Financial Goals in the New Year

Holiday debt can be is looming. Last year had the highest average holiday debt – over $1,500. With interest rates and inflation at an all-time high, now is the time for consumers to break the bad habits and adopt good ones that can lead them to financial success. To talk about how to curb bad financial habits, Rachel Caballero of TruWest Credit Union, joins Ted.

“An impeding recession, you would think that the holiday spending is going down, but with the increase in prices everywhere and the supply chain issues that are happening, things like that, it’s harder to get your hands on stuff,” said Caballero. “So people are actually willing to spend a little bit more to get their hands on the things that they want for people for the holidays.”

Without the education to fully understand where holiday spending, many people can let this expenditure go unchecked. Caballero says that financial literacy should be treated as a growth process.

“We need to be in that mind set of the journey, where we understand that there are triggers that happen that have us spending the money,” said Caballero. “Being able to identify those triggers, and then having things to overcome those triggers, should they happen, will help us scale back in the spending.”

She also says that starting an emergency fund is a good idea. The standard recommendation is three to six months of living expenses. However, as Caballero points out, that recommendation can differ depending on each individual’s needs.