Budgeting is hard! This key practice of your personal finances is often one we run away from, avoid, or simply just ignore. The idea of being an accountant is not an aspiration for many and being an accountant for your own finances is enough to make many of us run away.
The root cause for much of this anguish is often because having a budget is hard and time-consuming. It often requires you to have a spreadsheet and to spend time capturing your expenses from your bank statements, credit cards and store accounts. This means lots of paperwork, dedicated hours and probably a few headaches for those of us who are not excel boffins. But what if there was an easier way to manage a budget? What if your capturing could be done automatically and your budget was displayed in an easy-to-understand format?
22seven by Old Mutual is a budgeting app that allows users to record their earnings and spending easily and simply. It then presents it all in an easy-to-use mobile application!
How Does 22seven by Old Mutual Work?
22seven was created in 2012 and was acquired by Old Mutual in 2013. The company was started to make budgeting, saving and investing easy and affordable. They did this by creating an application that had an easy to use budgeting system.
You connect the application securely via Yodlee to your bank, credit cards, car finance, home loans, store accounts, investment accounts and many other account types. 22seven then logins in securely to gather your transactions and allocates them in the app according to your rules. This allows you to easily allocate your spending’s at Pick ‘Pay as groceries for example. The app then allocates this to this budget item allowing you to easily see how much you have spent where at any time in the month.
Further than this, 22seven can also send you notifications when you are getting close to your limit of spending within a section of your budget.
As the application is owned by Old Mutual, Old Mutual has made it easy for you to start investing for your goals automatically using the app. This makes growing your savings and investments easy and affordable.
Who Is 22Seven by Old Mutual for?
22Seven was designed for those of us who like to automate our lives, who want to streamline our finances, those who want to dominate our finances. Budgeting is a crucial part of your personal finances and automating this process can save you time!
If you are struggling to find the time to analyse your budget or to capture your transactions, then 22seven by Old Mutual may be an option for you. The app has full security ratings and all your data is insured. 22seven is a juristic representative of Old Mutual Life Assurance (SA) Limited who is a licensed FSP. This means they comply with the financial laws in South Africa.
One of the best parts of this application is that it is 100% free! No signup fees, no monthly fees, nothing. This makes it a great option for those of us on tight budgets!
5 Budgeting Tips to Help Your Master Your Budget!
1. Create A Zero-Based Budget Before The Month Begins
This means that before the month even begins, you’re making a budget and giving each Rand a name or allocation. It’s known as a zero-based budget. This doesn’t mean you have nothing in your bank account. It simply means that when you budget, you allocate every bit of your income (income minus expenses equals zero). Don’t think that you can’t save money with this method. Simply allocate 10% of your income to your savings when you draw up your zero-based budget. It will count as one of your “expenses.’ The 22 Seven App makes this easy!
2. Keep In Mind, Every Month Is Different
You may find that some months might require you to budget for things like back-to-school supplies or routine car upkeep. For some months, you’ll be saving money for things like holidays, birthdays, or other special events. Despite the event, ensure you plan for those costs in your budget. Prevent those events from catching you off guard by consulting your calendar while you’re making your budget.
Make sure to adjust your budget every month as things change. Create a savings fund where you can stash money regularly. 22 Seven makes saving easy thanks to its integration with Old Mutual Invest.
3. Start With The Most Important Things
Giving and saving should be at the top of your list, and afterward comes the Four Walls: utilities, food, rent, and transportation. When your actual necessities are dealt with, you can fill in the remainder of the categories in your monthly budget.
4. Pay Your Debt Off
If you have debt, taking care of it should be your first concern. When creating your budget, allocate funds to paying off your debt monthly. The sooner you pay off your debt, the closer you are to enjoying your hard-earned money.
5. Allocate Buffers When Budgeting
Allocate a small amount of money when creating your budget for unexpected costs monthly. You can label this as the miscellaneous category in your budget. That way, when something that will cost you money comes up, you can cover it without having to dip it into your savings account. That said, make sure that you monitor expenses that end up in this category frequently. In the end, you may even need to promote them to a more permanent spot in your budget.
Budgeting is a crucial part of dominating your finances. So if you are looking for a tech-savvy way to record your budget, try out 22 seven! Work smart in your personal finances, not hard!