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Tag: Family Finances

  • Moms: Are You Ready To Work For Yourself?

    Moms: Are You Ready To Work For Yourself?

    Modern women want it all, and we can have it all. Becoming an entrepreneur is one of the best ways to earn an income, contribute to your community, and still get to be present in your children’s lives. As a stay-at-home mother, you have plenty of options but you should also weigh the pros and cons before you proceed with your professional endeavors.

    stay at home mom entrepreneurs

    How to Become Stay at Home Mom Entrepreneurs

    Today, we share a few tips for moms looking to break into the world of entrepreneurship while balancing children and social life while preserving their sanity.

    “Mom”preneurship Means Dedication

    Whether you are opening a brick-and-mortar location or plan to work exclusively from home, the vast majority of business owners work between 40 and 60+ hours each week. When you have children at home, this means working unusual hours, and sometimes in chunks as little as 20 or 30 minutes at a time. Many small business owners find that, at least in the early days, starting their business gives them less free time than they had envisioned. Be prepared to be busy and to feel guilty on those days when you can’t devote your all to either your family or your business.

    Small Business, Big Decisions

    Business owners have to make big decisions every day. This can include things like whether or not to hire employees, the type of business structure you will have, and which, if any, mentors or consultants you’ll have helping you along the way.

    Hiring employees is one of the biggest decisions as it brings with it many implications, such as paying a salary, providing enough work, and making sure they get paid on time. You can eliminate the payment issues pretty quickly by setting up a system that allows you to handle small business payroll the easy way. This will be software that helps you stay organized and integrates with all of your existing systems. You’ll also want to plan for automatic payments and make sure that your program can calculate info for taxes and gives you the flexibility to add same-day direct deposits and alter your employee benefits and payments directly from out.

    Another major decision is choosing a business structure. While many work-at-home moms choose to act as a sole-proprietor, forming an LLC might be a smart move. An LLC is financially advantageous, and you may be able to keep more of your profits from being taxed when you set up as a legal business entity. Your LLC or other structure can also help you keep your personal finances separate from your business so that you do not risk commingling funds, which can blur the line between your personal money and your business assets.

    If you’re planning to choose a mentor, EU Business School explains that you’ll need to find someone that understands your plan. You must be willing to listen to this individual’s feedback, even if it is not what you want to hear. Remember, there is a reason that your mentor was successful in their business, and there is a lot you can learn from other people’s experiences and knowledge.

    What Are the Best Home Businesses for Moms?

    Not sure yet what you want to do? That’s okay, there are many types of businesses that are ideal for busy moms. A quick tip here: make sure that you have a great home office, which is set up to reduce stress so that you can be your most efficient best. A few ideas that you may be able to begin as soon as today include:

    • Selling products for your favorite company. Mary Kay, 31, and Paparazzi Jewelry are all popular among stay-at-home moms because they solve problems. Mary Kay offers affordable makeup and self-care products, 31 bags are high quality and make it easy to carry children’s toys from one place to another, and Paparazzi Jewelry lets women dress up or dress down without feeling guilty for overspending on something nice for themselves.
    • Working as a travel consultant. If you love to travel and have a knack for sales, working as a travel consultant is a great job you can do from home. While you probably won’t make a ton of money – Cosmopolitan notes that the average travel agent makes less than $40,000 per year – you can build your clientele and supplement your family’s income.

    Making Time for Everything Else

    Balancing work and kids is not always easy. But as a mom and entrepreneur, you have to make time for both of these important areas of your life as well as yourself.  Make a point to practice self-care and pull away from your obligations at least sometimes. Our tips for achieving balance include:

    • Take at least one day off of work every week. You are going to feel like you work every day, and this may be true some weeks. But, as you begin to build your business, you must not lose yourself and your family relationships in the process. Give yourself at least one day completely off work every week. Use this time to bond (going to the zoo is a great spring and summer Sunday afternoon activity if you plan ahead) or just to relax.
    • Meal prep. To be a better business owner, you have to fuel yourself with the right foods. And, no, a peanut butter and jelly sandwich at 2 PM every day doesn’t cut it. It’s easy to let your diet get out of whack, so make a point to plan ahead each week. You can make mini quiches, salads in a jar, roasts, pulled pork, veggies, or crock pot fajitas, for example, to have healthy meals at the ready for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.

