Monthly Archives: August 2018

So You’ve Bought Your First Home: Savings 101

So You’ve Bought Your First Home: Savings 101

Congratulations! You’ve taken a big step in your financial future by purchasing your first home. As a new homeowner, you may be worried about the chunk of change you just spent, and your bank account may be looking a little slim right now. Luckily, Heartland Bank is here with a few simple saving solutions to help your funds increase.

Slow Your Spending

As you have just made a big dent in your savings, now is the time to slow down on your purchasing behavior. Be sure to be aware of your spending habits. Don’t go shop for an extra pair of shoes or dine out multiple times a week, as that can add up in a hurry!

Revamp Your Emergency Fund

A bigger house means bigger emergency expenses. Put a little extra money here and there into your emergency fund to save up for problems such as needing a new roof, replacing a broken appliance or common plumbing issues. Being prepared means your bank account will take less of a hit since you have your emergency fund to fall back on.

Stretch Your Grocery Dollars

Eating out can cost you a fortune! According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the average household spends an average of $3,008 per year on dining out. Instead, find discount grocery stores such as ALDI in order to meet your budget. Setting a budget and only buying items you truly need will help stretch your money. Finding recipes for casseroles, soups and other large portion meals will help save money by creating leftovers for you to bring as lunch every day to work.

Don’t Buy New Furniture

Even though you’re excited and want to decorate your new home to the extreme, try to wait. Slowing down and taking the time to find second hand stores, garage sales and so on will help save you hundreds to thousands of dollars on furniture. It’s easy to do a little digging and find store-quality items.

Clean Out the Closet

As you’re already packing to move into your new home, now is the time to get rid of items you no longer need. Facebook Marketplace, Ebay and other online platforms allow you to easily sell items to others all over the world! Not only are you freeing up space in your new home, you’re making a few extra bucks along the way!

Being a homeowner is an exciting new journey, but keeping up with your finances can be a little hectic. These tips will help you put a few more dollars in your bank account while enjoying the joys of your new home!

Wedding Waivers – Ways to Cut Costs for the Big Day

Say ‘I Do’ to savings and “no” to debt on your big day. Weddings can grow out of control and expensive in no time when the planning begins. That’s why it’s important to learn savvy ways to save before you walk down the aisle. Luckily, Heartland Bank offers a few creative ideas to trim your wedding budget.

Cut the Cake

Many couples now are ditching the idea of cake and doing mini cupcakes or a donut bar. Find something that fits your quirky personality and go that route. By making your own sweet treats with friends and family or outsourcing to a grocery store bakery, you’ll save big on cutting the custom made cake. Be sure to have your relatives make their favorite desserts to allow a widespread table of goodies.

Flower Power

As everyone knows, flowers can make or break a budget. However, you’re still going to dream of having the perfect bouquet when walking down the aisle to your hunny. To fix this, find another use for the bouquets such as becoming part of the decor after the wedding. Decorate the tables or dessert bar by putting the flowers in vases, so you can get the biggest bang for your buck. Be sure to use in-season flowers, as this will help you save big on importing costs for exotic blooms. You can also mix non-floral embellishments into the flowers to fill out the bouquets and make them yourself. This way you’re spending less on flowers, but they still look fabulous.

DIY Darling

With sites such as Pinterest, Etsy, DIY Network and more, you have a whole arsenal of ideas people have never had before. Getting crafty is easier than ever! Use these sites to find decor ideas that will look incredible but cost a quarter of the price. Get friends and groomsmen to invest their time into helping create your dream decorations.

Raise the Bar

Instead of a full open bar, you could offer beer, a red and white wine or a few signature cocktails. By doing this, you aren’t paying for every single alcohol imaginable. You want everyone to have fun, but this will help you enjoy your wedding too because you won’t be worrying about the thousands of dollars that could be waiting for you on the tab.

Big Day Borrow

Borrow, borrow and, oh, borrow! If a friend has a wedding veil they’re willing to loan you, use it! That could save you hundreds of dollars depending on what you had in mind for the wedding. Other girlfriends may have a pair of shoes or jewelry that matches perfect with your dress. You can also see what decor and items family members may have that you could borrow and use as decorations for the wedding.

We hope these ideas help stretch your budget for the big day! Stop in or give us a call if you need a little extra cash or credit in order to prepare for taking the next big step. Congratulations!

How to Adult: Financial Starters

It’s been said that youth is wasted on the young, but let’s not let that be true of those of you who are fresh into the adult world. We get it, many adults feel underprepared and overwhelmed at the amount of responsibilities that snowball after college or high school. Don’t fret! The fact that you are even taking the time to read this says that you are going to be okay. We have compiled a list of basic adult financial musts that will help you navigate this new terrain.

Build a Basic Budget

Many who have been in the adult world for years still do not have this down. Training yourself to say no to the short lived pleasures will translate to accomplishing your goals faster in the financial world and in other aspects of your life. You may finally be out of school and making a consistent income. This is exciting and scary as you see that the longer you are in adult world, the more expenses you have. This is why keeping a budget is crucial.

There are many different ways to budget, but one of the simplified ways is to break down your take home (net) pay and divide it by percentages. Dedicate 50 percent towards your living expenses such as rent, insurance and food. Allocate 20 percent towards savings and 30 percent towards good ole’ guilt free fun. This will help to ensure you are covering all of your bases no matter what your salary increases to.

Protect Yourself

While there are many new expenses being thrown at you, one crucial payment you can’t forget to make is that of insurance. Making sure you have quality auto, home and life insurance will help to provide cushion from a setback that could put you in the hole for years to come.

Automate it!

We already mentioned allotting room for savings in your budget and the easiest way to do this is to take the decision making out of the equation. Make savings automatically come out of your paycheck, and not only will you start building up an emergency savings, which is a crucial first step, but you will quickly accumulate savings for fun things like vacations or a down payment on a house. You’ll be surprised how fast it adds up!

Educate Yourself

Just because you’re out of school doesn’t mean you should stop learning about the less exciting topics like finance. Take time to read influential financial books, talk to a trusted banking partner, or to a friend or family member who has financial habits you admire. Do you really have a grasp on what credit means and how to best use it? Simply ask and seek for answers, and no, we don’t mean just Googling your questions. The financial world doesn’t have to be intimidating, just start digging in!