Do you have kids? Do you have plans for your kids to go to college one day? Have you looked at how much college is going to cost you for just one kid? College is a big investment, but it is a good one. If you begin planning for this huge expense when your kids are young, you won't take much of a hit when the day comes that your teen packs his or her bags and heads off to start a new life at school. This blog will provide you with several ideas and tips that can help you find ways to plan for your kids' college tuition.
If you're trying to get a handle on your financial situation, you must have a budget. It's the foundation of all financial planning. Without one, you don't know if you're making more than you spend, if you can really afford a new car, or how much money you can divert to savings. Fortunately, creating a budget is fairly simple; you just have to write down your income and subtract all monthly expenses. However, a budget will not do you any good if it's not realistic or if you omit certain expenses by accident. Following are three tips for remembering all of your expenses when creating a budget.
Use A Spending Tracker
Most people don't know how much money they spend on trivial purchases, such as that morning cup of coffee or lunches out. And if you ask them to estimate, they'll likely get the number wrong. The truth is, the number is usually higher than most people realize. To get an idea of how much you're spending on everything, use a spending tracker. A spending tracker monitors your bank account and records your expenditures over a month's time so you can incorporate them into a budget. Some even have handy budgeting tools.
Comb through Bank Statements
If you're afraid that you'll forget a few trivial bills, such as your television streaming subscription, you should have a few bank statements to go through while you're creating your budget. Look for bills or recurring payments on your statement and highlight them once you incorporate them into your budget. ATM withdrawals are also worth a look. This is the money most people usually spend on gasoline, haircuts, entertainment, and other things that should be included in your budget.
Look at The Big Picture
While the goal is to create a monthly budget, you can't just look at your monthly expenses. You have to look at the big picture. Pull out a year's worth of bank statements so you can find those annual or rare expenses, such as property taxes, school sports fees, and home maintenance projects, and include them in your monthly budget. Simply take the amount spend and divide it by 12 to figure out your monthly allotment for each line item.
A comprehensive budget is one of the best tools you will use while trying to get your finances together. If you don't have one, it's time to make on. Use these tips to make sure you account for every penny.
Share12 July 2016
