Unimor Capital Corporation

Tag: smart spending

  • Budget Your Way to Your Financial Goals

    Budget Your Way to Your Financial Goals

    Budgeting really isn’t that bad. Here are six easy steps to achieving your financial dreams. With a new year just over the horizon, it’s time to make a few resolutions. If you haven’t yet crafted a budget, now is the time to do so for 2018.

    Regardless of whether you want to take a trip to Hawaii, buy a fancy new set of wheels or simply save more and spend less, a budget can get you there. Following are six steps to budgeting to your financial goals.

    Step 1: Set Your Goal

    What do you want to save your money for?

    • Go on a vacation
    • Buy a house
    • Have a security blanket in the bank
    • Merely pay the bills each month, with a little left over

    Budgeting can help with every one of these goals. In addition, having a concrete goal increases your chances of sticking to the budget. Some people even look for motivation by creating dream or vision boards with photos representing their goal.

    Step 2: Track Your Expenses

    Getting a handle on where you spend money is important for two reasons:

    • It can help identify leaks in your budget. These might include the $100 a month gobbled up by daily fast-food breakfasts.
    • It can help you make a realistic budget. If you are currently spending $800 a month on groceries, budgeting for $500 is probably setting yourself up for failure.

    The old-fashioned way to track expenses is to collect receipts and keep a log of every penny you spend for the next month. However, you can make the process simpler by signing up for a free account with Mint.com. This service tracks expenses automatically and neatly categorizes them for you. Best of all, it doesn’t cost a dime.

    Step 3: Write it Down

    Now that you’ve tracked expenses, use those amounts as a guide to create a written budget. Whether you use an online tool, an Excel spreadsheet or a notebook and pen is up to you. But you want to have the budget recorded in a location where it can be easily accessed and changed as needed.

    It’s a good idea to always estimate your income low and expenses high. It’s better to reach the end of the month and find you have extra money in the bank than to come up short. In addition, make sure to put a name to every dollar. Maybe you finish with the monthly bills and have $200 left over. Don’t leave that as a catch-all slush fund; decide what you’re going to do with it. Maybe $100 will go into an online savings account, $50 will be an extra debt payment and $50 will be mad money.

    Step 4: Monitor Your Progress

    Once you have it written down, don’t ignore your budget. Make a point of comparing your actual expenses with your budget on a regular basis, such as each payday.

    If you’re using Mint.com, it’ll be easy to quickly see how much you’ve spent so far in each category for the month. Then, you can make adjustments as necessary. For example, if you’re budgeting $50 for clothing and have spent $75, you’ll need not only to stop buying clothes, but also to make an adjustment elsewhere in your budget to make up for the extra $25.

    On the flip side, maybe it’s the last week of the month, and you haven’t spent a dime of your entertainment budget. In that case, it’s time to make a date and have some fun!

    Step 5: Get a Coach

    Maybe you’re feeling overwhelmed. A budgeting coach can help. Make sure to do your homework and find a reputable company to work with and ask about any fees. You should be able to get budgeting help for free.

    As an alternative, you can ask a money-savvy friend for help. In either case, having someone walk with you step-by-step through the budgeting process can help you make more sense of how to create a realistic spending plan for your money.

    Step 6: Stay Flexible

    Finally, your budget is a living document. Unlike your slow cooker, you shouldn’t set it and forget it. Instead, regularly evaluate it and make changes as necessary. Always blowing through the food budget? You may need to increase it and consider where else you can cut back. In addition, as your income, expenses or goals change, your budget should be adjusted to reflect your new circumstances.

    Ultimately, your budget is not about restricting money, it’s about empowering it. A good budget finally puts you in control of your dollars and allows you to dictate where money is going instead of letting silly, incidental purchases drain your bank account.

     

  • How to Talk to Your Kids About Money

    How to Talk to Your Kids About Money

    In some families, how to talk to your kids about money can be more uncomfortable than talking about sex. Many parents don’t know how to approach the topic of money, and some avoid it altogether. By starting the discussion early, you can make it easier to talk about this tough topic later, when your child is making larger purchases, thinking about getting a job, or beginning financial planning for college.

    Practice Smart Spending
    Talk with your children about how you make spending choices based on more than just affordability. Use language like “We’re not going to spend our money that way because…” or “It’s not a good value because…,” rather than just saying, “It’s too expensive,” which may give the impression that you would buy it if you could afford it.

    Create Learning Opportunities
    If you’re refinancing your mortgage, you have an opportunity to discuss the concept of interest and the importance of paying off loan balances quickly. When you’re taking out a car loan, talk about how loans allow you to pay for things that you don’t have the money for, but you end up paying more in the long run. Bring your kids with you to the bank. If you’re making a deposit in a savings account, talk about the importance of ‘saving for a rainy day’.

    Honesty as the Best Policy
    If you are facing financial difficulty, be honest with your children. You don’t need to worry them with all the details, but it is helpful for them to learn that money isn’t magical—it doesn’t just appear when you need it.

    Stress Wants vs. Needs
    Many kids—especially young ones—have difficulty differentiating between wants and needs. When your child says she ‘needs’ something, ask if she really needs it, or if she just wants it. Make sure your child understands the difference, and start paying attention to what you’re saying and the example you’re setting—for example, do you really need an expensive cup of coffee to get you through the morning?

    Keep an Open Dialogue
    When you’re out shopping, talk with your kids about why you make the purchases you do. Are you influenced by advertising? Pricing? The quality of the product? How do you choose one product over another? Help your child start thinking carefully about making purchases.

    Be an Example
    Discuss with your children the choices you make with your money. For example, how does your caring for others impact how you save, spend, and give money away? Why do you sometimes wait to make certain purchases? What does it mean to you to be responsible with your money?

    Highlight the Positive
    Many financially savvy practices, such as buying secondhand, donating old clothes to a thrift store, and reusing and recycling goods, are also good for the environment. Point out that not only are you saving money by doing these things, but you’re also taking action to help preserve the environment.