Six Ways To Manage Your Post Lockdown Spending

The past 16 months have been difficult for so many of us, especially on our finances. For some it’s proved financially difficult, whereas others have been able to build their savings up and develop some good habits. Even if some of us splurged on fancy groceries and skincare to make ourselves feel better (guilty!) If you’re thinking about how to manage your post lockdown spending then keep reading.

According to a new Mental Health Report collated by Claro and created in partnership with Mental Health UK and The Money Charity, 20% of Brits have used lockdoewn as an opportunity to improve their financial situation. Many of us were saving money on things we physically couldn’t do any more like cocktails out, restaurant trips, holidays, beauty appointments and so much more. And for some it was about saving money through not commuting to work or making all your own lunches.

But now that more things have opened up like non-essential retail, bars, restaurants and leisure activities the temptation to go out and spend is high. Here are are some ways to manage your post lockdown spending,

Adjust your budget and savings goals

Just because things have reopened and you’re spending money on being social again doesn’t mean you can no longer save. You may have gotten yourself into some great habits during lockdown and been saving every month.  But it’s just about adjusting your budget and your savings goals to match this.

Realistically we’re going to spend more now restrictions have eased, but I’m sure we don’t want to slip back into our pre-pandemic spending. If throughout lockdown you’ve been saving 25% of your income, then adjust it to 15% and see how you get on. You’ll still be saving some money which is great, but you’ll also have that 10% of your income for social activites and going out. This way you’re able to manage your post lockdown spending while still saving some money.

Hopefully you’ll find yourself in a happy medium between your pre and during pandemic spending.

Manage your post lockdown spending by making compromises

When catching up with friends or arranging to meet up remember that not everything needs to be expensive. Most us will want to return to our old social habits and see people constantly, but it doesn’t have to mean dropping loads of money. Of course we all want to continue to support the hospitality industry but by limiting visits you can avoid overspending.

Picnics, BBQs or each taking a dish round someones house are affordable ways to eat out. Or you could find a restaurant who allow you to pay to bring your own alcohol. Perhaps you could go for a walk or a beach trip instead of an expensive leisure activity.

Make compromises with your friends and discuss the options with them. I’m sure most of them will also be concerned with how to manage their budgets post lockdown.

Work out what you want to start paying for again

While the beauty industry was such a lot of us ended up doing our own nails, cutting our own hair and performing our own at home self-care beauty treatments. It’s understandable that we want to splurge on the services we’ve missed to treat ourselves. Plus the beauty industry have been hit hard so it’s good to support them. But work out what you really want to start paying for again and stagger those trips.

Perhaps you’ve not minded painting your own nails so are happy to just go to the salon for special occassions. Or maybe you’ve invested in an at-home laser device so you no longer need to spend money on waxing.

Prioritise the ones you really need/ want and you’ll save money in the long run.

Mange your post lockdown spending by changing your spending habits

During lockdown most of our spending habits changed and you probably saw an increase in takeaways and online shopping. And chances are you probably spent more money than normal on groceries.

Now is a good time to evaluate your current spending habits and see what you can cut back on. Maybe you were buying more expensive groceries as a treat for eating at home all the time. Can you reign that back and go back to budget on some things? Or it might be as simple as limiting yourself to only buying new clothes every other month and setting a budget for it. As opposed to clicking add to cart anytime you wanted something.

Take now as a bit of a fresh start and work out what new habits you can put in place.

Make sure your savings are in the right place

If you were lucky enough to save some money throughout lockdown then now is a good time to think about where you’re storing them. If it’s just in a basic savings account you could be losing out on loads of interest compared to an ISA/ bond/ investment. Work out what you’ve saved the money for i.e. is it for a short term goal like a holiday in 2022, or a long term goal like a house deposit. Once you know this you can start to work out where’s best to store it.

I did a whole post on different types of savings accounts that’s worth reading to ensure you’re not losing out on interest. During lockdown both me and Luke opened Stocks & Shares ISA’s so we can start investing. For us these are long-term savings which should help us out later in life.

Manage your post lockdown spending by thinking about your wellbeing

For a lot of us we spent money on things during lockdown to make us feel better. Maybe this was on at-home exercise classes or gym equipment. Or meal prep kits so you didn’t have the stress of meal planning. It’s important to take into account your wellbeing and the things that have helped your mental health.

If you managed to save during lockdown how did this impact your mental wellbeing? For a lot of people having an emergency fund, or some money to fall back on if needed, is a great way to ease financial anxiety. But also evaluate how important activities are to your mental wellbeing. If re-joining a gym, or socialising at the pub once a week are going to make you feel mentally better than make sure they’re factored into your budget.

Do you have any more tips on how to manage your post lockdown spending?

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