Money is a real nuisance. You need it to exchange it for things you need in life, but it’s so hard to get a hold of. Tips on being financially savvy, tend to insist that you watch your money, whether it’s by budgeting or tracking expenses. There is also the method limitation, either by limiting what you spend money or your lifestyle to ensure you have it. Times are already hard right now, and further limiting yourself is so much worse. So, what can you do to be more financially savvy, whilst saving and spending?
I would like to caveat I am not a financial advisor, and if you need more specific information to your situation, I recommend you find a licensed professional.
Saving: Emergency fund
It sounds like a luxury until you desperately need it. In the event of an emergency, any pre-existing cash (that’s accessible) is a large help. The finance influencers I see online, recommend about 3 – 6 months of expenses saved up. This means when unexpected bills come up, then you have something. Now we all won’t have 3-6 months of expenses saved up in a few months. But having a small amount of cash available when a situation comes up, it softens the blow a little bit. And that is better than getting it hit with the full thing. It does empty out, but you can start again. Having this fund in an accessible High Yield savings account (a savings account with a high interest rate – but with flexible withdrawal T&Cs), will allow the money to work for you in the background, and that is lovely, isn’t it?
I’ll admit, I have been working for 19 months, and I barely have 1 month’s expenses saved. Why? Well, my first 7 pay cheques, went to buying me out of my nightmare house. I limited my spending so I could save £7k. After that, I decided to live a little more. Take a little trip every once in a while. New clothes or even a takeout. I didn’t get those in my first 7 months, but at least my emergency fund was ready. Now I am not saving as furiously. My finances are stable enough to allow me to live a little, whilst being able to save something. If I don’t treat myself now, I won’t learn how to do it in my future.
Saving and Spending recommendations
I have a few of these accessible accounts between different banks, they are RCI bank, Virgin Money and Chase. (I am in the UK by the way) The less accessible but higher interest ones tend to be with traditional banks like Coventry Building Society.
Saving and Spending: Cashback Initiatives
These are handy apps/services that allow you to keep a portion of your cash, even when you’re spending big. Top Cashback*, Quidco and Rakuten, are a few of these services. I am with Top Cashback so I will mainly talk about that.
Top Cashback*
Every time I shop online, I check if that shop/brand/service is partnered with Top Cashback. If they are, Top Cashback will tell me how much money I will get back from the purchase. You have to use the link through Top Cashback or it won’t register and you could miss out on savings.
To get the most out of it, I pay an annual £5 fee for the full membership, so I have access to all their partnerships for cashback opportunities. (this is charged if I actually use the website to purchase something) They also have a Chrome extension, which can show you the partnered brands when you a google a product. You can cash out your money anytime as long as it’s been processed, and they can tell you how much is processed and how much is pending. You can’t get cashback on something you return, so you have to commit to the purchase, which makes me think about my purchases a lot.
In September 2022, I cashed out all the money I had built up over 2 years, which was £35. I didn’t take it seriously enough to remember to check Top Cashback when I shopped. The extension has really helped as when I google a product, the Top Cashback logo and cashback amount sit next to the URL of the partnered shops. This means I choose very carefully who I shop with, and how much I pay for the product, to ensure I keep most of my cash with me. As of this post I have about £120 through Top Cashback, from all my purchases since I withdrew.
Between the 3 services I recommend doing some research. Top Cashback* has a large variety of partnerships, so I can get cashback on most of my shopping such as Holidays, Presents, groceries and savings accounts.
*If you sign up to Top Cashback on this link, I will receive a pay out when you reach £10 cashback.
Saving: Bank account benefits
Banks are always looking to get new customers, and the way they do it is b giving you an attractive offer to open an account with them. There are so many offers out there.
Virgin Money; promise you one of their experience days for free and a lumpsum of cash (if you transfer your current account to theirs).
FirstBank; give you £170 for opening an account.
Chase; gives you 1% cashback on every purchase for your first 3-12 months for opening an account with them.
(If you’re a student Santander gives you a free 4 year railcard if you open a student account. That’s 30% cheaper train tickets for the next 4 years, without having to spend the £30 every year for the card).
I signed up to chase for their 1% cashback on everything, and they also have a reasonably high interest rate on a savings account and rounding up any change. I missed out on the Virgin one because I was scared of transferring my bank account. However, if I do end up transferring my current account I’ll let you know if my pay cheque gets lost in the abyss or not. Do your own research first, select what’s best for you, but these are a good place to start.
Moral of my story:
- You need an emergency fund – This is essential prep for any hiccups in the future. Try to aim for 3 – 6 months saved in a high interest accessible account, though having some money saved is better than none.
- Cashback initiatives are nifty little things – They may add a little extra step to your shopping, but if that results in more money saying with you isn’t it worth it?
- Opening bank accounts can yield extra benefits – Some benefits might be more valuable to you than others
- Do your research and seek licensed support – I am not an advisor of any kind, I have done a lot of researching over the last 2 years and I am still learning. I recommend you research too, and if you need more specific advice get a licensed professional.
