SPRING CLEANING YOUR FINANCES
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Thank you God for springtime, I am so ready for some warmer weather and some sunshine in my life. We currently live in Toledo Ohio where our winters last way too long and spring and summer are such a welcomed event. I wish I was joking but honestly it snowed here just yesterday, and I am dying to see some warmer weather actually stay longer than a day. So in anticipation of the warmer springtime weather and in protest of winter that refuses to leave I have prepared this post.
1) Update your budget.....Go over your budget and make sure that you know how much money you have as well as where your money is going. Taking stock of your finances and preparing a budget can make all of the difference in your financial situation. Here is a previous post that may give you some ideas on how to stick to a budget in various areas of your finances. HOW TO STICK TO A BUDGET
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2) Review your automatic deductions....See what you are having automatically deducted each month and make sure that you are aware of what dates things are coming out each month to avoid costly over draft fees in the future. It can also help you discover other services that you can have automatically deducted if this is helpful to simplify your bill paying monthly to also prevent late charges. Lets face it some of us are not good at keeping up with dates that things are owed and this really helps to not have to keep track all year of the due dates.
3) Make a list of services you are paying for and eliminate unnecessary expenses....Taking stock of what expenses you have can be great to help you understand where your money is going and what is necessary. Reviewing your budget frequently throughout the year can give you an opportunity to eliminate expense that you do not need to have. These expenses might include gym memberships you are not using, subscription services you do not need, etc.
4) Sell or donate items you are no longer using..... You can take a look around as you are doing your actual spring cleaning and discover items that you are not using at all anymore or could easily do without. If you are able to locate items that you do not need this is a great time to donate these items to charities you support which can possibly mean valuable tax write-offs this year. You can also sell these items and make good money, depending on their value on:
Letgo
Offerup
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trove
5) Develop a game plan for grocery shopping and meal prep..... Groceries can be a huge expense every year and so can lunch breaks at work. Making a game plan on your grocery budget and meal prep for all meals can be an extremely helpful way to save. Meal prep can include breakfasts and lunches, or preparing dinners in advance when you know you will be tempted to use a drive thru or order take out. Here are a few previous posts I created that may be helpful in saving you money on groceries as well. APPS TO HELP YOU MAKE MONEY AND SAVE MONEY SAVE MONEY ON GROCERIES
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6) Start preparing for summer vacations.....This not only gives you something to look forward to when you are living on a budget and working hard but also gives you time to find the best deals to save money on you upcoming vacations. If you are not sure where to start in preparing financially for you vacation to save money check out my other blog post that will give you some ideas on ways to cut costs for vacation. HOW TO SAVE MONEY FOR VACATION
7) Make sure you have the best rates on car Insurance..... Call around on your car Insurance and renters or homeowners Insurance. Make sure that you have the best possible rate on these Insurance policies. This can be huge in saving you money throughout the year and can really make a difference in your overall budget. We always have used Answer financial over the last 5 years and have had great success reducing our Insurance costs with just a simple phone call. I am not in any ways sponsored by Answer Financial, and I do not receive anything from them for suggesting you use them. I also realize you may find more success with another company so I am including a few other good ones as well to get you started.
Freedom Financial