The first rule of making a personal budget - keep it simple
Rules. No-one likes rules. But we all realize that if we didn’t follow traffic rules and stop at a red light, our streets would be chaos. If you want to have a successful personal budget, you have to follow the rules (in this case one simple rule).
Many people believe that there are a lot of rules to follow when making a personal budget. People believe you must work on your budget every day, and keep track of every penny you spend, or else your budget won’t work. Most people think budgets are a lot of work.
Most people also believe that budgets are hard. They think you need to be an accountant to be able to create and maintain a personal budget.
Budgets can be a lot of work, but they don’t need to be, if you follow the First Rule of Making a Personal Budget: Keep it Simple. Yes, like a lot of things in life, the KISS rule applies to your personal budget.
Don’t try to create a complicated series of linked spreadsheets with fancy graphs and tables. Don’t try to master the most complicated personal budgeting software. Don’t believe that you have to go to school and study bookkeeping and accounting to make your budget work for you. Keep it simple. [Read more →]
5 Easy Ways a Budget Will Save you Money and Reduce your Debts
Unless you step up to the challenge of controlling your finances, your debt level and your financial future, who else will? Preparing a budget is the ideal tool to get you started. It’s also really quite easy.
#1. A budget will show your current financial position.
Without a budget you are not able to clearly see the extent of your spending compared to your income. This is the most important role of your budget. It will show you whether you are living within your means or whether you are living on borrowed funds. It is also the tool that can show you where all your money is being spent. This allows you to answer important questions, such as “Am I wasting money on things I don’t really need?” “Is my credit card debt to blame for my predicament?” and “How much better off would I be if I could manage to be debt free?” [Read more →]
How to Save Money Shopping Online
Online shopping has grown immensely over the past few years. There are so many advantages to shopping online in addition to just finding a great deal delivered to your door. Here are some great tips to help you save money while shopping online.
1) Shop Ahead of Time
Give yourself plenty of time before special events when shopping online to allow for shipping of your order and avoiding costly expedited shipping fees. Giving yourself some time also allows you to shop around for specials. You might have a purchase in mind and know you don’t need to order it today and then you find it on sale or a particular website is having a promotion to help you save money. [Read more →]
Save Money by not Using Credit Cards
Save money by not using credit cards is an option if you are on a budget and finding yourself in debt. Credit cards often come with steep interest rates, which if you roll over your payments to the following month additional interest are added. In addition, most credit cards charge fees for using the cards, or will charge you interest on each purchase you make.
You can save money by not using credit cards. In the event your bills are due and you have no money, you can use your credit cards to pay the debt and avoid late fees, yet it is wise to payoff the amount as quickly as possible so that the interest rates do not increase.
We all want extra money to spend. If you save money by not using credit cards, you will have that extra cash each month to pay bills, buy groceries and perhaps take your family out to dinner. Imagine the amount you can save if you do not use your credit cards. [Read more →]
How to Reduce Debt and Save Money During a Resession
START SAVING NOWThe cost of living is on the rise in the United States. Now, more than ever, it is important to start reducing your debt load as much as possible and save money where you can.MONEY MAGAZINE ARTICLE ON INFLATIONIn this months Money Magazine, there was an interesting article titled “The Ultimate Inflation Survival Guide.” Here are some interesting stats from that article.1) The cost to fill up your Chevy Trailblazer is almost $90.00.
That’s about 20% more than you spent this time last year.2) The price for a pack of hot dogs is almost 7% higher than you paid a year ago.3) Eggs are up 30%.4) Some estimates are showing gas jumping to 8 dollars a gallon over the next few years. This will double to cost of many of your everyday items.What the beginning of the article is outlining is that our cost of living is on the rise. Inflation is a normal part of the economy. Over time, there are periods where inflation is higher than others. [Read more →]
Building a Family Budget
The first step to any kind of family financial peace is the creation of the family budget. With today’s go-go-go lifestyle keeping track of income and expenses is a necessity. Too many families get into financial messes simply because they do not have any idea where their money is going until it is gone.
When you first build your family’s budget plan you may be met with a certain amount of resistance simply because a lot of people have an aversion to the word “budget”. The thing to remember as the builder of the budget that you need to pass along is that this new way of dealing with money is not a set in stone law. A budget is simply a tool that allows you to see where your money is going and how you can better manage it. There is a certain amount of give and take, or fluidity, to a budget because it is constantly changing with the needs of your family. [Read more →]
Budget Planner
Are you running out of money on a regular basis? Incurring debt isn’t the answer to your problems. A lot of people find it hard to save for a rainy day and even more find it difficult to stick to a strict budget. Some people are really good at successfully adhering to their budgets and still find that they occasionally run out of money anyway. This can be very frustrating. You may be tempted to give up, but don’t. Use each month’s budget as a guideline for the next. Note the extra expenses that you incurred that you didn’t plan for. Create a budget that fits your life and it could really pay off. Here are some tips to help you stay afloat and avoid many of the common budget planning mistakes that are so easy to make.
When most of us decide to plan a budget, we keep it way too simple. This doesn’t mean that your budget needs to be confusing or planned down to the cent, but it does mean that you need to put some thought into your planning process. You need to pay very close attention at first to come up with a budget that fits your spending habits. Think about keeping your budget realistic. This is a good base for creating a set of rules for yourself. The purpose of the budget is to discipline yourself into not breaking the bank from paycheck to paycheck. Most people spoil themselves a little more often than they plan to and find themselves in a situation where they thought they had enough money for the month and they run out earlier than expected. [Read more →]
A Specialty Of The Budget Airlines
A special administrative region of China, Hong Kong has been long regarded as the gateway to the nation. Hong Kong is a sprawling cityscape providing a feast of attractions to visitors touring the city in the form of a variety of museums, theme parks, and natural attractions, among many others.
However, its magnificent attractions are the not only thing that draw people from across the world here. The city also provides excellent options for business and educational activities. Many travelers including Americans and Europeans can savor the first taste of Asia by landing at the international airport in Chek Lap Kok, Hong Kong.
Traveling to Hong Kong has never been so easier, with a plethora of budget airlines in the scenario. Earlier, air travel was just confined to upper class people including top class executives as well as business magnets. But, with the birth of the budget airlines, anyone could dream of a comfortable air journey. In other words, budget airlines have now become a convenient alternative over shaky buses, inept trains, and traffic-jammed highways. [Read more →]
Balanced Budget for Calories and Exercise
Do you have a household budget? Do you balance your checkbook to make sure your expenditures are less or equal to the money you have in your account? Consider the same for your body.
You have a certain number of calories to consume throughout your day. Are you overextended or saving with your calories? If you’re eating too many calories, you’re gaining weight and out of balance with your caloric budget. Many of us don’t consider the cost of the extra calories on our bodies until our clothes start feeling tight. However, if you’re eating appropriately within your calorie budget and exercising, you are in balance in the form of maintaining your weight. If you eat less calories and/or exercise to expend more calories, what happens? You will lose weight. The equation of calories in/calories out is the way to lose weight and maintain your weight long-term. [Read more →]
Start Saving Money.Now!
Could you use more money? Of course, who couldn’t?
Whether you are overwhelmed with bills and expenses or just looking to save some extra cash for a nice family vacation, you basically have just two choices:
1. Make more money.
2. Lower your bills.
Making more money is easier said than done. Most people only get a salary increase that barely covers inflation and the increased cost of living. Add in the increased cost of healthcare, and many people actually have less money in their paycheck!
You can get a promotion and earn more, but that can take time. And in this day and age of massive layoffs, how secure do you feel at work? [Read more →]
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