Personal Finance Tips » Personal Finance Budget

Wedding Planners Top Tips For Your Wedding Budget

admin — Mon, 05 Jul 2010 23:57:30 +0000

One of the first steps to take in preparing for the “big day” is your wedding budget. A budget is most simply defined as a guide to planning income expenditures, which means it shows how much money you have coming in, plus how much money you have going out.

Sit down with your partner to create your wedding budget. You need to figure your income for the next 12 months) or however long you have before the “big day” (remember the longer the engagement the longer you have to save). You’ll also want to figure up your regular expenses: rent, utilities, gas etc. Finally, decide how much of the money you have left can be put aside each week to cover your Wedding expenses. While you could choose to set money aside on a monthly basis, it’s not usually as effective.

Once you have an idea of how the two of you can spend on the wedding it’s time to call together the parents of the bride and groom. Discussing the financial aspect of your wedding budget may not be the best way to celebrate your engagement, but it’s better to be upfront about these issues to prevent problems and added stress later on.

At this meeting, you want to find out a few important things:

1. What is everyone willing and able to contribute?

2. What things are absolutely necessary and what can be given up easily?

3. Who is going to pay for what?

Finally by the end of the discussion,you should have a list of everything that will be needed, plus you’ll know specifically who will be paying for which expenses.

Now that you know how much you can spend, your next Wedding Budget related task is to spend as little as possible without sacrificing the quality of your Wedding.

Homework: If you were going to buy a car, would you go to the showroom with no idea of the automobile you want, what features you’re looking for, or even how much you would pay? Of Course, you wouldn’t unless you wanted to get ripped off. So why wouldn’t you take the same precautions when planning and budgeting your Wedding?

Research: When purchasing your Wedding products shop around, look on the net and get the best value possible.

Ask Questions: Vendors know that most brides to be are excited and emotional and a sign that you know what you are talking about is to ask questions.

Get Quotes: I always recommend at least 3 quotes, you will be amazed at the price gap.

Many brides-to-be are tempted to take out a loan to pay for their Weddings. You will start your married life in debt. In the end, making a wedding budget and shopping around is your best bet for creating the Wedding you want without bogging yourself down in extra long term expenses.

Remember, to achieve your “Fairytale Wedding”, all that is needed is commitment and your wedding budget.

Good Luck and best wishes on your wedding day and for all the days thereafter.

Budgeting With a Varying Income

admin — Sun, 04 Jul 2010 10:49:27 +0000

Budgeting is one of the earliest and most important aspects of personal finance. The basics of budgeting is simple. However, each persons financial situation is different so a one size fits all sort of budget plan does not work for everyone.

If you are a person who has an income that is not always the same, the standard budget can be a little hard to maintain. The following are some great tips for how to manage budgeting when you have a varying income.

1. Try to keep an average income to work with. If you can come up with an average income, either an actual average of your income or the minimum amount you can make, if know, then use that as your income on your budget.

2. Learn to be flexible. You have set expenses and then you have variable expenses. Learn to be able to adjust your variable expenses to meet your income so your budget is always balanced.

3. Keep on top of things. You should always look over your budget each month, but with a varying income, you need to do this often. This will allow you to stay on top of your budgeting and ensure you are keeping things in check.

4. Know the bottom line. You should always know that magic number – the amount of money you must have every month. Once you reach your magic money that will meet your basic needs then you can rest easy knowing you have the needs met and now you only need to worry about working with what you have left.

5. Try a weekly budget instead of a monthly budget. You may need to work your budgeting into a weekly plan. To do this, take the amount you must have and divide by four. This is what you must have each week in order to meet your expenses for the month. This will be put back immediately. Then you can budget out your expenses for each week. This may help if you are paid each week.

Budgeting with a varying income can be difficult. It can take some time to develop a style and method that works best for you and your situation. Do not forgo a budget, though, because it is too hard. A budget becomes very important when you can not count on a certain income each month. It will help you to stay in control of finances, so work at it and stick with it.

