5 Tips For Couples with Joint Bank Accounts: Sharing is Saving

Being in a relationship founded by mutual trust may find it natural to create a joint bank account together.

Since you can trust your partner with everything else, why not trust him/her with your own finances?

But, managing this may be difficult especially when there are two people with different buying habits and priorities.

So, here are 5 Tips to Help Couples with Joint Bank Accounts…

1. HAVE SHARED GOALS

Maintain a joint bank account for big financial goals such as vacations, household bills, or insurance. Whatever the purpose and goals may be, be sure to make it unanimous as both of you will contribute each month.

Image Credits: Asher Isbrucker via Flickr

2. CREATE RULES BEFORE OPENING AN ACCOUNT

Have a plan of how each of you will contribute (e.g. 50-50 or 60-40). As said a while ago, discuss the goals and priorities you want to pursue in order to know where the money will go.

3. MAINTAIN YOUR OWN BANK ACCOUNT

Aside from the joint account, each person is entitled to have an individual account. This is because you must treat yourself or your partner personally without affecting the “household money”.

You might say that this burns the bridges of sharing, but not really. The key to having individual accounts is that both would have access to each other’s account in case of emergency so there are no secrets.

4. RECORD AND MANAGE YOUR EXPENSES TOGETHER

Communicate openly about your joint bank account and organize your expenses. Make it a habit to log on to your online banking account to reconcile all your purchases together (i.e., every week or every two weeks). Through this, you will understand how you are spending the money. Make cut backs if possible so you can save more.

5. REMAIN EQUALS

Embody your marriage vows or treat it like a merger between to companies. Everyone has an equal say and contribution to the shared account. This is why setting up rules and agreement before the processing is very important. Through this, you can keep an open eye if one overspends on something you did not agree on.

Image Credits: BK via Flickr

Ultimately, you must respect each other’s decision and communicate openly about your finances. Having a joint bank account may not be easy, but it is possible! Sharing is not only showing Care but it also Saves money.

5 Ways to Shop for Healthy Foods Without Spending Too Much

It is no secret that buying organic and healthy foods is more costly than buying junk. But, if you are willing to shop smartly, then you can enjoy the goodness and freshness of organic foods without breaking your food budget. Here are 5 Ways to Shop for Healthy Foods Without Spending Too Much…

1. Purchase Within Your Family’s Needs

Buy stocks of food to fit your whole family. Usually, to save more money, you will want to buy in bulk, but, not if you are a family of three or two. Rethink your family’s needs and list it down.

2. Shop Around

In order for you to find the best price in town, you must shop around different stores. Besides supermarkets, you can search for healthy foods in specialty stores, Gourmet Delis, Wet and Dry Markets, and even Online. For instance, you may go to two different stores to save money and buy the best product: one for the vegetables and one for the sea foods.

Image Credits: epSos .de via Flickr

3. Shop in Season

You will definitely save more money if you purchase the organic produce that is in season. Price always lowers when there is greater supply. Summer and fall are usually the best times to go creative with your food choices.

4. Grow Your Own Food

Growing your own food is organic at its finest. If you do not have a backyard or an apartment balcony there are community gardens for you to plant your own seed. Aside from being domestic, you can also save more money if you buy produce of the local supermarket’s brand (e.g. Mixed Vegetables by FairPrice).

5. Go Gaga over Greens

Kale, arugula, and spinach are some of the most nutritious and affordable foods you will find in a grocery store. As the color of the vegetable gets darker, the more nutritious it is because of its antioxidants and beta-carotene. If possible, buy the leafy greens that are not pre-packed because they are cheaper.

Image Credits: Amazing Almonds via Flickr

BONUS TIP! Stay on the outside aisles of the grocery store because the further you go inside, the less healthy it becomes. That is all for now. Have fun shopping!

5 Free Money Management Apps to Increase your Savings

In order to decide on how much you shall save, first you must be aware of how much you are spending.

Expenses can be categorized as either fixed or variable. Fixed expenses remain the same every month or year due to Singapore’s laws and Company service-provider terms (e.g. Hand Phone Plan, or HDB Rent). Variable expenses include food, entertainment, clothing, and other expenses that may change every month or year. The challenge now is for you to choose on which expenses you can reduce.

