We’re nearing the end of 2020. It has been a hard year financially for many people. However, I don’t want you to think of this year as a lost cause! There are still so many things you can do to improve your financial position before this year is over. No matter what happened this year, here are three smart money moves you can make in 2020.

 

Smart Money Moves to Finish 2020 Strong

 

Improve Your Credit Score

For many people, actively maintaining a healthy credit score can be a daunting task. This is especially true for anyone who has recently made a big financial choices or undergone unexpected changes. Whether it’s purchasing a vehicle or home, or perhaps a sudden barrage of medical bills, one can be faced with the reality of the power held by those three numbers. For example, if you want to buy a home (whether it’s a personal home or an investment property), the first four loans of a year will be based primarily on your credit score. Besides a few other requirements that they have in the loan process, like income and other debts, the credit score is the main thing underwriters consider. It tells the lender in simple terms how credit worthy you are.

Your credit score is composed of five determining factors:

 

1. Payment History. Payment history is of very high importance as it accounts for 35% of your overall score.
2. Outstanding Credit Balance. Followed closely is your outstanding credit balance, which holds 30% of your score. It is important to maintain a good payment history and to monitor your Outstanding Credit Balances closely. These have the greatest impact on your score and can affect it quickly. If you see a mistake in either of these areas, it is imperative to resolve it quickly for the sake of your score.
3. Length of Credit History. Over time, credit can improve with the Length of Credit History element, which accounts for 15%.
4. Type of Credit. This comprises 10% of your score.
5. Credit Inquiries. The final 10% of your credit score is made up by credit inquiries.

 

Start improving on a few of those determining factors, and your credit score will begin to increase! Pay your bills on time, keep your credit card balances to no more than 30-50% of the available credit, and be cognizant of other factors that can bring down your score, like refinancing real estate properties.

 

Discover a New Revenue Stream

If we’ve learned anything as a society this year, it’s that things are never as stable as we hope that they are, including our jobs and finances. Many of us learned this in the 2008 housing crash as well. What’s the best thing you can do in light of all this? Discover a new revenue stream! This smart money move will not only diversify your income, but you stand to learn a lot and make more connections. My friends at Terradez Ministries have taught their “Trash to Treasure” program at my WealthBuilders events before, and it’s an inspiring story of using what you have where you are to create a better future.

My first business was a carpet cleaning business. Back then, you couldn’t find industrial carpet cleaners at the store, so I used my savings to buy one and offered my services in my neighborhood. I began making pretty good money! Was it my dream job? No. Did it turn into a multi-million dollar company? No, but it allowed me to learn about investing in myself and my business, about market demand and customer service. It led me to where I am today!

Whether it’s cleaning carpets or selling that old laptop of yours for parts, you can discover a new revenue stream that might just open doors you never could have foreseen.

 

Give, Donate, and Volunteer

We have readers from all over the place. Some of you have been heavily impacted by COVID-19, and some of you less so. Luke 21:1-4 says, “As he looked up, Jesus saw the rich putting their gifts into the temple treasury. He also saw a poor widow put in two very small copper coins. ‘I tell you the truth,’ he said, ‘this poor widow has put in more than all the others. All these people gave their gifts out of their wealth; but she out of her poverty put in all she had to live on.'”

I encourage you to give what you can to those in need as we end the year. Not only is giving a virtue God presses into each of us, but it also teaches us to have a right relationship with money. See, I do believe there is money out there with your name on it, but it’s not so we can build bigger barns for ourselves. No, it’s so we can help others build their barns, and sow into the economy of the Kingdom. Now is an important time for us to come together as the body of Christ and give as He has given to us. One of the greatest smart money moves you can make is giving what you can to further the Kingdom of God.