5 Ways to Organize Your Finances Right Now
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Getting your finances organized is a big undertaking, but it can also provide a lot of relief once you’ve taken steps to calm the chaos. To avoid getting overwhelmed, it’s helpful to start with some simple, concrete steps.
Here are ways to start organizing your finances right now.
Roll over an old 401k
If you have switched jobs in the past few years, there is a good chance that you left behind a 401k with your former employer. Keeping track of all of these retirement accounts as you go throughout your career gets complicated. Luckily, there is a solution: you can roll your old 401k over into an individual retirement account or your current 401k. While it can sometimes be a bit of a pain in the butt to do on your own, Capitalize can help with the process. Consolidating your retirement accounts in this way will ensure that you aren’t paying any unnecessary fees in your old 401k and will reduce the number of logins and passwords you need to keep track of. Speaking of passwords…
Use a password manager
The number of passwords we all have to keep track of these days is daunting. Keeping your passwords simple enough to remember or using the same password for everything is a security risk. Having multiple, complicated passwords necessitates having a way to organize them if you don’t want to have to reset your password every time you log in. Password managers like LastPass are great for this. They can sync across your devices so you can always log into your important financial accounts and don’t risk getting locked out.
Create a calendar for your bills
Whether your bills are on autopay or you pay them manually, mark all of your bill due dates and amounts on a calendar to have a visual reminder of when that money is going to leave your account. You can do this on a physical calendar, digital calendar, or both! Make sure to include non-monthly bills like annual subscriptions and bi-annual insurance payments.
Set up separate accounts for separate goals
Organizing your finances sometimes actually means organizing your cash. This is especially true when it comes to your savings goals. Keeping your savings organized in this way helps you see exactly how much money you have for each goal and helps you know when you’ve achieved your target!
Close bank accounts you no longer use
Just like many people collect 401ks throughout their careers, some people collect bank accounts as they go through life. If you have accounts at multiple banks that you are no longer using, consider closing them down. Closing bank accounts has no effect on your credit score. Additionally, if your bank requires a minimum balance or charges monthly maintenance fees, keeping those accounts open is taking or tying up money you could deploy for another purpose.
Need more help with organizing your finances?
To get started, schedule a free 20-minute consultation call to speak to a member of our team. We will ask you a few basic questions to get to know you more, walk you through our financial training program steps, and answer any questions you may have. No pressure to join! Need advice quickly? Talk to one of our Trainers on Demand.