How To Optimize Your Personal Finances For Better Financial Security
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Posted on: 08/04/22
Given the current state of the economy, people are doing everything they can to stretch their dollars. This is necessary to be able to make purchases for essential items, while still having a place to live. The following personal finance tips will help you to get the most out of the limited amount of money that you have.
Have a plan for dealing with collection agencies and follow it. Do not engage in a war of words with a collection agent. Simply ask them to send you written information regarding your bill and you will research it and get back to them. Research the statue of limitations in your state for collections. You may be getting pushed to pay something you are no longer liable for.
Buying used can save you a lot of cash. Cars for example, lose up to 20% of their purchase price, just by signing on the dotted line and driving off the lot in it. Let someone else pay for that depreciation by purchasing a car that is a couple of years old. You will still have a low mileage warrantied car, but without the hit to your equity.
Consider downsizing to only one vehicle. It is only natural that having more than one car will cause your premiums to rise, as the company is taking care of multiple vehicles. Moving to one vehicle not only will drop your insurance rates, but it may also reduce the mileage and gas money you spend.
Baby sitting can be a way to earn money that allows you to stay in a comfortable environment the whole time. You must have a good image for people to trust you with their home and more importantly, their children. However, if you do a good job, you can get recommended to others and further your personal finances.
Always make your credit card payments on time. If you do not you are sure to be deemed a credit risk; your credit score will go down; and your interest rates will go up. Make at least the minimum payment on time so that late payments do not get applied to your credit report.
Set up an automatic payment with your credit card companies. In many cases you can set up your account to be paid directly from your checking account each month. You can set it up to just pay the minimum balance or you can pay more automatically. Be sure to keep enough funds in your checking account to pay these bills.
Exercise
Exercise caution when you estimate what sort of mortgage payments you can afford. A mortgage is a very long-term financial proposition. Meeting your payment obligations will rely on how much money you will earn over a number of years. Keep in mind the possibility that your income may stay constant or even fall in the future, when you consider mortgage payments.
Evaluate the contents of your investment portfolio once a year. By reanalyzing the portfolio on an annual basis, you can ensure that any high risk investments are removed or reduced in exposure. By taking time to do a regular analysis, you can also take advantage of the "sell high, buy low" mentality while you take stock of your investments.
Find a financial buddy to team up with to help pay down your debt. Just like having a buddy to exercise with, having a financial buddy can keep you motivated on being financially prudent. Keep track of your progress together and make yourself accountable to your buddy, and likewise, help keep your buddy headed in the right direction.
As stated before, people are trying their hardest to make their money go further in todays economy. It takes a lot of thought to decide what to spend money on and how to use it wisely. Luckily, the personal finance tips from this article will allow you to do just that.