Money Management By Creating A Budget

admin — Sat, 03 Jul 2010 04:46:21 +0000

money management is much easier to control and understand if you create a well thought out and realistic budget. How do you know what a realistic budget looks like? First of all, you need to recognize that while it is important to cut your spending of frivolous items and daily trips to the vending machines you should still create a section in your budget for fun. This will prevent you from feeling deprived while managing your money, but once that money is gone for the month your spending will have to cease as well.

When creating a budget to manage your money you should begin by writing down all of your fixed monthly expenses. This would include your rent or mortgage, insurance, phone and Internet bills, electric and anything else you receive a monthly bill for, along with their amounts.

Take a close look at each of these items on your list. While some may be unavoidable, there may be others that you are either paying too much for each month or can eliminate altogether. A classic example of this is your phone bill. Many people pay way too much for a cell phone and a land line. If you have reliable cell phone service in your own home and a good cell phone plan, cancel your home phone subscription. If you feel you are paying too much for cell phone service, switch to a prepaid card. You can purchase a $20 card and make it stretch for the entire month. This will allow you to manage your money better.

After you successfully scrutinize your fixed monthly expenses, look at how much you are currently spending on variable expenses such as groceries, dinners out, gas, cable, clothing and entertainment such as movies. It is important that you look at a realistic account of how much you spend in each of these categories. This will allow you to make realistic adjustments.

Dinner out is another one of those classic examples that can kill money management efforts. If you and your partner eat out once a week you will spend somewhere around $200 a month or more depending on how expensive your taste is.

There is nothing wrong with treating yourself every once in a while for special occasions like birthdays or anniversaries, but you are throwing your money out the window if you frequently dine out. Set a limit to the number of times you can eat out that will fit comfortably into your budget. If you can realistically afford to eat out once a month, set the date on your calendar and make it a special night.

Money management skills begin by disciplining your budget. Once you have determined a specific amount of money you can spend each month in each category of your budget create envelopes for each category and label them. One envelope will be for groceries, one for movies, one for gas, etc. Then place the exact amount of cash you calculated in your budget into the envelopes. This money will have to last an entire month, so pace yourself. If you have extra money left over in one of the envelopes when the end of the month rolls around then you can treat yourself to an extra movie or fun activity, or maybe even save it.

If you can follow the budget you have set for yourself, you will be well on your way to having good money management skills.

Debt Management, Budgeting and Financial Controls – Planning The Budget

admin — Thu, 01 Jul 2010 17:05:41 +0000

Planning the Budget

In the previous exercise, we have identified all costs and all income and now have a clear picture of the current situation. Using this information, the budget we set will, in effect, be an overview of how we live our lives from this point on. There will be certain rules that we have to stick with, but we will know that sticking to the rules will allow us to achieve our future financial goals.

The next part of the process is a little more painful and certainly more laborious than the last, but nevertheless must be done. Begin with the easy stuff first. This is the middle section on the budget sheet, i.e.:

- motoring expenses;

- food and housekeeping;

- miscellaneous goods and services;

- personal and leisure;

- sundries and emergencies.

There will be lots of low hanging fruit here (easy savings to be made).

For example, let’s say your daily expenditure diary reveals that on your commute to work you buy a newspaper at the railway station and a coffee while you wait for the train. You buy lunch at the deli around the corner, but go to the local pub for a sit down lunch and a drink on a Friday. You have a drink with colleagues after work on average 2 nights a week and buy an evening paper to read on the train on the way back from work. This is what this expenditure looks like over the week:

Morning coffee: 1.50 x 5 = 7.50

Morning paper: 0.60 x 5 = 3.00

Lunch at the deli 2.50 x 4 = 10.00

Bar lunch: 7.50 x 1 = 7.50

After work drinks: 2.80 x 2 = 5.60

Evening paper: 0.50 x 5 = 2.50

Weekly total: 7.50 + 3 + 10 + 7.50 + 5.60 + 2.50 =

How to Work With a Budget

admin — Wed, 23 Jun 2010 09:20:02 +0000

Writing a budget is easy, but sometimes sticking to it can be a little harder. It’s definitely possible to stay on your budget though. If you’re having trouble balancing your budget and spending less than you make, use these few easy steps to stay on track.

