Top money managing tips for 2022

The year 2021 certainly brought with it some unique challenges. With people being forced to re-evaluate what matters most, the work and home life balance begin to tip. Whereas some industries thrived, others went rapidly downhill. With reduced incomes or even no incomes at all, the internet went crazy with searches for managing money tips.

We want to help you to find the very best managing money tips and show you some great money management tools that can help you too. Read on to find our top tips for 2022 and see how you can improve your current financial position.

‍

‍

Claim tax relief for working from home

The pandemic saw kitchen tables across the country magically transformed into home offices. Back in March 2020, we were all ordered to work from home. This later eased to just advice, but all of that time working from home meant that our bills went that bit higher. The good news is that you are probably entitled to tax relief to help you here. You can claim against:

• Gas and electricity bills
• Metered water bills
• Phone calls relating to work
• Items bought solely for working from home
  

There are two choices when it comes to how you can claim. These are:

• A flat rate of £6 per week as of April 2020 or,
• The exact amount of your expenses
  

When looking at managing money tips, this is an easy way to recover at least some of the expenses that you have faced while working from home.

‍

Earn extra money 

One of the best managing money tips is to look into earning extra money from home. It could be that you explore the various side hustles that exist as a way of bringing in some extra cash, or you may look at changing careers altogether. Some of the easiest ways to earn extra from home include:

Vinted
Vinted is like eBay used to be. It is a place where people sell their unwanted items and make a decent amount of cash along the way. The great thing about Vinted is that there are no sellers fees so you get to keep all that you make.

Swagbucks 
Swagbucks gives its users various ways of earning extra money. You can sign up and take surveys, get paid for trying out games, or even get rewards just for searching on the internet.‍

Fat Llama
Fat Llama says that it is the place to rent almost anything. So, how do you make money? You can be the one to rent items out. You can offer almost anything to people who live nearby. 

Check your bills and subscriptions 

There really is no excuse when it comes to paying too much for your bills. There is no need to spend hours ringing around getting the best quotes for gas and electricity. In fact, there is no need to do anything other than visiting a single website. Comparison sites mean that we can see the best deals almost instantly. There are even money management tools that can send alerts when a better deal is available.  

As well as bills, most of us these days have subscriptions that come out of our accounts on a regular basis. This could be for the likes of Netflix and Spotify or it could even be for gym memberships. If you’re paying out for things that you aren’t using, surely it makes sense to cancel and save some money!

‍

Don’t get carried away with treats

Managing money tips will see you with more money in your bank account. The danger here is that you don’t actually end up being any better off. With money to spare it is easy to get carried away. You may start going for more meals out or you may start to use the money for other activities. This sees any savings quickly gone.

Of course, everyone is entitled to treats. We’re not saying that you should suffer in your quest to manage your money. It is all about self-control. You can use any money that you have saved in ways that can being long-term benefits rather than just short term pleasures.

‍

Be mindful about your spending

One of the most useful managing money tips is to start thinking about how you are spending. With the rise in contactless card payments and things such as Apple Pay, making spending easier than ever, how much thought do we give to what we are spending when all it takes is the wave of a card or phone? It is far too easy to go out and spend and not see it as real: we are no longer handling and seeing actual cash.

The way to change how you spend is to review exactly what you are doing each month. If you see where every penny is going it becomes easier to make small changes. Over time these changes become meaningful and lead to bigger changes too. Do you really need that Costa on the way to work every morning? Is there really any reason why you can’t move down a brand when it comes to buying breakfast cereal? There are plenty of little changes that can be made to see you saving money.

Top money management tools

When it comes to managing your money, you won’t be surprised to hear that there are plenty of tools out there that can make this so much easier. Some of the top tools to explore include: 

Monzo Pots

Monzo is an app that allows its users to budget more effectively. Part of the app includes Monzo Pots. These are spaces where you can send funds that are kept separate from your main balance. It is a great way to save and as you can’t see the funds as part of your main balance, the temptation to spend is reduced.

Chip  - smart saving
Chip connects with your bank account and then uses artificial intelligence to help you save. It will track your spending habits and then start to automatically allocate funds to be saved. Right now, Chip has some of the most attractive interest rates around. There is also the option to invest in stocks and shares too.