This page is quite old hence its rather spartan appearance.
Why not check out our Latest Stories page for our newest articles or search our site for anything.
COMMENT
When it comes to making better financial decisions, there are two useful approaches that you can adopt. The first is to make sure that you DYOR (do your own research) before signing up to your next financial product. You can do this by reading Fool articles, or hunting through our archive using the search engine near the top of each page. Here's an example of a search to find all the articles where I've mentioned the phrase "bank account" – 63 of them, including this one! The second is to go review the financial products that you already own, with the goal of paying less or getting more for your money. Often, the greatest savings that you'll make will come from reshuffling and filleting the products that you already have. One easy approach that might work for you is to set aside a short period each week to make yourself richer. For the sake of argument, let's say you reserve thirty minutes each Monday lunchtime to do some desk research. Of course, in order to price-check your existing financial products, you'll need to dig out your latest paperwork, which is a boring chore (unless you're good at filing)! After a few months, you should have completed reviewed the basic foundations of your finances. Here's a basic checklist to print off and go through (I've include three blank rows for you to add your own ideas). I'm sure that this checklist will prove useful - no-nonsense information on all of these topics is just a Fool search away! Finally, why not do your friends and family a favour by forwarding this article to them, or print off this checklist, photocopy it and then circulate it among the people you know. You never know, it could be the most valuable Christmas gift that they've ever had!
MORTGAGE CREDIT CARD BANK ACCOUNT BILLS INVESTMENTS PEPs and ISAs
Financial checklist from The Motley Fool - www.fool.co.uk
GETTING OUT OF DEBT
Have you cut up those high-charging credit and store cards yet? Instead of paying your minimum monthly repayments, how about paying as much as you can each month onto your most expensive debt? Keep chopping away at your debts until they're history!
Find out the interest rate on your current home loan, plus any penalties for quitting this deal, and then compare your rate against the Best Buys. How about finding a cheaper deal and then paying extra on top of your monthly repayments to get rid of your loan faster?
Check the interest rate, penalties, cashback and other benefits on your credit card and then decide which new card will suit you best - 0% cards are overwhelming attractive at present.
PERSONAL LOAN
If you have an existing personal loan, could you save money by paying it off with a cheaper, low-rate loan? Get a settlement figure from your lender and then compare this sum with the total amount repayable on a Best Buy loan.
Four out of five of us have a traditional bank account that pays pitiful rates of interest, but charges us a fortune when we've overdrawn. A new bank account could earn you 55 times as much interest and have much lower overdraft charges.
If you haven't switched energy companies recently, you're probably bearing the brunt of several price increases this year. Switching gas and electricity suppliers saves a typical household around £150 a year. Shop around for better deals for your home telephone, mobile and Internet connection, too. Are you getting discounts by paying by monthly Direct Debit?
CAR INSURANCE
Determine how much you're paying each month or year for your car insurance and search for a better deal - it doesn't even have to be renewal time. Do the same for your breakdown insurance.
HOME AND TRAVEL INSURANCE
Determine how much you're paying for your home insurance (buildings and contents cover) and compare this to the premiums and cover offered by Best Buy policies. Do the same for your travel insurance - would an annual policy save you money?
LIFE AND HEALTH INSURANCE
Check your life insurance premiums and then shop around for a better deal. Prices have come down enormously in recent years, so you could even halve your premiums. Do the same for other health policies, such as medical insurance, critical illness and income protection plans. Also, have you made a Will? No? Then your family may face a massive tax bill when you die!
PAYMENT PROTECTION INSURANCE
If your mortgage is covered by accident, sickness and unemployment insurance, you're probably paying premiums two or three times as high as those charge by Best Buy policies. PPI on credit cards and loans is hugely overpriced - do you really need this cover at all?
SAVINGS
Find out how the interest rate on all your savings accounts - you may be shocked at how little you're earning! Think about putting the whole lot into a Best Buy easy-access account. If you pay tax, a tax-free cash mini-ISA could seriously boost your returns. Also, check the rates on your existing cash mini-ISAs and TESSA-only ISAs - transferring this cash could make you more interest.
Are you making the most of your annual ISA allowance? This tax-free wrapper allows you to shelter up to £7,000 of shares, funds or bonds from tax. If you're paying tax on your dividends or capital gains from shares, transfer them into an ISA.
If you have a collection of PEPs (Personal Equity Plans) and ISAs (Individual Savings Accounts) with various different managers, you may be paying too much in fees. Several online stockbrokers will help you to transfer your accounts and reduce your annual fees.
PENSIONS
Get out your CV and make a list of the companies that owe you a pension. If you can't find the relevant paperwork, ask each company to help you to trace your pension. Have you joined your current company scheme? Are you paying enough into your existing pension - could you afford to make additional voluntary contributions (AVCs)?
TAX
Are you paying too much tax? Have you claimed all the tax allowances and credits that you're entitled to? Would transferring savings or other assets into your spouse's name save you money? Are you paying tax on savings interest and share dividends unnecessarily? Have you reclaimed all your work-related expenses? Have you completed your tax return before the deadline?
CHILDREN
Have you got into the habit of making regular contributions to savings or investment plans for your children? Saving even £25 a month in a long-term stock-market-linked vehicle, such as an index tracker, can produce a tidy lump sum.
LOST FORTUNES
Do you have any Lotto tickets or Premium Bonds lying around? Check to see if you've won a prize at www.national-lottery.co.uk and www.nsandi.com. What about unclaimed shares and dividends?
YOUR FUTURE
Are you investing at least a tenth (10%) of your earnings to build yourself a comfortable future? Can you reshuffle your finances to free up some cash to get richer? Are you ready to make superior returns by investing for ten years or more?
YOUR BUSINESS
If you run or work for a small or medium-sized firm, could you give it a financial boost? How about switching to a better business bank account, or finding a high-interest deposit account?
Financial checklist from The Motley Fool - www.fool.co.uk
More: Find better mortgages, credit cards, bank accounts, insurance, savings accounts and investments.