Seven tips to give your money a 30-minute summer makeover

This summer, whether you’re slouching at your desk or relaxing by the pool, Rachel Lacey looks at how to give your finances a quick 30-minute makeover.

The joys of a British summer mean not every spare moment is ripe for a picnic or a trip to the beach. If rain (or extreme heat) is keeping you indoors, why not take advantage of the opportunity to give your finances a summer makeover?

Check out our quick tips that can help you save money, make money and keep your finances in order, before autumn arrives.

• Read about: Free regular investing | Opening a Stocks & Shares ISA | Cashback Offers

1) Write a budget or update your current one

It’s difficult to get a handle on how much you can afford to spend and save each month without a proper budget. Even if you do have one, there’s a good chance it needs an update as the cost of living continues to rise.

There are plenty of online budgeting tools you can try, or you can just use a spreadsheet. List everything you have coming in each month – including your salary or pension income, any benefits, investment income or maintenance payments. Then you need to list everything you spend each month on your mortgage or rent, debt repayments, food, travel, bills and discretionary spending.

It might sound like a bit of an effort, but with your banking app open you’ll have all the info you need at your fingertips.

The process of budgeting can be illuminating too, shining a light on areas of unnecessary spending that can easily be trimmed.

So while you might dread and put off writing a budget, there’s a good chance you’ll feel calmer and more in control of your finances once it’s done.

• How to turbo-charge your budgeting

2) Go through your subscriptions

If you don’t have the time or energy for a full budget overhaul but want to reduce the strain on your wallet, use a spare 10 minutes to look at your bank statement and see how much you’re spending on subscriptions each month.

From gym membership to TV streaming services, online news and music services to audio books and paid for apps, subscriptions can quickly rack up and the total amount you’re paying each month may well come as a shock.

Cancel any that you aren’t regularly using. If you’re a big TV viewer, consider paying for one streaming service at a time but switching regularly, that way you don’t need to miss the must-see shows.

3) Sort out your savings

With costs continuing to spiral, it’s more important than ever to ensure that your cash reserves are working as hard as they can to reduce the impact of inflation.

Although interest rates are on the up (rising from 0.1% to 1.75% since December), not all savings providers are passing the hikes on to savers.

So if you’ve not reviewed your savings in a while, it’s time to take a closer look. It’s not just about checking whether your account provider has passed on the rate rises, it’s about seeing what its paying in comparison to the rest of the market.

Check comparison websites and if your rate is lagging, switch to a better deal. At the time of writing, the best instant access rates were around the 1.8% mark. Savers willing to fix for a year can get 2.85%.

For cash ISAs remember not to close your account and open a new one. To ensure you don’t eat into this year’s ISA allowance, you’ll need to open a new ISA and ask the provider to transfer the money from your old ISA over.

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4) Get investing

While you’re reviewing your savings, take the time to think about how much cash you need on deposit. Experts usually recommend you have between three and six months’ expenses in an instant access savings account.

If you’ve more than that, which you won’t likely need over the next five to 10 years, why not consider topping up your stocks and shares ISA?

Although investing does carry a degree of risk, over time, money invested in equities is likely to grow at a faster rate than cash on deposit.

If you don’t have a stocks and shares ISA yet, interactive investor’s Quick Start funds make it easy for first-time investors to get started.

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5) Cash in your clutter

There are now huge numbers of websites and apps that make it easier to sell everything from tech you’ve long upgraded to old DVDs, CDs and books.

Simply enter the details or scan the bar code and you’ll get an instant quote. Pack it all up, post it and once they have received it, payment will be made.

If you’ve got kids off school and under your feet, why not set them the task and agree to pay the money it makes into their savings account or Junior ISA?

For clothes and any items that might make a bit more money, gather them up for auction on eBay.

6) Track down lost pensions

According to the Association of British Insurers, Britons have lost track of £19.4 billion worth of pensions – 1.6 million lost pots averaging £13,000 each.

With many of us changing jobs on a regular basis, it’s easy to lose track of pensions, especially those you might have had at the start of your career.

If you’re wondering what’s happened to one or more of yours, it’s easy to track them down using the government’s free Pensions Tracing Service, which you can access online or by calling 0800 731 0193.

• Five ways to maximise your pension income
• Consolidate your pensions for a £60,000 retirement boost

7) Review your investments

Every six months or so it’s worth taking a look at your investments. In addition to checking performance, you should also see if you are paying over the odds for the returns you’re getting.

Actively managed funds are more expensive than passively run tracker funds or exchange-traded funds (ETFs). This means that if you are paying for active management, you want to be confident that you are getting better returns than an equivalent tracker.

According to research from the Investment Association (IA), in 2021, just 42% of actively managed funds beat their benchmark.

Don’t switch for the sake of it though. Continually buying and selling funds can be expensive, so switch only if there is financial justification for doing so.