Look over your budget

One of the main mistakes that people make in budgeting is never looking over their budgets to see where cut backs can be made over time. As you live your life, you should spend time looking over your budget line by line each month to see where you can cut back on your spending. When you set up your budget, you need to split it into essentials and non-essentials. You can easily use an Excel spreadsheet to total up both columns.

Cut back on the non-essentials

If your budget is simply not working because you’re spending more than you earn, you should look at cutting back on non-essential spending. Depending on what you tend to spend on, you may be able to cut back on eating out, gym subscriptions, magazines, and clothes you don’t actually need.

Since these things aren’t essential – they don’t involve lighting, heat, food, and a roof over your head – you can definitely live without them. It might be tough at first to cut back on these things, but it will help balance your budget.
Trying to completely cut out all your non-essential spending will result in a lifestyle you can’t sustain. You’ll just get fed up with budgeting and end up making more mistakes in the end. Instead, you need to find a balance between spending a little extra and spending too much. Here are a few ideas to help you balance your budget:

Look carefully at the money you spend on food, especially when you’re buying it in a rush. Work lunches and evening takeaways can really add up quickly. Get your hair cut less often. Adding just a couple of weeks between cuts can save you a ton of money each year. If you really want to save, just grow your hair long. Set a limit on the number of times you go out each month, and choose to go someplace cheaper if you can. Cut out your gym subscription and run in your local park or buy some free weights for your home. Limit how many new pieces of clothing you buy each month. Look at ways to save on your digital subscriptions. You may be able to downgrade your subscriptions or use Freeview instead. Keep close track of how much you give to charities.

Once you’ve made some of these changes, see how much they will change each month’s budget. If they don’t make enough of an impact, you can work your budget a bit more. Don’t take it too far, though. Be sure that you leave yourself some wriggle room unless you have lots of debt to pay.

Balance the essentials

You have to pay the mortgage or rent and all your utilities each month, of course, but you can cut back a bit on these payments, too. Perhaps those initial ‘deals’ that tempted you in have ended and now you’re paying higher rates. Look over all your bills each month carefully to be sure that you’re getting a good deal on your essentials. You can balance out these essentials by using some of these ideas:

Rent or mortgage

You can actually save a ton of money on your mortgage payments just by getting the best deal on your mortgage rate. Instead of sticking with the standard variable rate, which can be quite high, shop around for better rates and you will save.
You can check out mortgage rates at most price comparison websites. They take your information and give you the best mortgage rates for your circumstances. You could also talk to an independent mortgage advisor, but be sure that you know about their fees first.

Electric and gas

There are tons of different suppliers on the energy market right now, and you can change the amount you pay by choosing the right one. It’s definitely worth checking out different companies to see how you can save, especially if they offer discounts for switching to them. Again, check out the price comparison websites to see how much you can save on your energy bills.

Water

One of the best ways to save money on water is to get a water meter in your home. This will make you more aware of how much water you’re using, so it’ll help you save money and make you more environmentally friendly.
Insurance
Not shopping around between insurance companies is one way people end up paying way too much. Once a year or so, shop around for good deals on insurance payments. Look at ways you can save in these areas:

Life insurance Critical illness insurance Car insurance Pet insurance Travel insurance

Balancing your budget can be a little complex, and it can take some time. Cutting down your non-essential and essential spending will take a bit of effort as you carefully review what you’re spending in different areas. Take a couple of months before you set your budget in stone, and you could make a big difference. You should review your budget every few months and also whenever your mortgage deal comes up.

It can take some work to stay on top of all your spending and to adjust your budget, but you could save hundreds or thousands of pounds a year.

