Pillar
Renting your first place, medical cover, your driver's licence and the rest of the paperwork of adult life.
Photo: RDNE Stock project / Pexels
First payslip, first contract offer? How a phone contract compares with prepaid, SIM-only and buying the phone cash, what it really costs over 24 or 36 months, your right to cancel early, the new ICASA data rules and what it does to your credit record.
The R370 SRD grant is still running, and the October 2026 MTBPS says it will continue for another year. Who qualifies, what each decline reason means, how the 90-day appeal works, how to avoid fake SRD sites, and what a stipend or first job does to your grant.
Many job adverts ask for a driver's licence, and getting one takes months and a few thousand rand. The steps from learner's test to licence card, what the official fees look like, the new computerised test, and how to avoid paying a bribe.
Coming off a parent's medical aid with your first salary? How comprehensive cover, hospital plans, gap cover and medical insurance differ, why PMBs, waiting periods and the age-35 penalty matter, and when 'hospital plan plus gap cover' makes sense.
What your first flat really costs before you move in, what landlords check, and what the Rental Housing Act and Consumer Protection Act say about your deposit, inspections, leaving early, lockouts and where to complain.