budget

Ways to Stick to Your Budget

December 20, 2015 by arizona

One of the hardest things that adults face is the ability to stick to your budget. After all, it should be easy so many people do not expect for this to be such a struggle. However, more and more people find that after they make their budget, they still are not meeting their financial goals. Chances are this is due to not really sticking to the budget that they have set out. Why is this? It is very hard to stick to the strict financial goals you have after budgeting, once you have certain financial habits in place. After all, it takes a while to stop certain habits, and financial habits are some of the hardest to break and change. That is why it is important to stick to your budget, and there are several great tips to help you just do that.

[Read: Great Ways to Save Money during the Holidays]

Ways to Ensure You Make your Budget a Habit

There are several methods that you can use in order to stick to your budget, below are some of those that people have found successful for them.

Start with a visualization board. This board is meant to be a way for you to visualize why you want to ensure your budget stays intact. For example, some people put pictures of their dream home that they hope to have once their budget is under control. Whatever your goals, you want to visually represent this on this board.
Share your goals with other publicly, like with social media. This way you are going to be less likely to fall back from the goals that you have put into place. If you know that others are interested in what you are doing, you are going to give your best. Plus, this could help you to find others who share the same goals, and you can become a team of support for one another.
Just because you want to stick to your budget does not mean that you cannot an indulgence every now and then. It is good to let loose every now and then, so that you do not feel as though there is nothing to your life other than a budget. The key is to make these indulgences spaced evenly throughout the year, rather than overindulging and completely ruining your budget goals.
Keep track of the success that you are having as this can encourage you to keep doing what you are doing. Plus, it will allow you to see those moments that you should celebrate with an indulgence for the hard work that you have put forth.

A budget is a great thing to have, but if you do not stick to your budget, then it seems that you wasted your time making this budget.

Making a Budget that you Can Stick to

These tips are great for those who have already established their budget, but if you are at the stage of developing your budget, be sure that you are doing this in a way that is going to ensure that you can stick to it. Here are a few tips to help with just that:

Always ensure that your financial goals are doable, do not make goals that you know you are never going to achieve, as this is just going to make you get discouraged and you are not going to stick to your budget.
Make small goals that lead to your main goals so that you can see more progress.
Always ensure that you are putting your debt and other bills in your budget to ensure that you are not falling behind in any part of your financial portfolio.
Ask for help from a financial advisor if you feel that your budget is not what it should be.
If debt is a huge issue with your budget, think about ways that you can deal with the debt that you have such as debt consolidation or the like
Be sure that you are making a budget with your significant other, if you two share expenses, as those who bring in the income and are a part of the household need to be on board with the new budget.
There are always going to be slips when it comes to making a budget, and if you have these slips, consider these to be mistakes to learn from
Adjust your budget if needed if you find that you simply cannot stick to this for whatever reason in this way you are not becoming deterred with this process

[Read: 3 Solid Ways to Ensure Your Financial Security]

Budgeting is something that everyone does. However, sticking to a budget is harder than what most people realize. You can stick to your budget with these tips and with realizing that there are times that you cannot help but to slip from this budget. However, with these tips, you are going to find that sticking to a budget can be made easier.

Household Financial Management by Stay at Home Moms

May 5, 2014 by arizona

If you are a stay at home mom, you can take control of your household financial management and play a vital role in having a financial stability at home. This would reduce the money related stress and tension usually found in families where the financial management is not given much importance.

Managing household finances don’t need an educational background in finance or accounting. Some of you might fear financial management as you think you don’t have proper training or expertise in this field. However, there are several free resources at your service to give you the complete control and confidence you need to manage your family’s finances. These resources and the tips mentioned below make the daunting task of household financial management very easy and understandable for the stay at home moms.

Budget Planning

As a stay at home mom, this is the first step in giving yourself and your family a solid financial foothold and a clear picture of what your money spending habits are and what are your prime expenses. There are several free apps like Goodbudget, Mint and BudgetSimple which allow you to set a monthly budget, track your expenses, give you an expense breakdown in different categories and subcategories, and track you saving goals. They also have options to send you alerts when you are making a big purchase or exceeding the spending limit set by you, as well as reminders for the upcoming bills.

Debt Clearing

If you have a debt on your family’s shoulder, as a stay at home mom you should have a stable debt repayment plan. Apps like Ready for Zero help you in constructing a debt repayment plan based on the total debt you owe and the targeted debt-free date. It can directly link to your bank accounts and offers the option to notify you of your credit score if there are any changes. Additionally, financial calculators like these form Bankrate, and these form CNNMoney can assist you in understanding the impacts of the financial decisions you make.

Money Saving Tools

As a stay at home mom, you can have a great impact on the bigger picture of your family’s financial health by taking small everyday steps to save money.

Eating out at restaurants or going for convenience foods take a big bite out of any family’s budget. However, with some planning this big cost can be reduced. At websites like Say Mmm you can plan your meal menus, create organized shopping lists and find great recipes. Also, minor changes like brewing coffee at home instead of daily purchasing from café and replacing soda with water are not only good for your health but for your bank balance also.

