Keeping things organized can be tough. We all have busy lives and it’s easy for things to be forgotten, pile up and become a big mess. One part of your life you don’t want to forget about is your finances. It can be very difficult to get your finances organized, but whether you’re having issues remembering to pay bills, or are just looking to improve your money management skills, we’ve got you covered. Here are 4 ways to get you ducks (or dollars) in a row.
Create a Budget
Perhaps the easiest way to keep your money organized is to track your spending and by utilizing a budget you can do just that. We talk about budgeting often which should tell you how important it is to track your spending. If you often catch yourself overspending and haven’t already created a budget, you should definitely consider trying one. Having trouble figuring out where to start? Check out this blog article we published last summer to read about a few common, but basic budgeting methods! http://blog.centralnational.com/2019/07/5-personal-budget-methods-you-should-check-out/
Set Financial Goals
Keeping organized can be difficult if you don’t have a goal. You can set one main goal, or several goals for various areas. Some examples might be saving for school, trying to pay off student loans, attempting to pay off a credit card or trying to build an emergency fund. All of these are great goals, but in order to reach a goal, you need to be organized and stick to a plan to get there. The best way to reach a goal is to first, write it down, or create a plan. Plans for saving or getting out of debt will help you figure out how much you need to set be setting aside every month to help you reach that goal.
Consolidation
If your finances are disorganized, is could simply be because you need to consolidate. You may have too many accounts at too many financial institutions, which makes it hard to keep track of everything. There are two ways to avoid the confusion of trying to figure out where your money is or where to make a loan payment to. The first, and obvious option, is to consolidate! You can refinance any loans you have to one institution allowing you to track everything in one place.
What if you don’t want to move loans? The second option would be to use Central National Bank’s free budgeting tool, MoneyCentral, available to customers through their online banking. Through MoneyCentral, you can track all of your accounts in one place, regardless of whether it’s a checking, savings, credit card or loan. You can even add in accounts from other institutions by simply adding them to the tool. Log in at any time and view everything in one spot. You can learn more about MoneyCentral here! https://centralnational.com/whycentral/moneycentral.asp
Take Advantage of Autopay or Autodrafts
If you’re notorious for losing things, like, say, your bill statements for example, setting up autopay may not be a bad idea. Autopay allows for electronic payments to be set up and paid on a designated date. This prevents late payments from ever being an issue. Just make sure you have money in your account the day your payment is scheduled, or have an overdraft program enabled.
This can also be done using your savings. You can set up an autodraft from your checking account to a savings account allowing you to build up a savings without having to do anything! Do you want help setting up an autopay or autodraft? Come into any of our branches and our staff can help make sure you get everything set up correctly.
Go Paperless
Organization can be as simple as putting statements in a folder. But why have a paper statement when you can get them electronically? Going paperless can help you stay organized simply by getting rid of that stack of papers on your desk. File your statements, by date, in an electronic file. This makes it easier to easier to locate them at a moment’s notice, and you don’t have piles of paper to organize.
When it comes to organized finances, decreased stress comes with the territory, and so organization can go a long way with benefits ranging from enhanced health to more free time. I don’t know about you, but a few extra hours and fewer doctor appointments sound like a great side effect to me!