Be a Better Steward of Your Money

You can have nice things if you consciously think about how you spend your money. You don't want to spend beyond what you can afford, but you don't have to live like a pauper, either. No matter your monetary state, learn to take care of the things you own already. Keep it clean and in good condition. And if you give active thought to how you plan your spending, you become empowered in your decision-making and can appreciate the things you own even more.

Spend more time thinking about the bigger purchases and learn to think long-term, sometimes months and years out as necessary. Here are some common-sense approaches to common items or needs that affect our spending:

Finding an Apartment. Look for a safe neighborhood, good schools, reasonable commuting distance to work with good management. Can you get an apartment with all utilities, or at least some of them, included with the rent? This helps standardize your rental costs. Before moving into an apartment, consider saving up for an entire 6-month lease in advance. If you don't like the place after 6-months, you can always move. If you like the place, re-sign and continue. Once you've got 3 to 6-months rent paid off, it frees up your money for other needs: paying bills, other purchases, savings.

Clothing. You don't need to spend an arm and a leg to look good. Clothes are trendy. Trends come and go. If you're a trend keeper, think about shopping at discount stores like Ross, TJMaxx, Marshalls. Buying classic, timeless styles of good quality may cost more in the beginning but saves money in the long run.

Handbags, Shoes and Accessories. Accessories are one of those expenditures that may be worth investing in. With clothes, your body size can change with weight loss. But your shoe size typically doesn't change, nor does a timeless classic accessory.

Cell Phones. Cell phones can also be trendy. But because technology changes so fast, you're compelled to go along with it. You can only hold on to older technology for so long until you're forced to upgrade. You can, however, control how much capability you want. If all you need is talk and text, then just find a carrier to accommodate that. No-contract plans are now widely available and offer competitive pricing.

Car. This is the trickiest of them all. Cars cost less than a house but more than renting an apartment. This is a decision that requires long-term thinking. Should you buy a new car or buy a used car? Carefully consider your needs when buying a vehicle. Can you afford the payments? There are free car calculators online that can help you estimate your costs. Check with your bank. Often time they offer better financing than the dealership. Shop around. There are a lot of attractive vehicles these days that offer a lot of horsepower, top notch safety features, excellent fuel efficiency and HD sound systems in just the base price. Research well before making your purchase.