Getting the new financial year off to a flyer
It’s a new financial year! Apart from being time to get your tax return in, it is also a good time to take stock of where you are financially and what you might want to do about it. New financial year resolutions if you will.
First up, do a bit of an inventory. Take some time to lay out your financial situation. Write down all your sources of income and list your assets such as savings, your car, any stocks and shares you might have and also property.
Then look at your debts. List the credit products you have, what rate you are paying and how much you have left to pay off. If you have particular debt at a high interest rate such as on a credit card, look at ways you might tackle it as a priority.
Budget. They might be painful to do and stick to, but they work. You could look at the last financial year, work out what you spent on and where you might be able to save in this year. The good news is that there are some great tools out there that can help you with this such as MoneyBrilliant.
Finally, it has never been a better time to make sure you have good credit habits. Within this financial year, it is expected that a number of the major credit providers, including some of the big 4, will start comprehensive credit reporting (CCR). This means that your repayment history for credit accounts such as credit cards, home loans and personal loans will now directly influence your credit score.
It all takes a little effort of course but come tax-time next year you could well be thanking yourself!
