Here are some ways to maintain your financial wellness, especially if you’re going through a difficult time.
If you find that your income changes – through losing your job, losing business, moving, facing a major expense, or other issues - you may be worried about covering your monthly costs. But support is available, and we can help you in several ways. For example, payment holidays allow you to pause your mortgage payments. Deferring your credit card or personal loan repayments can provide some breathing space. Get in touch with us to find out more. We can also offer help with financial planning, including saving for retirement, your children's education, or protection for yourself and your family. |
If you’re finding that you’re spending more than you’re earning, or want to save money, it helps to have a clear picture of your financial situation. Creating a budget that looks at your income and expenses can help.
Before spending money, ask yourself a few questions:
There are also things you can do to cut back on spending. For example, review your Direct Debits and standing orders to see if there are any you can pause or cancel. Remember to check the contracts first, you could face penalties.
If you struggle to cover your short-term outgoings, an overdraft through your current account may help. Keep in mind that you may be charged interest for using an overdraft and you'll need to pay back what you borrow.
If your income has been permanently affected, you might want to speak to your bank about other options. But if not, and you can save by changing your budget, think about where to store any money you put aside.
You might want to keep it separate from your main account, especially if you're earmarking the money for something in particular. That could be booking a holiday, building an emergency fund, or saving towards another goal.
See our guide on how to save money for more on this.
Having savings set aside for a rainy day, or your retirement, is important. So is managing it, by keeping an eye on how your investments are doing and how much you’re earning. This can also inspire you to save and invest even more money.
It's important to remember that investing is for the long term. The rise and fall of financial markets is part and parcel of investing. Fluctuations in the market can happen for different reasons, including current events. Although nothing is certain with investing, markets which have fallen have had a habit of bouncing back in time throughout history.
For more details, visit our Wealth Insights hub. If you have investments with us, you can access and manage them online.
If you've usually done your banking in a branch, there are plenty of ways to look after your money digitally. This can save you time and hassle and make life a lot easier.
With online and mobile banking you can:
