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Vouchers /Gift Cards

Old magazines with inspiring pictures /Pinterest

Model Lego Home

Golden Stickers or medals with ribbons for rewards

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No one likes to budget. Well, we’re aiming to fix that, to help us figure out the best ways to turn ourselves into creatures of happy habits.

“We’re wired to be happiness seekers So anytime we want to adopt a new habit, we need to rewire our brains to associate happiness with the updated routine.”

Then check out these five chore-like tasks—and the expert-approved strategies for making them fun.

The Task: Paying Off Debt

How to Fool Your Brain Into Embracing It: Allocating a big portion of your budget each month for debt repayment isn’t particularly enjoyable—even if you’re excited about the prospect of being debt-free one day.

A little self-bribery can go a long way toward making the exercise less painful.

“Pick a small, tangible reward that is meaningful to you, and then enlist the help of a trusted friend. “Tell them what you’re aiming to do, and make them promise to only give you the reward if you pass a certain milestone. Otherwise, they can give it to someone else—or keep it for themselves!”

Your reward can be anything from your favorite author’s new book to a fun night out—just make sure it’s special enough to keep you motivated

The Task: Building Your Nest Egg

How to Fool Your Brain Into Embracing It: For many people, saving for retirement is an ambiguous goal—a fact that can make it extra tough to skip a big purchase today in order to stash away for something that’s still decades away.

If you are getting real about the future purpose of your retirement savings with a fun project: Print out photos of beautiful places you want to visit, the cozy cottage you want to live in, or the loved ones you’ll spend time with during your golden years.

Then frame, pin up or create a vision board out of the photos—and place them in a prominent locale. Suddenly, saving for retirement becomes an exciting investment in a happy future, not just an aimless task.

Bonus tip: Not the hands-on artsy type? Digitise this to-do using a site like Pinterest.

The Task: Improving Your Credit Score

How to Fool Your Brain Into Embracing It: Boosting your credit score is no easy feat, especially if you have a long way to go before your Credit Report Activity is considered healthy. But that certainly doesn’t mean you have to be miserable in the process.

Instead, increase the fun factor—and feed your competitive spirit—by creating a “credit score contest,” in which you celebrate every time you reach a higher notch with your score.

“This is a version of the gold-star technique from elementary school.

All you have to do is write down your credit score goal, plus a few benchmarks you’ll need to hit along the way. As you check off each mini goal, allow yourself a little treat.

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The Task: Saving for a Down Payment

How to Fool Your Brain Into Embracing It: Fantasising about your dream home? Turns out visualisation is a great strategy for keeping long-term goals—like saving up 20% for a down payment—top of mind.

This time, we’re not suggesting another art project—instead, we want you to channel your Lego construction days and actually build something!

“Get a toy model of a home, and assemble it at the same rate you accumulate the down payment . “This makes your savings tangible—and maintains your motivation—as you watch the model home rise before your eyes.”

The Task: Embracing a New Budget

How to Fool Your Brain Into Embracing It: To have a shot at sticking to that brand-new financial plan, you have to love it.

An easy way to do this? Give yourself permission to indulge in one guilty pleasure says whether it’s a fancy yoga class or a subscription box that delivers candy to your door.

This allows you to indulge your urge to splurge—in a financially savvy way.

By shifting your focus to what little indulgences you can afford, you’re transforming your budget from stifling to liberating. How’s that for an extra boost of bliss?

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For further information, or even just some friendly advice, contact us on our website.

7db65d4b874523f39650a73e68429451The One-Number Strategy: Start here

We know, no one likes to budget.

That might be because your budget probably looks something like a Jeopardy! board, dozens of categories with individual numbers assigned to them. Movies for $25. Groceries for $100, please.

Sometimes, though, going into that much detail doesn’t help you see the forest for the trees—and could feel a bit restricting for the less detail-oriented among us. What if we told you there may be a better way—an alternative that helps you know whether you’ve got room in your budget to splurge on dinner out, while still making sure you’re taking your financial goals into account?

Enter the One-Number Strategy, a simpler budgeting framework that our Planners at FMS recommend, which works like this: Pay yourself first, then spend what’s left over—guilt-free. It all starts with dividing your monthly take-home pay into four categories—fixed costs, financial goals, non-monthly expenses and flexible spending. Your flexible spending amount becomes your one, easy-to-follow number.

If you are ready to set your budget, call Finance and Mortgage Solutions today on 02 8096 7388 or visit our contact page.

 

 

Classic Lesson #5:

Adopt the Envelope System

That Was Then…

little_man_holding_red_envelopeSome people may still utilise this basic budgeting system from yesteryear: Allocate funds for your monthly needs—like groceries or gas, along with bigger savings goals, such as car repairs or a vacation—by stuffing money into different envelopes dedicated to each priority.

“This method forces you to plan how you will spend money in a certain budget category.”. “By strictly controlling your spending, you’re assuring there will be money left over to meet your goals. That’s the power behind envelopes.”

And that power is great to tap into from time to time—going on an ALL CASH DIET can help keep you accountable when you want to pay down debt.

But there’s a catch: By keeping your savings in cash all of the time, you’re missing out on a valuable opportunity—collecting interest on that cash.

This Is Now…

mail_mujima20100504_0046_40These days, smart money managers know how to make their savings work for them by earning interest in a high-yield online bank account.

The added benefit of this new-school approach: automation. “You can establish monthly transfers into a savings account to ensure you don’t procrastinate saving,”

And don’t be shy about opening more than one account to segregate your savings. “If you put your emergency, new car, and vacation funds all in one place, it can be tempting to ‘empty the piggy bank’ on one goal without realising you’ve just blown the others,”

Please call Madhu 042534108 or visit our website.

