According to a recent survey, about one-third of Canadians admit to being in either “bad” or “terrible” financial shape at the moment. Many of them say they don’t have nearly enough money saved up to deal with all the financial hardships they’re facing in 2023.
Does this sound like you? If so, you could probably benefit from learning how to be smart about money. There are all types of different smart money tactics you can begin putting to good use when you want to try experiencing financial wellness for once.
Would you like to find out about some of the things you can do to get yourself back on the right track when it comes to finances? Take a look at our top money saving tips below and begin using them right away.
Create a Monthly Budget
Almost 50% of Canadians put a budget in place each month. If you already have a budget, that’s great. You should keep on using it to keep track of your income and expenses.
If, however, you’re not yet using a monthly budget, it’s time for you to change that immediately. It’ll be difficult to be smart about money in 2023 when you don’t have a budget set up.
Once upon a time, creating a monthly budget would have been a time-consuming process. But today, there are so many different kinds of budgeting software that you can use to build out a budget each month.
Pay Down Debt as Quickly as Possible
Once you make a monthly budget, you should pay close attention to how much money you’re spending on debt payments. At least some of your budget will likely be devoted to paying down credit card debt, personal loans, etc.
Ideally, you’ll want to begin paying off credit card balances and paying back loans as soon as you can. You might also want to look into applying for online loans that you can use to consolidate debt and get rid of it quicker.
24cash can set you up with installment loans and other types of loans in Canada that can be used for this purpose. Visit 24cash.ca for more information on these fast loans.
Start Putting Away Money for a Rainy Day
Do you have a “rainy day fund” established? If you don’t, it’ll be hard to be smart about money in 2023.
Every time your car breaks down or you face another unexpected expense, you’ll have to scramble to find ways to pay for it. It can be exhausting, and it can cause chaos when it comes to your monthly budget.
Thankfully, there will be options like $500 loans that can serve as a payday loan alternative available through a lender like 24cash. You’re more than welcome to apply for one when you run into an unexpected expense you can’t cover.
But you should also make it your mission to prepare yourself for expenses like this better by saving a small portion of each of your paychecks for a rainy day.
Avoid Unnecessary Purchases
Are you constantly buying new clothes even though you’re not in the best shape financially? Do you go out to eat at least a few times each week in spite of the fact that you don’t have a “rainy day fund” set up? Has your spending gotten so out of control that you’re finding yourself in the red each month?
It’s time for you to start making some hard decisions as far as what you need to buy versus what you want to buy is concerned. You should aim to start steering clear of making any unnecessary purchases that are putting a strain on your budget.
It might not be easy to scale back on your spending at first. But once you start to see results in the form of more money in your bank account each month, you’ll get the motivation you need to continue to avoid buying things you want as opposed to only buying things you need.
Shop Around for the Best Deals
While you should be able to stop spending at least some of the money you’re spending now, it obviously won’t be possible to spend $0 each month. You’re going to need to pay for everything from a place to live to food to put on the table.
But with that being said, you should try to shop around for the absolute best deals you can find on, well, just about everything. Moving into a more affordable apartment than the one you’re living in now and clipping coupons for the grocery store are just two good ways in which you can begin saving more money each month.
Set Short-Term and Long-Term Financial Goals
There are entirely too many people in Canada and other countries throughout the world who are living paycheck-to-paycheck. Unfortunately, most of these people aren’t able to chase financial goals because they’re simply trying to make it from one paycheck to the next.
If this is what you’re doing, you should take it upon yourself to set both short-term and long-term financial goals. By doing this, you’ll be able to have goals that you can work towards as you try to be smart about money moving forward.
A short-term financial goal might be setting aside $500 or even $1,000 in your savings account for a rainy day. A long-term financial goal might be saving up enough money to put down a downpayment on a house.
The right financial goals will leave you feeling more motivated than ever before when it comes to being smart about money.
Be Smart About Money in 2023 and Beyond
As you can see, becoming smart about money isn’t as impossible as you might think. By taking just a few simple steps, you can start to be way smarter about money than you’ve been in the past.
24cash is always here to lend a helping hand if you’re struggling financially. We offer a wide range of loans in Canada to those who meet a few basic requirements.
Apply for a loan today if you feel as though it can help you get back on your feet.