CPA David Young of the New York State Society of CPA’s says there are several financial opportunities to take advantage of before the end of the year.

Young said before doing anything, get a fresh assessment of your budget. “A lot of things could have changed this past year, so you may have a little extra time for the holidays, before you get started in the New Year,” he said. “It’s a good time to take a good assessment of where you’re going to be going into 2019, and there’s a couple of key deadlines that you want to think about while we’re still here in 2018. It’s a good time to fund your 529 plan for your kids or grandkids and look at your 401(k). Is it doing what you want it to do? Can you put more money into it for 2018 and maybe get that employer match, and make sure you’re going to contribute in 2019. Once you get that budget done, maybe there’s some extra money you can put into that 529 plan starting in the New Year – right around the corner.”

Young said the biggest benefit of having a budget in place is peace of mind. “You have some idea of what’s coming in and what’s going out. And when you look at this budget, look at those reoccurring expenses that you may not be using. Maybe you have a gym membership and the last time you used it was January. Maybe it’s time to reassess that. A lot of times you have these reoccurring expenses for apps that you signed up for that you’re not using or other services. So this is a good time to get those out of the budget and get that budget in place.”

For more “Smart Money” options — visit the New York State Society of CPA’s website, nysscpa.org/getmoneysmart.