The three Rs to focus on while making the right financial decisions

The three Rs to focus on while making the right financial decisions

Your bad financial decisions are primarily responsible for your poor financial situation. Although a lot of inevitable factors like soaring prices affect your spending power, failing to take them into account while working on your financial picture clearly hints at your fault.

There are three Rs that you must remember to have complete control of your finances regardless of soaring prices or economic downturn.

• Responsibility – it is your responsibility to manage your money properly.
• Research – figure out the best deals so you can make the most of your money.
• Right choices – make sure you do not end up falling short of cash due to your bad choices

Responsibility

• Building a sense of  financial matters

As you come of age, you should learn how to manage money. At first, it can be daunting, but you will come across several terms you will hear the first time, like mortgages, pensions, interest rates, and APRs. Prepare yourself beforehand so you do not feel fogged and end up making wrong decisions. Only if you establish good habits will you be able to manage money.

• Get advice and information

Several independent sources, like the Citizen’s Advice Bureau, provide information on money management. Likewise, if you want to get credit-related information or get out of debt, Debt Camel is the best bet. In order to get advice, make sure:

• You have contacted a reliable source.
• You have done thorough research to get viewpoints about a particular product or service.
• You consult your family and friends to get their opinions.
• You call the customer helpline organisation in case you are in trouble with debt, for example.
• You consider your own experience to figure out if you have had to make similar choices.

Research

Research is a must, as you cannot get the best deal while sitting on your hands.

• Take care of your money

Consider the following ways to get more bang for your bucks:

• Make sure online vendor you are dealing with is dependable. Do not save your card details.
• Take out a personal loan only if you need it and you are absolutely sure that you will manage to repay the debt. If you have to take out a £10,000 loan with bad credit, compare interest rates, APRs, and fees with other lenders.
• Be wary of internet fraud. Do not pay heed to emails and messages that ask for your card details, passwords etc.
• Know the difference between legitimate lenders and sharks. You will be tied to debt if you end up taking out a loan from a loan shark.
• Learn about different types of current accounts and savings accounts and use those that yield higher interest every month.

You will see yourself saving money when you critically analyse the cost before spending money.

• Choose the best lender

At some point in life, you will need to take out a mortgage or an auto loan. Before you grab a deal, you should research the best rates. Find out how you can improve your chances of getting the best deal. Do up your credit score.

Show your lender your less reliance on loans by building an emergency cushion. This will prevent you from applying for doorstep loans with no credit check every now and then. When you have an emergency corpus, you will be in less need of loans and you can improve your debt-to-income ratio.

Right choices

At this moment, what seems a good choice is considered a bad choice at other times. This is because your financial condition does not remain the same forever. So, it is important for you to take stock of your financial situation. You must know where you are so you can make decisions based on your priorities.

• Manage your incomings and outgoings

Build a budget to see whether your current income is able to cover all expenses. With the help of a budget, you can plan your spending, afford things you need, save for a rainy day and things you want, avoid getting into debt, and above all, have clarity of where your money is going.

• Saving money

When it comes to buying, you will have to see if it makes sense to buy now – if it is really urgent. If so, is there a chance to buy a second-hand thing? How about buying a used car? For insane, it can help you save more money than buying a new car. You will have to compare the benefits and drawbacks to make the right choice.

• Taking steps so as not to fall short of money

There are so many causes responsible for falling short of cash when you need it, like poor budgeting, job loss, poor health, and separation, to name a few. You should be prepared to tackle these situations so they do not affect your finances to the extent that you find yourself in the red.

• Protect yourself against fraud

If someone steals your debit and credit card or you become the victim of identity theft, someone can spend your money and hold you liable for it. Therefore, you should stay ahead of those fraudsters by:

• Not disclosing any financial information to anyone
• Not storing your car details with online retailers
• Keeping tabs on your credit report’s information
• Regularly following the security measures recommended by your bank

The final comment

Handling finances is not a joke. You should carefully analyse your spending habits, improve your knowledge, and develop good habits so the decisions you make work to your advantage.

Ailsa Adam

Ailsa Adam is the Editor-in-Chief and former content head at Hugeloanlender. She has been a valuable member of the content strategy team since 2017 due to her abundant experience in the finance sector. Passionate about helping individuals navigate the world of loans and personal finance, she has dedicated herself to acquiring extensive knowledge on various financial products. Before her role at Hugeloanlender,

Ailsa worked as a seasoned journalist and writer, specialising in creating informative blogs and articles on diverse loan types. She is known for her meticulous research and commitment to delivering accurate and engaging content. She holds a degree in MBA Finance and has a keen interest in creative writing and art.