If money is tight and you need to scale back your budget, here are some strategies to start saving right away. Putting even one of these ideas into practice should give your finances some breathing room, but if you adopt most or all of them, as long as your income remains steady, worrying about your budget will hopefully become a thing of the past.

1. Clip discretionary spending. Take a hard look at your budget. Can you cut back on cable or dining out? It sounds basic, but those expenses add up. A LivingSocial “Dining Out” survey of 4,000 Americans found that the average household frequents restaurants and fast food outlets 4.8 times a week. If that sounds like a lot, maybe it is. A Visa survey of 1,005 adults found that on average, American consumers are eating lunch at restaurants almost twice a week, spending about $10 each time. Either way, a moratorium on dining out may save you close to $100 a month – or perhaps much more, depending on your habits. Meanwhile, ditching cable could net you an extra $90 monthly – the average bill for a U.S. household, according to The NPD Group, a market research company.

2. Negotiate. If you don’t want to get rid of cable or your cell phone (another budget crusher), you might be able to talk down your current price, especially if you give your provider’s customer service representative the notion that you’re considering bolting for the competition. Even if you can’t leave your electric company for an alternate provider, ask if the utility has a program to help you lower your costs.

3. Grocery shop smarter. According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the average family of four with teens spends $1,258 at the grocery store. An adult male or female spent between $300 and $400. So if you’re spending more than that, you could probably do a lot better. Strategies that are often cited (because they work) include: Don’t shop when you’re hungry, take a shopping list, look at the unit price as well as the actual price tag, bring coupons, and shop at deep-discount grocery stores.

4. Preplan your week. Much of what we spend is a result of not thinking about what will be coming up throughout the week. We often have no clue what to make for dinner, so we rush out and grab fast food. We forgot about the birthday party or wedding on Saturday and rush out to buy a gift, spending way more than intended. And when it comes to grocery shopping, preplanning meals and clipping coupons should save you money.

5. Lower your gas expenses. Sites like gasbuddy.com and gaspricewatch.com will find the most inexpensive gas in your neighborhood. And, of course, you can always combine errands, take public transportation or a bicycle, and drive less. According to the California Energy Commission, commuters would save an average of 30 percent on their fuel costs if, instead of driving alone to work, they carpooled, took a bus, rode a bicycle or walked. Considering that the average household spends $2,912 on gasoline, according to the latest data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration, a 30 percent savings could equate to more than $70 a month.

6. Reconsider your insurance. You may be in the market for a downgrade. For instance, if your car is getting up there in years and you’ve paid it off – and especially if it hasn’t retained anything close to its original value – both comprehensive and collision insurance may be a waste of money. Collision insurance protects your car if you’re in a wreck, liability protects you if you damage another driver’s car, and comprehensive insurance covers your car if it’s damaged by something other than an accident. Usually you buy collision and comprehensive insurance together, but you don’t have to. As your car’s value goes down, you may want to reexamine your policy.

7. Give up a vice. Sure, we’ve all heard the cliché about giving up your daily latte, but you may have a different vice. The average consumer spends more than $1,200 a year on beer, according to Survey Analytics. And according to the American Lung Association, the average retail price of a pack of cigarettes in the U.S. is $5.51. So do the math. If you’re a pack-a-day smoker, you’ll save $167 in one month if you give up this vice, and in a year, you’ll save a little over $2,000. Take an honest look to see if you have something, from a serious vice to a relatively innocuous habit (like soft drinks), that you can cut back on.

8. Pay down debt. True, your debt may be the reason you can’t save money. But according to the personal finance site nerdwallet.com, the average household has $7,123 in credit card debt. If you owe a lot and can pay off any revolving debt – without turning around a few weeks later and incurring more – you’ll eventually save money.

For instance, say you have $500 in debt, and just to make the numbers easy, you pay 10 percent interest on your credit card. If you don’t pay the balance off, you’ll accumulate $50 in interest, and the next month, you owe $550. And if you do nothing else, the next month, you’ll owe $605. The bottom line: Get rid of your debt, especially the fast accumulating kind, and you’ll have more money left over every month.

