The 2025 that has just begun will not be an easy year for Spanish consumers. As soon as it started, citizens have found themselves with a more expensive electricity billincreases in VAT on food, a new garbage rate and with an increasing telephone bill in the main operators in the country.
Added to this is the inevitable excess of Christmas spending that makes us approach the month of January with caution every year. Victor Fermoselprofessor at EAE Business School, explains to 20 minutes that “The January slope is an annual cyclical phenomenon of debt accumulation” which takes place for two reasons: the heavy spending during Christmas and that with the arrival of the new year there is an update in the prices of many services.
Furthermore, although inflation closed 2024 at its lowest level in the last three years (2.8%)the rise in prices will not be fully controlled until the 2% goal established by the European Central Bank (ECB) is reached to avoid further lowering interest rates.
However, through good planning of personal and family finances, not only can the first month of the year be easier, but also our economy throughout 2025.
“Whoever does not aim to save is wrong”sentence Elisabet Ruiz Dotrasprofessor of Economics and Business Studies at the Open University of Catalonia (UOC). Ruiz Dotras insists that the first thing to do is “look at your expenses, even though few people do it” and establish realistic savings goals: “People do it the other way around.”: first you spend and then, from what you have left, you save“.
For Ernesto Camposprofessor of the Degree in Business Administration and Management at the International University of Valencia (VIU), it is key to “control our emotions avoiding spontaneous purchasescompulsive or unnecessary” and warns that “the worst decision” we can make is “to finance leisure or consumption, due to its high cost.” Below, this medium offers a series of tips from savings experts to face this January slope and be able to maintain the good health of our personal economy in 2025.
Review your expenses
Identifying where you can cut back is the first step toward healthier financial management. “You have to look at the expenses, even though few people do it,” the UOC professor makes clear. By doing this simple review you will surely find unnecessary expenses or forgotten subscriptions which can become a considerable amount of money at the end of the year.
Set a budget
Allocating a fixed amount of monthly income to cover our needs will allow us to better manage our money and be clear at all times whether or not we can use the rest for other purposes. “This will help us prioritize expenses and find a financial balance”highlights Campos.
Don’t buy just to buy
There are times when we go shopping without a prior idea and end up taking more things than we really need. “It is vital to pause and reflect“Is this a real need or simply a momentary desire driven by the search for instant gratification?” suggests Ruiz Dotras.
Apply the 70/20/10 rule
“Some of the habits that can help us organize our finances would be to adopt consumption/savings rules or strategies that are flexible and adapted to personal and family needs and priorities,” explains the VIU professor, who proposes apply the 70/20/10 rule. This method consists of allocating 50% of our income to fixed expenses (housing, food, bills…), dedicating 30% to specific expenses (such as the purchase of a mobile phone) and allocating 20% to savings.
Avoid ant expenses
These are those small expenses that sometimes go unnoticed, but which represent a non-negligible amount per month and even a significant amount after a year. They are, for example, the products that we acquire in a machine vending for not going to the supermarkethaving breakfast in a bar instead of at home or the cost of an online return.
Compare prices
Making a price comparison is important, because allows you to purchase what is most convenient according to the needs of families or find good offers. “It is a practice that must be carried out whether we make purchases in person or virtually,” says the UOC professor.
Use cash
It is increasingly common to use credit and debit cards to make our purchases. This payment method means that, on many occasions, we are not aware of the money we are spending. Consumer organizations, such as Asescon, recommend pay in cash to better control spending and not fall into the trap of buying what we cannot afford.
Track your planning
It is important to track the progress of our planning, as this will help us visualize the savings each week and motivate us to continue with the plan. “If the result of the monitoring is successful, it reinforces the message and you will feel better; and if what is happening is failure, you can analyze what those deviations are and try to resolve them,” says Fermosel.
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