Recording all your expenses, no matter how big or small they may be, can help you plan your budget wisely. This is why; here are the 5 Money Management Apps for all your devices. Best of all? These are handy and FREE!

EXPENSIFY
(Available on IPhone, IPad, Android, and Blackberry)

Expensify app helps you record your daily transactions, hourly rate, mileage, and generate expense reports. Its SmartScan feature allows you to upload photos or capture your receipts for easy bookkeeping. It also helps you minimize information errors that you may encounter when writing everything down.

Photo Credit: Expensify App via TechTudo
EXPENSE MANAGER
(Available on Android)

Another top rated money tracker in Google Play store is the Expense Manager app. It is raved to be simplistic and very easy to use. You may record the type of purchase, the type of payment, the purchasing price, the company the item was purchased from, and the date. The app also allows you to manage multiple accounts in various currencies, to email account activities, and to save it on your SD card.
MONEYWISE
(Available on Android)

MoneyWise app combines minimalist design with powerful functionality. It may seem minimal but it can do a lot! It allows you to generate charts or graphs, track budgets or spending, and create regular account backups. Conveniently, you may export data in CSV or HTML formats that you may send to others via email.
POCKET EXPENSE PERSONAL FINANCE
(Available on IPhone and IPad)

Pocket Expense Personal Finance app combines all your financial accounts together so it can track all your bills and set your budgets. This app lets you categorize your transactions through its calendar view. It is the perfect way to organize your income and expense because of its user-friendly and simplistic interface. But most importantly, it is password protected.
MINT
(Available on IPhone, IPad, and Android)

Mint app manages your personal finance accounts (credit cards, loan and investment) on one place through your fingertips. With Mint, you can track your spending, develop a monthly budget, receive bill reminders, and save more money. It is also accessible online through its website. What’s more? It sends online alerts if you’ve gone over your budget.

With all these awesome money management Apps, the power to budget and save money is in your fingertips! Make wise money tracking a habit! You won’t regret it.

Singaporean execs struggle to make ends meet

In an article published by Singapore Business Review, it was found that almost half of the Singaporeans holding executive position struggle to make ends meet every month.

The statistic was first published on Jobstreet and it’s surprising to know that 44% of the Singaporean executive does not have excess saving after paying off their mortgage, car loan and credit card.

25% of them claimed that paying for insurance premium was their biggest monthly commitment.

That is a worrying trend for Singapore’s ageing population.

What this also means is that half of these executives will not be able invest or grow their savings to the effect of compounding interest. Without adequate savings to supplement their CPF payouts at their retirement age, this group of people at are the risk of outliving their retirement funds.

A study conducted by NUS draws the conclusion that the CPF is sufficient for the current group of young income earners of the 30th to 70th income percentile based on three important caveats: choice of HDB flats must be within their means, any CPF above the Minimum Sum they withdraw must be invested and they must continue to remain in the workforce for as long as possible.

The few key issues surface here are:

Carrying too much debts

For most of us, it’s impossible to live debt-free as we need to purchase our house and support our family. But before it gets out of hand, it is important to differentiate between good and bad debts.

Good debts are debts that create value to you and getting you what you need. Mortgage loan, for example, is a good debt to take on as it create value to you, considering the low interest rate. It can be bad if you leverage too much and cost you to be unable to afford the monthly mortgage payments.

Whereas, credit card and vehicle loan is a bad debt as the interest is exorbitant and the item you bought is of depreciating value – take car, for example.

Of course, it is not smart either to avoid debts at all cost if it means using up all your cash reserves for emergencies.

Not saving enough

As compared to our parents, the younger generation is simply not saving enough. For what Singapore has become today and being bred in a society where everything is provided for has denied them the opportunities to understand the importance of money.

We spend all that we earn, often lacking restraint in spending money.

As the saying goes:

A dollar saved is a dollar earned.

Save the extra dollar so that you can multiply them into many folds.

