According to Capital One Shopping statistics, the average household spent nearly $900 for back-to-school shopping and over $1,500 throughout the holiday season in 2023. Those numbers tend to increase year to year.
Between the start of the school year, Halloween, Thanksgiving, and Christmas, the last four months of the year can leave you scraping the bottom of the barrel on the old bank account or dipping into credit to cover expenses. It’s an easy time of year to spend more than you intended. We’ve all been there.
But wouldn’t you rather reach the new year energized and stress-free—with a vibrant bank account to boot? Us, too. Check out three of our favorite products to help you budget for anticipated expenses throughout the year.
Budget for Anticipated Expenses with These Verve Products
Name Your Savings
This is the electronic version of a savings jar. You name your goal and dollar amount and get saving. Have more than one goal? No problem! Just open more jars, er, Name Your Savings accounts—up to ten sub-accounts per account number. Categories might include Back-to-School, Holidays, Birthdays, Big Screen TV, Tropical Getaway, Sweet New Ride, Braces (aka How Are Our Kids Teenagers Already?), and Emergency Fund, to name a few.
Name Your Savings is an awesome account if you need flexible access to your funds. There are no penalty fees for transfers between subaccounts or early withdrawal from your Name Your Savings account.
Pick Your Payout
It’s like Name Your Savings except you earn higher dividends and accept fees for early withdrawals. If you can afford to set aside money and not touch it until your savings goal is met, then Pick Your Payout is the account for you.
Here is how Marie (30s) from Oshkosh uses her Pick Your Payout savings account:
“I highly recommend this product! About five years ago, I opened a Pick Your Payout account online. Super easy process. I named it “Treat Yourself”, designated $25 per paycheck to automatically transfer to the account, and selected December 1st as my annual payout date. Here’s the funny part: In between payouts, I always forget that I set this up. But then December 1st rolls around, and I receive a notification from Verve that $650 plus dividends has been transferred to my Regular Savings account. Thank yooouuu, Five-Years-Ago-Me! And just in time for an impromptu shopping spree, mini-vacation, or spa treatment—or all three! The annual jolt of excitement is so worth the five or ten minutes it took me to set up this account.”
RateFirst Mastercard®
Verve offers 0% APR on balance transfers and purchases for the first 12 billing cycles, and rates as low as 13.40% APR after that. The RateFirst Mastercard® is an awesome card if you love low rates, carry a balance, or have balances with other issuers. It’s a great short-term fix if you’re looking to get over the hump this year and plan better starting next year.
Today’s a great day to step up your budget game—holiday or otherwise.
All it takes is a little time and a whole lot of intention. Let us know what we can do to help you. Connect with a Verve financial coach by calling 800.448.9228 or reaching out online to get started.
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