With all due respect to the importance of personal relationships, one of the most important facets of a successful life is personal finance. Making money, keeping it, and growing it makes the rest of your life easier and more enjoyable. Here are some ideas to help increase your personal bottom line.
You should never risk more money on a trade than you can safely afford to lose. This means that if you lose any money it should not have the potential to destroy you financially. You have to make sure to protect any equity that you might have.
In order to stay on top of your personal finances, make use of one of the many website and apps out there which let you record and track your spending. This means that you’ll be able to see clearly and easily where the biggest money drains are, and adjust your spending habits accordingly.
Do not close credit card accounts in hopes of fixing your credit. Closing credit card accounts will not help your score, instead it will hurt your score. If the account has a balance, it will count towards your total debt balance, and show that you are making regular payments to a open credit card.
Sign up as many of your bills for automatic payment as possible. This saves you a considerable amount of time. While you should still review your monthly activity, this will go much faster by checking your bank account online than by reviewing a checkbook ledger or your bills themselves. The extra time you get from automatic bill payment can be invested profitably in many other areas.
Never use a credit card for a cash advance. Cash advances carry with them extremely high interest rates and stiff penalties if the money is not paid back on time. Strive to build a savings account and use that instead of a cash advance if a true emergency should arise.
Giving children an allowance is a great way to introduce them to personal finance and teach them how to manage money. When they are given age-appropriate chores and paid for a job well done, not only are they motivated to continue doing good work, they are learning about responsibility and the value of a dollar.
Be clear about what you want your finances to do for you. Do you want to travel? Do you want to retire early? Do you want to get out of debt? Get really clear about why you are remaining financially healthy. This will make you more likely to achieve those goals.
There are debts that are bad, but there are also good debts. Real estate investments are examples of good debts. Many loans involving commercial property and houses are tax deductible, plus these pieces of real estate generally have appreciative value. College debt is also generally considered to be “good” debt. Educational loans are generally low interest, and payments can be deferred until after graduation.
Regularly read the business section of the paper. This will constantly offer many valuable tips on saving money and getting your personal finances in order, It will also help you stay updated on markets and maybe even will help you decide when a good time to invest money in stocks would be.
The more money you spend, the more money you’re going to want to spend. This is a bad cycle to get into with your personal finances. So, instead of spending money on material things to make yourself feel better, look really hard at finding a hobby to occupy your time while your money sits safely away.
Never think that you are too young to start dealing with your future. This isn’t only about planning for retirement. You should be thinking of your finances in general, and that means working to build a good credit score, saving cold, hard cash, investing a little capital, and always working on a lifelong budget.
If a flexible spending account is available where you work, then you need to sign up for it. This allows you to pay for medical and transportation expenses with pre-tax dollars instead of using the money after it has been taxed. This service is of a great advantage to your wallet.
One of the most botched personal-finance decision’s people make is the unnecessary purchase of a new car. Because a new car depreciates by 20-30% as soon as it leaves the dealer, it is one of the worst investments you can make with your money. Consider buying a barely used version of the same model, and you can reduce your costs considerably without compromising the reliability of your car.
If your employer matches your 401k contributions, maximize your contributions to take advantage of this “free” retirement money. You do not pay taxes on the money you contribute until after you start drawing it as income, so you are actually reducing your tax load in the short term by investing more for the long term.
Consider transferring the change out of your checking account every day, and moving it to your savings account. This is a small change you won’t miss coming out of your checking account. However, you will manage to save money by doing this every day. Doing this will make your savings account grow.
Spend less by replacing costly, branded products with items that you already own. For example, you can save money by using things, like baking soda to get rid of stains and smelly messes. Use the Internet to your advantage and search for different home remedies that you can use that are inexpensive.
To have the best personal finances you should look for other ways to increase your income outside of your career. There are countless ways that you can add to your income, from investment properties to small side jobs. No matter what you do, every little bit of money you earn now can add up to a lot later on.
These tips should have given you many ideas — and a jump-start to your motivation — to make smart money decisions. Whether it’s earning, saving, investing, or even spending, you can now face the financial world with more confidence and less intimidation. Here’s to a brighter future and your increased net worth!
