Unimor Capital Corporation

Tag: financial goal

  • Start an Emergency Fund

    Start an Emergency Fund

    We never know what the future holds for us, so it’s always best to be prepared.  Having an emergency fund is extremely important so you’re always prepared to deal with what life brings—good or bad.  It’s a good idea to make an emergency fund one of your highest savings priorities.  Put $20 a week in an emergency fund and your account will grow to over $1,000 in just one year.  That’s often enough to cover a repair bill or emergency travel.  An emergency fund can also shield you from the high cost of borrowing and keep you from sinking into debt.  Follow these five tips to help you set goals and take steps toward starting an emergency fund:

    Chart your monthly income & expenses. Grab a piece of paper and write down how much money your earn and how much you spend for each month. Be sure to include recurring expenses such as your rent or mortgage, utility bills, childcare, and estimates of other out-of-pocket expenses for things you might buy such as movie tickets, dinner out and clothing.

    Set your emergency savings goal. An emergency fund should cover three to six months’ worth of realistic living expenses. If you feel your income is stable or have access to home equity or other forms of credit to use if needed, then you may be able to plan for the lower figure.  If your credit is near its limit and your income outlook is less secure, you might want to save more.

    Develop a plan to start saving. Setting a goal and developing a plan to achieve those goals go hand-in-hand. Part of your plan may include specific and measurable targets to work toward.  For example, one specific goal may be to save an extra $300 over the next six months to put into an emergency fund.

    Put your emergency fund in an accessible place. The best place for your emergency fund is in a liquid account (accounts where your cash is easily accessible). A liquid account might be a regular savings account at a bank or credit union that provides some return on your deposit and from which your funds can be withdrawn at any time without penalty.  If you consider other options, like a certificate of deposit, money market fund or mutual fund, be sure to figure out how accessible your money will be in an emergency.

    Stick to your plan. Once you’ve created your plan, make sure you stick to it. This can sometimes be the hardest part of saving for an emergency fund or any financial goal in general.  If your goals are realistic and attainable, sticking to the plan will be much easier.  A good way to stay on track is to save automatically.  Set up a systematic transfer from your regular checking or savings account at your bank.  Be sure to keep your rainy-day funds separate from your other accounts, and label it “for emergency use only.”  Just writing down an account’s purpose can keep you from spending the money for any other reason.

    Starting an emergency fund is a necessary building block for long term financial stability.  Anyone can do it; you just need the right plan.

     

  • Before You Make a Budget

    Before You Make a Budget

    You’re ready to start a budget — awesome!  You’re probably feeling excited and ready to get your money in order. But here’s the thing: It’s super easy to give up on budgets.  They can get complicated and require some maintenance.  So before creating your budget, take these simple steps to set yourself up for success:

    1. Track Your Spending

    Sometimes it feels like each paycheck disappears into thin air. The money lands in your account, you revel in your balance for one day, then you pay your monthly bills and it’s gone!

    That’s why it’s so important to track your spending. Before you even start a budget, you’ll want to get a clear idea of where all your money is going each month. There are plenty of ways to do this: good old-fashioned check book balancing, pen and paper or checking your accounts each day.  Get yourself used to keeping tabs on your spending by using an app like Mint.com.  This will help you better understand what your fixed expenses are each month and where you might be overspending.

    2. Set Yourself a Few Fun Goals

    Because budgeting can quickly become a dreaded chore, you’ll want to set yourself a few goals to keep you encouraged.  No, these don’t all have to be boring financial goals, like paying off student loans or starting an emergency savings.  Although those are great, work at a fun goal, like a road trip or cruise.  Then, hold yourself accountable by setting up a separate savings accounts and have money automatically come out of your chequing account.  You probably won’t even miss that small amount each week, but over time, it will contribute to your goal.

    3. Bundle Your Debt Into One Bill

    One of the trickiest parts about budgeting is keeping tabs on all your monthly payments, especially if you have debt.  Rather than making four different credit card payments each month and logging them in your budget, make life easier for yourself by combining them under one umbrella.  It will be much easier to budget with one, easy-to-manage monthly payment.

    4. Find Easy Ways to Cut Back Big Bills

    Building a budget will force you to take a good hard look at your monthly expenses. Ask yourself: Am I paying too much for any of these non-negotiables?  The answer: Probably.  Start with a bill that’s super easy to cut — car insurance.  Yeah, there’s no getting around it, unfortunately.  But to get the best deal, you’ll want to compare rates twice a year.  Sometimes you get complacent paying your bills, but there’s usually ways to save or haggle for a lower price.  Cable/internet is another good example, if you call, chances are there’s some kind of promo they can offer.

    5. Pick Your Go-To Budgeting Method

    Yes, there are budgeting methods — plural — but before you panic, we recommend using the 50/20/30 budgeting method for its simplicity.

    Here’s how it works:

    • 50% of your income goes toward essentials
    • 20% goes toward financial goals
    • 30% goes toward personal spending

    Of course, you’ll want to play around with this, but keeping these base-line percentages in mind will help you figure out how to allot your money for the month.