Several months into the year is the perfect time to reevaluate your financial standing, budget, and more. Continue reading to learn tips for reviewing your budget and investments while Spring cleaning your finances.

Check In On Your Budget

You should be basing your monthly spending each month on your budget. Now that we are several months into the year, you can review your spending to ensure your budget is fitting your needs. Check in on all your expenses to identify areas where you need to cut back spending to help prioritize some of your financial goals.

Total Up Your Debt

Your debt could be holding you back from reaching your financial goals. To be able to start tackling your debt, you need to take account of every debt account you have. Start by creating a list of your debts, including the type of debt, balance, minimum monthly payment, and interest rate. Once you complete your list, you need to rank your debts from highest interest debt to lowest interest debt. This is the best payoff method to save you money over time by paying less interest.

Review Your Emergency Fund

Accidents and emergencies inevitably happen. Unfortunately, many people are one unexpected bill away from financial issues. To prevent this from happening, it’s extremely important to have an emergency fund to fall back on. The recommended amount to have in your emergency fund is three to six months’ worth of expenses, specifically in case you find yourself with a loss of income. You also want to make sure that you keep your emergency fund easily accessible so consider utilizing a high-yield savings account to keep your funds on pace with inflation.

Evaluate Your Retirement Savings

While retirement may be decades away, time is your best friend when it comes to building up your nest egg. The earlier you begin saving, the more amount of time your funds must compound interest. Several months into the year gives you the opportunity to evaluate your retirement contribution standing and any more options to save for retirement. Aim to max out your contributions for your retirement accounts and diversify your retirement savings accounts.

Kickstart Your Tax Planning

With tax season wrapping up, it’s never too early to begin tax planning for the next year. Whether or not you received a large tax bill or refund, you can make changes throughout the year to mitigate your tax liability. A few examples are maximizing your pre-tax retirement contributions to lower your taxable income, tax harvesting to lower the effects of capital gains taxes, and adjusting your W-4 to change your withholdings.

Handling your finances on your own can be overwhelming; you know what goals you want to reach but might not know how to get there. Instead, have an advisor by your side. Our advisors will help guide you through Spring cleaning your financial planning process and ensure you are working towards your financial goals. Schedule a consultation with us today to get started.

Sources:

https://www.regions.com/insights/personal/personal-finances/creating-a-financial-plan/9-tips-for-spring-cleaning-your-finances
https://fsnb.net/spring-cleaning-your-finances-tips-to-organize-your-financial-life
https://www.experian.com/blogs/ask-experian/spring-clean-your-finances
https://www.morganstanley.com/articles/financial-spring-cleaning-tips