Money Goals for 2012? Resources to Help You Achieve Them

Are you like me and have some money resolutions or goals for 2012? In 2010 I decided the only way for me to get a handle on my finances was to declare bankruptcy. I wrote about it as a guest series on Where Does All My Money Go. I could see no way out from that burden. Last year I cleared my bankruptcy. So what does that mean? It means I have a second chance but it also means rebuilding a basis for credit. Three things are major money goals for me in 2012. 1. Get a credit card. I have been using a wonderful debit Mastercard from BMO for the last 2 years. I love it but I also think it is time to reestablish my credit worthiness so I will go after getting my first credit card this year. 2. I have NO emergency fund. This is a HUGE no no. I have learned anything can happen in a moment so I will make this my number one priority.I plan on having 5% of my annual income by the end of the year in this account. 3. I want to learn more about RRSP’s, mutual funds, TFSA, index investing and so much more. I need to round out my financial knowledge. I will have a plan in place to invest. I will start with just a small amount $100 a month. But that $100 a month can turn into much more by the time I retire. It is a start. I will also invest my GST, and tax returns starting this year into long-term savings. So how am I going to find the $ to fund these when I have been living pay cheque to pay cheque?  I had to go over my bills and figure out where I was overspending, what I could cut and make a dream board of what I really want. That will give me the incentive to stick to my plan. There are also a number of great resources and tools I will be using to keep myself on track. I am also eliminating some very bad habits. 1. Opened an ING account, really they do offer the best interest rates and the lowest fees I can find right now. I decided to go with a tax free savings account to start me off. I will also have a separate fee free account for that emergency fund I am building. 2. Cut soda and Timmy runs. I realized I was spending over $50 a month on junk! Junk that I was taking into my body and since one of my goals is to create a healthier me this one is a no brainer. This $50 is going straight into long-term savings. Do you know if you smoke and quit you could literally save thousands? 3. Download @Shopcatch unto my smartphone so when I am looking to buy something I can find the best deal. 4. Continue to utilize sites like Wag Jag, and The Deal Pages to get good deals on things I need or for gifts. 5. Continue to use Mint.com for my budgeting. Years ago I worked for the parent company Intuit selling the software to small businesses 6. Continue tweeting and planning conversations on Twitter on important money topics. The #cdnmoney chat helps me to learn and grow. 7. Utilize the calculators found on the Financial Consumer Agency of Canada site. By using the calculators I can estimate investments, etc so I can better plan my future. This site has alot of great resources for Canadians and I recommend utilizing it. 8. I will read alot so I can learn more about money, investing and financial planning. I think I have the frugal lifestyle down pat, what I really need to know now is how to make my money work for me. For me the resources and tools will help keep me on track as I plan for my financial goals. May they help you as well.     ...

Money Goals for 2012? Resources to Help You Achieve Them Are you like me and have some money resolutions or goals for 2012?

In 2010 I decided the only way for me to get a handle on my finances was to declare bankruptcy. I wrote about it as a guest series on Where Does All My Money Go. I could see no way out from that burden. Last year I cleared my bankruptcy. So what does that mean? It means I have a second chance but it also means rebuilding a basis for credit.

Three things are major money goals for me in 2012.

1. Get a credit card. I have been using a wonderful debit Mastercard from BMO for the last 2 years. I love it but I also think it is time to reestablish my credit worthiness so I will go after getting my first credit card this year.

2. I have NO emergency fund. This is a HUGE no no. I have learned anything can happen in a moment so I will make this my number one priority.I plan on having 5% of my annual income by the end of the year in this account.

3. I want to learn more about RRSP’s, mutual funds, TFSA, index investing and so much more. I need to round out my financial knowledge. I will have a plan in place to invest. I will start with just a small amount $100 a month. But that $100 a month can turn into much more by the time I retire. It is a start. I will also invest my GST, and tax returns starting this year into long-term savings.

So how am I going to find the $ to fund these when I have been living pay cheque to pay cheque?  I had to go over my bills and figure out where I was overspending, what I could cut and make a dream board of what I really want. That will give me the incentive to stick to my plan.

There are also a number of great resources and tools I will be using to keep myself on track. I am also eliminating some very bad habits.

1. Opened an ING account, really they do offer the best interest rates and the lowest fees I can find right now. I decided to go with a tax free savings account to start me off. I will also have a separate fee free account for that emergency fund I am building.

2. Cut soda and Timmy runs. I realized I was spending over $50 a month on junk! Junk that I was taking into my body and since one of my goals is to create a healthier me this one is a no brainer. This $50 is going straight into long-term savings. Do you know if you smoke and quit you could literally save thousands?

3. Download @Shopcatch unto my smartphone so when I am looking to buy something I can find the best deal.

4. Continue to utilize sites like Wag Jag, and The Deal Pages to get good deals on things I need or for gifts.

5. Continue to use Mint.com for my budgeting. Years ago I worked for the parent company Intuit selling the software to small businesses

6. Continue tweeting and planning conversations on Twitter on important money topics. The #cdnmoney chat helps me to learn and grow.

7. Utilize the calculators found on the Financial Consumer Agency of Canada site. By using the calculators I can estimate investments, etc so I can better plan my future. This site has alot of great resources for Canadians and I recommend utilizing it.

8. I will read alot so I can learn more about money, investing and financial planning. I think I have the frugal lifestyle down pat, what I really need to know now is how to make my money work for me.

For me the resources and tools will help keep me on track as I plan for my financial goals.

May they help you as well.

 

 

Source: http://commoncentsmom.com/2012/01/money-goals-for-2012-resources-to-help-you-achieve-them/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=money-goals-for-2012-resources-to-help-you-achieve-them

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