How to be Smart with Your Money.

Everyone wants financial security, but as many of you know, being responsible when it comes to money is harder than it sounds and so most of us fall short in this department. Starting to save and becoming financially savvy is not as hard as some may think, whether you are paying off debt, saving for a big expense or just becoming more financially stable for the future, being smart with your money can be easy and stress-free. To really achieve this, there are a few top tips out there to make it that little bit simpler

The Big 50/30/20 Rule 

Possibly the most popular rule when it comes to finances, the 50/30/20 rule is an effective way of saving in correspondence to your income. 50% of your monthly salary will go towards your necessities, this can include bills, rent and food. 30% will then be dedicated to whatever you want, this can be socialising, eating out or treating yourself to a shopping trip; then the final 20% will then be put away to get you towards your financial goals or save for a big ticket expense. 

This is an effective method of helping you manage your income because it helps you get your money organised into basic categories – obligations, personal spending and goals – allocating realistic sums into each. There are more broad variations of this rule, like the 80/20 methods, this allocates 205 of income to saving and the 80% is used for everything else you may spend on, so this allows you more freedom. 

This rule can be especially useful when used with a saving calculator on Compare the Market, this works out for you how long it will take you to effectively save for particular items or occasions based on your income. This calculator will tell you how to save and how long it will take you to reach your goal based on how much this item/occasion costs on average. 

The 20/4/10 Rule 

If you are alternating your finances for a particular item, such a car, there are other little rules to help you effectively plan out your spending. When buying a car, you should ideally put down 20% of its worth and agree to a finance deal that has a duration of no longer than 4-year; when it comes to transport costs, you should plan to spend no more than 10% of your income on these expenses. This little rule keeps you realistic and prevents you buying a car you cannot afford, protecting you from taking on a financial responsibility you are unable to effectively manage. 

Exceptions 

Like any money management methods, these will differ from person to person. They can be very effective for the majority of people who are earning the average yearly income, or any income between £10,000 to £100,000 (saving time differing depending on sum).

 But, there will always be the exception of people who will have to personalize these methods, either having to increase the percentage of income spent of necessities or being able to increase the amount you save each month, this may be the case if you have a strict time limit in which you need to have saved by.