Work life balance for women
On reading an article in Irish Times today, I realised that for most women who work outside of the family home, there is an ongoing battle to get the work-life balance right. The struggle between getting that perfect balance of being there for your children when they really need you and the demands of a career would appear to be an ongoing challenge. (more…)
Automatic payments save time and money
Paying bills has always been a stressful and a very time consuming chore. The real stress comes from not knowing if you have the money to pay for the bill. There are certain elements of this chore that can make it a far easier job. For instance you could set up automated payments for most or all of the regular bills. This will save you time and money, as you eliminate the time it takes to draw a cheque, put it in the envelope, put a stamp on it and go to the post box to post it. (more…)
Extended winter will see energy bills rise higher
According to an article in the Irish Independent today, we are to face further increases in our energy bills. With the extended bitter wintery conditions that we are experiencing at the moment, we will all face a significant rise in our energy bills not least our heating bills. This very late freezing weather is set to last well into next week. This will have devastating effects on many Irish household budgets already stretched to breaking point. Although we must continue to battle with freezing temperatures. (more…)
How clean is your money
Have you ever wondered about the levels of dirt carried on the ten euro note in your pocket? How clean is your money? Over half of people think that money is the filthiest item that they touch according to an article in the Irish Independent today. These fears are not unfounded given the findings of a recent survey carried out by Oxford University. (more…)
Family fun over Easter on a budget
With Easter being early this year, most of us are only catching up after the money spent for Christmas. You won’t need a fortune to keep the kids occupied over the Easter break so no need to panic. There are also those additional costs associated with Easter apart from the usual gifting of treats and eggs. Agree with family and friends to cut back on the gifting of eggs, not only is it better on your pocket but also better for your kids. (more…)
Plan your budget for your Big Day
Congratulations on your engagement. You are bound to be full of excitement and as soon as you have celebrated in style. turn your attention to the big day itself. Start looking at your wedding budget and how much money you want to spend on the day.
The earlier you start to plan, the longer time you will have to get the best deals to make your big day special. This does not need to be lavish or expensive nor does it mean it wont be perfect. If you budget well you will avoid paying for your wedding day for years to come. Once you know how much you have to spend, you can create the perfect day to suit your pocket. Try the wedding budget planner on www.nca.ie to help you plan your budget. (more…)
Taking control of your money
Have you ever wondered what happens to your money once you get paid. Most of the time the money is spent before you get it. You may have your bill payments set up through your bank account by standing order or direct debit. Although this is very convenient and can save you a lot of time and hassle, it can lead to you being complacent about your money.
Are you in control of your money? You should know your numbers. You should know exactly how much money you have left as any point in the month, year. In the event of you not having money left over, perhaps it is time you should start a budget so that you keep track of your spending. According to an article in Irish Independent today, up to one hundred thousand families are currently in arrears with their mortgages. (more…)
Households struggling to pay winter bills
The squeeze on household budgets tightened further last month as energy bills and fuel costs came in at much higher than anticipated. The fluctuations in these household bills very often causes severe pressure on people when they arrive through the letterbox, especially after the Christmas and January period.
This highlights the need for a proper household budget. A budget that allows for these fluctuations in these bills. We all know our bills for heat and light are lower in the summer months than in the winter months. Its not always easy to pay the higher utility bills in February just after the big spend at Christmas and trying to catch up in January. Just when you think you are on top of the over indulgences, your two monthly electricity and gas bills land on the doormat. (more…)
Hop on the Bus and save money
I read in an article in the Irish Independent yesterday that if you take the bus to work instead of driving your car, you could save money, thousands of euro per year depending on your journey. With the increasing costs in fuel, Bus Eireann have said that it is cheaper to use public transport to travel to work for a month than it is to fill up your tank with petrol.
A survey carried out by Bus Eireann found that a person travelling to work by car from Kells, Co. Meath to Dublin would cost in petrol approximately €4725 per annum. If that person travelled using a Bus Eireann weekly travel ticket, for the same journey for the year would cost that person €2702 which equates to savings of over €2000. Further savings can be made by those persons eligible for tax-savings schemes. In this day and age nobody can pass up saving money. (more…)
Everybody has bills to pay, even the Pope.
I read in the Irish Examiner today that the new Pope, Pope Francis, called into the hotel he had been staying in before he became Pontiff, to collect his bags. He thanked the staff and then paid his bill. Everybody has bills to pay, even the Pope!
We all have bills to pay but very few of us enjoy paying them as it can be stressful and tedious especially when you don’t budget. We can make our lives easier by changing over from paper transactions to automatic payments. We will all be forced into the world of electronic banking when cheques become a thing of the past. In 2016, cheques will not longer be in use and we will all be using alternative methods to paying our bills. (more…)
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