Remember when you resolved back in January to spend less and save more in 2023? Summer can be a good time to revisit those goals, financial advisers say. Think of it as “New Year’s in July.”
A quick financial review now makes sense because there’s still time to make adjustments if you’re falling behind on your goal — whether it’s building an emergency fund, slashing credit card debt or resuming student loan payments, now that the pandemic pause is finally (really!) ending.
Many events that lead to spending, like back-to-school time (supplies and clothing), Halloween (costumes and candy), Thanksgiving (food) and the winter holidays (gifts), are coming up. “So it’s a really good time to prepare for spending later in the year,” said Yanely Espinal, author of the book “Mind Your Money.”
Nate Hoskin, a certified financial planner in Denver who focuses on young adults, recommends a personal “audit.” If that sounds too much like something the Internal Revenue Service would do, think of it instead as a financial health “checkup.”
Mr. Hoskin, who has a substantial TikTok following, urged a hard-nosed assessment of the goals you set at the start of the year. Say you aimed to save $500 a month but have saved only $200 a month. “Be really critical and ask yourself, ‘Why did I not reach this goal?’” he said.
To continue reading, view the full article on the New York Times website here: https://www.nytimes.com/2023/07/21/your-money/savings-financial-goals-july.html
