Budgeting

Do you know how much you spend – each week, each month, each quarter?

If your money seems to disappear, try setting yourself a firm but achievable budget and start taking control of your money.

There are many ways to make your money work harder:

• identify your medium to long term personal goals and prioritise them
• take a hard look at your bills to see how you have been spending your money and work out where you can cut down
• identify debts that have the highest interest charge and pay these off as a priority
• consider having part of your salary regularly deducted from your savings account and transferred to an investment account
• create a realistic but firm budget to help determine your saving capacity
• reward yourself when you reach budget milestones

Why not take a look at our budget planner below which can help you get your finances in order. A Bridges financial planner can help you assess your individual needs, explain suitable investments and develop appropriate strategies.

For more information on how a financial planner can help you view the 'How a financial planner can help’ online video.