Monday 20 January 2020

JOHN’S BLOG – JANUARY 2020

NEW YEAR MONEY GOALS


With the expensive festive season now behind us, it’s time to take a closer look at our finances and make 2020 the year we finally take the stress out of managing our money.

Here at HEY Credit Union, we’ve developed a set of New Year Money Goals to help you get into some good money habits that will really make a difference:

Goal 1 – Become a Member, save regularly and earn your share of our annual Dividend

You may already be one of HEY Credit Union’s 15,000 Members.  If not, it’s easy to join, by going online or visiting one of our branches. There’s no joining fee.


But once a Member, how can you get into the habit of saving regularly?   Here are some quick ideas:
·       Don’t assume that you won’t have enough money left at the end of the week/month to save.  Start off with a really small amount, and then build up later.  The amount doesn’t matter; putting it out of reach does! 
·       Have a goal in mind, a small target that you’ll be able to achieve, to set you going.  It might be tickets for a show, a new outfit or a night away.  Work out how much you need and when. On our HEY Credit Union App there’s a Savings Goal feature.  You can set a goal (££ and time period) and the App lets you see how you are progressing towards it.
·       Put aside a particular coin (such as 5ps, 20ps or £2s) in a jar.  You’ll be amazed how quickly the savings build up.
·       Challenge the family to save with you.  Make it fun – allow a monthly treat!
·       If you know how much you can afford to save, set up a standing order to pay into your CU savings just after you’ve been paid.  If you can’t see the money in your bank, you won’t spend it.
·       Once you’ve achieved your goal, don’t close your account.  Now you’re in the habit, keep on saving for something else.

It’s never too late, or too early, to start saving.  And we’ll reward you with our annual profit-sharing bonus Dividend just before Christmas.  In 2019 we paid out nearly £100,000 to our saver members!

Goal 2 – Save up for Christmas, and earn a Bonus

Christmas can be costly, with lots of spending all at once – presents, festive food and drink, parties and holiday breaks. Wouldn’t it make sense to plan ahead, so that the cost is spread over the full year?


Here at HEYCU, our popular Christmas Saver account offers the ideal way:  
·       You can save as much or as little as you like, but your savings are locked safely away until November!   Dipping in not allowed!  
·       Unlike informal Christmas Clubs (diddlums if you’re from East Yorkshire!), money saved with us is 100% protected by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme.
·       Unlike supermarket stamps or hamper clubs, we pay you back direct (to your bank or cash) so you can shop around for bargains.
·       And if you haven’t had one before, we’ll reward you with a Bonus of at least £10* in November for opening a Christmas Saver.     *terms and conditions

Goal 3 – Reduce your outgoings 

New Year is a great time to sit down and take a look at what you’ve got coming in and going out each week or month.   Have you any Direct Debits going out for gym or magazine subscriptions that you no longer use?  Cancel them and save!  


Perhaps you are paying out more than you need to in credit card repayments.  Could you save some money by switching to a Credit Union Loan?    Then you could save the difference into one of our safe savings accounts, enabling you to pay the balance off in full even earlier than you expected!

Why pay out more than you need to?   Book a free money review with our friendly team and we’ll see if we can help.   Remember, all loans are subject to approval and, as a responsible lender, we make a credit history check and only lend what we feel you can afford to repay.

Goal 4 – Make the most of your family income – Our Family Loan & Savings Plan helps you spread those “lumpy costs”

It’s not easy managing your money when you’ve a young family.  You’ll recognise the problem – lots of expenses are sort of “lumpy”, meaning they come all at once in big unhelpful chunks – things like school uniforms, sports kit, school trips and holidays – while your income arrives in fairly regular amounts through the year.   It makes planning and budgeting a nightmare!

That’s why HEY Credit Union introduced our Family Loan & Savings Plan.   By having your Child Benefit paid into a CU Membership Account regularly, you can combine save saving and affordable borrowing to smooth those lumpy costs out across the year.   


You’ll know exactly how much you have left each week or month – for other spending or tucking safely away for Christmas, your family’s future, or just a “rainy day”.  

With our Family Loan & Savings Plan you can borrow £500 and pay back just £12 per week or £50 a month, over one year.   It’s many times cheaper than using doorstep lenders or other high cost credit.  The spare funds can be saved with us or transferred the same day to your bank, as you wish.

Hundreds of members are using this Plan already and many have told us how much it helps them manage their money wisely and takes the stress out of budgeting.  Recently it was featured on BBC Radio 4’s Money Box.  Ask our friendly team – it could help you too.

HEY Credit Union is a not-for-profit financial co-operative, run for the benefit of its members.  We’d love to help you make the most of your money in 2020.   Happy New Year!