BUFFALO, N.Y. (WKBW) — Call it a tale of two New Yorks: folks living in the Buffalo area have the potential to save $13,500 more per year than people living around New York City.
It's just one of the reason why the Buffalo-Cheektowaga-Niagara Falls metropolitan area was named the eighth-best in the United States for savers by Bankrate.
A new report by the company indicates the average family living around Buffalo could save $16,710 in just over 14 months if it really tried hard. That dollar figure is the recommended six-month emergency fund for the metro.
An emergency fund should be earmarked for unexpected events, such as a medical bill, emergency room visit or unexpected hospitalization, or sudden unemployment.
Here are a few tips for saving for an emergency fund from Robby Dunn Vice President of Counseling for Consumer Credit Counseling Service.
-Split your direct deposit where a percentage of your pay, he suggests around 5-10% of your paycheck to go into an emergency bank account.
-Have a clear, concise goals when it comes to your budget. Dunn suggests tracking your expenses for 30 days to see exactly where your money goes.
-Start small. Putting aside a small amount of money can add up, and Dunn says it is important to build your financial confidence.
"We encourage people to start somewhere, many people think what is the point of opening up savings if you can't save hundreds of dollars a month," Dunn said. "We encourage people to start somewhere whether that's five dollars a month or five dollars a week."
The best metro for saving? Memphis. Families there could save over $15,000 in under one year.
