Saving money, losing weight, exercising and learning new skills, all noble ideas, but for most people they’ll be consigned to history before February.
Unfortunately, those four resolutions can offer important future freedoms.
While I can’t help with all of them, I thought before January goes out I’d offer one last reminder not to blow the saving money resolution.
Though instead of having a resolution to save, change it and have an actual monetary goal to reach.
Base it on what you think you can put aside each week, this way you can keep track of progress and can keep yourself motivated to reach that figure.
Saving money becomes easier when you know where your money is going, so track your spending and you’ll probably find costs you can eliminate and turn into savings.
Unwillingness to track spending means you’re closer to failure than success.
Mental math is notoriously unreliable and it often becomes even less reliable as a person’s income grows.
A large income can quickly commit itself to a great variety of goodies and the person ends up poorer than someone on a smaller wage.
And no matter who you are, a savings buffer is always a good form of protection against the unexpected.
Finally, on the subject of protection, I’ve recently seen some eyes light up over the combination of a depressed real estate market and low interest rates.
That combination has served as scant reasoning to get excited about buying an investment property and those on the selling end want to capitalise on it.
I’ve seen some property experts not just predicting, but assuring 2013 will be a solid year for real estate.
Be it shares, property, fixed interest or emu farms, no one knows how an asset will perform year to year.
The primary concern when investing shouldn’t be opportunity, it should be ensuring any investment decision is appropriate to your circumstances.
Peter Mancell is a director of Mancell Financial Group and FYG Planners AFSL/ACL 224543, www.mfg.com.au This information is general in nature and readers should seek professional advice specific to their circumstances. Need help with your financial your financial future, we think we’re one of the top financial advisors in Australia.
