What are your top ten personal finance tips?

[chrisburke21]

I have been exploring many different personal finance forums online. I am always on the lookout for new ideas on how to save and invest my money. This month on a forum savingadvice.com they have a blog post contest on the 10 best personal finance tips I have learned. I thought this is a good opportunity to explore this topic. Here are my top 10 personal finance tips:

1. Never spend more then you earn. This is the foundation of any good personal finance plan. If you spend more then you earn you will systematically put yourself deeper into debt and will not be able to save.
2. Save at least 15% of your income. This is a minimum amount. If you save more then this you are doing great. This is advice I learned right out of college and has helped me amass a good amount of savings in the ten or so years since I have graduated.
3. Start saving early. The earlier you begin to save the more time interest has to compound. Don’t believe me try out this compound interest calculator with the same amount of money with a 10-year differential. Time is definitely an asset we want to have on our side.
4. Pay yourself first. Every time I am paid I automatically set a specific amount aside toward my savings plan. This makes budgeting easy. The amount I have left over is the amount I can spend. Once it’s gone…it’s gone.
5. Automate your finances. Banks have a ton of great tools to automate your bills and savings plans. You can setup automatic deductions or bill payments for your monthly fixed expenditures like mortgage, car payment, or student loan payment. I like to set these up biweekly so I pay these down a little more then the minimum every year.
6. Have an emergency fund. You should have an emergency fund with approximately 3 to 6 months of expenses. I prefer to have six months saved in case something were to happen like I lost my job I would not have to dig into my 401K or investments. It’s always smart to prepare for a rainy day.
7. Always put enough in to your 401K to get the full company match. If you don’t do this then you are giving away free money. This number is a minimum. You should always try and sock away as much as possible in your 401K. When you are able to retire with a large amount in this type of account you will thank yourself.
8. Pay off your debts. There are good and bad types of debt. If you have high interest debt you should pay this off as early as possible. Credit cards are a prime example of this. If you carry a balance and have an interest rate over 7% chances are that you are paying the card company more then you earn on your savings or investments. I also do not like borrowing money for a depreciating asset like cars, boats, etc.
9. Don’t buy into commercials. Recognize that we are bombarded every day with companies trying to hock their wares. They do this when you are watching TV, listening to the radio, even the billboards when you are driving down the street. Realize these ads are communicating that buying their products will promise you happiness. This is not true. Remember a fool and is money are soon parted.
10. Index funds are better then picking your own stocks. In his book, “A Random Walk Down Wall Street” Burton Malkiel outlines how market indexes have beat almost all individual investors returns in the long run. Lets face it you are no Warren Buffett. (Note: If Warren Buffett is reading this, then you are Warren Buffett.)

FifteenYearPlan - Personal Finance Blog

[laurend1985]

1. Eat at home. You can go to restaurants but not often
2. Keep a budget
3. Save up for wants.
4. Never use credit cards.
5. Always ask yourself is it a need or a want.
6. Use coupons but don't go crazy.
7. Look for free entertainment is your town or city each week-end
8. Unplug things when you leave the house.
9. Read blogs for encouragement.
10 Save money each time you get paid.

[ecoadapt]

You are all right, much better to memorize all this tips so that if others will ask question we can answer.

[dawnwes]

1. Use it up
2. Wear it out
3. Buy used when possible
4. Make do if possible
5. You don't need the latest and greatest
6. Give as generously as you can
7. Save for your future
8. Pay in cash
9. Take care of your health (it will save $$ in the long run)
10. Live below your means

[tan fish]

Not saying these are the best for everyone, but they work for me:

1. Budget all expenses and keep them under budget

2. Use rewards credit cards as often as you can, but only if you pay them off completely

3. Always look for sales/coupons on food and clothes

4. When out of the house just say no to designer coffees, bottled water, soda, smoothies, and other drinks that add up over time. When I am out I just drink filtered water from home in a thermos I bring with me everywhere.

5. Good entertainment isn't always expensive: Borrow items from the library, free to play computer games, jogging/yoga/basketball and other "free" sports, etc.

6. Pack your own lunch for the weekdays, i.e. never or rarely eat lunch out at work

7. Don't smoke or drink.

8. Use your car as less as you possibly can.

9. Buy all your clothes at places like Kohl's, TJ Maxx, etc.

10.Just stop buying crap/gadgets you may want but don't need (i.e. the newest most expensive tablet, upgrading to the latest smart phone each year, etc.).

