Everyone who moves out of their family’s house thinks about savings once in a while. We are programmed by the society to think about our immediate needs. No one can live without working a fulltime job or having someone else take care of them by doing exactly that. The average American citizen earned about $50,000 during 2016. meaning that the planned nation-wide raise didn’t go as planned and the incomes stayed the same. If you think about how much an average apartment, house or a car costs like, how can buying something like that make any sense in the long run?
The truth is that you can start saving anytime you feel the urge to invest into the future. How and how you’re your savings routine is going to go on depends on a lot of factors, not the least of which is your current family status. Are you single or a parent of three with a loving spouse by your side? These factors play a huge role in the amount and scale of the savings you will do, which we will take a look at soon.
Everything you want to get or keep in this world costs money, and money needs to be earned by working hard. While the modern society is built around this hegemony, there are ways to plan forward and start saving money. How exactly can you tell the amount of money you need when you don’t even have all of your costs on paper?
Basic needs
Depending on the type of family you have, the size of your home and the amount of family members you have, you will have to allocate different amounts of money during each month. The basic needs that every family has to cover include food, hygiene, clothing, medicine, etc.
These are the most basic needs that a home needs to have in order to be considered functional. Everyone in the family needs to pitch in every once in a while, so stimulating your teen kids or elderly to take up a hobby that can earn a little bit more is an added bonus that won’t go to waste. Put all of your basic needs on paper and compare that to the monthly income that your family makes across all family members.
How much money do you need to start saving in order to prepare for the rainy days? It’s hard to say with so many variables, but you should always strive towards having 3-5 monthly payments in the piggy bank just to make sure that you can make it through tough times.
Rent and bills
While some families don’t pay rent, they do have to pay for keeping their house functional. This can often cost far more than rent, and it’s one of the many reasons you should think about saving in advance. How much does the monthly billing cycle cost for your current home? How much does it cost during the winter when there is intense heating, and during the summer when everyone uses electricity to cool off?
These questions are essential in figuring out the amount of money you should prepare for any unexpected occurrences. Some landlords are flexible when it comes to paying rent but you shouldn’t rely too much on that behavior – landlords are also people who need money for their own living, hence them renting you the house.
Your own house needs maintenance and proper care in order to stay habitable and hospitable to anyone who enters. Keeping the yard tidy and looking out for all the windows, doors and structural integrity seems like a hassle until you realize how much money it can save you. Detecting a problem early on raises your chances of preventing any serious damage on your house, thus saving a lot of money from your savings.
Membership fees
Chances are that your family members attend activities that take place outside of school or work. These sports, recreational and relaxing activities cost monthly fees, unfortunately. While it doesn’t seem like a lot to pay for both of your children to go to the gym every month, putting it all on paper on a yearly basis paints a different picture.
You should always have these activities in mind because they require immediate payments just like your regular bills do. Having to tell your children that they can’t go to the gym this month because you over calculated the family expenses can be a heartbreaking experience. Just like with bills, make sure that you put all of your membership fees on paper and calculate the amount of money you need to put aside.
Vacations
Going on vacation is a huge part of what makes today’s world so different from the past. It’s easier than ever before to just pack up and go somewhere new. That is until you put all the costs on paper and see what it really looks like. Vacations can play a huge part in how you manage your savings.
Depending on the number, frequency and travel destination of your vacations, you can factor in a good portion of your savings into vacations. It’s quite necessary for a person to go somewhere every once in a while and not think about anything work related. Vacations don’t have to be oversea journeys that take a month to complete. Taking your car to a neighboring country with your family can do the trick as well.
Secondary incomes
It shouldn’t be surprising that many people tend to take second jobs when they think about a savings fund. People simply don’t make enough money in today’s economy to indulge in everything they are used to. Paying for bills and food is a huge part of a family’s monthly income and one has to wonder what’s left when that’s paid.
You can give some thought into an easy-to-manage secondary job like tutoring or freelancing. Freelancing is a great way to earn money on the side while working your full-time job during the day. You can easily work in online administration, graphic design, data mining, writing, or any number of fields. You can easily gain any skills you are missing by visiting online courses and learning how to design, cite sources, extract data, etc.
Second jobs are usually about necessity and not a simple personal wish. People tend to be tired and nervous when they come back from work and then realize that they have more work waiting for them online. Regardless of any initial troubles, part time jobs are a great way to gain some traction in your savings and save more than enough for all of your needs.
Future steps
It’s important to consider the fact that some families simply don’t save money. They rely on insurance funds, social care or state support should anything unexpected happen. While this does work in some countries, you shouldn’t rely on your country to pay for your bills or a gym membership – unfortunately, that’s not how it works.
Start saving money little by little in order to be prepared for tomorrow and have a little extra on the side should anything happen. Imagining the last time you needed money and didn’t have any because of your lack of savings should be an incentive that can kick start your savings experience.
Guest article written by: Preston Felix is a professional writer for hotessaysarvice.com. He’s been writing for 8 years and when he is not involved in career-related tasks, he follows his other many interests, including astronomy, psychology, and traveling.