Budgeting is one of the most difficult but rewarding tasks you can do. These apps can help you save money for a Cape Town house or to plan a vacation in Cape Town.
Financial tools of your bank
Capitec
Capitec’s budgeting tool allows you to set a budget that is based on your income, needs and wants. The tool allows you to explore different categories and make financial decisions.
Nedbank
MyPocket allows savers the ability to separate money into separate “pockets” for each expense goal. Nedbank current accounts are required, but you can save as little as R1. On balances less than R9,999, you’ll earn 3% per year. To keep track, you can use the bank’s goal saving calculator to name your pockets with words such as ‘holiday’ and’school fees’.
Nedbank offers a range of online calculators that will help you determine how much money you can borrow and how long it would take to repay that loan. These calculators are available to anyone, not just clients.
FNB
FNB offers a variety of financial tools and calculators on its website. These can be used to budget, calculate vehicle repayments and check affordability.
Absa
Through the bank’s website and app, customers can easily invest in savings and investment options. You can also find a lot of guides that will help you bank smarter.
TymeBank
Customers can use the GoalSave savings tool, which is linked with the EveryDay account. Customers can create 10 GoalSaves to achieve different goals. The longer you keep your money in GoalSave, the higher your interest rate (up to 8.8%). Tymebank will pay you more interest if your notice is given 10 days before you take out your money. If your salary is paid into your Tymebank bank account, you can get the 8% rate.
Save with a swipe
There are many apps and tools that can help you if you’re not disciplined about saving.
Old Mutual Money Account
The transactional account includes a link to Old Mutual Money Market Fund. You have the option to transfer a specific amount each month to the unit trust, or you can dedicate a percentage (swipes) of your spend. For example, R100 will be swiped or tapped to your card. R10 will then be transferred from your Swipe into your Save account.
Your change can be banked
FNB allows individual cheque, FNBy transactional and Easy account holders to transfer money to a linked savings accounts every time they spend. You can also select a regular transfer amount for your savers. The money is available immediately with no monthly fees.
Multiply
Momentum’s rewards program turns discounts into savings. While discounts are possible, cashback can be earned with certain partners. You could earn cashback at PicknPay and Dis-Chem for example. This depends on your Multiplier status.
Stash
This app is available for Android and iOS. It allows users to save money by making regular transfers. You have the option to either invest in a SA Top 40 Shares portfolio, a Cash+ portfolio, and even both. Stash customers who are already Stash customers will now be able to open an investment option that is tax-free for their children. Glenn Grimley is the chief specialist in digital proposition management at Liberty. He says that the process of opening a Stash account is easy.
Compare your financial health and set financial goals
22Seven and 22Seven light
This budgeting app, which was launched in 2012 and is supported by Old Mutual, allows you to view all of your accounts, transactions and savings in one place. It can be linked to all bank, credit, and retail cards, investments and loans, as well as rewards, to create a detailed budget. The 22Seven team has created 22Seven light, which is a data-free version that can be accessed via Moya, a messaging app that does not require data.
Franc
This app was created to make investing easy and affordable. There are two options for investing: the Allan Gray money-market fund, which has provided annualised returns of 7.7% every year since its inception, or the Satrix 40 exchange traded fund. It is available via the App Store, Google Play and the Huawei AppGallery. Franc charges a fee of 1% and there is no minimum investment.
Comparison sites
A few websites allow you to compare savings options. These websites include Fincheck.co.za, MyTreasury.co.za, and Fincheck.co.za. Price comparison websites might not have all products, so make sure to do your research.
OUTvest
OUTvest provides goal-based advice as well as passive investment options via their app and website. The website and app have a digital front end that you can do yourself, as well as low fees. Goal-based calculators help you figure out how much money to save in order to reach your goals.