The financial education it is key for the personal and family economy, even more so in a context of crisis economical like the one generated by the pandemic. However, approximately 6 out of 10 Peruvians spend more than they earn, according to the Association of Banks of Peru (Asbanc).
José Kohagura, academic coordinator of Banking Business Administration at the Certus institute, assures that to deal with this situation, the first thing is to know how to identify the extra expenses that increase our monthly budget.
The Certus specialist explains that there are two types of “silent” expenses that are detrimental to personal finances. “The ant expenses and the vampire expenses are the main enemies of our personal finances. The first are the so-called ‘antojitos’ that are often overlooked and that come out at the last minute; the latter are fixed expenses that are difficult to detect and are related to the consumption of basic services such as water, electricity or telephone”, explains Kohagura.
For example, an ant expense is the breakfast that we buy because we forget to eat it at home or the sweets that cause us to eat during the day. On the other hand, a vampire expense can occur when we forget to disconnect the cell phone charger or when we simply do not realize a possible water leak. If we make a calculation of the amounts that we spend daily on this, we will find an imbalance in our budget.
In line with this and in connection with the World Savings Week, the Certus institute will hold two virtual conferences: Saving: A Smart Decision (03/22) and Importance of pension savings (03/25), to promote saving in children and young people. Those interested will be able to access it free of charge with prior registration. The Certus expert details how to prevent this type of expense.
- Set a monthly percentage. According to the Certus specialist, people spend 25% of their salary on ant expenses. “The healthiest thing is that monthly we do not spend more than 5% of the salary on these expenses,” says Kohagura.
- Build your monthly budget and prioritize your expenses. At the time of determining the monthly expenses, we have to identify what will be the consumptions that, in any case, will be made. On the other hand, we must ask ourselves if what we are going to buy is really a necessary expense.
- Review your needs. It is advisable to identify the necessary expenses to cover, such as basic household expenses, health, education, among others. On the other hand, there are leisure expenses, as well as entertainment and streaming platforms, which have become necessities within the budget.
