This post is a part of a social shopper marketing insight campaign with Pollinate Media Group and Payoff, but all my opinions are my own. #pmedia #payoffmindset #whatsyourpayoff http://my-disclosur.es/OBsstV
My husband and I are in our mid-thirties and we hope to one day be close to debt free. What would be even better is to win the lottery, pay off all monies owed and live the good life. Ok, back to reality!
We always seem to find things that we think would be fun to play with, do or make life a little bit easier. But how do we live the good life, without financial stress?
You know that feeling when you FINALLY pay off a bill in its entirety?! We recently paid off my car and the feeling after that final payment went through was that of pure joy. So, how in the world can we get that feeling of pure joy quicker than every 5 years?
Here are 5 ways to get your finances in order this year:
1. Take a Look at Your Spending: If you just take a look at your spending patterns over the last few months, you will be able to tell if you got out of hand. Did you go overboard on holiday gifts? How about dining out? Perhaps those Starbucks trips ended up being an almost everyday thing? Revisit your budget, see where you may have gotten careless and try to eliminate those unnecessary expenses that have become habit. Often times we just spend without thinking and don’t realize how much extra we really throw away at luxuries we don’t really need. Taking a look at our spending habits will give us more insight into where our money is going.
2. Get Your Credit Report: You can get credit report FREE now at AnnualCreditReport.com. Taking a peek at your credit report will let you know where you are at for the new year. If your credit history needs some improvement, this is the year to start getting your numbers on the right track.
3. Review Your Balances/Create A Strategy: Take the time to review your balances. If you have extra cash in the bank, it isn’t necessary a bad idea to make a large payment towards paying your debt down.
4. Set Up Auto Pay: What has made it tremendously easy for my husband and I is automating our bills. The more you can automate, the easier your finances will be. You can download a free bill payment app that will help you pay your bills on time and maintain a regular savings plan.
5. Payoff.com: Payoff.com is a company in the YOU business-get rid of your credit card balances so you can move forward in your life and achieve your dreams. While my husband and I were looking through our existing debt, I checked out Payoff.com (along with my cat) to see how I can realistically get our debt in one spot. With Payoff.com you go through an application process (which doesn’t affect your credit score, by the way) in which you can get approved for a loan to pay off all of your debt at once. When you use Payoff.com, it’ll help you to become more financially knowledgeable and you will be so happy that you will be able to achieve your dreams. What I love about the website is the chat help. Brandon helped me with questions that I had regarding the Payoff.com application process and made it so much easier to understand what they have to offer.
And it is super easy to submit an application! See below:
You can also check out more Payoff tips on the Payoff Facebook page.
And finally, have a positive attitude! A positive attitude will get you far. You won’t be in debt forever as long as you are aware of where your money is going and have a plan of attack to keep that money going where it NEEDS to go.
What are some of the ways you manage your finances? What makes your life easier when it comes to saving money?
It’s so important to have a financial plan in place at the beginning of the year. It sets the tone for the rest of the year.
These are some good tips! The one thing we don’t do is anything on auto-pay. I’ve had companies accidentally take multiple payments out at once. And let me tell you, when the mortgage comes out twice, it can REALLY cause some issues LOL
When it comes to the finances, my Hubs is on top of it. He does them all and I have no STRESS!!!
It is important to get finances straight. It leads to a healthy lifestyle. I like that this service helps you with credit card balances
Often time we manage our finances by not going out and by sticking to a grocery list. It can be so hard!
I’m trying really hard to keep my finances in order, too. I recently quit my job and had a sudden added amount of expenses because I moved apartments.. thanks for the tips! I’ll try to follow them by step and get things back in order.
Hi Ronnie! We’d love to offer you some friendly advice and help you get back on track! We’re not a loan company, we’re a financial empowerment company 🙂 Please feel free to call us at 1-800-878-0901 or you can live chat with one of our Customer Success Advocates right on our website: https://www.payoff.com/
Have a great weekend!
Want to get out of debt? Track every penny, every month and convert to cash right now. Cut up credit cards and don’t use debit either. Using cash will give you a whole new appreciation for money, one you won’t get with out it. I paid off 50K. I did it without a loan. I don’t recommend taking a loan to pay off debt. I understand why it might feel like a good idea but I don’t think it’s a good idea. I’ve helped so many people get out of debt. There’s no magic bullet it just takes time patience and establishing good money habits. You’ll do it too!
I will be sharing the payoff.com site with my son – I always look at my balances and create my strategy so I like that tip also! Thank you for your post full of great tips
Hi Donna! Financial freedom is so much brighter than the burden of credit card debt. We’re happy to help your son any time! Please have him call us at 1-800-878-0901 or he can live chat with a Customer Success Advocate right on our website: https://www.payoff.com/. Have a great weekend!
Great tips! It’s always so important to have financial plans. I know it isn’t easy. but we try as best we can!
These are great tips and so important! We are really trying to stay on top of our finances this year.
That’s a great resource at the end there. I think being debt free would be marvelous!
Great post,I leave all of this stuff up to hubby.
Great tips! one thing I’m trying to do is spend less money for my business!! I’m looking for value in 2015!
I am famous for putting off bills and then being late. What I did last year is schedule important bills that have a set amount like my mortgage so I’m never late.
Checking your credit report is a great way to figure out where you are with your spending. It’s easier to keep a good score than repair a bad one.
My husband pulls credit reports for us a few times a year. Great tips!
Thanks for this great tutorial. I am going to have to get my butt in gear this year to get my finances in better shape.
These are great tips to get the financial plans to perfection, as initial planning helps for a smooth progress all through the year. PayOff sounds like a great option & I would love to signup & see how it works. Thanks for sharing.
If there is one thing – I have noticed that when I put things in a note = everything. I am able to save more and earn more at the same time.
I am super careful about my finances now. It’s a big, big priority for me.
There is nothing like having debt under control
Therefore your idea of looking at spending first gets a long way
I really need to think about getting my finances in order this year. Thank you for this awesome resource, now at least I know where to begin.
I am so happy to be credit card debt free. We just bought a minivan and have a small payment. But I plan on doubling the payments and paying it off soon.
The only thing we have set up on auto pay now is for the mortgage. We pay everything else manually online. Because my husband has 2 different employers with different paydays it was just easier that way so we weren’t getting an auto pay taken out when the deposit hadn’t come through. I think the bank got tired of us asking to reverse the OD fee.
We are working on getting our credit cards taken care of. Hopefully we’ll be able to make a giant dent with our income tax. Then we can work on paying extra on our car notes. Somewhere in there we have to tackle the school loans. His are minimal, I went to grad school so I owe a LOT. lol