    Mom/entrepreneur is a joint job title that can mean many things. For one, it means you’ll be busy. It can also mean that you can pick and choose the hours you work so that you can attend dance recitals, karate classes, or adventure outings with the kids. Working for yourself is also a great way to supplement (or even replace) your family’s income so that you can take control of everything in your life. Before you start, take steps to lay a strong foundation, like getting your accounting and payroll software in place, and don’t forget to schedule time away from work so that you can focus on the things that matter the most.

  • 5 Unexpected Expenses And 5 Ways to Pay Them

    5 Unexpected Expenses And 5 Ways to Pay Them

    Paying for any expense is never a fun time. But unexpected expenses are especially the worst. They often destroy the most potent of financial plans and leave absolute destruction in their wake.

    Sometimes it’s a medical emergency that is worth six months of your salary. Another time, you have to attend a wedding —somewhere in Europe.

    According to Bankrate’s Financial Security Index, three in ten Americans have no emergency savings at all. So what should they do if faced with expenses they’re not expecting?

    There are several ways to tread waters in such a scenario. But before going into them, let’s take a look at some of the most common ways unexpected expenses emerge.

    unexpected expenses

    Common Types of Unexpected Expenses

    Even if you map out a perfect budget that covers everything from rent to grocery, your financial stability is vulnerable to some of these unpredictable expenses.

    1.    Medical Expenses

    Anyone not covered under a good insurance plan can be devastated by medical expenses. According to the New York Times, the majority of American families are a single medical emergency away from complete financial ruin.

    Unfortunately, a $1000 medical bill is enough to put most households under. And let’s not ignore the mental toll health-related matters takes on an individual. Money should be the last thing on a person’s mind while they’re dealing with health issues.

    Ideally, it should never come down to health against money but unexpected medical conditions often create this bleak situation for people who don’t have any savings set aside or are uninsured.

    2.    Home Maintenance

    You never know when something will go wrong in the house. Be it termites, plumbing issues or the refrigerator breaking down — house expenses come out of the blue.

    It’s hard to plan for them but one can minimize the risk to an extent. While you can not predict a colony of insects finding refuge in your attic, you can get someone to look at the wiring and plumbing system to see if any issues can occur in the immediate future.

    Even then, these types of expenses are inevitable. And without any savings in the bank, they can be especially worrisome.

    3.    Buying Gifts or Taking a Trip

    You would be surprised to know just how many people go into debt in the holiday season. People who haven’t saved throughout the year often seek out loans for buying Christmas gifts.

    But this can be avoided with an appropriate saving plan. Meanwhile, there is no way to plan for your friend announcing her pregnancy and buying something cheap for her baby shower is not an option either.

    Similarly, unplanned trips can throw one’s financial plans out the window. Whether you’re flying out to attend a friend’s wedding or to see an uncle who’s going into surgery —these trips can often be quite costly.

    4.    Car Issues

    Having your own set of wheels is always a good thing. However, with your car comes expenses like property tax, inspections and maintenance.

    Sometimes a ride can give you other troubles as well, which is why anyone that owns a vehicle should have a car savings account. You never know when the engine will break down or any other repair will be needed.

    When that happens, you need to have a plan or you’d be left with a broken down car and a massive bill from the mechanic.

    5.    Stolen Items and Mugging

    No one wants to be at the receiving end of theft or mugging. However, life is unpredictable. Losing something valuable can be both personally and financially damaging.

    Replacing items is a tedious process especially when you’ve been a victim to a crime. Insurance and savings can come to your rescue in such situations.

    Still, it’s better to stay safe, take inventory of expensive items, save their pictures in a secured location and write down their values. In case they are ever stolen, you should take all the necessary preparations.

    unplanned expenses

    How to Pay for Unplanned Expenses

    Life is uncertain and things often don’t go as planned. Paying off unforeseen expenses might seem like a mountain to climb. Fortunately, a few tricks can make this summit a whole lot easier.

    1.    Reduce Your Variable Expenses

    It’s hard to completely overhaul your expenses on short notice. Although the process can be overwhelming, you would need to go through your statements, utility, credit card, receipts, loan payments and other spendings.

    Knowing where the money is going will put things into perspective. It will also help you reduce variable expenses such as electricity bill, car maintenance and grocery among others.

