Smart Uses for your tax refund
Get the most out of your tax refund by developing a plan. Make a commitment to enjoy part of the money. Be smart, and use the rest for practical purposes. Allocate 80 percentof your refund for “smart uses” and the remaining 20 percent as cash for enjoyment or to make a special purchase. Consider the following smart uses to improve your finances and make the coming year more enjoyable.
Paying down credit card debt will save you money on high interest rate debt. Credit card debt and can be hard to pay off when making only the minimum payment because most of the payment goes to interest. If you carry over a balance every month, only a few dollars of each minimum payment goes toward reducing the principal owed. Reducing credit card debt will improve your financial security.
Set aside money for holiday and birthday gifts. Make an additional deposit into a savings account or open a new one for these purchases only. Making regular deposits throughout the year, even direct deposited from your check, into this special savings account is a great way to avoid over using your credit card when special events occur. Ten to 15 percent of your check is a great amount to pay into this account.
Open an emergency savings account to provide easy access to funds for unexpected expenses. When a tire goes bad, the battery needs changed in the car, the washing machine breaks or the hot water tank goes out, money in an emergency account will allow you to pay for these expenses without going into debt. As you begin your emergency savings account, don’t give up if you have to use it. See the value in having it to keep your debt from increasing. Strive to add to it every paycheck.
Let Kansas Saves help you reach your savings and debt reduction goals. It all starts whenyou make a commitment to yourself to save. That’s what this pledge is all about. And itdoesn’t stop there. Kansas Saves will keep you motivated with periodic information, advice, tips, and reminders sent by email or text message to help you reach your savings goal. Follow this link to learn more: http://bit.ly/2lvEO55.
Ever wonder about your financial health?
A financial checkup is as important as a physical checkup. A regular check of financial health can identify problems, chart progress, and outline action steps to achieve goals. It can also provide motivation to change.
A financial check-up:
http://www.bookstore.ksre.ksu.edu/pubs/MF2721.pdf