Top Ten Budget Planning Tips

 Money 1. $tick to a budget! If you don’t have one, it’s never too late to start. Information (in the form of a budget) is power and enables you to make the changes you need to control your spending, cut out the waste and become sustainably better off.
 padlock 2.  Protect your assets. Insuring the valuable things in your life doesn’t just buy you financial protection, it also buys you peace of mind. Saving money by skimping on insurance is a false economy. Insurance is about taking responsibility, assuming control and enabling your long-term financial success.
  3. Let high-interest debts grab your interest. By paying extra off your existing high-interest debts first, you can – in time – free up some serious cash.
  4. Carry on regardless. If you’re lucky enough to be in line for a pay rise anytime soon, or if your home loan repayments are due to decrease, resist the temptation to increase your outgoings, put the extra money aside, and watch how quickly your savings build up.
  5. Dump the junk food. There’s nothing cheap about junk food – as you’ll see from the savings you can make by cutting out takeaways, crisps and soft drinks. If you want to treat yourself, and get a sense of achievement into the bargain . . . bake a cake!
  6. Don’t discount the discounters. If there’s a cut-price supermarket near you, you’ll be astonished at just how much you can save – even if you carry on buying the odd luxuries at your usual outlet.
  7. Chomp before you shop. When you do head to the supermarket, get into the routine of going soon after a meal – it means your brain makes the purchasing decisions, not your stomach. And, by having your children do the same, pester power could soon become a thing of the past.
  8. Bring out your budding barista. If you’re a coffee connoisseur, you can hone your barista skills and save big bucks at the same time by investing in a coffee machine. (Better still: go splits with your colleagues and do the same at work.)
  9. Pack your lunch – it’s the nearest you’re ever likely to get to that elusive free lunch!
  10. Saving is child’s play. If you have children, make sure they each have a savings account (and, preferably, a piggy bank too). It prevents their birthday money from disappearing into the family budget and makes savers of them from an early age. Now that’s a head start in life money just can’t buy!