5 Steps to Effective Personal Budgeting

admin — Fri, 18 Jun 2010 10:21:58 +0000

Making money is one thing, but if you are not careful with your money you will end up in trouble. Setting up a plan to keep track of your budget can help you manage the money you are making with your business. Here are five steps to effective personal budgeting.

1. Basic is best

When first starting out your budget, you want to keep it as simple as possible. Creating a complex budget will only deter you from wanting to pursue it. Start by putting together a basic list of your monthly income and expenses. Stick to the easily identifiable expenses such as rent, car insurance, and utilities.

2. Monthly income

In order to be effective with your personal budgeting, you have to be exact with your monthly income. You want to make sure you include any money you have coming in. This can be work paychecks, interest income, alimony, child support and any other money you have coming in.

3. Expenses

Now that you know how much money you are making, it is time to determine how much you are spending. This is certainly the troublesome part to your budgeting as you will have far more expenses than your income. What is even worse is you may even have hidden expenses you do not even realize exist. You want to group your expenses so it is easy to keep track of and organize.

4. Establish estimates for monthly expenses

You want to establish estimates for any of the expenses that you face on a monthly basis. Things like food, gas, and utilities can be included in this. If you find one category is rather large, you can break it down into sub-categories. An example of this would be breaking utilities down to gas, electricity, water and so on.

5. Track actual expenses

The last step to effective personal budgeting is keeping track of your actual expenses incurred during the month and then grouping them into different categories. It is easy to keep track of rent and utilities, but it is the cash expenses and daily expenses that are difficult to keep track of. However, it is essential for your budget you keep track of everything possible.

Personal budgeting can do a lot for your business and your life. In order to have a hold on your money and understand what is coming and going, take the time to set up an in-depth budget to follow. This will allow you to see how much money you really have coming in and where exactly your money is going.

Bill Budgeting 101

admin — Wed, 16 Jun 2010 08:07:25 +0000

Budgeting can be a very boring and daunting task that many people would rather continue to put off instead of actually take action and set a budget they can stick to. You do not have to be an accountant in order to understand the process of budgeting and learning just what makes a successful budget work and most importantly how to stick to this budget over time. When you first begin to think about learning how to budget your bills and other monthly expenses, it is important to keep it simple from the beginning and create a basic outline of your budget to start with. Getting too complicated in the beginning can become frustrating and difficult if you are new to this type of financial control.

You want to first start out with a sheet of paper with one side listing your assets and the other side listing your liabilities, your monthly or reoccurring bills. This shows you exactly where your money is coming in from and where it is going out as well. Visual aids in the financial world can be incredibly affective. When you can actually see how much money you make in a month compared to how much money you spend in a month, for many people it can be an eye opener they did not see coming. The average American is spending their pay check each week or month before they even get it. This means that we are spending more than what we are getting paid or the same amount we are getting paid and this type of lifestyle is not getting us anywhere when it comes to retirement savings and other investment foundations.

Everyone has reoccurring bills they have to pay each month and because they are reoccurring often times they become overlooked or taken for granted so to speak. You want to be completely aware of the bills you pay each month, how much they are and if you are paying off debt, how much of the balance remains. These are the types of details that can help you see where your money is being wasted and where you should be spending it for more beneficial results. Although credit card debt and mortgages are common in our society, this does not mean that you have to live in debt your entire life; start taking control of your debt and make the responsible decisions to budget your money and pay off your debts before spending more money elsewhere.

Make sure that you are tracking your monthly expenses as well. This means having a book or binder that contains the information of how much you spend in a day and what it is spent on. Although this may sound tedious you will be amazed how much money you spend in a day or a week that can be saved and put to better use. This is a great way to learn where your money is going and being able to budget and plan for bills and debt with money that is being spent elsewhere.

Home Budgets Can Be Thrown Off by Both the Expected and the Unexpected

admin — Tue, 15 Jun 2010 13:42:43 +0000

If there is one thing that can cause tremendous damage to our finances, it would have to be irregular expenses. These are expenses that do not happen every pay period or every month, but often come up at some point during the year.

