Tips to Keep on Top of Your Finances Post-Lockdown

As lockdown restrictions start to ease across the UK, people are allowed to begin socialising again. Gyms, beauty salons, and outdoor eating have all now reopened and a lot of us will be rushing out to catch up on what we’ve been missing.

This does mean, however, that spending could easily get out of hand over the next couple of months if people aren’t keeping track of their additional expenses.

This guide will go through some of the things that you can do to keep control over your spending and finances, whilst still allowing you to enjoy the next few months of socialising.

Plan for additional spending

We’ve all been cooped up at home for a long time now and a lot of us are probably desperate to get out and about now that shops and restaurants have reopened. Even if you want to remain strict with your spending and savings, saying that you’re not going to spend any money on meals out and day trips over the next few months might just be setting yourself up for failure.

Take a look at your budget and try to plan in some activities that you’ve missed and have been looking forward to. Maybe you can adjust your savings a bit or cut down spending in other areas in order to give yourself a little extra cash. Not making these adjustments and then spending frivolously could cause you to end up in your overdraft or using a credit card.

You also have to remember that some expenses that you weren’t paying over the last few months are going to be reintroduced, like transport and childcare for example. You need to put these back into your budget before working out how much you can afford to spend on socialising.

It’s a good idea to set up a separate savings pot so that you can put guilt-free spending money aside.

Make saving easier

If you want to keep on top of your savings over the next couple of months then the best way to do this is to automate them.

Use your budget to work out how much you can comfortably afford to save each month, allowing for additional spending, and then set up a standing order from your current account to your savings account. You should set this up for the day after you get paid each month so that your savings are still a priority.

Doing this means that your savings are taken care of every month without you having to think about it and you can spend the money that you have left over guilt-free.

Choose what’s important and prioritise spending

Now that restrictions are starting to ease, there’s a lot to catch up on and there might be a lot of things that you want to do. Although it’s good to relax and treat yourself to some additional spending, it might be a good idea to spread things out and try to not do everything in the first month.

Maybe speak to your friends and family and decide between you what’s a priority and what you don’t mind waiting a little bit longer for. Then you can budget for specific things and spread the costs out over a couple of months instead of massively overspending in one month and getting yourself in a difficult financial position.

Remember that payments will start again

If you took a payment holiday on your mortgage or any other loans, remember that these are going to restart at the end of July.

Review any communications with your lender to remind yourself when your repayments will restart and how they will be affected when they do. Has the monthly repayment figure increased? Do you now have a longer loan term? It’s important that you factor in these repayments when you’re reworking your budget and it’s best to start allowing for them now (by putting the money aside each month) so you can get used to it.

If you’re worried that you may not be able to afford the repayments once the holiday ends then you need to get in touch with your lender as soon as possible before they restart automatically.