Spring Cleaning Your Finances
As the weather begins to warm up and flowers begin to bloom, that can only mean one thing: spring is in the air. You may begin your spring cleaning! Although you may need to clean out the garage, you should also consider spring clean your finances. Here are five tips to help you freshen up your accounts and make sure you’re prepared for the remainder of the year.
- Refresh Your Budget
In our December 2022 blog, How to Budget Better in 2023, we gave you practical ways to build out a budget that works for you. However, things may have changed since then. Maybe you received a raise to start the New Year or you inherited an unexpected expense. Either way, you should reevaluate your budget to get ready for the remainder of the year.
- Review Your Debts
Whether it is credit card debt, student loans, or auto loans, take another look at your debt. Not only will you be informed of the amount of overall debt, but it also allows you to start to craft a plan to pay off that debt.
Don’t forget to check your credit score. Knowing what debt is impacting your credit score allows you to prioritize which debt should be paid off first to help improve your credit score. You can access a free credit check once per year for all three credit bureaus (Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion) at AnnualCreditReport.com.
- Spruce Up Your Savings
If you are saving for your next steps in life or for your dream vacation, there has never been a better time to save with current savings rates. Incentive Savings is an easy way to start saving effortlessly. As you swipe your Legacy debit card, Incentive Savings will round up your purchase to the nearest dollar and deposit it into a savings account that earns up to 5.00% APY* on the first $1,000
- Purge Useless Services and Fees
The average monthly cable package is now $217.42 (U.S. News). Chances are you don’t watch every channel. If you find yourself not watching cable channels as often as you would like, maybe consider downsizing to the basic package. Or swap to a streaming service that is a fraction of the cost. This is an easy way to refresh your budget.
There are also additional ways to cut out your useless service and fees. Whether it is getting rid of your Spotify account or dropping Netflix from your streaming services, by removing these unused services you can begin saving instantly.
- Revisit Your Financial Goals
Each year millions of people sit down and define what their financial goals for that year may be. As you’re spring cleaning your finances, it may be good to reevaluate those goals and prioritize them in a way that fits your needs.
Whether it is saving for a down payment on a house, sticking with a budget, or paying off your debt, it is good to audit your goals throughout the year.
*Annual Percentage Yield