    Reducing these expenses will not be easy. It will require lifestyle adjustments such as avoiding transportation costs by carpooling, cooking at home instead of eating out and skipping the manicures for a while.

    When it comes to shopping for groceries, there’s always the option of seeking discounts. This will be easier online than in brick-and-mortar stores. Digital coupons can help you save on regular household expenses and bring down your variable expenses considerably.

    2.    Seek a Personal Loan From a Credit Union

    Credit unions are often the better alternative to commercial banks as the latter tend to have higher interest rates. The only catch is that membership is required in credit unions before one can apply for a loan.

    This requirement can be fulfilled by opening a savings or checking account with the credit union. What you have to examine is whether savings in interest is greater than added requirements.

    For anyone that’s already a member of a credit union, securing a personal loan with relatively lower interest rate shouldn’t be that much difficult.

    3.    Reach Out to Family

    Borrowing from family might be one of your better options. It’s extremely rare for a relative to charge interest on a loan. Also, it’s less likely for this loan to have a predetermined repayment model where you’d be repaying a fixed amount each month.

    But there is a downside to such a loan. Involving money in relationships can end up having some negative consequences. Research suggests that almost 45% of such transactions end up badly.

    One way to avoid such an ordeal is by making the loan somewhat official. Putting the loan in writing and setting some loose terms might eliminate the possibility that you will take things lightly. After all, whether you borrow from a cousin or a bank, a loan is meant to be repaid.

    4.    Utilize Your Savings

    While borrowing money to pay for an unexpected expense might buy you some time —dipping into your savings is a much more permanent solution. But for this, you need a cash savings account that can be accessed without any penalties.

    Beyond this, you need to ensure the money is not earmarked for some other purpose and whether or not you would be penalised for withdrawing it. An early withdrawal penalty is the last thing you need on top of a surprise expense.

    Keep in mind that withdrawing cash savings is preferable to investments. Generally, the investments are meant for savings that have medium-to-long term.

    5.    Sell Personal Items

    Quickest way to make some easy cash is by going through your personal belongings and selling items that are no longer needed.

    Look for clothes that no longer fit and sell them to local consignment shops. Organize a garage sale. Find collectibles like records, DVDs and action figures and put them up on websites like eBay. You can even advertise these on relevant Facebook groups to get better prices.

    Not only would you make some easy bucks doing this but also free your home from unnecessary clutter.

    Conclusion

    Among the things that are certain in life, unplanned expenses are right up there with death and taxes. There are infinite ways in which you can be faced with a money situation you were least expecting.

    A car accident can have you not only paying for fixing the vehicle but also treating any injuries you might’ve sustained. Similarly, a death in the family incurs ridiculously expensive funeral costs.

    Thankfully, these risks can be somewhat mitigated through a good insurance plan and by setting aside some savings. There are other ways to go about this as well. One can reduce their expenses, seek out loans and sell some unnecessary items to ease some of the burdens.

    The only option that’s not on the table is giving up and letting these expenses overwhelm you.

  • How To Use Financial Calculator Online For Financial Planning

    How To Use Financial Calculator Online For Financial Planning

    It is hard to really identify anything that the Coronavirus disease has not affected. The COVID-19 has spread across countries and continents and declared many lives. Because of nation-wide lockdowns, people have become unemployed and are trying to find ways to stretch and sustain their budgets. The declining economy, unreliability of markets, and massive unemployment have rendered chaos and tension among the public. 

    These unrivaled times have brought concerns about the narrowed income and the future. 

    Nonetheless, as Einstein said, “in the middle of difficulty, lies opportunity“, there are ways to deal with the current crises. To tackle these hard times, individuals and families carry out some steps to manage their budgets wisely. Although COVID-19 will continue to affect the world, a few smart measures can aid people to maintain their finances better.

    Websites like Calculator.me have tools that help customers manage their finances and budget by using free financial calculator tools. You can use the tools to sort out financial planning, clear off debts, manage your savings, and more. 

    How to use financial calculator

    How To Use Financial Calculator

    Consider the following steps if you are looking for ways to making your finance handling more clever and sustainable-

    Budgeting and frugal living 

    Frugal living doesn’t have to do with being stingy, depriving, or compromising yourself to save a few bucks here and there. It is more about living smarter and being ingenious. Frugal living focuses on saving your money wherever possible so that you can utilize it in more valuable things. You can make a frugal living with these methods:

    Improvise your food budget

    Cooking your meals instead of eating outside is far less expensive, and it can help in stretching your budget even more. You can also grow your own vegetables; buy less-expensive parts of meat, and try to minimize the expenses while eating out.