That may seem odd when you first look at it because we can, in fact, prepare for these costs. The unfortunate fact, though, is that most of us do not plan for them at all. Like those emergencies that often blindside us, these bills also catch us off guard. They sneak up on us, and we are in a financial dilemma when it comes to figuring out how to pay them.

Let’s review a couple of the more popular irregular expenses. Since a lot of problems with home budgets happen during the holiday season, let’s start off with the major expense involved in gift giving.

Gift giving

Every year, people go into debt because of the holidays. The spirit of the season takes hold of the checkbook, and, before you know it, we are spending the entire new year paying off credit cards.

I am going to share a secret with you. It is really important that you get this. If you need to save this article for a reminder, please do so.

There are very few constants in my life, but there is one thing that I have noticed: there has never been a year when Christmas did not come on December 25. I think I may be able to predict that Christmas will fall on December 25 again next year. Don’t quote me on it, but I just have this feeling. As silly as it may sound, it amazes me how many people are out on December 23 and 24, pushing and shoving their ways through the stores, buying last-minute gifts.

In that same respect, I will never forget those 31 hours over 2 hot June days that I spent in the hospital waiting for my daughter to make her debut. Most mothers that I talk to have fond memories of their delivery-room experiences. Yet, parents scramble at the last minute every year, trying to put together their children’s birthday parties.

I cannot understand the undue stress that many of us place on ourselves when shopping for Christmas and birthday gifts. There is a simple solution: plan ahead. If we start preparing for Christmas and birthdays right after the last one, we actually have 12 months to plan and get everything right.

For example, if we want to spend $600 on gifts, then we know that we should be putting $50 each month into a gift envelope. Then, as sales and gift ideas pop up throughout the year, the money is there to take advantage of the opportunity.

Expenses for the home

A second major irregular expense revolves around the home. Whether you own or rent, there are always little things that come up.

For homeowners and renters alike, appliances and furniture may need to be replaced at some point. Repairs and upgrades may need to be done. These can be major budget breakers if not planned in advance. Any of these expenses can possibly take a whole paycheck and set us back on our other normal monthly expenses.

If you know that you would like to replace the furniture or appliances, start putting money away each month toward that goal. If you plan to spend $1200 on new furniture in four months, then plan to set aside $300 per month prior to the purchase.

The best way to avoid being thrown off course is to turn the expected but irregular expenses into regular monthly expenses. Add them to the monthly budget, and set money aside every month until the funds are actually needed.

Turning these irregular expenses into regular expenses will not only enable you to stay on budget, but it will also keep you from accruing interest on a credit card as well as keep you from adding another bill to your budget.

Personal Financial Planning – Insurance

admin — Tue, 15 Jun 2010 06:15:46 +0000

Insurance is the most common risk transfer technique in risk management.

There are 3 layers of insurance protection.

Firstly, the social layer, provided by national schemes. For Singapore, it will be the insurance from CPF like DPS, HPS, Medishield, Eldershild, CPF Life. They are usually the most basic required and premiums are most affordable. Secondly, the group layer. This is coverage provided by employers, unions or associations. Their premiums are also relatively affordable. However, they will no longer cover when leaving the organization and there is usually a age limit, resulting in a drop in coverage when it is most needed. Thirdly, the individual layer. This is purchased from insurers at the personal level to supplement the first two layers. Enhancing the coverage in scope and depth.

Classes of insurance:
- Life Insurance
- Investment-Linked Policy (ILP)
- Health Insurance
- Personal General Insurance

Life Insurance
The 3 main types of traditional life insurance are term, whole life and endowments. The most basic term policy is the Dependent Protection Scheme (DPS) by CPF. The premiums are the lowest in Singapore and can be paid by CPF OA. However, the limitation is that coverage is up to $46,000 and age 60. Another decreasing term policy by CPF is the Home Protection Scheme (HPS). A compulsory mortgage insurance for those using CPF to purchase their properties.