9. Get your finances better organized. This isn’t just budgeting – it’s looking at when your bills need to be paid and having a system for keeping your financial life on track.

Gail Cunningham, spokeswoman for the National Foundation for Credit Counseling, points out that we’d probably all save more money, pretty quickly, if we stayed on top of our finances. For example, a late credit card payment means you’ll pay a late fee, all because you misplaced the credit card statement.

“You get a late fee, a negative mark on your credit report, your credit score potentially goes down, and you become a greater risk in the lender’s eyes,” Cunningham says. “And then there’s the gym membership that’s on automatic pay and you haven’t seen the gym in six months. How about habitually picking up fast food on the way home from work because you’re too tired to cook? Buying snacks on break out of the vending machine and paying twice as much for the same thing you could have brought from home? All of these could add up to over $100 a month or over $1,000 a year. Now that’s real money.”

Article Source: Geoff Williams for Money.USNews.com, http://money.usnews.com/money/personal-finance/articles/2014/03/07/9-steps-to-drastically-reduce-your-spending

Your 30s can be a pretty significant decade. You might be transitioning from the more carefree days of a post-collegiate lifestyle and hitting major life milestones, such as buying a home, getting married, or having kids. Or you could also be planning major life adventures, climbing up the career ladder, or all of the above. Whatever your path, you likely face some significant money decisions, and the choices you make can end up impacting your finances for years to come.

A recent report released from the Pew Research Center shows that millennials, the oldest of whom are just entering their 30s now, face higher student debt and unemployment levels along with lower income and wealth levels compared to previous generations at the same age. At the same time, they are optimistic about their economic futures, with most (80 percent) saying they have enough money now or will one day to “lead the lives they want.”

To increase the chances that such an optimistic outlook comes true, here are six money moves that financial experts say you should consider in your third decade:

1. Save when you can.

“If you’ve gotten your salary up to the point where student loan debt is not wreaking havoc in your life anymore, but before you have a lot of responsibilities, that’s a great opportunity to super-charge your savings,” says Jean Chatzky, financial editor of the Today Show and author of “Money Rules: The Simple Path to Lifelong Security.” When parenting responsibilities and mortgage costs take off, for example, it can be hard to save more. “You want to take advantage of the opportunities you have to sock away some money so when the leaner years come around, you don’t beat yourself up,” she adds.

2. Create solid habits.

It’s also time to establish financial habits that will serve you well for the rest of your life. Kerry Hannon, personal finance expert and author of “Great Jobs for Everyone 50+,” says in her 30s, she maxed out her retirement savings accounts and even set aside a portion of her extra freelance income for retirement. “Those funds have served me well over the years as money to help pay for vacations and more. I still save outside of retirement accounts religiously in my 50s, too. It’s a habit I started back in my 30s,” she says.

3. Plan out your goals and priorities.

Trent Hamm, founder of the personal finance website “The Simple Dollar” and a U.S. News “My Money” blogger, says at age 35, he’s now reflecting on his career goals for the next 30 years. “What would I like to be doing with my time and my life? I don’t want the rest of my life to be a repetition of what I’m doing now and then an abrupt retirement. I have dreams and goals, and right now is the best time to get started on them,” he says.

For many people, a financial advisor helps with that. Bart Astor, author of “AARP Roadmap for the Rest of Your Life,” says your 30s is the ideal time to sit down with a financial advisor and talk, which is what he started doing in his mid-30s. He says he and his advisor met once a year to review savings and other financial goals, especially since he and his wife were meeting their goals. “When I hit 40, the plan showed that we should have about $188,000 in assets based on our salaries, and we had over $200,000, and boy, did that make us feel good,” he says.

4. Talk about money with your partner.

If you have a spouse or partner, then getting on track together and working out any disputes can prevent conflicts later, open communication is key. Talk about your finances and life goals with your partner, and align on how you will get there – together.

