Refresh Your Finances This Spring
Now that the cold, dark winter is (sort of) over, it’s time to open the shutters and look at your finances in the spring light. You may not be making progress towards your goal, or you want to increase your savings even further, or make sure your student loan payments are in order . Either way, here’s your periodic reminder for your money.
At Lifehacker, we take spring cleaning very seriously. We are far from missing out on an opportunity to refresh, reorganize and streamline our home life. We’re also very excited to hit the reset button with our technology, take a close look at our finances, and get the better of our day-to-day habits that have gotten a little musty. Welcome to Spring Cleaning Week as we clear away the winter cobwebs and set the stage for the sunny days ahead. Let’s clean up, okay?
Assuming you follow all my advice exactly, and I know you do, you regularly compile Personal Inventory Days . Use your April (or May if April has already passed) PID to take stock of your financial life.
Specifically, here’s what to include on your Financial Spring Cleanup list .
Submit your tax return
If you haven’t filed your tax return yet, what are you waiting for? Submitting an extension ? Not sure what to do with Bitcoin ? It’s time to figure it out.
And as I wrote yesterday, you still have time to maximize your IRA contributions (if you qualify) in order to receive a small tax credit (but you will have to do it ASAP). So take advantage of this.
Debt solution
If you get your tax refund after you finish paying your taxes and you don’t have immediate financial needs, put some of it into your emergency savings and some of it to pay off your existing debt. As interest rates rise gradually , I would focus on your credit card debt.
Alternatively, call and ask for a lower rate. As I wrote here , it is likely that the only thing holding you back from paying lower interest is the phone’s handset.
And if you have student loans , make sure you are on the most suitable repayment scheme for your situation. Call your service personnel and ask about possible options, as well as perform a little research on their own (government website StudentAid.gov – a huge resource) to determine suitable if you an alternative payment method.
Increase your security
Last year’s Equifax hack drew attention to security issues, but it’s important to remain vigilant even as headlines have dropped. As I wrote earlier , if you are affected by a hack, you can:
- Put a scam alert on your accounts
- Freeze your loan (at all three bureaus) if you are not going to buy a house, car, etc. soon.
- Consider paying for identity theft services that track loan applications in your name, as well as activities on the dark web.
You’ll want to get your free credit reports throughout the year to check activity (from Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion), and consider downloading an app like Credit Karma to track your bills for the rest of the year.
On a more basic level, watch out for emails with spelling or grammatical errors, attachments, or those that emphasize the urgency of the situation. “If the message says“ act now, ”or else your“ information will be in danger ”(or something similar), delete the email,” Jonas Sikler, COO of ConsumerSafety.org , told NBC .
And remember that you are sending yourself. You should not send confidential financial information by email. If your account gets hacked at some point, you will get a severe headache. If you did, change all of your passwords and delete whatever you sent (and then empty your trash).
Finally, make sure you are using your credit card instead of your debit card when shopping online – your credit card provides the best protection.
Check your career plan
Where are you in your career? Are you sure this is where you want to be? What can you do to get to the next level? For all of these questions, you will need to take the time to answer them from time to time.
You can ask your boss to meet and discuss how you are doing, as well as get the feedback he can get. Make sure you track your progress in some easily accessible file. Conduct a Life Audit for clarity.
Start planning your summer trips and activities
Do you know what you and your kids will be doing this summer? It’s time to make plans and start saving money if you can. “When planning ahead, this gives you the ability to book a hotel or campground at a discount, plan meals in advance rather than every meal in a restaurant, and look in advance for activities that are free or discounted,” writes Ben Vacek , Certified Financial Planner.
You don’t want to be caught off guard by the extra camp fee or miss out on a beach weekend trip because you didn’t plan ahead. And of course, you will have a better and less stressful time if you start planning now.