Not maintaining your own personal finances may lead to negative physical and emotional health. Ready to tackle your money issues? Here are some great ideas to get started.
Be careful not to make any long distance calls while traveling. Most cellphones have free roaming these days. Even if you are sure your cellphone has free roaming, read the fine print. Make sure you are aware of what “free roaming” entails. Similarly, be careful about making calls at all in hotel rooms.
Exercise caution when you estimate what sort of mortgage payments you can afford. A mortgage is a very long-term financial proposition. Meeting your payment obligations will rely on how much money you will earn over a number of years. Keep in mind the possibility that your income may stay constant or even fall in the future, when you consider mortgage payments.
Be sure that your broker is a person in whom you can place real confidence. Check their references and do a little digging. Make sure they are honest in their one-on-one dealings with you. It is also important to be sensible, and have the experience to know when something is not quite right.
If one has a hobby such as painting or woodcarving they can often turn that into an extra stream of revenue. By selling the products of ones hobby in markets or over the internet one can produce money to use however they best see fit. It will also provide a productive outlet for the hobby of choice.
Make a plan to pay off any debt that is accruing as quickly as possible. For about half the time that your student loans or mortgage in is repayment, you are payment only or mostly the interest. The sooner you pay it off, the less you will pay in the long run, and better your long-term finances will be.
Make sure you’re not overspending on luxury items that you can’t actually afford. The most common problem people have is that they’re spending more than they’re bringing in. If you don’t have the money for a luxury item, don’t buy it. Instead of putting in on the credit card, put a bit of money aside toward the item each week. It’ll save you more in the long run.
Families can pool their funds to buy major purchases that everyone can enjoy. If the purchase can benefit everyone, such as a new television, one might be able to convince the family to pitch in and buy it.
Although one would never expect it, money can be made from spiders. Not just any spiders, but select tarantulas that are in high demand in the pet trade, can yield great benefits to one’s personal finances, if one chooses to breed them. If a person has an interest in spiders, they can use it to their gain.
Make sure you always pay your rent on time. Landlords are more likely to help tenants who are in good standing with them. If you make them wait extra time to get there rent then you can guarantee that when you have a problem they will not be in a rush to help you.
Make sure you are carrying cash or your debit card for small purchases. You do not want to have to put small purchases on your credit card and end up paying interest on them. Some merchants also put restrictions on purchases made with a credit card not allowing you to put under 10 dollars on it.
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.
Avoid window shopping. If your personal finances are tight, or if you are trying to follow a strict budget, avoid window shopping, as it is likely to lead to impulse purchases. Think about whether you really need to make the purchase, and if possible, follow the 24-hour rule. Go home, and think about the item overnight. If you still believe it’s necessary, you won’t feel as guilty when you purchase it, as it’s no longer an ‘impulse’ buy.
Have an emergency savings cushion. Without one to fall back on, unexpected expenses unavoidably land on your credit card. Put away six to twelve months’ worth of living expenses into your emergency savings account so that if you have a huge medical expense or the car breaks down, you’ll be covered.
Although it can be tough to take care of personal finances, you really can get a handle on them and improve your situation. It just takes research and asking questions to financial advisers. Apply the tips provided to your finances and you should be ready to go.
