Photo by Simon Migaj on Unsplash
Building on sinking funds from last week, let's explore 3 other recurring expenses that you can better prepare for.
1. Vacations
Vacations are truly wonderful, whether they are to get away from it all to relax, catch up on reading, or just get more uninterrupted sleep. That is, unless the vacation follows you home in the form of high interest credit card payments you will be making for months or years to come. Just think, you could be paying off that lobster dinner for six months or more! That lobster better had been bred in Willy Wonka's private aquarium!
Instead of letting the vacation dominate your future, start planning for it a year ahead of time. Note where you want to go, how much it costs to stay there, how much you want to spend on souvenirs, and food. Then, as with the insurance payments we discussed last week, break that total up in to twelve equal parts and save that much each month in the year leading up to the vacation. Viola! Your next vacation will be paid for before you even leave the house! This way, while on vacation, you will be relaxed and won't come back with a financial hangover.
2. Homeowner's Association Fees
Owning your own home is part of the American Dream. Though depending on where you own it, there could be fees assessed by the neighborhood you live in to cover costs like common landscaping. Whether these fees are large or small, they don't have to sneak up on you. Again, note how much the fee is, and save one twelfth of it every month over the course of the year. When the bill comes, no sweat off your brow, send off the check and continue on with life. However, if the HOA fee comes due at the beginning of the year, one big reason it "sneaks" up on you could be...
3. CHRISTMAS
Yep, that magical time of the year when families gather, share food, fellowship, laughter, and gifts. Oh my, the gifts. Giving gifts is a wonderful blessing both for you and whoever receives your generosity. I'm a big fan and believer in cheerful giving. However, what happens is that sometimes in our cheerfulness, we spend so much that mid-January comes around and we have a worse financial hangover than when we came back from vacation!
This doesn't have to be true though. As with all of these, effective planning ahead of time saves money and headaches later. Once Christmas is over, decide who will get gifts and how much you will spend on each person next year. As the new year progresses, save those precious equal installments leading up to the next Christmas (I hear it's on December 25 next year). After your next Christmas, the memories will stay more vibrant, since they won't be obscured by the worry you incur over any extended financial obligations.
If you are wondering how you can work saving for these big expenses into your own situation, request a session. Together, we will put together your personalized plan for storing funds for these larger expenses based on your unique situation. It doesn't matter where you are financially right now, if you want to be in a better place, allow me to help you get there.
Request your session today!