    Save money by embracing DIY.

    Dare yourself to create the things that you usually buy or to adjust with what you have, as opposed to buying new. Although it is more convenient to head to the shop, DIY is much cheaper. There are many online tutorials that can teach you DIY skills.

    Control your household expenses

    By getting frugal at home, you can save monthly electricity, water, cable, or phone bills. Also, you can be your own handyman when the need arises by consulting YouTube or other sites. The more money you save on these expenses, the more you can save for what is more valuable to you.

    There are many other factors like using coupons and freebies, taking care of your health, timely maintenance of your vehicle, and more that make your frugal style of living more effective. 

    To keep track of your budget and lifestyle, you can also use calculator tools from websites like Calculator.me.

    Use calculators for paying off loans early

    Some loans can be a real burden on one’s shoulders if they are not appropriately managed. Borrowing money from the wrong lender and at high interest rates and not repaying in time can cause a lot of trouble too. 

    You can take the help of a Loan Calculator to calculate your loan’s regular payment and total interest paid during the loan period. It is a tool that will guide you to keep track of your existing personal loans and help you clear them fast.

    If you are having a hard time managing your loans and clearing payments, it’s time for you to allow a calculator tool to take the wheel for loan amortization. The tool also shows the time and interest rates it will take for you to clear off a loan if you are opting for a new one. 

    With a loan payoff, calculator handling a loan makes it easier for you, which directly affects your overall finance management. 

    Various salary conversion tools

    Earning a good salary often misleads people into not thinking about their financial future. Sadly, people realize that their salary isn’t permanent only when their earning years come to an end. Guilty or not, you can always be aware and avoid this kind of situation by taking care of your finances and building a secure financial future. 

    While you can be determined to manage your salary on your own or with someone’s help, you can also opt for a tool like a salary conversion calculator. It is used to calculate and convert your wage or salary of one period into equivalent periodic terms. 

    For example, you can keep track of how much you are earning hourly, daily, weekly, monthly, or yearly by calculating your salary of a periodic term. The tool can also help you if you want to compare your present salary or wage to previous ones. 

    With a salary conversion tool, you can know everything about your salary, calculate quick estimates, convert annual salary from hourly wage, and vice versa. There are a lot of other benefits when you are well aware of how much you earn versus how much you spend. So consider using a salary conversion tool.

    free financial calculators

    Money-saving and investment calculators

    Saving money is a process most people find difficult, although it shouldn’t be when you’re doing it the smarter way. Here are some simple tips to help you save money:

    Limit your credit card usage– This is an essential factor as many people tend to over-use credit cards and build up their debts. Make sure you don’t get caught in that web and regularly pay the dues in full amount.

    Don’t delay paying your bills– You can avoid late fees and other unnecessary charges if you pay your bills on time.

    Clear your debts– The lesser debts you have, the less interest you will have to pay so that you can save more money. 

    Make a shopping list– While going for groceries, be sure you have a list of all the items you need for some time so that you won’t have to take extra trips to the store. Also, avoid buying things just because they are on sale.

    You should also negotiate prices when you can, lessen your phone expenses, and do many more small changes that can really affect your money-saving process. Above all, you need to set your mind into saving money to make the process a long-term habit. 

    The money-saving and investment calculator can show the benefits of saving-money. 

    You can calculate how much money you’re saving by replacing expensive products that you habitually buy with the less expensive one of equivalent quality. This Calculator also helps you see how much you could earn (interest) if you invested the money you are saving. 

    Through the money-saving Calculator, you can estimate the future value of your investment at different compounding terms. There is so much you can benefit by using a money-saving calculator as you can keep track of all your savings and investments and decide what to do best. 

    Retirement planning calculators

    Retirement may not sound serious when you are young; it is something you can easily ignore and think about later. But the problem with that is, life doesn’t always work according to your plans, and without a retirement plan, you put you and your loved ones in a compromised situation.

    Retirement could mean merely relaxing at your home, an afternoon nap, or for some, it is going on a trip with friends. And yes, these years are most-anticipated by hard-working people who work 8-10 hours every day.

