Many college students opt to live off-campus at one time or another during their collegiate career. Maybe it's an apartment with the best friends, or a really cool house with a great party set up. Maybe its your car-- hey, no judgement from me! Either way, college students are choosing to live on their own, thinking they can handle the real world.

But when it comes down to it, there are 5 things each one of us took for granted living at home.

1. Not Paying Bills

Electric, heating, water, internet, groceries, maybe a car payment-- suddenly, all the money you saved up from working the summer aways is gone because the cost of living, especially on a college campus, is ridiculous. The lovely idea of getting a pet at school goes out the window because, how can you keep another creature alive if you're barely keeping yourself alive?! Now us college kids forced to budget properly, and, like, use math. It makes you wonder how Mom and Dad could afford everything you had at home...

2. Having a Clean Home

Okay, a lot of us had chores growing up, so we know how to clean, but we never really took the time to appreciate having a clean home. You know, the kitchen floor is swept, the rugs vacuumed, and the dishes all clean and not piled up in the sink. Living on our own shows us how sloppy we can be, and how often a room needs to be cleaned. It sucks. Someone pass the Clorox?

3. Free Laundry

Unless you're living in a house, and maybe even then, you have to pay somewhere between $2.00-$5.00 just to do laundry! Just to have clean clothes! And detergent is pretty expensive! Ugh, can mom just come every weekend and do it for me?? Please?? I'm already broke from my bills!

4. Free Food

Wasn't it so nice being home, and being called to dinner? Just showing up and eating? Now we have to go to put a list together, the grocery store, pay, go home, and cook a meal. How ridiculous is that?! And people wonder why college kids like Ramen and Pre-cooked "To-Go" meals. Seriously.

5. Our Family

Whether us college kids admit it or not, we do take summers at home and spending time with our families and pets for granted. We get mad at each other, we choose to hang out with our friends instead of a family game night, we blame each other for things we did... It all very stereotypical, but you don't realize how much they mean to you, or how much your parents do for you, until you're on your own. Barely breathing... Just kidding! But not really...

Take a good long look at this list, and really appreciate how nice it was beforehand.

Best wishes to everyone living on their own! I hope you make it out alive! :)