Our Financial Resolutions for 2016

The new year is right around the corner and many of us have resolutions we’d like to keep. Here at Ratehub.ca, it’s become a tradition to share our personal financial goals with you (check out our 2014 and 2015 resolutions).

Before we get to what we hope to do next year, I checked in with the team to see if they managed to achieve their objectives.

Alyssa did set up preauthorized RRSP contributions through Wealthsimple and made automated weekly deposits for three quarters of the year. Brynn made lump sum mortgage payments (two, in fact!), saved for two trips, and made regular contributions to her RRSP (she saved more than 10% of her income).

Chrissy was able to pay off more than half of her student loan and still managed to go on a trip, Christina diversified her portfolio and bought a property, and Kayla’s been making monthly contributions to her TFSA and RRSP for the past eight months. Kerri-Lynn has contributed regularly to her wedding fund. She and her fiancé expect to have enough money to pay for the wedding upfront with proceeds from the fund. And Kurtis has made biweekly contributions to his RRSP and started investing in ETFs.

However, not everyone was able to accomplish all of their goals. Alyssa hasn’t cut back on eating out, Chris and his wife found out that making a budget is the easy part but sticking to it was harder, Idriss didn’t increase his car loan payments, Kayla is still working on her travel fund, and Kerri-Lynn hasn’t managed her finances as well as she would have liked due to her new mortgage and upcoming wedding.

While we may not have hit our 2015 targets, we remain optimistic about the year ahead. Here’s a rundown of our resolutions for 2016:

Alyssa: “I want to continue monthly savings and build up a large sum to be able to buy a ‘new’ used car.”

Benson: “I’ll definitely be on the hunt for a weird trick to create passive income online with little training required.”

Brynn: “My financial resolutions this year are to continue with the same as last year. But on top of that, we’re hoping to invest a bit less so we can save up to purchase a home.”

Chris: “Next year we’re going to set up automatic monthly contributions to force ourselves to save.”

Chrissy: “Get all of my student loan gone. All of it. Every cent.”

Christina: “My resolution for next year is to learn more about stocks and buy and sell my own!”

Craig: “I’d like to save 15% of my gross salary in my RRSP and TFSA, invest in more international stocks, find a way to invest and earn credit card rewards at the same time, try to generate extra income through options trading, and pay off at least $7,500 of debt.”

Idriss: “I was not able increase my car loan payments last year, so I’m hoping this year is the year!”

Jordan: “I want to make my full Home Buyers’ Plan repayment for the year, and open an RESP for my newborn son.”

Julia: “I want to continue to make biweekly contributions to my RRSP and begin to track the amount of money I spend on food each month.”

Justin: “I want to start making regular contributions to my TSFA and invest more in 2016. Additionally, I want to watch my discretionary spending so I’m not spending so much in pubs and on dates.”

Kaman: “I’m definitely aiming to reduce my spending on eating out next year, and use that amount for travelling. I also want to sign up for a travel rewards credit card and start earning points!”

Kayla: “No more credit card debt!! And continue contributing to my travel fund.”

Kerri-Lynn: “My new mortgage and upcoming wedding has really shaken me up financially. I underestimated how much I needed to cut back on my spending in 2015, so I need to make up for it in 2016. But I’m going to focus on both sides of the equation: not only cutting back but adding to my income. I plan on pursuing some freelance consulting opportunities and making some strategic investments. I am not a frugal person by nature and love living life to the fullest, so I know I need to focus more on the income side of the equation.”

Kurtis: “This year I have no new goals other than to ramp up my RRSP contribution and continue saving 50% of each paycheque.”

Nicole: “I have a big birthday coming up at the beginning of 2016. I’m planning to start my new year, and new decade, with a refreshed look at my personal finances by setting (and following!) a budget, increasing my contributions towards savings, and setting aside enough money for a trip to Europe this year!”

Do you have a financial resolution for 2016? Let us know in the comments section below.

Flickr: Wilson Hui