INDUSTRY INSIGHT
SAVING MONEY
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Financial Spring Cleaning Tips
It ’ s that time of year again . Winter is slowly moving past , and spring will be upon us in no time ! Soon we ’ ll be busting open the windows and giving our homes a good cleaning . Spring is also a great time to make sure that you are in the best financial shape you can be . Here are a few tips to help you get started on the right foot this spring .
1 . Pay Off Holiday Debt – If you didn ’ t budget appropriately for holiday spending this past year , chances are you are carrying balances on your credit cards . If that ’ s the case , take a good look at what you owe and see if you can afford to pay it off in full this year . If you can ’ t , at least put yourself on a plan to pay as much as possible toward the balance each month and work to pay off as much as possible .
2 . Organize and Shred Documents – Sort through all of your paperwork and only keep what is absolutely necessary . Normally I use a rule of seven years for tax paperwork since an audit can go back that far . Reducing paper clutter can ease stress and help you be more organized . Look around for a community shred event and take your unwanted papers there to shred them securely .
3 . Create a Budget for 2017 – Take the time now to budget for 2017 holiday spending by putting away as much as you can afford each pay so that you have savings built up come fall . Also look at what you owe others and figure out what can be paid in full this year , and how much you can afford to pay on all of your debt payments . If you don ’ t already have 3-6 months ’ worth of living expenses saved , now is the time to start setting some money aside on a regular basis . After reviewing your budget and cutting out unnecessary expenses , set up an account specifically for this goal .
4 . Review Your Credit Report – By law , you are entitled to order one free credit report per year from each of the three major credit bureaus . You can get yours at no cost by going to www . annualcreditreport . com . This is the only “ free ” way to get your copy . Review each of your reports to ensure there are no mistakes . Under the Fair Credit Reporting Act , both the credit reporting agency and the information provider are responsible for correcting inaccurate or incomplete information in your report . If you find any errors , report them to the credit bureau as well as the information provider . Unfortunately , even though this is a free service , most Americans don ’ t review their credit report annually .
5 . Get Organized ! – Are you overwhelmed every month with balancing your checkbook , paying bills , checking balances , etc .? There are so many great online tools that help organize everything . Check out your credit union or bank ’ s online banking and bill pay service so you aren ’ t going to multiple sites to pay your bills . Use a product such as Mint or Quicken to monitor your finances . Choosing electronic bill delivery is also a great option for reducing all that paperwork clutter in your home .
All of these financial spring cleaning tips are easy to do and will help keep your finances sparkly clean !
This Industry Insight was written by Wendy Kingsland . Wendy Kingsland is the CEO of Visionary FCU in Bridgeville . Prior to joining Visionary in 2011 , she was employed by Clearview FCU from 1991-2011 . Kingsland currently serves as Vice President of South West Communities Chamber of Commerce . She is active in the Pittsburgh Chapter of Credit Unions , serving as a board member since 1991 and currently serving as Treasurer . She also serves as a Director for the Pennsylvania Credit Union Association .
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