Almost 30
posted on Jan 18, 2019
Financial Goals to Pursue Before 30
Being in your early to mid-twenties must have been an interesting and thrilling time of your life. You were finally free to set your own rules, you were finally getting settled into your career of your choosing, and of course you are now independent. However, the big part of being independent is that, you have to support yourself financially and most times alone.
Now you are about turning 30 and you should know that there are certain financial decisions you should make now in order to have a financially stress-free future.
Check out 5 of the decisions you need to start making before turning 30
1. Stop Impulse Spending
You must have done a lot of this in your early 20s when you had to buy anything almost everything that made you feel good without thinking about the financial implications. Well, all that would have to reduce to the minimum level as you approach your 30.
Before you buy yourself something, ask yourself; Do I need this? Why do I need it? How will I be paying for it? Would it affect my savings? What would be the financial implications when I buy this? The rule is, if you would be paying with your savings, then you should put it down. But if you would be paying from your daily spending budget and it would not affect you too much, still stay away and come back if you still need it.
2. Set Career Based Financial Goals
At this point, you are certain of the career path you would like to pursue and you have plans to advance your career and increase your worth financially. Write out your plans highlighting the steps you would have to take to achieve them. Take a step further and set a time limit to achieve them. This way, you are motivated to get started with your plans, and you can constantly check if you are sticking to the plan.
3. Start saving for a home
‘Make of thy dwelling a profitable investment’ – The Richest man in Babylon.
Paying rent is fine when you don’t have so much to spend on, like school fees, etc. In your twenties, you might think it is too early to start saving for a home. But the truth is, the higher you grow and earn the more comfortable you would want to live and that is quite expensive. Again, if you do not have responsibilities yet, it might not be so important, but note that it is essential. You don’t have to wait till you are exactly 30 or over 30 before you begin to plan ahead. Saving up for a home takes a long time, and the sooner you start, the sooner you will be able to get on the property ladder and that should if that is something you are interested in doing.
4. Start an emergency savings
At this point of your life when you begin to own expensive things like a car that could develop a fault and might cost a lot to repair, you need to start planning for the unexpected. At the end of each year, aim to have an emergency savings that equal 6 months of your living expenses. It may seem like a large amount of money, but through monthly saving you will eventually have enough savings to cover half a year of living expenses. The future is uncertain, and your life will feel less stressful if you know you have a safety net for worse case scenarios.
Try to also put your savings in a high yield account to benefit you financially as you save.
5. Invest Wisely
As complicated as investment may seem, investing is one of the easiest things to do now because financial institutions have been able to make it simple and most importantly very accessible such that you can start and track your investment at the comfort of your home. Investing is a useful way to increase your savings, and if you would be investing, seek guidance from trained professionals and trusted financial institutions like Page Financials for the best investment option that is designed to suit your investment needs.
Whether you are 30 already or almost 30, it’s never too late or too early to start making smart financial decisions.