For shopping, being a stay at home mom you should create a habit of collecting and using coupons. They come in mail and are available abundantly online on sites like RetailMeNot.com. Also, on some websites like Freecycle, you are connected with a community of people who are willing to give away things that you need for free; these things vary from books to furniture.

Side Income

Small side income can do great wonders in helping a stay at home mom to lessen the family’s financial burden. There are multitude of options available like doing online freelance jobs for anything like writing, translating or IT programming on websites like Elance and Odesk, or starting up your online business store on Ebay for things that you don’t need or that you can find at cheaper rates at thrift stores or garage sales.

Retirement Planning

Although your husband’s retirement might be many decades ahead, the decisions taken today by you will dictate how your future life will be. This planning is very important to set up for things like your child’s college education fund. It is very important to create goals and then work backwards to determine how much of savings is required every month now for a smoother sailing after retirement. Online calculators like at AARP are very helpful in establishing such plans. Forbes also offers a well-rounded list of additional calculators. Also, don’t miss checking out the Social Security Administration website to see how they will assist you in those years.

Final Thoughts

Managing family’s financial matters can appear to be very scary and daunting. However, answers to most of the problems that you will face or the topics about which you need more understanding are easily available online. The only thing required is a little bit of dedication and interest in looking for those answers. With so many resources at your fingertips, you will have the ability to have a clear idea of your family’s present financial situation and you will be able to take steps to improve it for the better future of your family; thereby eliminating the unnecessary stress in your household.

10 Important Reminders Before Getting An Auto Loan

February 13, 2014 by arizona

A car brings you to places and offers you the convenience and luxury in life. Majority of customers purchase cars by getting an auto loan. This makes buying a car easier and more affordable. Car loans in the USA have been increasing, which shows that consumers have confidence in the recovery of the country’s economy.

Is getting an auto loan a right decision?

The spending statistics of 2013 reveals that the consumers’ auto loan balance has significantly soared. The Federal Reserve Bank of New York stated that the increase has been climbing without fail for the last 10 quarters. This has pushed the car loans higher in the debt list, which is as follows:

Mortgage Loans: $8.43 trillion
Student Loans: $1.03 trillion
Auto Loans: $0.84 trillion
Credit Card Debts: $0.67 trillion

If you think that getting an auto loan is an unwise decision, the New York Federal Reserve tells us otherwise. This is proven by the decline in car loan payments beginning in the third quarter of 2012. If you are looking into getting a loan for a new car, here are some tips you can use.

Determine your budget.

Start by asking yourself what you need the car for. Do you just need a practical one to drive yourself to work of a big van that can fit your whole family comfortably? These will give you an idea what type of car to buy. Proceed with evaluating your finances to figure out if you can afford one right now. If you are getting an auto loan, see if you can meet the monthly payments on top of your usual expenses. Be honest with your assessment.

Figure out the best time to buy a car.

The end of the month or the year is usually the best time to buy a car. This is because during this time, dealers push to get more sales to meet their quotas. Likewise, new car models are released in September and October and dealers offer special deals to dispose the older models. You will be surprised at the huge savings you can make if you purchase your car at the right time.

Choose a car dealership.

Do your research well. Know more about the car dealers in your area before you schedule your visits. Know who has the highest customer satisfaction ratings, best after sale service, and greatest deals.

Find out the invoice price.

Check out the car dealers’ websites for the invoice price of their cars. The invoice price is the manufacturer’s price and the selling price is what you can negotiate.

Delay the purchase if you can.

If you can save up for a few months to pay for a portion of the car price, it would be to your advantage. When you are getting a car loan, the lesser the amount, the lower the interest.

Check if you can qualify for a car loan.

You may want to check on your credit score. Although, you can still be approved for a car loan even with a bad credit, it will be for a steeper rate. If this is the case, try to approach other loan establishments, like credit unions, etc.

Visit the car dealer with a person you trust.

If that person knows about cars, then it is more advantageous. Your companion will be able to give you a sound advice and help you with the negotiations.

Inspect the car thoroughly.

This is especially true with used cars. Make sure that you are getting your every penny’s worth. Get a real feel of the car you are purchasing by taking time on your test drive.

Know how you can negotiate the price.

When negotiating prices, be armed with three things. The first is, knowing your credit score. If you are credit worthy, you have a good chance of negotiating at least a reasonable interest rate if you’re getting an auto loan. The second is, trading in your old car wisely. Some dealerships offer you a good rate on the new one, but give you a lowball price for your old car. The third is, keeping your budget in mind. Never be tempted to get a car you can’t afford.

Don’t make rash decisions.

It’s alright to walk away if things don’t seem to go as planned. Don’t make the mistake of displaying an urgent desire to buy a vehicle. If dealers notice this, it will be harder for you to negotiate. If you feel that you are not getting your money’s worth, don’t hesitate to drop the deal and walk away. This is why it is very important to do a good research before visiting the dealerships. It allows you to know for certain when to walk away and when to go ahead with the purchase.