techtip: MASTER BUDGETING, VERSION 2.0!

MASTER BUDGETING, VERSION 2.0!

Technology can really help you when it comes to keeping track of your money—knowing how much you have, how much you need, and whether there are any problems with transactions moving through your accounts.

The Problem

You want to keep track of your finances, but you are afraid of making mistakes and you don’t know where to begin.

The Fix

Start with the financial institutions you already work with and see what technology tools they offer.

How to Do It

  1. Create a budget. As you learned earlier in this chapter, a budget is a spending plan that tracks all of your sources of income and expenses during a set period of time. Working within a budget helps you meet your goals and obligations.
  2. Check with your banking institution. See what apps and online services they offer. Many banks offer free online access to your accounts so that you can deposit funds, make purchases, transfer funds, and receive deposit or withdrawal notifications via your cell phone or e-mail. Many banks will also send you electronic notifications of these transactions so you are always aware of how much money is currently in your account and when activity occurs that will affect your account. These services allow you to review your account information and help you make better decisions about when you use your money.
  3. Use your bank’s apps and online tools to help you with your budget. Check out some of these cool apps:

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    Mint mint.com This Web site and phone app allows you to combine information from all of your financial accounts in one place, so you can see how much money you have in investments, income, loans, and payments. While it is not a bank, it does allow you to see your whole financial picture at once.

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    PayPal Mobile paypal.com This app allows you to spend money and allows other people to give you money, including money you earn from part-time jobs, gigs, or monetary gifts from friends or family members.

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    Pocket Budget mapeapps.com This is a simple way to keep track of your budget that installs on your phone.

  1. Beware of scams. As you improve how you track your finances, remember to exercise caution in dealing with banks, credit card companies, and all financial institutions:
    • Do not transmit personal information (social security number, bank details, credit or debit card numbers, passwords, etc.) through e-mail. Doing so could put you at risk of identity theft. (Read more about identity theft in the box later in this chapter.) If you need to contact a financial institution by phone, place the call yourself, and deal only with banks or other financial institutions you trust.
    • Do not answer questions about vital personal information over the phone if you didn’t originate the call.
    • Do not reply to e-mail, pop-ups, or text messages that ask you to reveal personal information.
    • Never click on links in unsolicited e-mails or paste URLs or lines of code into your browser bar.
    • Use good judgment. If an offer sounds too good to be true—like a huge line of credit with 0% annual percentage rate—it probably is.

EXTRA STYLE POINTS: Keep tabs on your credit report. Regularly reviewing your credit history pays off in major ways. It alerts you to any new accounts that might have been opened in your name. It also lets you catch unauthorized activity on accounts that you’ve closed or haven’t used lately.