Everyone knows that resolutions are the hardest things in the world to keep, so in addition to providing the 1999 Family Money new year's resolution list, we've also added a few suggestions on how to keep the good work progressing past January.

But first, to this year's list of ways to improve your personal finances:

(1) Undertake a financial review. You start by putting a note pad and a bunch of sharp pencils on the kitchen table, then add bank statements, P60s, pay slips and income tax returns, estimates of utility and food bills, school fee receipts, insurance slips, etc.

When you've got all this together, divide it into two new piles - incomings and outgoings. Work out exactly how much income is coming into the house - estimate how much your children also earn from part-time jobs, net of tax, and then work out exactly how much is going out in the form of ongoing expenses. You should make separate columns under the following headings:

debt - mortgage and car repayments, personal loans, credit cards, hire purchase;

domestic overheads - utilities, food, clothing, transport costs, home/car/medical insurances, maintenance;

education costs - fees, uniforms/books, savings policies, miscellaneous;

holidays - including Christmas;

savings and investments;

miscellaneous - which should include entertainment, birthdays and anniversaries, occasional luxuries, etc.

Your income and expenditure figures should ideally balance. If they don't, read on.

(2) Review your mortgage. Check exactly how much interest you are paying against the very best rate currently on offer from your lender. If you aren't getting that rate (even if it is the one offered to new, first-time buyers) call your manager and ask him for it. You are, after all, a customer of good-standing (you hope) and deserve a discounted rate far more than a new customer with no track record whatsoever. A 1 per cent reduction in your interest rate should be worth about 60p for every £1,000 you owe: on a typical £70,000 mortgage taken out over 20 years this amounts to savings of about £42 a month or just over £500 in a full year.

If you are unhappy about the rate you have been paying, and discover it is considerably higher than the best market rate, consider switching your loan. But be prepared for legal and other costs that will amount to at least £1,000 or more. Work out the long-term savings before you make this decision.

Review your endowment mortgage policy. Endowment mortgages are not popular buys anymore, but thousands of people still pay into those taken out in the late 1980s and early 1990s. Find out exactly what it is worth, what the net annual yield has been to date and what the internal rate of return (IRR) is - that is, what it is paying out after tax and charges are deducted. If the IRR is not exceeding the cost of borrowing, then you should seriously consider another option for paying off your mortgage more efficiently. Traditional with-profit endowments are a much safer product than their unit-linked equivalents because of the guaranteed sums assured and bonus rates that apply, but with yields and bonuses falling, most endowment mortgage holders should probably be trying to pay off some capital to ensure there are no nasty surprises at the end of the mortgage/investment term. (See accompanying piece.)

(3) Review your taxes. Are you absolutely sure your employer is making all the correct PAYE/PRSI and other deductions? Are you claiming relevant medical and dental expenses? Is your benefit-in-kind being calculated accurately? Are you claiming the correct level of mortgage, pension contribution or VHI/BUPA relief? If you are unsure, consult a tax specialist or your local tax inspector.

(4) Examine your household expenses with a view to reducing utility and food bills where possible and by being more environmentally aware. Neighbourhood groups like Global Action Plan (GAP) estimate that the households which have participated in its environmentally aware programme have cut down on household waste by 26 per cent, water usage by 27 per cent, energy/utilities by 14 per cent, and transport by more than 18 per cent - resulting in significant annual savings.

It suggests the following:

using energy-saving CFL lightbulbs and turning down the central heating by one or two degrees;

turning off lights and other electric appliances which use pilot lights when not in use (such as dishwashers, cookers, fax machines, televisions, etc.);

fitting a good lagging jacket on water heaters;

setting up a compost heap and growing some vegetables;

replacing unnecessary car trips with cycling, walking or public transport;

keeping a telephone and Internet users' log.

Now that Telecom Eireann's monopoly has been broken it also makes sense to shop around for the best and most cost-efficient telecoms provider.

Older children, who tend to be energy guzzlers, should be included in this resolution, especially if they are earning pocket money of their own. Offer to share a small portion of any savings made with them if they fully participate in the family resources savings scheme for the year.

