budgets

[sereia 0]

do you have a budget? do you stick to it? what is a good budget plan to go by?

i finally got myself a steady (i think) full-time job and want to implement a budget into my life. all my life i've gotten a pay check and spent every penny. now that i'm on my own i want to be responsible and put money where it needs to go.

any good links to read about it? or ideas?

[Robor007 0]

I would highly recommend a budget (and stick to it) as well as setting aside a certain amount for savings (and keep it there).

<=== He should follow his own advice.

[Marilyn. 340]

a budget is a good thing.... I wish we had one

through hubby's work we do have a 401K that takes a percentage of hubby's wages before taxes and the company matches it 100% up to 4%.... we have a nice little sum growing there now....

[derekkj 0]

We have a budget. And we are fairly good at sticking to it. There are of course months when we blow it, emergencies usually, but it is definitely a good thing to have. One of the best things to do first is write down literally every penny that you spend for a month or so. This will tell you where your money goes and you may be surprised at where it all ends up! The following seems to be a good link - it has some good basics and some other links to budget worksheets.

http://financialplan.about.com/library/howto/htbudget.htm

Good luck!

[brnidokiegurl 0]

Some money guy was on tv the other day im thinking he said set aside at least one hours pay each day for retirement and if already older two hours, pay yourself first.

[ChristinaM 0]

I recommend

this book - it's a good place to start.

Also, "Smart Couples Finish Rich" has some interesting ideas about ways to keep things under control. That's

here.

[ELW 5]

Ok, here I am – the enthusiastic Oprah fan. Type in “debt diet” at Oprah.com and get all the budgeting info in bite-sized, painless pieces.

Overview of an ideal budget (from percentage of your income):

Housing 35%

Savings 10%

Other Living Expenses 25%

Debt 15%

Transportation 15%

(Pie chart of above: http://www.oprah.com/download/pdfs/money/m..._pie_chart.pdf)

Thanks to taking the above seriously (more or less), I am now completely debt-free and have a padding of savings (which might be emptied in the next few months -- because the debt diet does not include immigration expenses ).

[derekkj 0]

Ok, here I am – the enthusiastic Oprah fan. Type in “debt diet” at Oprah.com and get all the budgeting info in bite-sized, painless pieces.

Overview of an ideal budget (from percentage of your income):

Housing 35%

Savings 10%

Other Living Expenses 25%

Debt 15%

Transportation 15%

(Pie chart of above: http://www.oprah.com/download/pdfs/money/m..._pie_chart.pdf)

Thanks to taking the above seriously (more or less), I am now completely debt-free and have a padding of savings (which might be emptied in the next few months -- because the debt diet does not include immigration expenses ).

I am not a big fan of the Oprahfication of the world, but that's a good site. Thanks!

[Fandango 1,439]

I try to stick to a budget but it's too damn hard!

I seriously need to though, I want to simplify my life and I have come to the realization that I shop too much. Why just the other day, a woman at my office asked if I'd be interested in renting some of my clothes. I'm like 'whhhaaa?' she's like 'you clearly have a surplus'

#######?

lolz

Rich Dad Poor Dad is a great book, btw

[ELW 5]

Why just the other day, a woman at my office asked if I'd be interested in renting some of my clothes. I'm like 'whhhaaa?' she's like 'you clearly have a surplus'

That's too funny! I'm the opposite! Just last week I shopped for clothes for the first time in 15 months. I spent $130 and I had my mouth wide open seeing the bill - man! That's the last time I'm shopping for another 15 months!!

[Marilyn. 340]

Why just the other day, a woman at my office asked if I'd be interested in renting some of my clothes. I'm like 'whhhaaa?' she's like 'you clearly have a surplus'

That's too funny! I'm the opposite! Just last week I shopped for clothes for the first time in 15 months. I spent $130 and I had my mouth wide open seeing the bill - man! That's the last time I'm shopping for another 15 months!!

same here I feel bad when I buy clothes for myself.... hubby says don't worry about it but I still feel bad....

I spent about 50 bucks on clothes for myself the other day and I felt a little guilty... i did get a lot for stuff for that price though.... we have this store called Susie's Deals that sells most of their clothes for 5 bucks each.... some of the stuff isn't great but you can find some nice stuff there.... bigger chain stores bring their overstock or out of season stuff there.....

[AnaAndDaniel 0]

definitely do it. we've done it since Ana got here. it serves multiple purposes. but bottom line is that it helps you live within your means.. or least give you an idea how to.

We are now better able to plan annual budgets. some expesnse you do not see most of the year. eg insurance. but if you save x amount per month, when tha bill comes, it is no big deal.

good luck!

Daniel

:energetic:

[Addie_Goodvibes 0]

We have a Budget that we loosely follow, I also Have a 401K that my Employer matches 1.50 for every 1.00 I put in up to 5%. & .50 every thing above 5%.

So I put in 10% of my Weekly Salary. Pretax so we also get more back come tax time.

Also we round up amounts in our check book, for example if the phone bill costs 54.30 we round up in the register to 55.00, then at the end we have extra. We also Throw All of our pocket change in a Big 5 gallon water bottle, it is 3/4 full, then all of our dimes go into another container .

Last year we saved 460.00 in Dimes alone, deposited that into our daughters College Fund.

We try to budget but primarily live Cash only, we rarely use Credit, and when we do we pay in Full as not to carry revolving Balance.

[babybunny 2]

do you have a budget? do you stick to it? what is a good budget plan to go by?

i finally got myself a steady (i think) full-time job and want to implement a budget into my life. all my life i've gotten a pay check and spent every penny. now that i'm on my own i want to be responsible and put money where it needs to go.

any good links to read about it? or ideas?

I stick to my budget. I also make room for FUN stuff..

long as the bills are paid, there is something in savings, and investments in place- I dont care what happens next...

[Nikita2Charles 32]

You have to plan, and make the decision as a couple, one of the important thing, there are a lot of stuff we like, and as a consumer we have been brainwashed, pseudo messages on the commercial, so it comes down a very simple test, the next time you see an item you want to get, ask yourself this question

DO I WANT IT

OR

DO I NEED IT

Over time you will see how long the list of wants and the list of what you really need.