5 Budgeting Tips to Recuperate from the Holiday Season
5 Budgeting Tips to Recuperate from the Holiday Season
Feeling stressed from the aftermath of holiday season expenses? Budgeting is a perfect way to alleviate financial stress after a season of spending and help you and your family recuperate from the holidays. Follow these budgeting tips to get back on track!
Set A Budgeting Rule
A simple way to get back on track after an expensive holiday season is to follow a quick, budgeting rule. Take your household income and set aside 50% of that income for necessities, 30% for wants, and 20% for savings. Following this rule will assist you in ensuring you are rebuilding your savings, paying off debt, and ensuring enough money is set aside for necessities.
Create a Budget Online
Now that you have a budget plan, it is important to put that budget into writing! Using Excel or Google Sheets is a simple way to have a written budget to know exactly how much money is set aside for necessities, for extra spending, and for savings.
Include Emergency Funds in Your Budget
While budgeting and trying to save extra money after the holidays, be sure that you set aside funds for emergencies. If your emergency fund seems to have decreased during the holiday season, that’s okay. Set small goals to start saving back up again.
Have A Savings Challenge
On top of following your online budget, set a family goal to put a certain amount of money into a high-yield savings account each week, every two weeks, or each month. By doing this, you will hold yourself accountable to put a specific amount of money aside for savings. Not only will this help boost your savings, but it can also become a fun challenge for you and your family to do together while watching your safety cushion or vacation fund grow!
Get Rid of Unnecessary Spending
Another easy fix to recuperate after the holidays, is to limit your spending. Eating meals at home, cutting down on non-essential shopping, and using coupons or other money-saving methods will help your savings rise!
Eat Meals at Home
Rather than spending money by eating out, lower your spending by cooking meals at home. Make a grocery list for the entire week, and stick to it. By cooking meals at home, you are sure to save money for you and your family all while enjoying more suitable eating options for your family as well!
Shop for Essentials
With the holiday season, we tend to spend money on more things we want than need. To recuperate from the holiday season, it is important to shop only for the essentials! Cut out unnecessary spending on clothing, decor, shoes, and more. While your budget includes money for extra spending, remember that you can always save that extra money too! Only buying what you need for a while after the holiday season will help you feel more comfortable and alleviate stress after the holidays!
Improve Efficiency At Home
Improving efficiency at home should start where your biggest expenses lie in order to make the biggest difference in your energy bills. That means focusing on improving the efficiency of your HVAC system. Heating and cooling your home accounts for about 60% of your energy bill every month. So, to lower your energy bills in a big way, you need a high-efficiency HVAC system and routine maintenance to keep your system running at peak performance.
High-Efficiency HVAC
HVAC systems produced even within the last few years have increased in technological advances that allow them to save home-owners an average of 50% on their energy bills every month. While this number does depend on the age and type of your current system, you can be sure to see energy savings when you switch. Environmental Comfort Systems is proud to offer American Standard HVAC systems to the communities of Madison, Decatur, Athens, Cullman, and the surrounding areas.
Schedule Routine Maintenance
With an HVAC system comes unexpected repairs, which can be very pricey! To ensure that you catch issues with your HVAC system early, set up routine maintenance tune-ups for your HVAC system with the Tennessee Valleys’ #1 choice for HVAC services: Environmental Comfort Systems. Not only does preventative maintenance help your HVAC system run smoothly and efficiently, but it will also help you and your family save money by catching problems early resulting in less money spent in the short and the long run.
Contact Us
With all these tips to recuperate from the holidays, you are sure to get you and your family back on your feet after the holiday season. If you have any additional questions or need any HVAC services, contact us! Environmental Comfort Systems is here to help! Contact us today at (256)-308-0032 for all of your HVAC system needs.
We are your trusted American Standard Heating & Air Conditioning Customer Care Dealer in Decatur, AL. Be sure to follow us on Facebook and Instagram for more helpful information regarding your HVAC system.