Tuesday, September 12, 2006

Saving Money For A Rainy Day

I guess one of the goals I have neglected to set for my family is an emergency savings accout. I have recently read an article on Making Your Emergency Savings Automatic by David Bach the author of The Automatic Millionaire. For those of you who aren't sure of what this is, it is an account that you save money in for unforeseeable expenses- car repairs, home repairs, Dr's bills, etc.... The types of expenses that you would usually have to max out your credit cards for.
The article pretty much shows how to set up a cushion of money for these types of emergencies.
There are four basic steps to do this.

1) Make your rainy day fund Automatic. Bach says that if you don't make this process automatic chances are that you won't save. So each payday transfer a certain amount into a money market, savings account, etc....

2) Get your money out of your checking account. Put your money where you don't have easy access to it. Such as high interest savings account, money market, etc....

3) Put it in the right place. Make sure you are earning interest on your money. Don't let the banks make all the money.

4) Decide how big of a cushion you need. I have read all kinds of different amounts. I think the amount to shoot for is one that you are comfortable with and one that keeps you from having to use your credit cards.

I guess there is no time like the present to get started, so I guess my next step will be checking out some of the high interest online savings banks. If anyone has any suggestions I would appreciate any comments.