Financial Needs Vs. Wants: How To Spend Your Money Wisely
If you want to spend your money more wisely, there’s a much better way to do it than simply writing everything down on a budget list. Instead, you can make your budget much more effective by managing financial needs and wants. You can do this by separating your financial ‘needs’ from ‘wants’ on your list. That way, you can improve your decision-making about what you should or should not spend your hard-earned money on.
In this article, we will help you discover the difference between needs and wants, and some personal finance tips that can aid in smart money management. Keep reading to find out more.
Financial Prioritization Tips: The Difference Between Needs And Wants
A personal financial need is something that you can’t survive without. Excellent examples of this include rent/mortgage, food, insurance, and medications. Sure, you can find many ways to reduce these costs as best as possible, but they’re still things you have to pay for regardless, along with some others like credit cards and personal debt that you may want to also prioritize paying down as to avoid the high-interest fees eating up your budget.
On the other hand, a ’want’ is something that you would enjoy having, even though you could live without it. Wants include spending that isn't necessary for daily life. They are expenses that you’d typically categorize as leisure and travel or entertainment expenses, for instance. Eliminating some or all of these can assist in your goal of saving money effectively.
However, there is nothing wrong with having a balance of both wants and financial needs in your monthly budget. After all, what’s the point of working hard to make money if you’re not going to enjoy it now and then?
But still, it’s important to distinguish between the things you can and can’t live without so that you can prioritize them accurately and make better financial decisions overall. If there’s ever a time you have to reduce your spending, you’ll know which ‘wants’ you can sacrifice in your budgeting strategies to have more money for your urgent needs.
Some ‘Needs’ Are Actually ‘Wants’ In Disguise
Be careful, though! Sometimes, you may find a financial need in your monthly budget that’s a ‘want’ in disguise. It's important to identify your needs versus wants! Quite often, it’s easy to feel as if we won’t survive without these ‘needs’, even though the truth is that we can very easily choose to live without them.
What are some examples of knowing the difference between needs and wants in disguise?
Well, one of the most common examples is eating out at restaurants. Many people believe that this is a ‘need’ because it involves food, but that couldn’t be further from the truth. You can very well survive by cooking your meals and eating at home. That’s why groceries are a ‘need’ but eating out is more of a ‘want’.
Even your shopping list can feature plenty of ‘wants’ pretending to be ‘needs’. Junk food, candy, and alcohol may still be groceries, but let’s be honest, you can live without them. This can make a difference when learning how to budget money wisely.
Budgeting Strategies: Where Do Saving And Investing Money Fit Into The Budget?
You may now wonder where savings and investing fit into the grander scheme. After all, you can survive without saving your money in an account at a banking institution or making financial investments, but that can leave your financial future vulnerable.
On one hand, doing these things will improve your overall financial health and give back in the long term, making it a financial need. Still, you don’t want to overdo savings and investing to the point that it affects your income and other more immediate needs like paying rent and buying food. Finding a healthy balance in your needs vs. wants financial planning may help you to save money in your budget, not only for things like life insurance and retirement but for any unexpected emergencies that can ruin your budgeting efforts.
Managing Financial Emergencies: An Urgent Need
An emergency is unique because it’s a financial need that goes straight to the top of your priority list. Not only are you unable to avoid paying for it, but you’ll also have to manage to get your hands on quick cash to do so.
If you haven’t accounted for a financial emergency in your budget, what solution should you consider? Title loans from Mississippi Title Loans, Inc.
What Is A Title Loan?
A title loan is a loan you receive when you use your vehicle’s title as collateral. It is a way of borrowing quick cash from private lenders like us, at Mississippi Title Loans, Inc., to pay for an urgent financial need. You’ll use a lien-free title of your vehicle to secure the money you want to borrow. To compare, that’s what makes it different from Mississippi payday loans – which can help if you don’t happen to own a vehicle.
The total amount that you can borrow – which is anything between $300-$2,500 – will depend on the value of your car. You should know, you must be at least 18 year of age to apply.
What Are The Benefits Of Title Loans?
There are plenty of benefits to consider when getting an auto title loan from lenders like us. Some of those include:
- Quick and painless application. The whole process will take as little as 30 minutes.
- Minimal paperwork. To get started, you’ll just need a driver’s license or state-issued ID card and the lien-free title to your car.
- Your credit score/report doesn’t matter! Whether yours is low, high, or nonexistent, you can still apply for a title loan!
- Keep your car! You’ll only need the title of your car to secure the loan. After you’ve brought your vehicle in for an inspection, you can continue driving the vehicle as usual.
- No store visit is required. You can give the loan representative a location and they will meet you!
How Do I Get A Title Loan?
The biggest benefit to our title loans is how quickly our process goes. Just follow this guide to learn more:
- Go to our website and fill in an application form.
- Wait for a representative to call you and set up an appointment. You can either give them a location to meet you or come to the nearest title loans location in Mississippi.
- The representative will meet up with you to check your documentation and inspect your car. Then, they’ll determine if you qualify for approval.
- If you’re approved, you can get the money you qualify for on the same day or by the next business day, as long as you agree with the amount, terms, and rates for the loan!
When An Emergency Threatens Your Budget: Get Help With A Mississippi Title Loan!
If you want to learn how to make wise financial decisions, you’ll have to sit down and examine your spending habits. It is important to know what your financial needs and wants are. Once you know that, you will know exactly how to budget your money.
For emergencies, though, you may need a quick source of cash like a title loan. When that happens, there’s no better place to go than Mississippi Title Loans Inc.! Our loan representatives are available to give you an overview of the loan process and to help you get the cash you need to handle almost any emergency. To connect with an agent and access our services today, complete and submit the online inquiry form now!
Note: The content provided in this article is only for informational purposes, and you should contact your financial advisor about your specific financial situation.