5 Financial Goals for the New Year
“If you talk about it, it’s a dream, if you envision it, it’s possible, but if you schedule it, it’s real.”
Setting financial goals is the key to success. When you set realistic, achievable financial goals, you are laying down the foundation to meet your goals. Here are five financial goals for the new year:
1) Add to an emergency fund
When it comes to emergency funds, it’s better to be prepared than sorry. No matter what your financial circumstances currently are, life has a way of throwing you curve balls. These “unexpected expenses” can really hurt your finances now and for years to come. That’s why financial experts recommend building an emergency fund right now to prepare for those financial emergencies when they come. Set aside an achievable amount each month and watch it add up.
2) Improve your credit score
There are so many reasons why it’s important to have a good credit score. Not only does having a good credit score improve your chances of being approved for loans and lines of credit, but it can help provide you access to higher amounts of money. A good credit score can also mean lower auto insurance premiums. Not only does having good credit make getting approved for a loan or credit card easier, but it also makes it more affordable. You may also qualify for lower or waived deposits for rentals and utilities.
Luckily, it's never too late to improve your credit. Sign up for RentPlus and build your credit while renting. Pay your bills on time, keep your card balances low, and your credit will improve over time.
3) Pay down debt
Working toward paying down debt is a good move financially. Some ways to pay down debt are to pay more than the minimum due, or pay more than once a month. Another great way is to follow the debt snowball method. This is where debts are ordered from smallest to largest balance. With this method, you make the minimum payment on every debt but the smallest. For that one, you pay as much as you can each month. Once it’s paid off, you move onto the next smallest and so on until you’re debt free. Click here to see our blog post about the debt snowball method.
4) Create and stick to a budget
“A budget is telling your money where to go, instead of wondering where it went."
John Maxwell
RentPlus Money is a great way to plan a budget and and stick with it. RentPlus Money is an empowering personal, financial management tool that allows you to organize, track and control your money. It allows you to aggregate all your accounts in one place, view your income and spending by category, create a powerful budget, as well as set meaningful and attainable financial goals. One of the most powerful things about RentPlusMoney is that it will create your budgets based on your average monthly spending for each category from the 90 or so days of transaction history that is pulled in once you link all of your accounts. If you need to make changes to any of your budget bubbles, it’s easy to simply click on the bubble and update the budgeted amount. Bubble budgeting is a very different way of looking at budgets than what most people are used to. How much money could you save a month by creating and sticking to a budget?
5) Improve financial literacy
“Education is the passport to the future, for tomorrow belongs to those who prepare for it today.”
Financial literacy is the ability to understand and make use of a variety of financial skills, including personal financial management, budgeting, and investing. It also means comprehending certain financial principles and concepts, such as the time value of money, compound interest, managing debt, and financial planning.
Financial education can help individuals avoid making poor financial decisions to help them become self-sufficient and financially stable. Key steps to attaining financial literacy include learning how to create a budget, track spending, pay off debt, and plan for retirement. All RentPlus subscribers get the benefit of using the Finstrong education program for free. Once you have set up your account, you can begin learning more about your current financial wellness. Being aware of your FinStrong score will be beneficial in your financial journey. FinStrong will guide you through a self-assessment to figure out your Finstrong score.
Setting up financial goals requires some work, but achieving your goals will be worth it. When you set your financial goals in motion, you’re setting yourself up to achieve success in those goals, and in truly living the life you want. Start now, and have a financially successful 2022.