of what you learn in class within 28 days?

And…

After graduating from high school, students often have three or four months before starting class again.

This is a great way for students to relax after the stress of their final year of high school.

But:

The problem is that because of a natural memory drain, getting back into the flow of studying again can be stressful and overwhelming.

That’s why we suggest to:

Take a few pre-college tutoring classes based on classes you will have during the first and second semester. That way you can hit the ground running with one less thing to worry about when starting college.

Talking about memory…

4. How to Improve Your Memorization

College can be challenging.

There is so much to learn and topics you have never studied before.

And…

Like I said in the last section:

The average person loses 82% of what they learn within 3-4 weeks, while a typical college semester is fifteen weeks long.

This means that by the end of the semester:

When it’s time for exams, you will only remember 18% of what you learned in the first two-thirds of the semester!

Frustrating, right?

So, I’m going to share three memory tips that will help you retain much more of your course content and while having fun doing it:

Tip 1. Find Your Why

Think about why you want to study your subjects.

If you are just learning to pass an exam, chances are you will forget everything the next day.

When you want learn, you need to have a strong (emotional) motivation.

Just by tapping into a desire to learn something will increase your memory retention and learning abilities.

For example:

Those who want to be doctors are more likely to have an active interest in topics like biology or chemistry and therefore find it easier to remember key facts and information from those classes.

What is your end goal?

Find something you want to achieve and connect it with your academic success. Once you find your own key motivation for studying, everything becomes easier to learn and remember.

Tip 2. Learn Use Mnemonic Devices

Mnemonic devices are ageless proven tricks to help you remember almost anything more easily.

And…

Many of the techniques have been around for thousands of years.

So what does a Mnemonic device look like? They are simply different methods to help you remember specific chunks of information.

Here’s an example:

This mnemonic device helps you to mem