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This week is America Saves Week, it’s so important to get the message of saving out there because at last check women of color have an average net worth of $5. There has also been a study that stated 46% of Americans does not have the savings to cover a $400 emergency. My goal is always to build the foundation for my readers so they can build wealth on a solid foundation. One way to build that foundation is by making sure you have enough money saved so you have options and opportunity when an emergency arises or to want to take an opportunity reach your life goals. Savings doesn’t have to be difficult, you can set it up where it can be easy.
Save first. So you get paid and no matter the source, paycheck, bonus, side hustle, etc. You pay all of your bills, buy your wants and needs and then you save in your checking account. This method is not going to work, why because you will always find a way to spend that money. You should save first, so as soon as you get paid, the amount you want to save each paycheck should go to savings, preferably automatically. So if you can have it direct deposited to your savings account. If you are unable to have your savings direct deposited, set up an automatic transfer from your checking to your savings. When you don't have to actively save you will not have the opportunity to second guess moving the money to savings.
Make it automatic. So...I talked about automatically paying yourself first above but there are also ways to automatically continue saving after you save first. One of the ways I save automatically is but using a savings app called Qapital. The Qapital app automatically saves money for you based on the goals/rules you set in the app. For example, when I make a purchase from my fun money account it rounds up the purchase to the next dollar and saves the difference. The app uses the same SSL security as your bank, they are FDIC insured and it automatically pauses savings once your checking account is below $100, to avoid overdraft.
Check out my full review of Qapital here.
Set up your savings with an online bank. If you struggle with savings because you have easy access or you are looking to make more on your savings than an online savings account is an option for you. Online banks typically pay a higher interest than the savings account at your local bank and it takes a couple of days to get your money so it stops you from withdrawing your money for frivolous purchases.
The online bank I use allows you to create savings buckets for your different savings goals. So you can have a bucket for your emergency savings, a bucket for a house down payment, a bucket for your quarterly or yearly bills, etc. They also have the ability to set up your savings automatically and they even have the capability to have you save using a savings challenge.
Hopefully, you can take one of these options and put it into action. Before you set up your savings make sure you know how much money is coming in and going out so you can adequately save. It doesn’t make sense to save money when you get paid and pull it out the next week because you spent too much over the weekend.
Share your savings goal and enter for a chance to win the #ImSavingForSweepstakes – up to $750 toward your goal with @AmericaSaves #ASW18 | Click here for the official rules.
