Working Budget
In these uncertain economic times it is important to have a good understanding of where your money goes and to have a budget. Many people are starting to use on-line services such as mint.com to keep track of expenses. These services can give a detailed view of where your money is being spent, but they do not make up a budget.
Many people use software such as Quicken or Money to keep track of their spending and create a budget. These software packages are great if you are into entering lots of data.
I have been happy simply using a spreadsheet to keep track of spending and budget. (I balance our checkbook with a spreadsheet, as well.)
My family’s budget is not exactly frugal, but is not extravagant, either. We do not have a stringent budget in which we count every dollar before it is spent, but we do work off the spreadsheet, below, that has our generally allocated monthly and yearly expenses. The spreadsheet is divided into Income, Necessary Expenses, Discretionary Expenses, and Investment Spending.
The spreadsheet, without actual values (although I did leave real percentages), looks like
| Results: | Monthly | Yearly | % |
| Total Income | $- | $- | 100.00% |
| Necessary Expenses | $- | $- | 57.00% |
| Discretionary Income | $- | $- | 43.00% |
| Investment Spending | $- | $- | 29.00% |
| Discretionary Income less Investments | $- | $- | 14.00% |
| Discretionary Spending | $- | $- | 7.00% |
| Amount remaining to save or invest | $- | $- | 7.00% |
| Monthly | Annual | ||
| Budget | Amount | ||
| Income: | |||
| Primary Income | |||
| Second Income | |||
| Total Income | $- | $- | |
| Necessary Expenses: | |||
| Payroll Taxes | |||
| Rent or Mortgage | |||
| 2nd Mortgage or Home Equity Loan | |||
| Property Taxes | |||
| Water | |||
| Garbage | |||
| Gas & Electric | |||
| Auto Insurance | |||
| Auto repairs | |||
| Gasoline | |||
| Food & Groceries (not dining out) | |||
| Clothing (necessary) | |||
| Telephone (not mobile phone) | |||
| Home or Renters Insurance | |||
| Healthcare or Insurance Costs | |||
| Dental Care or Insurance Costs | |||
| Life Insurance Costs | |||
| Home Repairs | |||
| Home supplies | |||
| Dry cleaning | |||
| Internet Access | |||
| Necessary dependent expenses | |||
| Total Necessary Expenses | $- | $- | |
| Discretionary Expenses: | |||
| Charity | |||
| Cable or Satellite TV | |||
| Mobile Phone (s) | |||
| Home Improvement | |||
| Misc expenses | |||
| Garden Supplies | |||
| Entertainment (not dining out) | |||
| Dining Out | |||
| Travel & Vacation | |||
| Pets, Pet Care and Pet Food | |||
| Computer Costs | |||
| Discretionary dependent expenses | |||
| Total Discretionary Expenses | $- | $- | |
| Investment Spending: | |||
| 401K, 403B deposits | |||
| IRA deposits | |||
| Investment/Savings deposits | |||
| Total Investment Spending | $- | $- |
However you do it, a working budget is an important tool for financial success.
Stumble it!
Comparing Mint.com to Our Actual Budget:
[...] to help me keep track of our monthly expenses. I have long kept a budgetary spreadsheet, which I previously wrote about, in which I keep a pretty good estimate of our [...]
12 May 2008, 7:19 am