Investment-Linked Policy (ILP)
ILPs are mainly yearly renewable term insurance coupled with investment in unit trusts and the addition of more charges. They are subject to a different set of rulings, do not need trustees and fund selection is restricted to those within the insurer umbrella of funds. One advantage is the charges are transparent. However, they are numerous, tedious to compute and allows so much variation that it aims to confuse. They include:

(1) Initial sales charge – This is a one off charge factored into the bid-offer spread of the fund. Usually about 3 to 5% of the investment amount.
(2) Fund management fee – This is paid to the fund manager regardless of the performance of the fund. Usually 0.5 to 2% per annum and it is priced into (deducted from) the unit price.
(3) Benefit charge – The insurance coverage premium including all the riders are funded by deducting units. The premium is usually increasing based on the new age band.
(4) Policy fees – A flat monthly fee is charged regardless of the premium amount, to cover administrative expenses.
(5) Administrative charges – Additional fees paid for record keeping, transaction services, bank services, trustee services, and miscellaneous fees. Usually about 0.2 to 0.4% per annum and it is priced in as well.
(6) Fund switching charges – This will be charged when changing investment funds. Usually free for one switch per year.
(7) Premium holiday charges – This will be charged when the premium holiday feature is activated.
(8) Surrender charges – Charges imposed when surrendering the policy.
(9) Allocation – Amount of premiums used to purchase units is usually not 100% for the initial years. Example: 20% for 1st year; 40% for 2nd year; 60% for 3rd year; 80% for 4th year; before finally 100% from 5th year onwards.
Suitability of ILPs will be for those who have sufficient insurance cover and have excess budget which they would like to use to support their agents instead of investing in unit trusts directly.

Healthy Insurance

(1) MediShield and private shield plans
MediShield is the social insurance that provides the most basic cover. The disadvantages are that it has many sub limits for each of the covered expenses, expires at age 85 and provides coverage mainly for class B2/C wards. It is also subject to deductibles and co-insurance. It is paid by MediSave. Some employers may provide the second layer of cover. However, this cover will end when leaving the employer. Medical coverage is most needed in retirement, as a result, taking up a plan then will be subject to strict underwriting conditions (i.e. it will not be accepted or existing medical conditions will be excluded). The private shield plans allow coverage beyond age 85, but it needs to be taken before age 75. It usually does not have sub limits as it is “As Charged” coverage. Some insurers even cover the deductibles and co-insurance if a rider is purchased on top of the basic plan. The MOH website provides a comprehensive comparison of all the available private shield plans. The plan is most suitable for covering medical and ongoing treatments. With rising medical cost, this insurance is most necessary to avoid cost being an issue to seek the proper medical treatment.

(2) Critical illness
It provides a lump sum benefit if the insured is diagnosed to be suffering from one of the 30 selected illness or surgical procedure. The 30 illness are chosen from a list of illnesses by the Life Insurance Association of Singapore (LIA). Their definitions have all been standardized by the LIA. The 2 types of coverage are the acceleration and additional. The acceleration coverage shares the sum assured with the death/TPD benefit. The additional coverage is a separate cover on top of the basic sum assured, hence it can be higher than the basic sum. Variations include being issued as a stand-alone policy or a rider, having an early payout for the initial stages of the illness, and providing specific coverage for only one illness like cancer. It is most suitable to provide for treatment cost that may not be included in the HealthShield like expensive overseas or alternative/experimental treatment as well as additional care giving expenses incurred when critical illness is diagnosed.

(3) Disability income
It provides monthly income in the event the insured is unable to work as a result of an accident or illness.
The definition of disability varies in that the inability to work is confined to the insured’s own occupation, similar occupation or any occupation. It is most suitable to protect against the loss of income so as to maintain the living expenses in the event of disability and differs from TPD in that the definition is less stringent.

(4) Hospital cash
It provides a daily cash benefit for each day of hospitalization. It is usually limited to a specified number of days and a life time limit. It is most suitable for the self employed who will suffer income loss as a result of hospitalization.