Making wrong financial decisions

Many young working adults are not savvy enough to manage their own finances. Taking on too much debts without knowing the long term effect, speculate in the stock market and dumping all their savings to purchase a car are some of the mistakes made by these group of people.

A quarter of these people spent too much on insurance. Insurance should be used as tool to hedge your risk of financial liabilities to you and your dependants – should untoward events happen to you. It should not be used as a tool to grow your money, as it is inefficient due to the high cost and fees charged. Being insured for around 10 years of your income using term insurance should be sufficient for most people and it will cost you only less than 5% of your income.

How to travel Europe on a shoestring budget

“When preparing to travel, lay out all your clothes and all your money. Then take half the clothes and twice the money” –Susan Heller

Travelling to Europe is a dream destination for most people. With its rich cultural heritage from castle to prehistoric landscapes, it is obvious why Europe is the most travelled place in the world.

However, for many the cost of air ticket alone is going to put away the idea of travelling aside.

If you are willing to get a bit out of your comfort zone and do some planning, there are a few simple ways for you to travel without breaking the bank. Try these methods and you will be bringing half the money. Here are our tips:

1. Look out for cheap airfares

First and foremost, you’ll need a flight to bring you to Europe and that’s when airfares could contribute up to 20% of your budget should be bought with careful planing and research. There are many flights comparison website, and you will be shortchanging yourself if you do not utilise them.

2. Plan your mode of transports

Once you reached your dream destination, you will not be sticking your butt at the Eiffel Tower for the entire week. Find out the cheapest way to bring you to The Louvre or the Notre Dame de Paris. If you stay within the district, walk and embraces the place like a tourist. If not there is bus, metro and RER at your service. If Google is not your best friend, make it yours.

If you are travelling to other parts of Europe, besides taking a flight all the time which may bust your budget, your next best alternative would be train. Countries in Europe are connected by high-speed trains which could take you between destinations in hours. Consider buying a Eurail pass if you plan to hop around different countries. Work the number out using the trip planner by RailEurope and see if it is more worthwhile to purchase individual tickets or a rail pass. Do note that for certain trains (night and scenic train) might need additional reservation fee to make a reservation.

Good news (and good excuse) for those under 26. They have a youth pass which you can to enjoy up to 35% discount off its Eurail Pass.

3. Plan your accommodation

The next item on your list would be accommodation which contributes to a significant amount of cost to your budget. You don’t need to stay in five star hotels to enjoy your Europe trip. Most of the time should be spent exploring the scenic and tourist attractions rather than having a spa in your bathroom or a view from your balcony that overlook the entire cityscape.

If you are a student with not much budget, hostels and backpackers would do just fine. You can also rent someone’s room temporarily using airbnb.

Otherwise, budget hotels and motels such as IBIS or Formule 1 could be in your consideration.

Again, this requires careful planning and your best friend would be more than willing to help.

There are aggregators sites like Trivago, Agoda and Booking.com which will compare and show you the available accommodation at your check in and out date and you can filter and sort them according to your budget.

If you want to further save on your accommodation, you can consider booking an overnight train and sleep while you travel to your next destination. You not only save on hotel cost, you save valuable time.

4. Food

Eat like a local. If you visit touristy areas, expect yourself to dig deep into your wallet. Follow the locals’ lead for cheap eats. Ask around to find out affordable restaurants. Of course, there are times when you should indulge in their delicacies, so occasionally pamper yourself a bit.

As a Singaporeans, we are not used to tipping, but in Europe if you plan to tip, around 10 percent is the norm.

Some of your accommodation may include breakfast, so take advantage of it. Croissant and Coffee? I will take that.

5. Entertainment

Find free entertainment. Visit the parks, concerts and cathedrals and you can’t deny that exploring Europe by foot together with a camera is by itself – entertaining. It don’t cost much to have a photograph with an Eiffel Tower or the Colosseum in the background. Visit their national heritage sites and immerse in their culture and diversity without busting your budget.

Carrying too much debts

Not saving enough

Making wrong financial decisions

1. Look out for cheap airfares

2. Plan your mode of transports

3. Plan your accommodation

4. Food

5. Entertainment

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