5. Be a good role model.

For those 30-somethings who are already parents, Beth Kobliner, author of “Get a Financial Life” and member of the President’s Advisory Council on Financial Capability for Young Americans, says it’s important to model smart financial choices for the little eyes watching you. “You lose all credibility lecturing your kids about not needing every new toy or tech gadget if you, behind closed doors, have loud arguments with your spouse about not being able to keep up with your credit card bills,” she says. You don’t have to be a money genius, she adds, but it’s important to talk about money – making financial discussions as commonplace as soccer practice or Sunday dinner.

6. Shore up your cash reserves.

While many experts emphasize long-term investing and retirement savings, it’s also important to give yourself a buffer for unexpected needs and expenses. Real estate can be a great way to build wealth and you should start saving as early as possible for retirement, it’s the unexpected changes in life that often derail 30-something households – and you need to be prepared for the short-term too or a financial emergency.

Article Source: Kimberly Palmer for Money.USNews.com, http://money.usnews.com/money/personal-finance/articles/2014/03/19/how-to-manage-money-in-your-30s

Spring has arrived, and so have the inevitable seasonal cleaning duties. In addition to packing away the winter clothes, washing windows, and cleaning out the fridge, spring is the perfect time to evaluate your financial situation and tidy up your budget, accounts, debt, and investments.

Here are six ways to spruce up your finances for Spring:

1. Refresh your budget. If you’ve been promoted, transitioned from two incomes to one, or are starting a family, this is the perfect time to revisit your household budget. Consider using online personal finance tools to help you set a budget and keep track of your accounts. You’ll see where your money is going and can adjust spending where needed to help you attain your financial goals.

2. Pay off holiday debt once and for all. Clear up your credit lines, and pay off the purchases you made over the holiday season. Put yourself on a stricter debt payoff plan specifically to pay off the debt you accumulated over the holidays. Cleaning up this debt quickly will put you in a much better financial position for the rest of the year. It’s easy to fall back in to debt, so put a plan in place while you’re at it to maintain a zero balance.

3. De-clutter your countertops and go paperless. A good way to cut down on clutter is to opt for electronic bill payments. It decreases the amount of print mail, helps the environment, and can even help prevent identity theft. Secure your online bill payment with strong passwords that you change on a regular basis. Signing up for your financial institution’s online automatic pay system, (helpful for fixed-payment bills such as cable and Internet) usually even allows you to set up payments as “recurring” so the bills are automatically paid. This can help you avoid forgetting to pay a bill, and it keeps your countertops paper-free.  And don’t forget about switching to e-statements instead of paper statements too!

4. Clean up your credit score. Boosting your credit score is always important, but before you do, it’s imperative to learn about your credit history and the various accounts that affect it. To make sure your credit report is free of errors, get a free credit report (you’re entitled to one free copy from the three credit bureaus every year). Check for any errors or accounts listed that aren’t yours. Companies do make mistakes, and it’s your responsibility to make corrections when you catch them, so your credit score isn’t accidentally lowered.

5. Set up an emergency fund. Life is full of unexpected surprises. A car repair, illness, or unemployment can catch you and your family off-guard and leave you financially stranded. When the unexpected happens, it’s important to have some cash set aside in an emergency fund. At a minimum, it should hold three months’ worth of your living expenses. If you pay $2,000 a month to cover the basics such as housing, utilities, and food, then put aside $6,000 in your emergency fund. If you have dependents, your emergency fund should consist of six months of your living expenses.

6. Dust off your financial statements. Review your bank and credit card statements as well as bills, to make sure you’re not being charged fees you don’t recognize or paying for subscriptions or services you never use. This is also a great time to look at your insurance policies.

Whether it’s putting money aside to pay down debt, planning for the future, or just getting organized, the changing season is a great time to change up your financial habits.

Article Source: Holly Perez of Money.USNews.com, http://money.usnews.com/money/blogs/my-money/2014/03/26/6-ways-to-freshen-up-your-finances

When you’re in your 20s and 30s, you think you’ll have all the time in the world to save, plan for retirement, and worry about the future.  But the truth is, if you don’t set yourself up financially during this crucial time in your life – it may be too late by the time you realize that you should’ve started much earlier.  Read on to find out the important financial decisions you should start thinking about as soon as you land that first full-time job.

