Are you organised with your money?
Ahhhhh …Spring is in the air …the UK tax year has just ended …so naturally we turn our thoughts to …..our finances, right?
Not your first thought? Then today’s post is just for you!
In the spirit of Spring Cleaning and being organised in ALL aspects of our business and personal lives, now is a great time to give some overdue attention to our financial state of affairs.
So, I’ve called on the financial expertise of Miss Lolly to share her top tips to help keep finances orderly, organised and on track.
Miss Lolly’s Guide on “How To Be Organised With Your Money”
When it comes to money, a few little organisational tips can go a long way to making sure you are on the straight and narrow and not paying too much for things. Here are my top 5 tips:
- A reminder 3 months before your mortgage deal ends. This will prompt you to get in touch with an independent mortgage broker to ensure that you get the best rate.
- If you own a company – your company year end. Give yourself a warning 6 weeks before so you can consider extra pension payments to help reduce your tax and boost your retirement savings. If you are employed or a sole trader, the same applies with the end of the tax year.
- Do your personal tax return in May – set a reminder to prompt you.This is when your statements should start coming through from the banks, pensions and investments. Set these aside in a special place as they arrive so you are not hunting them down. Doing it early will help you plan what you have to pay but also will mean if you are due a rebate that you get it as early as possible.
- Have an “October Organisation” day. I set aside a morning each year to check my building and contents insurance, gas and electricity deal and also personal insurance, to make sure I have the right amounts and also I am paying as little as possible
2) Do a budget for the year each December. This is hugely important to work out what you can afford to splurge and knowing what you can spend on holidays. It also should motivate you to work out what you can and should be saving and investing each month. To get a free budget planner, sign up to www.misslolly.com and you will receive a download pack to help you. If you work for yourself, this is also a great opportunity to set some earning targets too.
3) Increase your savings and retirement planning each time you get a pay rise.
4) In April each year, set aside an hour or two to plan your savings / investments. Are you getting the best rate? Do you have enough cash (ideally 6 months worth of outgoings)? Can you up/start a stocks and shares ISA? The ISA allowance this year has increased to £20,000. So if you can afford it, you should top up as last year’s allowance was almost £5,000 less.
5) Make it easy to organise your paperwork. I am addicted to stationary and filing accessories so this comes a little too easy to me. But if this is an area you struggle with, invest in a good filing cabinet and hanging files. Each file should be labelled with each category of paperwork you could get. I also keep a shredder close by so unnecessary paperwork is not hanging around and looking a mess.
I would love to hear your success stories, please let me know on twitter @lolly_lisa & Instagram is @misslollymoney.
Finally if you would like any pointers on your investments, mortgage, pensions or insurances please feel free to get in touch via www.misslolly.com.
Lots of Love
Miss Lolly xx
Comments are closed.