Thanks for voting!Remember the old infomercial tagline “Set it and forget it?” We’re not sure what it was referring to, either, but it’s a line that applies to things like monthly budgets finances and the like. At least the “set it” part. This blog from Five Cent Nickel explains how easy and convenient it is to automate your household finances. And how it can positively impact your household savings.
We’d like to weigh in on automating your finances. We’re an online bank, after all. Sure, you do all you can to live frugally, spend wisely and save regularly. Never easy, but that’s what makes you a Saver. Something as relatively effortless as automating your finances can help you achieve most of your financial goals. Set it? Yes. Automating your finances keeps your monthly budget a well-oiled paying and saving machine. Forget it? Not exactly. When you have things automatically debited or credited, that leaves very little room for human error. Things like impulse buys and unexpected expenses can lead to things like overdraft fees and late charges. So you still need to pay attention. But you’ll still have more time to think about things like strategic budgeting and sound financial planning. What a concept. And if you do the same on the Savers’ front by setting up or increasing your Automatic Savings Plan, you’ll create even more of a financial cushion in the short term and long term.
Already gone automatic? Whether it’s in your day-to-day banking, bill paying or saving, we’d like to hear from you. Maybe you’ll help someone who wants to set it and not regret it.
Tags: Automatic, Automatic Savings Plan, Automation, Budgets, Finances, Investing
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I highly recommend the book, Automatic Millionaire by David Bach. Also, I find it useful to set up numerous savings accounts through ING to keep track of all our financial goals. It’s easy, fast, and excludes paperwork, fees, and minimum balances. We currently have savings accounts for property taxes, 9 month emergency savings, vacations, new car, and home improvements.
I find it useful to set up multiple accounts as well. My wife’s paychecks are automatically deposited into one account with automatic transfers into savings accounts for a new computer, a house, and retirement.
I agree about the multiple accounts. My husband and I both freelance, so we have our “normal” savings accounts and another account set aside for our taxes every year.
I also have multiple accounts for different savings, even one called ‘cats’ to cover yearly vet costs. (I also have one called ‘Europe’ for my next trip). I have automatic transfers, and get amazed at how quickly the amounts add up.
How can one do that when there is barely enough to cover regular expenses but extra doctor bills????