Six Tips to Help You Take Control of Your Finances
One thing that may get out of control for most people during their lives is their finances. It may be the result of a personal crisis, a streak of bad luck or even just expensive and lascivious habits. Whatever the case, it is possible to right the ship and get your finances straightened out again. Below are six tips to help you take control of your finances.
1. Get Your Spending Under Control
The first step of course, is to stop the self-destructive behavior that lead to your poor financial state in the first place. To help you accomplish this, make a monthly budget. This budget can include money for all of the essentials like bills and groceries and even a little money for fun. Just make sure to strictly stay within budget after you set it.
2. Start an Emergency Cash Fund
Consider starting a new savings account only for emergency funds. An emergency shouldn’t be buying things you don’t need. It should be paying for fixing your car or medication for your sick cat. These kinds of unexpected occurrences can wreck havoc on a person’s bank account if they don’t take preventative measures, so stay prepared.
3. Plan for Future Expenses Early
If you know expenses like your children’s college education and your retirement are coming, you should certainly start getting ready early. Make sure to save for these eventualities in investment plans that have significant tax advantages. 529 plans are great for children’s college expenses, while 401k plans are good for saving for retirement.
4. Start Paying Off Your Debt
The only way to get rid of debt is to either file for bankruptcy or pay it off. Bankruptcy is certainly something you don’t want to put you and your family through. It will hang around your neck like lead for the next 7 years and it will be incredibly difficult for you to get credit to buy a car or a house. So instead, start paying down your debt. It may take a while, but with some work, you will begin to see those balances come down.
5. Carefully Manage Your Stock Portfolio
While it may be a good idea to own some stock, if you are ignorant as an investor, you’re going to end up losing all of your money. Instead, try to only make intelligent stock picks and keep your portfolio as balanced as possible. If you want to receive some solid stock advice and tips, consider subscribing to stock investing newsletters from reputable investors or firms.
6. Understand Your Finances
Lastly, you need to be knowledgeable about your finances to get them back in order. Self imposed ignorance may have helped lead to many of your problems. Make sure you understand everything about your credit accounts, loans, mortgage and more. Technology has made it easier than ever to keep on top of everything that is happening with your finances. This will prevent you from making more mistakes in the future.
Category: Financial Planning
