The Real Deal: It's time to spring clean your finances. Here's how.

Start by seeing where your money is being spent, and how you can save.

News 12 Staff

Apr 5, 2023, 11:59 AM

Updated 617 days ago

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It's time to spring clean your finances. News 12's consumer reporter Janice Lieberman has The Real Deal on how.
Start by seeing where your money is being spent, and how you can save.
Jaqui Kearns, finance expert at Affinity, says it’s time to check in on your finances. Start your spring cleanup with evaluating your subscription services.
"So, subscription services are really one of those areas that you can lose a lot of money quickly because they happen all the time," Kearns says.
What's taking a really big bite out of your budget? Your credit card payments.
"Well, credit cards are really a big part of our problem in the U.S. in general, debts up again significantly. And when you think about credit cards right now, as rates rise, what happens? Your debt on your credit card balance rises with it. So, if you're not looking at how much you're paying in interest rates or how much you're paying every month, if you tend to pay just the minimum, you're going to have expense added over time," Kearns says.
Check with sites like Bankrate or Nerdwallet to see who is offering a lower interest rate and then switch. It could save you thousands over the course of the lifetime of your debt.
Do you even realize where your money is being spent? There are apps to help you figure it all out.
The trick is to know how much you are spending, and where you are spending. Put on an alert. You can use a budget tool app like Papaya and set the alert.
If you have a story idea, question or tip, click here to reach out to Janice.