How To Supercharge Savings and Investment Accounts

Are your savings accounts sagging? Do your investment accounts lack energy? If so, now is the perfect time for a monetary makeover. Supercharging investment and savings accounts can help build a more secure, enjoyable future. The essential ingredients of the plan are commitment, planning, and discipline. An excellent first step is refinancing school loans to lower monthly payments. Then, work with banks and employers to automate the entire process of sending money directly from paychecks into the proper accounts.

Pay off the plastic credit cards as quickly as possible and minimize investing fees by combining brokerage accounts. Finally, switch to a monthly grocery shopping system to save time and money. For so many working adults, the entire effort is about reorganizing their financial systems, not getting a second job or winning the lottery. Here's how to begin.

Refinance Student Loans

If you currently have one or more school loans lingering on the monthly budget, there's a lot of room for financial improvement. Borrowers can refinance their existing student debt and create one new loan to replace all the old ones. Plus, when you refinance student loans, it gives you access to more favorable interest rates, better overall terms, and longer repayment periods. The beauty of refinancing student loans is that the positive effect is almost immediate. Monthly payments after a refi can go down significantly, and that means more money available to save and invest. Of course, what you do with the extra funds is up to you, but if the goal is to build long-term security, why not deposit it into a retirement or emergency fund?

Automate Everything

A simple solution for many adults is automated deposits. Whether you decide to direct a percentage of paychecks to health savings accounts (HSAs), IRAs, college funds for the kids, emergency funds, brokerage portfolios, or something else, speak with your banker or boss and find out how to make payday deposits fully automated. Then, set the amounts for each destination account. This type of set it and forget it technique helps people stick to their financial goals year after year.

Pay Off Credit Cards

Do you find yourself wondering how much credit card debt is too much to have? The truth is, credit cards, particularly high-interest ones, are a drain on any budget. They're a classic case of a lose-lose situation because they decrease your spendable capital without providing anything of value. Make a detailed written plan to pay off balances on your highest-interest cards first. Then move on to the others. Ideally, it's best to pay all balances off at the end of each billing cycle.

Minimize Investing Fees

A common pitfall for people who are new to having brokerage accounts is keeping open balances with more than one broker. Instead, try consolidating all accounts into one in order to reduce fees and add simplicity to your financial life. If you trade stocks or securities regularly, shop for an online brokerage firm that offers no commission trades or very low fees on transactions.

Buy Groceries Monthly

One simple trick can add up to major annual savings on grocery bills. Make detailed shopping lists and then only visit the store once per month. People who shop less frequently tend to be more careful about what they purchase and spend less on impulse items.

This article does not necessarily reflect the opinions of the editors or management of EconoTimes.