    The thing about retirement is, it is an end to the regular struggle for wagers and salaried people. For you to be financially independent even after you retire, you need to have a pension plan. Everyone who wishes to enjoy a joyous and financial tension-free retired life will know why retirement planning is vital. 

    What is retirement planning?

    Retirement planning is a life-long process of setting income goals post-retirement and taking necessary actions to achieve those goals. It includes studying sources of income, approximating expenses, and devising a savings plan for the future. You can start planning your retirement anytime, but it is best if you do it sooner.

    Uses of retirement planning calculators

    Using a retirement planning calculator helps you figure out how much money aggregation is needed to maintain a financially comfortable retired life. It is a simple tool that lets you determine the amount of money you will require after you retire from work to enjoy a stress-free life.

    It takes personal details like your present age, current income, savings, life expectancy, and the desired retirement age. The money you need in the future to achieve your retirement goals is based on these details by the Calculator. The Calculator then helps you choose the ideal plan for you to invest in to grow your wealth for post-retirement plans. If you haven’t planned your pension plans and want to now, you can check out websites like Calculator.me, which provides the best savings and retirement plans.

    Loan calculator tools for personal loans, auto loans, mortgages, and mortgage refinance

    For you to deal with personal loans, auto loans, and mortgages, there are calculator tools that can make it easier and more systematic. 

    Personal loan calculator

    A personal loan calculator makes it easy for you to determine the monthly installments on your loan. Monthly installment is the key component that decides the tenure of your loan.

    The benefit of using a loan calculator is that you can calculate your pay-offs and EMI better, thus, having better loan planning. Calculator.me has user-friendly calculator tools that anyone can use easily. It shows loan options you can opt for and how to estimate the EMI annually or monthly, calculate the interest rates, in case you are planning to take a loan.

    Mortgage Calculator

    A mortgage calculator works out your mortgage’s monthly repayments built on the principal amount, balance, the interest rate, and the tenure of the loan. It also calculates your associated mortgage costs like taxes and insurance. Mortgage calculation can be done by handheld calculators as well as free software programs and online calculators. 

    Another benefit of using a mortgage calculator is that you can amortize your loans. Different types of loans depreciate in different ways, although the most common and general style is that loans amortize first with interest and later with the principal. Meaning, the borrower will eventually pay more interest than the actual borrowed amount. 

    If you have an opportunity to shorten the time of the mortgage, you should take it, as you can save a lot of interest while doing so. You can easily create your schedule for amortizing principal and interest with Calculator.me. By knowing the schedule and where your loan stands for the remaining period, you will have the advantage of budgeting and saving for the long run. 

    Auto loan calculator

    If you are interested in buying a car, you will have to make a variety of conclusions as you prepare to purchase it. Apart from choosing the right models, finance is also an important factor of concern.

    Unless you have enough extra cash, you need to borrow money to capitalize on big purchases. Before buying, you need to think about the cost of the vehicle, how to keep it running, and the timely servicing expenses. 

    Some people might be able to pay for the automobile at its entirety out of their pockets, but it is not the same case with everyone. The rest of us will need some financing options. So the things you need to consider while buying a car are down payments, loan term, rate of interest, and so on. 

    An auto loan calculator’s job is to help you choose the right car loan. You can calculate the monthly payment, interest rates, and the term of the loan with this calculator. Hence, it keeps you aware of the expenses and your investment in the automobile so that you can efficiently estimate and manage your overall budget. 

    As you finance and stretch your budget in these difficult times and try to save money, the factors mentioned above and points will help you make the best of what you have and lead a sustainable life. 

    It is crucial to have a calculator to aid you while you try to cut costs and save money in every possible way as it can help you determine your financial status better. So consider giving it a try. 

    While continuing your money-saving process, you might want to treat yourself from time to time. When you do so, keep your goals in mind so that you don’t over-spend. Saving money and controlling your finance is all well and good, but it all comes down to you- the way you think about spending. If you have set your mind to your goals, everything will pay off eventually.

    Financial tools

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  • 11 Greatest Hacks To Get Your Family Finances In Shape

    11 Greatest Hacks To Get Your Family Finances In Shape

    Do you ever think to yourself that you know you need to make a change with the way your family finances are operating? You recognize your way of doing things isn’t working anymore, but you have no idea where to start.

    You are not alone. This is a topic that a lot of people out there really want to know.

