Saving For Your Dreams Little by Little

Given our many professional and personal demands, we may wonder how we’ll ever be able to save? Save for a new baby, a new home or even pay down our debt. Maybe we’d like to be able to deal with the unexpected by building an emergency fund. Perhaps we simply want to prepare for the future. But it all seems so complicated and it’s hard to know where to start.

Well, we can make it happen and that it all starts with a budget. It doesn’t have to be too complex, we can start by simple points:

1. Listing our expected income and expenses. Some expenses are easy to identify: rent, post-paid plans, groceries, entertainment, utilities, etc.
2. Adding a savings component to our budget. If we feel like there isn’t much wiggle room for savings, let’s try tracking all our expenses for a month. If we use our debit or credit card for most purchases, all we have to do is download the information from our statement into a spreadsheet or financial software. That way we can see where our money goes and identify those items that can be cut back or eliminated. The result is that we may find some extra money that we can stash away.
3. Discussing with a financial planner. It also helps to discuss our objectives and concerns with a financial advisor. He or she can help us create a solid financial plan that allows us to maintain our lifestyle, protect our loved ones from financial worry and safeguard our assets in case of death. Be sure to bring all relevant personal documents to meetings, like:

It takes a penny or pennies to stash away from your monthly or daily budget. 

• Group insurance statements

• Pension plan statement(s)

• Insurance policies

• Legal documents (will, power of attorney, etc.)

• Investment statements

Source: newscanada.com