 

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Will you or won’t you be able to maintain the same standard of living you have today in your golden years?

Want More?

The study, which tracked workers’ wealth-to-income trajectories between 1983 and 2013, found that the numbers have remained steady for the entire 30 years—which doesn’t bode well for today’s savers.

Analysts say they should be upping their savings game to compensate for changes to Social Security, longer life spans and increasing health care costs.

So what’s preventing people from socking away more? The biggest factor is the lack of pensions: Back in 1979, a whopping 28% of workers in the private sector were able to rely on them as their sole retirement plan—but that number dropped to 3% by 2011.

As a result, the average 62- to 65-year-old in 2013 had amassed wealth about three times his income—which is actually slightly below the 1983 figure. To get back on track, it is estimated that households will need to save about 70% of their pre-retirement income in order to lead a comparable lifestyle down the line.

That translates to funnelling about 15% of each paycheque over the course of 30

years.

Just keep in mind that these estimates assume that retirees will downsize their living

expenses after they stop working and won’t spend as much once they’re no longer

caring for children and other dependents.

If this news has you motivated to increase your retirement savings today, start by

Small Move #5: Adopt the Buddy System

Untitled design (5)Need extra motivation to push you to save smarter? This is where having some accountability can help.

Maybe you’re procrastinating rolling over your super. Or perhaps you’ve been meaning to

check your retirement portfolio to decide if you need to rebalance.

In the same way that a gym buddy can push you to do more reps, a money buddy—in

the form of a friend, family member or financial adviser—can challenge you to be better

with your finances, help you meet deadlines or just give you that extra shoulder tap to

get a task done. incorporating this small move can make a big difference to your nest

egg.

We are here to help, feel free to call Madhu on 0425341086 or visit our website.

In most cases your 30s and 40s are the prime of your life.

Chances are you’re killing it in your career, likely earning more than ever before, expanding your family, and may even be living in your white-picket-fence dream home.

But with success comes greater financial responsibilities. You probably have a mortgage, credit card bills and after-school activities to worry about—plus your kids’ college education and your own nest egg.

All of this can make the idea of financial security seem like a pipe dream.

1. Get Serious About Unsecured Debt

Unsecured debt, which isn’t backed by an asset like a house, usually carries the highest interest rates—and it can snowball in your 30s.

And this is usually due to the fact that many people turn to credit cards—the most common form of unsecured debt—to help finance costs for a growing household. “And most of the stuff that goes on credit cards are wants, not needs.

If you’re in this scenario, itemize your unsecured debt by interest rate, so you have a clear picture of how much you owe.

Then come up with a plan for paying them off, ideally within five years. One of the most common methods is to tackle the highest-interest debt first, while still paying the minimum on your other cards and loans.

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2. Protect Your Income

As your family grows, so does the need to secure your income in the event of your death or disability.

And if you’re the type who thinks, “It won’t happen to me,” think again. According to the Council for Disability Awareness, a healthy, 35-year-old female has a 24% chance of becoming disabled for at least three months sometime during her career, while her male counterpart has a 21% chance.

So if your employer offers disability insurance, consider taking advantage of it, since the company likely gets a discount for group coverage, Nehring says. But if you have to get a private plan, and need to keep your premiums low, consider a policy that pays out benefits for two years—the minimum period typically offered by insurers for long-term disability policies.

Life insurance, meanwhile, might be better purchased privately, since employer-based policies tend to be limited—plus, they may not be portable if you leave your job.

Aim for a policy that’s large enough to cover your net income until your youngest child turns 18 or until the surviving spouse reaches retirement age, along with major debts like a mortgage, credit cards and outstanding student loans.

Schedule a money talk twice a month, in which both of you bring agenda items. The goal: Designate actionable to-dos each person can tackle.

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3. Start a College Fund

For the 2014–2015 school year, tuition, fees, and room and board surpassed $30,000 for a private college.

Now imagine how expensive it will be by the time your little ones are ready to leave the nest.

If you have young children, alleviate some of that stress by starting a college fund, such as a ASG Scholarship plan www.asg.

And don’t be afraid to get relatives involved—small monthly gifts from grandparents, or that annual birthday check from an aunt, will compound over time. “The best baby gift you can get is to have family members contribute to education.

4. Schedule Regular Money Talks

During the honeymoon period of a relationship, managing joint finances is usually the last—not to mention least romantic—thing on your mind.

But once you tie the knot, it can often become a source of friction: A 2014 Money magazine poll found that 70% of married couples fight about money.

So as the mortgage, car payments and school costs balloon, it’s important to be on the same financial page. “Continue to practice communication and transparency in your relationship—even as things get more complex,” Bross says.

You can do this by scheduling a money talk twice a month, in which both of you bring agenda items, such as filing taxes or renewing an insurance premium. The goal: Designate actionable to-dos each person can tackle, like calling your accountant or insurance agent.

5. Build Your Financial ‘Dream Team’

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Few people can go it totally alone when it comes to managing your finances, especially if you’ve transitioned from a single- to double-income household. So cull a group of professionals who can help guide—and grow—with you.

Your team could include a financial Advisor, who can help you meet short- and long-term money goals; an accountant who understands your evolving tax situation; and an attorney who can work with you on an estate plan.

As you weigh who to partner with, inquire about their credentials, how long they’ve been in business, and whether they can share any client success stories.

“These are people you will ideally have in your corner for quite a while,” says Bross, “so you want to make sure that they are good at imparting the information you need."

For more tips on how to take control of your finances, please don't hesitate to contact us.

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