Spring cleaning! Time to flip your mattress, dust the ceiling fans, and organize your finances. If you’re unsure where to start, here are some helpful guidelines to getting your fiscal house in order:
Create a Basic Filing System
Organize your important documents into easy to find folders. Sort your papers into six categories: forever documents, monthly statements, tax documents, policy documents, product-related, and retirement. Ditch the clutter once and for all.
Go Paperless
If you haven’t already, consider making the switch to managing your finances electronically. eStatements let you view your account information without the clutter or wait time of paper statements. With online Bill Pay, you can securely make payments at any time of the day or set up automatic payments.
Make Savings Automatic
We love to preach good savings etiquette, but did you know you could have automatic payroll deductions made directly into your savings accounts? If you have the money taken out of your paycheck before you even see it, then you are less likely to spend it. Set up automatic contributions to your emergency fund and retirement accounts. Then consider opening a Vacation or Holiday Savings so you aren’t caught off guard when the seasons hit.
Collect Loose Change
Start a coin jar and start collecting all your spare change. Once you really dig into your cleaning checklist for spring, you may find yourself swimming in loose couch coins. Members are welcome to bring their collections to the coin machine at any of our branches for FREE!
Create a Budget
It is so important to know how much you’re bringing in versus what is going out, so why not put forth the effort to start a budget? Take some time to track your spending and expenses. Try utilizing our robust online budgeting tool, uni$ource to monitor your bills and track your spending.
Clean Up Your Debt
Once you know where your money is going, you can see where the dirty debt is hiding. If you’re like most Americans, you’re carrying at least a little credit card debt. Maybe a lot. Do you know how much interest you’re paying? Do you have a plan for paying that balance off? Get a handle on those details and make a plan. Talk to Member Services about the options available for consolidating your debt into lower monthly payments. >>Read Types of Debt You Can Consolidate
Take a little time this month to go through and clean up your finances. The more organized your finances are, the easier it will be to manage your money. What are your goals for spring cleaning your finances? Tell us in the comments.
