Financial New Years Resolution

[bellaswan]

To organise myself by first paying off my school debt before venturing to other forms of debt.

[Future]

To hopefully pay off hubby's cc debt and save up for a vacation later this year. Also start doing small repairs around the house as we hope to be selling our house in a year.

[SassyAshley]

My only goal financially right now is to track my spending and really see where I am spending my money. I am lucky that the only debt we have is our mortgage but I want to make sure I am not over spending in certain areas because I have never really tracked my savings before just made sure more was coming in and than going out.

[vesper]

I want to save more money with coupons and such (the reason I joined this site). I'd also like to remove most of my stock holdings as I think stocks are going to hit the fan very soon. There is an entire apartment bulding for sale in a town near here, 12 units, but needs work. I never wanted to be a landlord, but this is a winner if I am willing to renovate considerably.

[sweetproserpina]

Pay off the credit cards

Pay off my student loan (after 10 years, I'm in the home stretch!!!)

Save the down payment for our homestead

[lindseyc]

Last year I streamlined my budget, consolidated my debt under one line of credit with a super low interest rate, and I canceled all unnecessary subscriptions, worked to lower my monthly bills, and really economized. So 2014 for me is the year I pay off a huge chunk of debt, build an emergency fund and really track all my finances down to the penny.

It will take me about 3 years to be debt free, but once I am I will be laughing as my mortgage is very low, and most of the big renovations and purchases have been made for the house I bought as a foreclosure. I am hoping my car holds out for 2 more years (it's pretty old) and assuming it does a new one will be paid with cash!

[Retiree]

Great goals, lyndsec. It sounds as if you have "your eye on the prize"! With your plan, you are well on the way to meeting your goals.

[macw1960]

We decided to live off one paycheck and use the other one to pay of LOC as quickly as possible. Any extra money we happen to get will also be going on it as well. We would love to pay it off asap.

[lizzie bargain]

What a great idea!! Many of us could scrimp and live on less and like you say use the other cheque for debt or savings.

[Retiree]

Great goal, macw1960. Living on one paycheck is not always easy but if you have the discipline to do it, you will have that LOC paid off in no time.

[canadascouponeer]

What an interesting topic, it's fun to read what everyone is planning for this year! I personally have many goals for this year (almost too many, haha). My biggest goal is definitely to stop spending so recklessly. I MUST get out of the mindset of "well it's only $3 for this coffee, I'll just treat myself." Unfortunately, its going to be very hard because it's difficult for me to work so hard for my money, and having to save it. Sigh I guess I'll have to find a balance between not being reckless, and still treating myself to nice things once in a while. Since I am finally going to college this September (that is if I get accepted, haha) after taking a one year break after high school, I will try to save whatever I make from working so that I can pay off my tuition in cash. I think it will be achievable because I have a seasonal job starting in March that averages about 40 hours a week, so if I can save enough I should be okay, and still have some money leftover. I also plan on maybe finding another job because I would love it if I could buy a car. I know it is a luxury and I should just bus instead, but I DREAD bussing so much. And finally, my last goal is to try to make some money from my blog. Don't get me wrong, I love writing on it, and even if I couldn't get paid to write I would still do it. But why not make some money if you have the chance right?

[lizzie bargain]

As you save it might be helpful to try thinking in terms of your take home pay per hr-your salary minus tax, EI and CPP and anything else you have to pay. Then think in terms of is it worth it to work 20 minutes of my day for a coffee or half a day for these new jeans or should I bring a coffee from home and check the thrift store for clothes? I just made these numbers up but you can generate your own. I know personally we rarely buy drinks or dessert of any sort out and I think it is having some of these frugal habits that have allowed us to save and retire early. Good luck with your saving and schooling-being able to pay cash for your tuition will be a big boon when you are done and don't need to make student loan payments along with possible mortgage payments, childcare, etc etc.

[lilo0003]

What an interesting topic, it's fun to read what everyone is planning for this year! I personally have many goals for this year (almost too many, haha). My biggest goal is definitely to stop spending so recklessly. I MUST get out of the mindset of "well it's only $3 for this coffee, I'll just treat myself." Unfortunately, its going to be very hard because it's difficult for me to work so hard for my money, and having to save it. Sigh I guess I'll have to find a balance between not being reckless, and still treating myself to nice things once in a while. Since I am finally going to college this September (that is if I get accepted, haha) after taking a one year break after high school, I will try to save whatever I make from working so that I can pay off my tuition in cash. I think it will be achievable because I have a seasonal job starting in March that averages about 40 hours a week, so if I can save enough I should be okay, and still have some money leftover. I also plan on maybe finding another job because I would love it if I could buy a car. I know it is a luxury and I should just bus instead, but I DREAD bussing so much. And finally, my last goal is to try to make some money from my blog. Don't get me wrong, I love writing on it, and even if I couldn't get paid to write I would still do it. But why not make some money if you have the chance right?

the one thing I did the year I gave up/cut down on coffee purchases was 1st dig my coffee pot out of the cupboard & then every day I did not buy a coffee, I put 3.00 in a jar (It was not uncommon to go for coffee twice a day). Having saved over 800.00 in year killed my daily coffee habit. Now its maybe twice a week.

[Retiree]

Smart girl, lilo0003. You gave yourself a visual of what you were really saving.

[trishka]

the one thing I did the year I gave up/cut down on coffee purchases was 1st dig my coffee pot out of the cupboard & then every day I did not buy a coffee, I put 3.00 in a jar (It was not uncommon to go for coffee twice a day). Having saved over 800.00 in year killed my daily coffee habit. Now its maybe twice a week.

That is a fantastic idea.

Another one that my friend used was that she kept a journal of sorts. She wrote down every single item and from where and how much she was spending on take out/restaurants/coffee. At the end of the month, she calculated what she spent, took that from her take home pay and realised she was spending almost half of what she made on eating out and coffee. Even if you aren't necessarily a visual person, I think it always helps to actually see it in that it makes more of an impact.