<p>What a wise question at your stage of life! Wish I had asked that when I was 18.</p>
<p>One thing that has changed for D2 vs. D1 during high school is that her graduating class is the first one to require a one semester personal finance class for graduation (this is starting with the Class of 2013 in TN.) The content has been wonderful; everything from banking to insurance and work benefits. </p>
<p>I know when D1 opened her checking & savings accounts at Bank of America they gave her financial education materials designed for young adults; check your institution to see if they have something similar. </p>
<p>Mint.com has good materials as does CNN Money [Money</a> 101 - Financial Advice & Lessons Made Easy by CNNMoney.com](<a href=“http://money.cnn.com/magazines/moneymag/money101/index.html]Money”>http://money.cnn.com/magazines/moneymag/money101/index.html) </p>
<p>In terms of books, a couple of authors that explain things in basic terms are Suze Orman and Dave Ramsey. Dave Ramsey is extremely against debt and some people think he goes too far, but I find his books to be easy to understand.</p>
<p>One thing someone told me long ago was that when it comes to credit, you shouldn’t use it for disposable/consumable items. Home mortgages, car loans, student loans, etc. are fine when responsibly considered. Appliances and car repairs, well those are usually paid for in an “emergency” situation and that’s fine too. But paying for meals out, groceries and gasoline…if you don’t pay it off the next month, you’ll be paying interest on something that’s been long gone!</p>