Although Christmas has not yet arrived, you may be starting to think about your plans for next year. As part of this, many of us make New Year’s Resolutions aimed at improving ourselves or our lives. This could include getting fitter and healthier, trying something new, or spending more time with family.
While these are all lovely resolutions to set, have you considered a money-related goal? To help you achieve better finances, be more money-minded and super-savvy in 2019, here are some tips for your financial resolutions.
Cut Back Your Spending
You have bills, repayments and essentials that must be covered every month, but after they have been paid, do you know where the rest of your wages go? A good way to get your finances in shape is to prioritise and cut back on impulse purchases.
You may want that coffee, new home accessories, or that dress, but do you need them? Rather than buying, reducing what you spend could help you to save and build better finances for 2019 and beyond.
Create a Budget
It can be very easy to spend without realising it and before you know it, you are at the end of the month wondering what happened to your salary. To help, you could try creating a budget.
Looking at your income, accommodate for your essential outgoings (such as your mortgage, AA finance repayments and food shop), then allocate a budget for extras. You could even put this into envelopes to prevent you from over spending.
Build an Emergency Fund
If the worst were to happen, would you be covered? Could you pay for a car repair or replace the boiler? If the answer is no, you are not alone. Earlier this year, research published in the Independent showed that almost 25% of British households do not have an emergency fund.
To solve this, aim to save a little lump sum. An effective way to do this is by setting up a direct debit to a savings account, so you can automatically save each month when you get paid.
Eliminate Bad Debts
In 2018, according to Your Money, almost 20% of retirees left employment with an average of £34,000 in debt. Although you could be far off retirement, there is never a bad time to get out of debt and aim for healthier finances.
In 2019, you could use your new budget to put aside additional funds, helping you to clear debts and boost your finances.
*Collaborative post*
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