How to Get the Most Out of a Weekly Financial Review

If you're the type of person who loves a good resolution, there's one goal that can do wonders for your financial health: scheduling a weekly financial review session. It can help you stay on top of your money, make sure you're progressing on your goals, and adjust as your needs change.

But if you've never done one before, you may not know where to start or how much time to allot to a weekly session. Here's a quick breakdown of the steps every financial review should take, plus a bonus tip to save you time later on.

1. Review your bank account balances (five to 10 minutes)

Knowing the amount of cash you keep in your various bank accounts in a given week can help you figure out how much you can (or need to) transfer to other accounts to avoid overdrafts as well as spot discrepancies like a missed payment or overdue invoice.

If there's time, be sure to scan through your various transactions to make sure nothing on there is incorrect, late, or fraudulent. That way, you'll be more likely to catch those issues early and can notify your bank as soon as possible.

2. Check your progress on your goals (five to 15 minutes)

Whether you're trying to save for specific goals, pay off debt, or both, it's important to check in on your progress regularly. That way, you'll actually see the progress you're making, rather than feeling as if you're just throwing money at the wall. This is especially true for those who are paying or transferring money on a weekly basis.

Depending on the number of accounts you need to check, this may take less or more time to accomplish. Jotting down your balances or creating a visual representation of your progress is another good way to make that progress more tangible and help you stick to your goals.

3. Note significant departures from your budget (10 minutes)

Many people think of a budget as a static thing. But sometimes it's important to make adjustments to accommodate for the unexpected. Maybe your pipes froze and you had to call a plumber, or perhaps you changed insurers and decided to pay monthly instead of annually. These changes can be significant for how you'll spend money going forward. So it's important to recognize them when they happen and plan accordingly.

4. Pay your previous week's credit card purchases (five to 10 minutes)

Credit cards can be useful tools, but for many people, it's all too easy to carry a balance. By paying your cards weekly instead of monthly, you can not only avoid the potential sticker shock of paying for your full monthly expenses at once, but you can also ensure that you're paying more attention to how you're spending. Plus, you get to avoid having to pay interest. For example, if you were to carry a $2,000 balance on a card with a 20.99% interest rate, you'd end up paying almost $200 in interest over the course of a year.

If you have multiple cards and start carrying even a small balance on them, it can easily lead to taking on more and more high-interest debt over time. Using this method can help you avoid that issue.

Three more steps to save time in future financial reviews

The above steps are vital for your reviews from week to week. But there are key steps that you should take beforehand to make those sessions even more effective. Here are the three you should focus on.

1. Make a budget: Your budget will guide how you view things from your goals progress to your spending habits, so it's vital that it reflects your values. Start with non-negotiables, like your rent and other fixed bills, then you can use your remaining expected monthly income to dictate how to spend the rest of your money.
2. Create a bills calendar: This should include every monthly bill you get, from your cellphone bill to the gas bill to rent, as well as context about which account that money comes out of and, if applicable, the payment amount. Ideally, you'd look beyond your regular monthly bills to include ones that are due quarterly and annually, too.
3. Set up automatic transfers: If you know how much you want to transfer to your various savings accounts and you have a relatively stable source of income, it's a good idea to set up automatic transfers to those accounts. If possible, try to aim for the day after your paycheck hits your account. That way, you won't have to worry about either falling behind on saving money or incurring overdraft fees. Once you've set these up, you can add them to your bills calendar for future reference.

A weekly financial review is only as useful as you make it. By taking the time to provide the context you need and knowing exactly what you're looking for, you'll be better prepared to assess your finances and adjust course as needed.