Mistake #1 – Not contributing to your retirement. Start saving for retirement when you start your first job. Don’t make the common mistake of thinking retirement is too far away and you only have to be saving for immediate needs at this point. The end result – you will often wind up spending your entire salary, if you don’t make payroll deductions going into your savings.  It’s important to start saving for retirement while you are young, so you can get ahead.  If your employer offers a retirement plan like a 401(k) – oftentimes you can make direct contributions (a percentage of your salary that you set right from your paycheck) to go into a retirement fund, and you won’t even know the money is coming out of your paycheck.

Mistake #2 – Buying more car than you can afford. Be careful about thinking that just because you are now working and have a full-time job in the real world, that you can afford to buy a luxury vehicle, take elaborate vacations, or purchase an expensive new wardrobe.  But they’re work clothes and will be put to good use, right?  Wrong.  Create a budget for yourself, buy only what you actually “need,” and stick to your financial plan.

Mistake #3 – Not starting an emergency fund. Do not put this off, because you think you won’t need it.  Always plan for the unexpected.  What would happen if you lost your job or an emergency situation occurred – would you have enough in savings to pay rent, make car payments, or pay your bills?  Saving for that rainy day is extremely important.

Mistake #4 – Living on credit cards. Many 20 and 30-somethings play the dangerous game of living high on credit cards and emptying any savings they have from the previous month to pay for it. Credit cards can cause someone to live paycheck to paycheck and rack up enormous debt if you aren’t careful.  If you do need to use a credit card, try to use it sparingly and pay the bill each month.  Don’t live outside of your means.

Mistake #5 – Not setting financial goals. Stop to think about what you might like to do in five or ten years. Do you want to own a home? You might not be thinking about it right now, but should you get married and decide to purchase a home, don’t you want to have some savings from your working years to contribute? Be sure to save something (even if it’s not a huge amount), and set some financial goals for your future. Your future home may very well be the biggest purchase of your life, so it’s definitely important to start saving as soon as possible.

Mistake #6 – Trying to keep up with the Joneses. Don’t make the mistake of thinking you have the funds or budget of your parents. They most likely have a different budget than you and it may very well have taken them over 30 years to accumulate what they have, and you probably aren’t at that point yet. Live within your means – and stick to a budget of what you can afford.

Mistake #7 – Not starting the habit of paying yourself first. Save first – save something, even if it’s a small amount, and then concentrate on your bills. When you simply pay only your bills and leave nothing for your savings, it will take a long time to catch up. Save AND pay your bills – you’ll stay ahead of the curve.

Mistake #8 – Owing too much in student loans without learning about career prospects. Be careful about what you choose as your major and the price tag of the college you select.  Will there be jobs available in your field when you graduate, to help you pay down those student loans?  For example – going to an Ivy League school and majoring in say, Philosophy – is that really practical?  What will you do with that degree after graduation, and how will you pay for it?

Mistake #9 – Going into debt for a wedding. With wedding costs skyrocketing, it makes sense to manage this event carefully. You don’t have to elope to cut costs; there are plenty of ways to have an awesome day for a fraction of the price. Try Pinterest, for starters.

Mistake #10 – Not carrying health insurance. The young feel invincible, but all it takes is one small accident to start the downward spiral of medical bills.  And we’re not talking a couple thousand – we’re talking potentially tens of thousands of dollars.  Be very careful of this one!

If you start out on the right foot in your 20s and early 30s – set and stick to a budget, save some money, and prepare for your future … you’ll be smooth sailing into your late 30s and beyond, and prepared for a rainy day and your future retirement.  Though you might not be thinking about all of this now, if you don’t prepare – when the time comes you’ll truly wish you had, and it will be difficult to catch up (if ever).

However, if you’re reading this article in your late 30s and 40s and you’ve made some of the mistakes listed above – First Financial can help.  We encourage all our members to stop in and see us at least once a year to have an annual financial review with a financial representative. 

Don’t forget to think first – and think savings!