It’s the first month of the new year, and there’s no better time than now to sit down, evaluate your financial situation and decide what money resolutions you’re looking to achieve in 2021.
Good news: TopCashback’s Consumer Expert Rebecca Gramuglia is giving us a leg up! Below, she shares five foolproof tips we can all use to get our money matters in order. You won’t want to waste another minute once you’re done reading.
Start off with a goal in mind.
Whether it’s paying down debt, contributing more toward retirement or giving your credit score a boost, your main goal needs to be a priority from the very beginning. Then, you can slowly implement steps to achieve your other objectives.
Here’s a pro tip: create goals that are measurable within a specific time frame (e.g., save $300 by March 2021).
Learn to budget.
The 50/20/30 rule is a must. It helps you make the most of your take-home income by budgeting and spending up to 50% of your after-tax income on household essentials. Financial priorities, such as debt repayments, savings and investments, should eat up 20% of your budget. And your wants – like shopping, takeout food and vacations – can rely on the leftover 30%.
In other words, learn to budget based on a Needs/Savings/Wants method.
Automate your savings.
Pay yourself first so you can faithfully contribute to your savings account. By doing this, you won’t be tempted to spend your paycheck elsewhere.
Incorporate smart shopping habits.
Every penny counts! Try shopping more sales, applying coupons at checkout or earning credit card rewards. These small steps will save you some serious bucks. Plus, you can always use a cash back site like TopCashback.com (*wink wink*) to score a percentage of your money back on all qualifying purchases.
Save money by investing in your home.
Repair bills can be costly and often unexpected. Aim to do more preventative home maintenance, such as caulking windows, fixing leaks and cleaning gutters. Maintaining your home throughout the year can save you a few thousand dollars on repair bills in the future.
Feel free to come back here throughout the year and let us know how your money resolutions are going! Our comments section is open.
by Diana Oliveira
Diana Oliveira is the senior copywriter at TopCashback.com. After beginning her copywriting career at a paper company, where she harnessed her creative chops writing about…paper, this self-described “bargain shopper” has felt at home talking about our many stores, deals and money-saving tips the last few years.