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'A clean start': Local expert shares how to get your finances started on the right foot for 2025

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CENTRAL TEXAS (KXXV) — Along with New Year's resolutions, making sure financials are good to go for 2025 is priority for many neighbors. Heather Healy speaks with First National Bank of Central Texas about how to tackle those money-related goals.

  • First — do a weekly check-in to check your finances
  • Second — write down your spending, like where all of your money going and where you can cut back
  • Third — make sure to tackle your finances in bite-size chunks, take it one day at a time, if not — your problems are only going to get bigger and worse

BROADCAST TRANSCRIPT:

Many have made resolutions to get physically fit this year, but what about becoming financially fit?

"Maybe they go, 'I want to get into better shape regarding my finances' — it’s a clean start," said Senior Vice President at First Financial Bank of Central Texas, Dan Ingham.

Ingham has loved helping Central Texas neighbors achieve financial success for nine years.

"Seeing their wins — we are a commercial bank that’s a community bank," he said.

"We work with a lot of small businesses — seeing them succeed — that’s a lot of fun."

To help Central Texas start 2025 in the right way financially — he says to first have to address where your money is going.

"The first suggestion I would make would be to make a weekly check-in," Ingham said.

"If you’re single, then it’s by yourself — if you’re married or have a spouse, once a week, maybe Sunday afternoon, we get together — take a look at our finances."

He says it's important to ask those questions.

"Where are we spending money? What are some decisions we can make? That way, everyone is on the same page," Ingham said.

"If you create the weekly check-in — that’s huge."

After check-ins are checked off the list...

"The easiest thing that you can control is your spending — you can’t always control your income and what’s going to be coming in, but you can control your spending," Ingham said.

"If you start tracking your spending for like a month, say 'We’re going to take a look at January, see where our money is going,' — you might be surprised. 'Oh, we’re spending too much on this, we’re spending a bunch of money on that' — here’s how we cut back."

Tracking, controlling spending, and cutting back — those are the three concepts that Ingham says to not be afraid to tackle, because if not...

"If you avoid it, it’s going to become a bigger problem," he said.