Saving is not easy and less in these times. It is not a perception; In fact, as recently published by the Bank of Spain, from August until now, Spanish households have withdrawn more than 10,000 million from their accounts to face inflation and the loss of purchasing power that this entails.
In addition to this, there are two other factors that make saving difficult: one is the precariousness of wages and the other, psychological. And it is obvious: how can you save if you cannot make it to the end of the month?
“When you are drowning in debt or simply because money is not enough, you live with stress. No one likes to feel pressured by not being able to pay for their basic needs. And when you are already immersed in that circle, it is difficult to start saving. But just because it's difficult doesn't mean it's impossible. It is a matter of starting to put your financial life in order ”, they indicate from the financial comparator HelpMyCash.com
And, in the other case, if you have a salary that allows you to make ends meet and still can't save money, then it is a psychological component. “In general, human beings have a hard time giving up something today to have it tomorrow. It is what many studies of financial behavior have dubbed 'the hyperbolic discount', or the tendency to choose an immediate reward instead of waiting to get a bigger reward in the future”, they explain from the financial comparator.
Most people who can't save is because they don't have or don't meet a monthly income and expense budget. “It is as if they live blindly, without knowing how much they earn, what their fixed expenses are, much less aware of how much they can afford to spend. But that has a solution. It is as simple as downloading a draft budget or taking a pen and paper and spending a few hours reviewing the bank account”, they suggest from HelpMyCash.com
According to personal finance specialists, once you have a real and orderly budget, then it is time to evaluate and classify your expenses. "This exercise is the one that will allow people to find the famous ant expenses or those small outlays that are constantly made, which at first seem insignificant, but in the end they represent money," they add.
It is precisely this type of expense that must be cut and reduced as much as possible in order to save. “If every day you buy a soft drink that costs 0.82 euros, you will have spent 24.6 euros per month and about 299 euros per year. It is a very simple example, but it serves to illustrate the message”, they exemplify from HelpMyCash.com
In addition to organizing a budget, you must learn to separate money. In this way it is easier to comply with the monthly planning. “If all the money is left in a checking account, it is very likely that the savings will end up being spent. The best thing is to separate it, have the money for fixed and variable expenses in one account and savings in a different one”, the experts point out.
And separating income not only favors order but can also mean rewarding savings. In the case of having savings, an alternative may be to open a paid account. “At this time, Sabadell, for example, offers a return of 2% APR for one year to new customers of its Online Account. Although it only applies to the first 30,000 euros, it is an interesting proposal to put the savings to work and earn something ”, they indicate from HelpMyCash.com
Now, if what you are looking for is to save easily and simply, then one option is to get an account that allows the creation of piggy banks and savings goals. “The BBVA online account, for example, offers the BBVA Goals Account service, which allows you to create up to five different goals to separate savings and organize them according to objectives: trips, a new mobile phone, a motorcycle…”, they add.
While the Santander piggy bank allows you to set automatic savings rules to achieve the objectives. "For example, it allows you to save automatically every time your favorite soccer team scores a goal in the World Cup," the experts explain.
Saving requires control and perseverance. “It is difficult to make the decision to wait. We all like immediate rewards, so at HelpMyCash we always recommend setting a goal, that makes the saving process easier and at the same time motivates”, they point out.
