Higher gas prices forcing many to make tough choices
“We empathize with them because everybody is kind of feeling it right now”
“We empathize with them because everybody is kind of feeling it right now”
“We empathize with them because everybody is kind of feeling it right now”
With higher gas prices, many people are making sacrifices when it comes to spending.
“I was supposed to go to Texas for the Fourth of July, but ended up deciding not to go,” Stevens Sesay said.
“In our job sometimes, we tend to carpool together to get from one place to another, so it's impacting us a little bit,” Alan Androski said.
Whether it’s one less vacation or a change in the way you commute, high gas prices are forcing some people to make tough choices that they didn’t expect.
Pittsburgh’s Action News 4 went to a financial advisor to see what challenges people are facing and the best way to budget their money.
“We empathize with them because everybody is kind of feeling it right now,” said Chuck Mattiucci, financial advisor and senior vice president of Fort Pitt Capital Group.
That’s where a budget comes into play.
“We really try and work with our clients to build a budget and really try to identify what is coming in and what's going out,” Mattiucci said.
If you are looking at ways to save money, Mattiucci said it’s all about want vs. need.
“I can speak for myself in my household, we have three little girls and we have five or six subscriptions. Do we really need six subscriptions, Netflix, Hulu and the others? Probably not,” Mattiucci said.
Even cutting back on something as simple as your daily Starbucks run can go a long way.
“It may seem small but those things can add up,” Mattiucci said.
But Mattiucci did caution that even if gas prices are taking a toll on your finances right now, there is one thing you shouldn't change.
“One thing that we stress that clients don't cut back on is savings, so we want to make sure that if you are looking at your budget, and there are things that you want to cut, hopefully your savings is not one of those because in order to reach your financial goals that we set for you, that savings is the biggest component of that,” Mattiucci said.
If you would like more tips on how to budget your money, click here.