[dawnwes]

Now that is just crazy talk!

10.Just stop buying crap/gadgets you may want but don't need (i.e. the newest most expensive tablet, upgrading to the latest smart phone each year, etc.).

[CollegeCalc]

Save early and save often....never underestimate the power of compounding interest.

[Oquote]

Here's one:

Start early,no matter how small your investment is. Payroll deduct or set up automatic checking account withdraw.

[KiwiJo09]

1. Having space on a credit card does not mean you can afford it.
2. Spend less than you earn.
3. Don't mix money and family.
4. Don't allow yourself to carry high balances on credit cards you cannot pay off.
5. Always know how much you have in your checking account.
6. Always put away whatever you can in savings, even if it's pocket change.
7. Try to help others financially, without putting yourself in a bad situation.
8. Consider money you lend to people gone.
9. If you can't decide if you should purchase something, don't.
10. Ask yourself before each purchase, "Do I need this?"

[Snave]

1) Start saving as early as you can and have it auto-deposited straight from your paycheck. You will learn to live without it. Save at least 15% and more if you can.
2) Marry smart! Find someone that also wants to be financially independent and talk about your goals often.
3) Be willing to take some risks. Don't be so conservative you miss some chances to make big returns.
4) Read. If you don't know about saving or investing read or ask someone that does.
Keep a budget and know where your money goes.
5) Have some built in "fun money" or "blow money" in the budget. Even if it is $50 or $100, you need to have some money you feel you can blow on whatever you want. You earn it, so have some fun with it - just don't go overboard and build it into the budget.
6) Pay cash. You will spend less and think about if you really need it if you are forking over cold, hard cash.
7) Buy a few year old used car. Let someone else take it off the lot and take the hit.
8) Eat at home for dinner and pack your lunch for work as much as you can. It helps the wallet and waistline!

[TheShopMyCloset Project]

1.) Be thankful for what you have
2.) Try to spend only cash
3.) Buy low, sell high
4.) Buy the smallest, or second smallest home that you can in the best neighborhood that you can afford. Stay in it.
5.) Make your kids share a room at least until they are 10 years old. Don't upgrade too soon. Your parents, and grandparents, and great-grandparents did this. So, don't freak out about this suggestion.
6.) Save, save, save
7.) Try, try, try ,again (but don't beat yourself up if you aren't where you would like to be)
8.) Always bring lunch, when you do eat out, go for a great dinner. Use a groupon savor the experience. If you eat out only 2 times a month, you can REALLY enjoy the experience
9.) Don't have a car loan
10.) Marry wisely

[surveyspencer]

These are a bit different than the others posted here, but here we go:

1. Don't put all of your financial eggs in one basket (this means making money in OTHER places than your job if possible).

2. Food is probably your #1 expense. Go as low as possible while still eating healthy.

3. Write down a budget plan, and stick to it. A budget can help control spending and boost the amount of money you save each month.

4. Pay off expensive debts, especially those with high rates or those for which interest is not tax-deductible...

5. ...or don't take debt in the first place.

6. Start saving TODAY for a rainy day (which can come at any moment).

7. Look at monthly expenses FIRST...then move onto everything else.

8. Fight for your interest. Every .01% counts over the long-term. Don't settle.

9. Don't try to keep up with the Joneses (someone will always make more than you do!).

10. Use credit cards wisely or not at all (something I learned the hard way!)

[victor06]

I have only 2 advice,one is control your self on spending money to budget wisely,when i was working in Sähkö kilpailutus, sähkön hinta vertailu ja sähkönmyynti - Lännen Omavoima Oy - Lännen Omavoima Oy i use to make sure that i budget my finance wisely and control my self and so far now a days i successfully made it.

[Angio333]

I agree with a lot of what people already posted. I would add tithing 10% to church and making sure that you budget money to bless people with!

[Goldy1]

It sounds trite, but one is don't get caught up in appearances. I remember a scenario in a money book describing the mom with a leased luxury vehicle with money issues picking up her kids in carpool next to a lady in an old paid off van with financial peace of mind. lol
When I was young and in my twenties, I had no problems getting dates from guys ever or any atttention at all from them. All my clothes were from clearance at tj max and my closet had very few items. I had friends who worked many hours to buy the latest sweater by a hot brand and had less time to study, and the guys don't care about that. My priorities were more time to study, some to socialize and just a few hours of work to pay by few bills and food.

Also to remember that the studies say the happiest people have close friends and relationships.