Do you hear yourself saying, "I have plenty of time to save" or "I can do it later…"? Well, that's the voice of procrastination, a persistent, relentless pest that can easily steal time and money from you.
One of the easiest ways to start saving both time and money is by automating!
Here are some tips for automating your savings:
- Tax-deferred retirement savings plans – Authorize your HR department to automatically deduct your contributions via payroll for your tax-deferred 457 or 401 plan. If you can afford it, try to contribute the maximum amount allowed by law. See “Putting Your Employer’s Retirement Plan to Work” for more on tax-deferred plans.
- Automatic deductions for your Individual Retirement Account (IRA) – Most IRAs, whether through your employer or a bank, allow you to sign up for automatic deductions, so you don’t need to write checks on a regular basis.
- Savings, money market or CD accounts – These are great savings vehicles for emergencies and you can either have your HR department direct a portion of the pay check to these accounts or set it up yourself online through your bank. For example, if all of your pay check goes to your checking account, you can set it to have a certain amount of that money to go to your savings account regularly.
Most automatic deposit services set up via your HR department or your bank are free. Confirm before enrolling. Plus, there are no envelopes or postage stamps, and no waiting in bank lines to conduct your financial transactions.
Waiting to save can cost you more in the long run, so why not automate today?
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