(5) Tackle personal debt by clearing expensive credit card, hire purchase and other personal loans first and then by cutting up all but one credit card. Aim to pay off the credit statement each month to avoid excess interest payments.

(6) Review all household and protection insurance contracts with an independent financial adviser or broker to ensure that you are not under-insuring your buildings and contents. Ask the broker to also price new contracts to see if you can make any savings on home or motor insurance. If you don't have any life insurance, or only a small amount, buy some. Term assurance is very cheap. (Ideally you should have enough, once invested, that will yield your dependants a sufficient annual return to replace your net salary).

(7) Review all savings and investments, including pension funds. A good financial adviser will be able to assess the value of existing policies or accounts and recommend the best way to get the most out of your money. Keeping large sums in low-yielding deposit or savings accounts while paying off higher-cost debt makes no sense and they will be able to advise you how to best balance your savings/debt position.

(8) Accelerate your mortgage payments. This is the most cost-effective, guaranteed way to make any spare income or savings grow these days and nearly every homeowner will be benefiting from a 2-3 per cent drop in interest rates. The extra £120 a month should continue to be used to pay off the mortgage since it is guaranteed to return you whatever the prevailing interest rate is, currently around 6 per cent. By paying off capital more quickly you will reduce the term of your loan, thus saving future interest repayments which will amount to thousands of pounds. The fund of extra money you pay in can always be drawn down if you need it - it is your money after all.

(9) Make a will and name legal guardians for your children. By writing a will you can determine how you want your estate to be divided, (subject to legal conditions set out by the Succession Acts), and it will avoid the complications that occur when someone dies intestate - without a will. If you have underage children, you should name the relations or friends you would want to raise them in the unlikely event of both parents dying. Just make sure to ask them first. If you are getting married or have recently married, you should know that any previous will you may have written will be null and void.

(10) Start a personal pension if you are self-employed or work for a company that doesn't provide an occupational scheme, or top up an existing company plan with an additional voluntary contribution (AVC) contract. A good financial adviser will be able to assess how much you can contribute within the Revenue funding limits and take you through the funding changes announced in the last budget, the other changes that are expected this spring, as well as the proposed new personal retirement savings accounts (PRSA), which if introduced, will allow everyone to set up a personal pension that they will be able to keep for their entire working lives - as well as during periods of unemployment, career breaks, etc.

(11) Start saving/investing. If you have spare income or cash and are looking for a home for it, consider opening some kind of savings/investment product or account. Though paying off your mortgage doesn't sound like an "investment", the simple fact is that by paying off a home loan faster, you are guaranteeing a return of 6 or 7 per cent these days, which would otherwise be paid out in future interest payments. If you don't fancy the safe, mortgage reduction scheme, there are plenty of other savings/investment options, some more tax-efficient than others, but depending on your goals and your risk profile there should be something for you among the special savings or investment accounts, the PIPS and PEPS, tracker bonds, direct stock market or property portfolios, BES schemes, with-profit bonds, off-shore UCITS and SICAVs, etc.

(12) Join an investment club or start one yourself. Most of the stockbrokers have become more aware of the popularity of these clubs, where members typically contribute as little as £50 a month, and may be able to pass on the names of other clients who are forming clubs. You could also contact an organisation called Guru Investment Group (GIG) which arranges investment seminars known as Money Talks around the State for would-be club investors. GIG's spokesman, Mr Denis Noble, is based in Newtownabbey, Co Antrim, and can be reached at 0801232 866970.

(13) Open a euro account. Until January 2002, when the euro notes and coins come on stream, all euro transactions can only be done electronically or via credit card and cheques, but you will need to have a specially designated euro account to process your transactions. Contact your bank (which will give dual Irish pound and euro values on your ordinary current account statement anyway) for more information.

(14) Pick a charity and set up a direct debit into its account for the next year. This is the easy way to give something to others less fortunate than you and your family.

Seeing through all the resolutions will take a certain amount of determination and willpower and we recommend that you treat your personal financial wealth in the same way you should treat your health - with an annual check-up with a competent financial adviser, by improving your spending habits (not shopping when hungry, depressed, etc, using only a set amount of cash/cards) and by being more conscious of energy use and other non-replenishable resources.