If you live alone your financial resposibilities are less, but when you have a family it is important. This article is packed with practical guidelines for making more responsible decisions regarding your money.
If you feel like the marketplace is unstable, the best thing to do is to say out of it. Taking a risk with the money you worked so hard for in this economy is unnecessary. Wait until you feel like the market is more stable and you won’t be risking everything you have.
Cooking at home can give you a lot of extra money and help your personal finances. While it may take you some extra time to cook the meals, you will save a lot of money by not having to pay another company to make your food. The company has to pay employees, buy materials and fuel and still have to profit. By taking them out of the equation, you can see just how much you can save.
Having a savings plan is important, so always plan for a rainy day. You should strive to have enough money in the bank to cover your essential bills for six months. Should you lose your job, or run into an emergency situation, the extra money will get you through.
Manage your career as if it was an investment. Your job and the skills you develop are the most important asset you have. Always work to learn more, attend conferences on your career field and read books and newspapers in your area of expertise. The more you know, the higher your earning potential will be.
Maintain at least two different bank accounts to help structure your finances. One account should be dedicated to your income and fixed and variable expenses. The other account should be used only for monthly savings, which should be spent only for emergencies or planned expenses.
Keep your checkbook balanced. It’s really not so hard and can save you the expense and embarrassment of bounced checks and overdrawn fees. Do not just call the bank for a balance and count on having that amount in your account. Some debits and checks may not have cleared yet, resulting in overdrafts when they hit the bank.
When managing your finances, focus on savings first. Approximately ten percent of your pre-tax income should go into a savings account each time you get paid. While this is difficult to do in the short run, in the long-term, you’ll be glad you did it. Savings prevent you from having to use credit for unexpected large expenses.
There’s an easy way to avoid credit card debt: don’t dig yourself into the hole to begin with. Give serious consideration to adding any new charge to your card. Ask yourself how long it will take to pay off. Can you do without it? If so, pass. If you can’t pay it in a month, pass.
Make sure you read over your credit card statement very carefully every month. Make sure there aren’t any charges that shouldn’t be on there. It helps if you keep any receipts from purchases where you used your credit card this way you can use those to verify any charges on your account.
Do your best to control your emotions. Do not let greed or stress dictate your actions. Always take your time before you make a decision, and if you are not sure, perhaps you should not do it. If you notice that you are getting particularly stressed, you should take a break.
Have you heard of the latte factor? What are you spending each month that you could cut out and instead save in an account for later. Tabulate the amount and figure in savings with interest from investments over a few years period. You will be surprised at how much you could save.
Get yourself an emergency savings account. Stuff happens and you need to be prepared. An internet account won’t do because you’ll need as immediate an access as possible, so find the nearest local bank that has terms that you can live with. Have a portion of your pay, or from even your checking, be automatically deposited into this savings account.
When you are getting ahead financially you should start to save and not spend. Keep your finances on track by always remaining within your budget.
Include your important financial documents in your disaster planning. Many people are starting to prepare in advance for natural disasters such as earthquakes and hurricanes but forget to include things like checks, loan papers, and insurance policies. If something happens to your home or belongings, you will want those important financial items.
As stated previously in this guide, personal finances tend to be of a bigger concern to people who take care of a lot of dependents. Having a budget is essential to help you limit the number of things you buy each month.
