Have you ever found yourself dipping into your savings account any time you’re short on cash and need a little backup? If you’re serious about saving money, then you’ll need to kick this habit. Here are some ways to make your savings account completely untouchable:
Use a Different Bank for Your Savings Account
Most of us tend to have our savings accounts linked to our checking accounts. This makes it easy to dip into our savings or just go to the ATM and take out some extra cash. To avoid doing this, opening a savings account in a completely different bank might be a good idea. Additionally, you can keep your account strictly online so that taking money out of it becomes harder.
Get Rid of Your Savings Account Debit Card
Most savings accounts offer you a debit card completely free of charge – and even without you asking for one. Before you get tempted to use the card and take money out of your savings, get rid of the card altogether. You can cut it up or put it away somewhere safe where you won’t have immediate access to it.
Automate Your Saving Account Deposits
Sometimes, it’s best to forget about any money you set aside. If you don’t think about it or know it’s there, you won’t end up using it when you don’t absolutely need to. Automating your saving account deposits is a good way to forget about how much money you have in your savings. This way, deposits get made automatically, and you can go about your days pretending your saving account doesn’t exist.
Reevaluate How Much You Deposit into Your Savings
If you save $400 every month but always end up dipping into the account for $50 to $100, then you might want to reevaluate your spending and how much you can reasonably save every month. It might be a good idea to reduce your monthly savings to $300 and keep the extra hundred for any additional spending throughout the month. This way, you’ll have extra spending money, and you can leave your savings account alone.
Use a Credit Card Instead of Dipping into Your Savings
You might want to consider using a credit card for unexpected spending instead of dipping into your saving account. Using credit cards can be a slippery slope, so always pay off your balance in full as soon as you get your next paycheck. Your credit card should only be used for few and far between unexpected expenses. Overall, remember that your saving account is meant for specific long-term goals – such as putting forward a home down payment or a future vacation. Other than for those goals or any big emergencies, try and pretend like you don’t have a savings account at all.
