If you have struggled in the past with the savings game it can be hard to get that door open, especially if you are living paycheck-to-paycheck. Saving money for your future is the most important habit you can create in your life. Here are twelve ideas to get you started on a healthy plan to save.
1. Open a savings account at a small bank where you don’t currently have a debit or credit card. You should be able to find a small bank even in large metropolitan areas. You can also consider an Internet-based bank that offers higher savings rates. You can compare services on MoneyCentral’s Bank Rates or online at bankrate.com. Then direct a portion of your paycheck into that savings account and just let it grow. It will help that you have to go to the bank to access the money rather than with a card.
2. Write out a check from your regular bank to your savings bank, or take money out of your main bank account in cash and then keep it in a sealed envelope for a week. This will force you to live sparingly for a week and when the check is deposited will give you an artificial cushion in your bank account. This will give you time to get accustomed to doing without that money for a few extra days. After a month, raise the amount of your regular savings check to match the money you are saving in the off weeks.
3. Start small. Many experts suggest you set aside 10% of your income as permanent savings. It’s a good goal so don’t give up just because you can’t make that 10%. Establishing a savings habit and saving consistently are better than putting aside a big sum of money just once. Start with something you know you can live with, say $25 or maybe 2% of each paycheck. Promise yourself that you will save that much every pay period. The very fact that you are willing to save money may be much more important than how much you actually save. You can increase that amount as you are able. In the mean time your savings will add up.
4. Every day take a $1 or $5 bill out of your wallet and put it aside in an envelope. Once a week, drop off the envelope at your bank. Small change, right? If your average monthly savings is $100 per month, and you make this deposit religiously in a money market account paying 5.5% interest for 20 years, you would have saved more than $36,000. Yes, small change does add up. Consistency is as important as the amount that you save. This same procedure will work for the pocket change you put on your dresser each evening. Put it in a jar or mug each night and at the end of each month take the money and deposit it into your savings account.
5. Monitor your ATM withdrawals. Decide how much cash you will withdraw each week and make it last. Don’t draw out more than you need and try to decrease the amount over time if possible. If you have money left at the end of the week, put it into your savings deposit envelope. If you don’t have any money left, be sure not to look for additional reasons to spend money. Avoid making multiple trips to the ATM every week.
6. Envision your goal. Now that you’re under way, focus on what you are saving for. Remember that rainy-day savings is in a different category than your permanent savings. Dieters are often advised to post a picture of their new trim selves on the refrigerator. Savers, too, should focus on their goals whether it might be a vacation, new home, or car. You spend some money now and some later. The money that you spend later is called savings. Picture what you will do with the money once it has been saved. Establish the amount and the number of months that it will take to achieve your goal and start saving the amount per month that it will take to complete that “picture.”
7. Try to decrease the number of your exemptions on your W-4 withholding form at work. For example, if you claim one, go to zero. If you are at 4, go to 1. The government will take a few extra dollars out of each paycheck. This really goes against most financial planning advice because you’re actually giving the government an interest-free loan, but if you would otherwise fritter the money away, you’re better off locking it up with the government. When you receive your tax refund, deposit it directly into your savings account or use it to pay down high interest debt. Money left lying around is usually spent. If you can’t refrain from spending money that’s on hand, then get a withholding form at work, complete it, and process it with your HR Department.
8. By allowing FFEF to manage your debt management program, you are using the power of rollup. Upon receipt of your monthly payment, FFEF sends the negotiated payment to each creditor. As the smallest creditor is paid in full, its monthly disbursement is added to the money going to the creditor who has the next smallest balance. This practice continues until all accounts are paid off. Once all of your accounts are paid in full, begin depositing the money that has been freed up into your savings account.
9. If you have had the same term life insurance policy for five years or more, you can potentially cut your premiums dramatically by changing policies. Here’s why: Term is straight insurance protection. When you buy a policy, you get a medical exam and the insurer knows you’re healthy. But each year the premium increases as you grow older and the time stretches out since your last health exam. If you are healthy and apply again with a new exam, the insurer sees you as a better risk. The other advantage to seeking a new policy is that the Internet has made the purchasing of term insurance far more competitive. If you are able to cut your monthly insurance costs, convert them to savings.
10. Pay a little bit extra each month on your mortgage or other loans by “rounding up.” By rounding your payment amount up to the next $100, you will add equity to your home and give you extra flexibility when you decide to move or refinance you loans. Depending on your loan’s interest rate, if you prepay an additional $100 a month on a $150,000 loan, you could save up to $72,952 in interest and shave 7-1/2 years off the loan.
11. If you really want to make a large purchase that will require monthly payments, save those payments for three to six months prior to the purchase. This will help you determine whether or not you can afford the payments in your current budget and, in the process, create a sizeable down payment for your upcoming purchase.
12. Write your check out at the grocery store for the exact amount of purchase, and don’t take out additional cash. This will stop you from spending any money that you are not later able to account for, and help prevent any evaporation of your precious funds. Once you have become a habitual saver, you can start looking at ways to invest your new funds.
Saving can be just as habit forming as spending. But, you must start somewhere. Follow any of the previous steps and take your proceeds to your savings account. If you don’t have a savings account, open one. Urge your family to do the same thing. Make a family excursion out of going to the bank with your money. Let each family member have his or her own savings account. It will be a momentous family experience and well worth your while. You could even make saving a friendly competition.