(5) ElderShield and private plans
It provides a monthly benefit if the insured is unable to perform 3 out of the 6 activities of daily living (ADLs), namely feeding, bathing, toileting, dressing, mobility and transferring. ElderShield is the most basic level of coverage, providing $300 or $400 monthly for 60 or 72 months. It can be paid with MediSave. The private plans enhances these plans to provide higher benefits and longer duration of payout. It can be paid with MediSave up to a limit. It is most suitable to cover disability for those aged 40 and above. TPD coverage usually ends at age 60/65, but this provides life time coverage. And it is usually limited payment of premiums.

Personal General Insurance

(1) Packaged household
It provides coverage for the building and contents.
It is usually compulsory when a person takes up a housing loan.

(2) Valuable articles
It provides coverage for items with high monetary value like antiques, fine arts, etc.
It can be an itemized or blanket coverage.
It is usually for those who keep valuable items in their homes like art or antique collectors.

(3) Personal accident
It provides coverage for bodily injury caused by solely, directly, independent, external, violent and visible means.
It is most suitable for those with a budget constraint or are involved in blue collar work or are not able to obtain any of the traditional insurance due to medical underwriting restrictions.

(4) Motor
It is a compulsory insurance available as 3 types: Third party, Third party fire and theft (TPFT) and Comprehensive. Premiums will vary between insurers depending on the make, model, age of the car, driver’s age, occupation, experience. Note the amount of excess applicable and it is advisable to purchase NCD protection if NCD has accumulated to 50%.

Based on the risk management plan, those low frequency, high severity areas should be covered with the appropriate insurance. As insurance coverage and premiums vary between insurers, it will be prudent to get quotes from as many as possible. Insurance is usually a life long commitment, it will be wise to ensure the most value and suitable one is taken up.

Personal Accounts – Clever Ways To Manage Your Account

admin — Fri, 11 Jun 2010 10:33:50 +0000

Once you’ve found the right bank and the right account, you may be tempted to rest on your laurels. However, if you want to make the most of your money, you need to give it regular attention. The world of finance is changing continually, with new offers and opportunities cropping up every season. To take advantage of them, you need to keep your finger on the pulse.

Not only should you keep a flexible approach, but be prepared to do a bit of research to keep abreast of the latest financial news. You don’t need to be a stockbroker to read the money pages – most of the Sunday papers carry a finance section aimed at the average person. The internet can also be a good source of up-to-the-minute articles – check Yahoo or the BBC in their ‘personal finance’ sections.

As well as keeping an eye on the money market, you should have a clear idea of how your accounts work. Stay abreast of any direct debits and standing orders – paying bills by monthly instalments can save the hassle of posting cheques, spread the cost of services, and you will often gain from special discounts if you pay this way. However, monthly payments can cause problems if you don’t have enough cash in your account – charges for going over your agreed overdraft can be nasty and are money down the drain. Try to arrange for direct debits to come off around the same time – a few days after pay day is usually a good time, and you’ll often be able to choose which date. When budgeting, aim to plan for the whole year rather than just from month-to-month.

Credit card companies will offer introductory rates to new customers – if you don’t mind changing cards every six months or so you can avoid paying high rates of interest. Look for 0% APR offers on balance transfers and especially those that do not charge a balance transfer fee.

If you have debts, (and these days almost everybody does to some degree) make sure that you are on top of them. The worst thing you can do is ignore them – make sure you know what you owe, and how much interest you are paying. It might be a good idea to consolidate debts – for example converting credit card balances into a low-interest loan or second mortgage. Allocate as much as you can comfortably afford to pay each month, and stick to it. If you are struggling with debt, contact your debtors. They will often be able to help you plan your repayments, and will certainly be more understanding if you keep in touch.

Citizen’s Advice Bureau ([http://www.citizensadvice.org.uk/macnn/]) can offer support and advice, as can National Debtline (http://www.nationaldebtline.co.uk/): Freephone 0808 808 4000.