Monday Market Update: Personal Finances & Positive Cash Flow

7 tips from Yahoo! Finance.

Welcome back readers! May is nearly halfway through, and many are counting down until the end of school, graduations and summer vacations. If you have been noticing that not only is your fun fund lacking, but your essential budget isn’t stretching as far as it used to – you are not alone. That’s why we wanted to share a recent read with you from Yahoo! Finance titled ‘7 ways to improve your personal cash flow.’

We have listed the 7 strategies to ‘keep your budget in the black’ below, and wanted to point out that you don’t have to do them all. In a perfect world, we would all be able to implement all of these ideas and create a positive, personal cash flow ASAP. Yet that is far easier said than done, so see our ideas below for 2-4 tips you can try right away.

For details on each of these 7 ways to increase cash flow above, be sure to read the Yahoo! Finance article in full here. If you want our quick and easy tips to try before you do that, we suggest:

- Start by calculating your current cash flow (net income minus expenses) and identify your discretionary spending amount.

- Review your debts and determine which one has the highest interest rate (any extra funds should go here!).

- Brainstorm the ‘lowest hanging fruit’ of cost savings. Could you eat out less? Cancel 2 of 5 tv streaming services? Find a cheaper cell phone plan?

- Set up an automatic transfer from your checking account to your savings each month – no matter how small!

We hope that just a few small steps can help you feel better about your cash flow each month. Please note that this article is for informational purposes only and should not be considered financial advice. Be sure to chat with your financial advisor, tax professional and other members of your trusted wealth and personal finance team.

Happy May,

Bobbi

Bobbi Decker
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Broker Associate, Bobbi Decker & Associates
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