    Millions of people feel the same way.

    Managing family finances is not an easy task for many people. Especially if there are reasons that your current situation is changing.  Budgeting for a new baby, moving, kid going to college, etc.

    family finances

    Keep reading to get some helpful hacks to get your family finance situation going in the right direction.

    Personal finance is a hard topic to ask anybody else because that can be a little invasive. So it’s super difficult to find out where we are on the spectrum.

    Are we doing well at managing our own family’s finances compared to other people? Are we really far behind on where other people in the same age range are with managing family finance? There are some easy basic solutions to managing your family’s finances. That way you can be sure you are on a great path.

    Success of how well you are managing your family’s finances is measured solely on if it is working for you or not. Nobody else can tell you exactly what processes to use when managing your monies. 

    Every household is different, but there are a lot of guides that help a ton. Being knowledgeable of the do’s and don’ts of great money management skills will go a long way for you.

    How To Get Your Family Finances in Shape

    Here are some hacks to help get your household finances in shape.

    Table Of Contents

    1. Implement Basic Math

    This is an important step in money management. Honestly, I do simple 1st-grade math for every month, to manage my family’s finances.

    I have a spreadsheet of our bills. It includes:

    • The bill
    • The amount of the bill
    • The day it drafts out of our bank account

    When the bills come in my email or in the mail, I update my spreadsheet right away with the amount due for that bill for that month. The spreadsheet is actually on my iPhone.  I use Google Drive and sync it to my phone so my spreadsheet is readily available for edits.

    Then I simply add up all the bills. I get a total. This is your total expenses.

    Then I total our income for the month.

    Now I subtract. Subtract income minus expenses. Voila!

    That is the magic math that I use. Works like a charm and works every time.

    It’s quite an easy concept.

    Don’t forget when you are adding up your bills, to include your gas, groceries, eating out and savings account additions.

    Those are bills too ya know 🙂

    2. Use Averages

    A lot of people forget that expenses such as gas, eating out, groceries, etc, are large bills that “go out of your bank account” every month.

    Be sure to include these on your spreadsheet.

    So many times I hear people say they don’t know where their money is going because there is more month than money.

    This is a big reason why. They aren’t accounting for the eating out, groceries and gas.

    I know for me, these alone are large expenses for the month.

    In the beginning, when I was trying to figure out a system that worked for our family, I used a simple tactic that really helped a lot. I still use it from time to time now. At the end of each month, I would add up all our purchases in 3 categories. 

    Eating Out, Gas, Groceries. 

    Then, I wrote those numbers down and would do that again at the end of the next month.

    After a few months, I took an average. So, I took the number in each category, and added them up and divided by how many months I had a figure for.

    That is the number to this day, that I use on my spreadsheet for bills.

    I don’t look at my individual bills as much anymore. I primarily used the add function on my spreadsheet. I just need to know how much money is going to exit out of my bank account that month. And then, I subtract expenses from our household income. Now I know what we have leftover.

    Like I mentioned before, don’t forget to put a savings account on your list of bills. That needs to happen.

    3. Contribute to your Savings Account Automatically

    Contributing to your savings account is one of the most important things that you can do for your family’s financial situation.

    It does not have to be a lot of money that you are putting in. It just has to be something. That way you are in a good habit of putting some money away.

    When it comes to a time that you can put a higher amount away, you will already be in the habit.

    A lot of times, people do not necessarily put money into savings. They leave it in their checking account and just keep a higher balance in there.

    Keeping your savings separate, and in a different account is a good practice, and it’s something you should think about if you are already not doing that. 

    Some banks allow you to automatically draft money from your checking account into your savings account.

    You can pick what day of the month the draft happens, and what amount. It’s great because it’s out of sight, out of mind. You don’t have to consciously log into your online banking to make a transfer. It is automatically going to happen. 

    credit cards

    4. Pay more than Credit Card Minimums

    This one is self-explanatory. If you can swing it, pay more than the credit card minimums. That way your principal balance will start to come down.

    A lot of credit cards have such high-interest rates, that when you pay the minimum, you aren’t making much headway on the actual balance.

    If you can, open a 0% credit card and transfer your balance to it. Just beware of high balance transfer fees. 

    5. Have a ‘No Spend Day’

    I love these days, but they do not come around often enough!

    If you can eat all your meals at home one day, you are doing great. 

