UK money and lifestyle blog

Three ways to improve your finances next year

Posted on 3:10pm Wednesday 11th Dec 2019

Hoping to improve your finances next year? Maybe you’re looking to save for a house deposit or a holiday, or perhaps you’re keen to finally get out of debt. You might just want to make life a little easier by having more expendable income and not running out of money before every payday. Either way, there are things you can do which will help you make the best use of the budget you have, and then add to it too. Here are some ideas!

Reduce your bills

Staying loyal to companies actually costs you, rather than saves you money. This can be staying loyal to an employer instead of taking new job opportunities for a higher pay or by staying loyal to your bill providers at home. Things like your internet, phone contract, insurances and other policies should all be changed at the end of the contract so you’re able to make use of new customer deals. If you’re continually accepting contract renewals and aren’t shopping around or changing anything then chances are you’re overpaying. Spend a free morning running quotes through price comparison sites, see where you can get better deals and save yourself some money. It will all add up over the course of the year and is extra money in your pocket. This could be spent on debt, put into savings or just used on more exciting things.

Here are some ways to reduce your bills:

Put together a new budget

Once your bills have been reduced, consider changing up your budget. This is something worth looking into at least once a year, as things can change in life and you need to prioritise the way your funds are spent. See where your money is going currently and if things need to change, if you’re overspending in one area then make an effort to cut this back. Groceries are one place that many families spend too much- some simple meal planning and shopping to a list are easy ways to get this down. See if you can reduce fuel costs by walking or biking more, or cut back on things like digital subscriptions if you’re not using them that often. Make it a priority to check your budget at least once a year and even more if you can. As Ben and I are self-employed our income changes monthly, so we assess our budget monthly. We pay ourselves monthly and work out a budget based on the unique amount every month. Try and leave some flexibility in your budget as random things might pop up.

Save money and increase your budget with these blogs posts:

Create new streams of income

Along with saving money and spending what you have wisely, to make a significant difference to your finances it’s important to make more money too. You could pick up more shifts at work or look into getting another job. You could start a home based business, build up a brand (read this brand protection guide to find out more) and sell in person or on social media. You could freelance or start a blog. You could start a side hustle like matched betting. There are lots of ways you can earn extra money, and anything you do get on the side can be saved, used for debt or spent wisely. Not only does it mean more money but you could build additional skills and have fun with it as well. If you’re lucky, your side venture might take off and become something you can do full time. That’s exactly what I did and you can read my ways to make money at home section to learn numerous methods to make your own income.

Here are just some of the ways you can make extra cash at home:

It's so important to manage your money. Staying on track prevents debt and overspending. Getting your finances in order is a worthwhile resolution to make for 2020. Our financial resolution is to pay back one out of our two loans by the end of 2020. What will your financial resolution be?