Money Saving Tips

Why don’t I have any spare cash at the end of the month? Is a skiing holiday an option this year? Can I retire at 60? Feeling in control of your finances can improve how you feel about other aspects of your life.

• Pull together your payslips, bank and building society statements and credit-card bills. It won’t be the most exciting evening you’ve ever spent, but it could have a significant impact on your money management.
• Organise your data in a format that will allow you to analyse it. How is up to you – a calculator and the back of an envelope, a spreadsheet, accounting software or interactive budgeting planners (such as those at www.moneyadviceservice.org.uk and www.moneysavingexpert.com)
• If you’re constantly wondering where all your money goes, try writing everything you spend down in a notebook for a month. Or consider putting all your everyday spending (over £10, say) on one dedicated credit card (and set up a monthly direct debit to clear it). That way, your credit-card bill will tell you where you have been spending, and your bank statement how much cash you get through and much you spend on household bills.
• Signing up for online banking means you can monitor your account whenever you like. Depending on your bank, it also gives you access to various tools such as a Money Manager at Egg and Lloyds TSB, or the set-a-savings-goal tool at NatWest. Most banks also offer text alerts to warn that you’re near to your overdraft limit, for example, or let you know that there has been activity on your account.