Eight Great Personal Finance Tips

UK wages are barely keeping up with inflation which means that it is getting more difficult to pay for stuff like food, utilities and rent. With more and more people feeling the pinch, not just in Henley but all over the UK, it is essential that there is helpful financial advice to help people save more. Here are some tips to help you save as much money as possible.

Complete an accurate budget

This is an essential tip because, unless you know exactly how much you are spending and on what, you won’t know what to cut down on to save money. Make a list of all of your income and outgoings. Your outgoings will include things like rent/mortgages, utility bills, food, credit card debts and other expenses.

Spend change at the self-checkout

When you’re next at the Sainsbury’s Local in Henley, bring some of your random change with you. You can feed all of your change in (don’t worry about causing a queue) to the self-checkout machine and then pay for the rest on your card. It’s a great way to use leftover change and reduce the amount that comes out of your account.

Use the 30-day rule

This is a great way to stop impulse purchases. When you feel an urge to buy something, be it a new TV, video game, a nice dress/shirt or a new pair of shoes, hold off and wait 30 days. If, after 30 days, you still want to buy it then go ahead. However, if you no longer want to make the purchase then you’ve just saved yourself that money.

Stick to your shopping list

Are you one of those people who goes in to buy some milk and ends up spending £20 on snacks and random other things that you don’t need? Writing and sticking to a shopping list will help ensure that you only buy what you actually want.

See if you’ve been mis-sold PPI

Investigate PPI to see if it is possible to claim compensation. PPI was mis-sold to millions of people in the UK in the 1990s and 2000s. You could be one of those people. If you are then you could be entitled to thousands of pounds in recompense. See if you can be compensated through a Halifax PPI claim.

Save when you can

With the average income being 8% lower for those aged 22-30 than it was in 2008 and increased living costs, it is unsurprising that millennials are failing to save much money. However, savings are vital to make sure that you can weather financial storms and having money invested toward a pension is essential.

Cut down on drinking and quit smoking

These two bad habits aren’t just unhealthy, they can also be huge money sinkholes.

Don’t play the lottery

Your chances of winning the lottery in the UK is one in 14 million. Stop buying tickets in the hope that it will solve your money problems – it won’t!