New year personal finance plan
Got financial goals for 2025? We’re here to help you make this your best year yet. Here’s our one-stop explainer on how to take control of your finances this year.
Pay off high-interest debt
Paying off high-interest debt isn’t easy, but sorting it out sooner rather than later will mean you’ve got more money available to be able to work on your goals.
What is high-interest debt?
High-interest debts are debts which have an interest rate above the average rate on the market. In general, anything above 5% interest can be considered ‘high’ – but some credit cards can have a much higher interest rate, like 25%.
High-interest debt can include all types of financial products, but the highest interest products are usually credit cards, personal loans, or payday loans.
How to pay off high-interest debt
When it comes to paying down high-interest debt, having a plan and sticking to it is crucial. While we cannot offer advice, here are some approaches used to tackle this type of debt:
- Focus on the highest-interest debt first – starting off by paying down the loan or card with the highest interest. This can reduce the overall cost of debt more quickly.
- The ‘Snowball method’ – paying off the card or loan with the smallest balance first, then tackling the next smallest, and so on. This can create a sense of accomplishment and motivation as you go.
- Consider a 0% balance credit card – if eligible, transferring credit card balances to a 0% balance credit card for a set period of time. This can help to reduce interest charges continuing to mount up while focusing on paying off the principal amount. Always check the terms and conditions to ensure the product is suitable.
Remember, if you’re unsure what would be right for you, or require further guidance based on your own personal circumstances, please speak with an appropriately-qualified financial adviser.
Build an emergency fund
Building an emergency fund means you’ve got peace of mind in the case of unexpected costs – and it should be an early step in your personal finance journey.
What is an emergency fund
An emergency fund is just that – a pot of money you’ve set aside to cover emergency costs and unexpected expenses. It’s for things like broken boilers, car repairs, or to cover costs during life events like changing jobs.
As a rule of thumb, a good emergency fund should be enough to cover your essential expenses like rent, food, and bills for between three to six months.
How to build an emergency fund
Building an emergency fund can take a little time – especially if you’re starting from scratch. But, with a robust financial plan and by adhering to a budget, you shouldn’t find it too difficult.
- Set a goal amount – look at your current monthly expenses to figure this out. Then, decide how much you can afford to put aside in savings each week or month. Our Goals feature can help you here.
- Build up your emergency fund over time – start by aiming for three months’ worth of essential expenses, then build it up to six months’ worth. Keep topping up your emergency fund when you can.
- Check back in regularly – as your lifestyle or monthly outgoings change, your emergency fund may have to change too. Also, if you’ve had to dip into your emergency fund, remember to top it back up again.
Here are two good accounts to use to build your emergency fund:
- The Moneybox Cash ISA – earn 5% AER (variable), tax-free. ISA and tax rules apply. Rate subject to conditions.
- The Moneybox Simple Saver – earn 3.50% AER (variable), plus 1% AER (variable) on top as a reward rate if you qualify to receive it. Max one withdrawal per calendar month. Eligibility criteria applies.
Start investing
It’s one of the most effective ways to grow your money over time. But, 25% of Brits who have financial regrets say that they regret not investing, and 31% of those that do invest say that they regret not investing sooner.1 So now could be the time to think about investing, if you’re not already.
What is investing?
Investing means that you’re buying things with your money, in the hope that those things will increase in value over time. Compared to saving your money and earning interest, there is more risk. But there is also the potential for greater rewards – particularly over the long term.
How to start investing
To start investing you need to make a few decisions. The first one is the account you’ll use, the second is what you’ll actually invest in. Here’s our Head of Personal Finance explaining it all.
You can also explore the things you can invest in with Moneybox, without having to open an account. Check out our full fund range plus our US stocks, and see if there’s something for you today.
Capital at risk.
Earn up to £50 cashback
To inspire you to start investing, we’re giving away up to £50 cashback when you open a new investing account in January.
Just open a Stocks & Shares ISA, General Investment Account, Stocks & Shares Lifetime ISA, or Junior ISA and deposit at least £500 into one of these products by DDMM, and we’ll give you top you up with tiered cashback to help you on your way. The more you deposit, the more you earn!
You can also move £500 in from one of your existing eligible Moneybox accounts, or transfer in from elsewhere.* Offer T&Cs apply.
Capital at risk. All investing should be long term (min. 5 years). The value of your investments can go up and down, and you may get back less than you invest. For Stocks & Shares Lifetime ISA: govt. withdrawal charge may apply.
Find your lost pensions
It may seem like a long while off for many, but saving for retirement is one of the most important things to do in life. Here’s why.
Why are pensions important?
Put simply – because everyone wants to have a good retirement with the freedom to choose what they do, when they do it. There are 2.8 million lost pension pots in the UK worth over £26.6 billion – which is over £9,000 a person on average.2
Due to auto-enrolment into a workplace pension scheme, every new job means you get another new pension – and these old pensions can become really difficult to keep track of.
How to find your lost workplace pensions
We’ve made it easy to find and combine your lost workplace pensions, and you can bring them all together and keep track of them within the Moneybox app. Our team will find your lost pensions for you, we just need some information to get started.
Time to find your lost money? Let us help you.
Capital at risk. Pension and tax rules apply. Please note some of this information is gathered from a government database and may not reflect current provider information for all employers. We cannot always guarantee the accuracy of your search results where we’ve relied on this service to locate your pensions.
1 Moneybox Financial Guidance Research, 2024
2 Pension Policy Institute, 2024
As with all investing, your capital is at risk. The value of your pension can go up and down, and you may get back less than you invest.
Tax treatment depends on individual circumstances and may be subject to change in the future.