Spring is here and it’s time for spring cleaning! While you’re decluttering the garage and organizing the basement, don’t forget to give your financial house a good cleaning as well. These 3 easy steps will have your finances spic and span in no time.
Take time to streamline your accounts. Sure, you have your main savings and checking accounts, and maybe even a money market, but what about the account you opened when that new bank in town had a crazy marketing promotion (hey, it was basically FREE money), or the account at the bank right around the corner from where you used to live but don’t any more. Take a long hard look at all your accounts and consolidate. Close the inactive ones and merge your extra savings. Be sure you shred any unused checks and registers while you’re at it.
Once you have a clear picture of how much money you actually do have, it’s time to take a look at the money you owe. Round up all those credit card and loan statements and tally up your debt. Then think about consolidating. Do you tend to carry a balance on your credit card? Look at moving those balances to a card with a lower interest rate. Our USALLIANCE Classic Credit Card has one of the lowest rates out there with no annual fees, no penalty APR and low balance transfer fees. How much interest are you paying to your lenders on those higher rate personal loans or lines of credit? Think about rolling over your outstanding debt to one low-rate loan and make managing your debt easier with a single monthly payment.
Now that you know how much money you have and how much money you owe, it’s time to look at how much you can save. Over time, priorities may shift. Sit down and go through your spending over the past few months. Have you maybe gone a little overboard with the online shopping? Are your kids and their friends eating you out of house and home? Reevaluate where you need to budget your money (don’t forget to include paying off debt!), Look for areas that you may have over-budgeted, and where there is room to make cuts. Then adjust your budget accordingly.