    Plan a place to have quality family time for your family that doesn’t involve spending money. Maybe take a walk, take a ride in the car, etc. 

    There are a lot of ideas out there. If you can have a few “no spend” days, you will want to repeat it and that can only help your family’s financial situation.

    CNBC has a motivating article on how someone saved a ton of money by having “no spend” days.

    Just do not be fooled into thinking you can spend more on another day because you saved money on a different day. Lol.

    6. Unsubscribe from Retail Emails

    When you are trying to manage your family finances better, temptation with enticing retail emails does not help. All it does is make you want to buy!

    Their marketing teams really do a good job of making you want to shop when you open their email. Or even if you see their store name in your inbox, it still tempts you to want to shop.

    I recommend unsubscribing from a majority of them. If you want to shop, you will shop. 

    You do not need a constant reminder of the sales, deals and beautiful products every time you open your email. You are trying to get your family’s finances in shape, and this is a good practice.

    7. Cut out extras

    Sometimes you have to come up with some creative financing. If you see on your spreadsheet that there are some items that you could remove from your spreadsheet, that would be a great feeling.

    So do it. Give your money management a makeover and slash unwanted expenses.

    Is it gourmet coffee and eating fancy lunches at work that’s becoming a hefty bill? 

    Is it credit card payments? If it’s credit card payments, open a 0% interest credit card and balance transfer for a small balance transfer fee. That way you are making headway on your principal balance.

    Is it too high of a grocery bill? There are tons of ways to cut money spent at the grocery store. You just have to meal plan, write out your shopping list and don’t shop more than once a week.

    Once you see what all your bills are, on paper, then you can get a good idea if you are impulsive spending on too many extras.

    After you establish if you are spending too much on “extras“, then you can cut some of those indulgences out. Just until your family’s finances are managed better. Then you can add them back in, as you can.

    No shopping

    8. Check it off

    Once a bill comes out of your bank account, put a checkmark next to that bill on your spreadsheet.

    This way, you can easily add up how much more money is going to go out of the account that month. This is nice because, at the snap of a finger, you can have a number for how much more money for bills will exit the account.

    There are many times I have wanted to know at a moment’s notice, how much more money will leave my bank account this month. With the spreadsheet, I can easily add it up quickly.

    This is quite handy around the holiday shopping season, and knowing what not to waste money on.

    9. Pay Yourself First

    This is a good practice to adopt. This means that putting money into your savings account every month.

    You work so hard to pay other creditors, so why not pay yourself?

    A savings account is so valuable because it is there as emergency funds. 

    How nice of a feeling is that?

    So how do you put money into savings when you already come up short in the month?

    Pay yourself first, meaning put your savings account as a bill on your excel spreadsheet.

    This is the second item on my own list, next to my mortgage. No need to overwhelm yourself thinking that if you can’t put $50 away then there’s no point.

    If you can do $10, do $10 and don’t eat fast food one day.

    You will start to get into a great habit of putting money aside and not spending it. As you get better at managing household finances, you will be able to put away more.

    Saving money takes practice. It’s just like anything else!

    10. Pre-Spend Your Money

    Huh? Let me explain.

    When you use a spreadsheet to see what your monthly bills are, add them up and get a total dollar amount.

    When you see that total dollar amount, that is essentially “pre-spending” your money. You already know where some of your money is going to, for that month. This is so very important that you take a look at this.

    Otherwise, you have less of an idea where your money is going during the month.

    financial planning

    11. Meeting with a Financial Planner

    It is always a good idea to meet with a financial planner to manage your household finances. They will make recommendations for investment accounts, retirement, college savings accounts, etc, based on your situation.

    You are never too young or too old, to take this step.

    Don’t think that because you may be lean on money during the month that you can’t still partake in putting money into retirement or college savings.

    There is always a way to put a few dollars away. 

    You can find a financial planner by:

    • Word of mouth
    • Asking your friends
    • Searching the internet

    I strongly recommend a financial planner. They will help you with things that you were not doing on your own. Check out this article from the balance.com on how to find the perfect financial planner.

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    Andy Masaki

    Andy Masaki

    Guest Author

    Andy is a blogger at Penny Less Dad and a financial writer associated with the Oak View Law Group. He is a debt expert and a member of several online forums where he shares his advice as well as tips to lead a financially independent life.