If you are looking to get your money in order for the new year, a local expert has some suggestions.
Catholic Charities Financial and Housing Counselor Sue Kilian says the first step is to chart your income and expenses. She recommends programs offered by your utility company that smooth out energy costs.
She says, “The average monthly payment plan, Xcel has that. I think that’s a very effective program, and that is so helpful for people in budgeting.”
Kilian’s other major recommendations are to avoid “buy now, pay later” programs and only use credit cards for significant purchases. She says relying on physical cash rather than putting something on a card that gets paid off in a month or six weeks helps clarify whether the purchase is necessary.
If your New Year’s resolution is to save more, it can be easier wished than done sometimes. Kilian says it gets harder the more abstract the goal is, like a retirement that may still be 30 years down the road. “If someone is doing everything right, or in a good place financially, then doing that long-term savings for retirement or having their 401k or having a Roth or buying I-bonds or doing whatever they’re doing, they can see the value in that. For people that I see that are struggling, and just trying to make it through the month, they can’t even they can’t even go there.
She suggests forcing yourself into it. “I think the best way to do that is if you can have it automatically taken out of your paycheck and just transferred into your savings account. Then you don’t have to make a decision about it. It’s just there.”
On the flip side, Kilian says her clients rarely have problems with socking away money for something tangible like a vacation or for a new washing machine or appliance. Kilian says while saving is recommended, the first and most important priority for your pocketbook is to meet monthly expenses.
