Saving is possible only when you have a budget in place. Do you have a budget? How strictly do you stick to it? Has it helped you save money for the future on a regular basis? I stick to my budget putting aside some money each month. This has helped us stay clear of debts. This has also helped us plan and enjoy two vacations a year without getting into debt.
In the past I set up a budget through Mint, but I never really kept up with it. We just bought a home, so I will start following it as best as I can. Money is going to be really tight with the mortgage payment, so I have no choice. It's amazing how much you spend on certain things without even noticing it. With Mint I can track how much I've spent in certain categories, so hopefully I'll be able to reign in spending. What budget system do the rest of you use?
I don't have a budget, but I always manage to put money into my savings account. I never really thought about it. I know how much I have to spend for the month and keep track of everything mentally. Creating and following a budget might help me to put aside more money.
I have always been really bad at keeping a budget and savings but it is something that I want to work on. It always seems like once we finally start getting a good nest egg built up, something happens and we go back to square one. I guess we have to just keep on trying as we have been fortunate enough to have that nest egg when we needed it. I'm not sure what we would have done without it!
I thank you for this advice. I do not yet have a budget in place. Well, of course right now, I do not have much of an income. I will be getting an income soon. I am disabled. Now, is the best time to start a budget plan and stick to it.
We're actually trying to make a new budget, especially with us moving to an apartment and my starting med. school soon....it'll be an adjustment but it's something I hope we'll be able to stick to.
I always, always try to make a budget, but we never stick to it. I'm the more responsible spender, although I do have my slip-ups, but my BF is HORRIBLE about saving money, paying bills, etc. He's always of the "we'll worry about the bills later" mindset and accuses me of "worrying too much" about money. Grr. He drives me bonkers with that crap.
I see that you wrote down "us" in talking about your budget. So I am assuming you have two incomes? That certainly helps when it comes to saving and paying your most needed expenses. But i am a one income household and a single mom. I do not really have a budget per say. Because I do not make enough sometimes to cover even basic needs. We have rent, electric, a monthly low car payment ,and a propane tank. When I have enough money to pay all this then there is nothing left to "budget". I do work full time at a laborers job and wage. I am looking for a second job at this time. I am happy that you have enough money to enjoy the nicer things like vacations. But not everyone can afford it no matter how hard they try.
I use a simple spreadsheet that I made that lists my obligations along with the amount and due dates. Also, income sources are included. Then I have different formulas that adjust the values accordingly. This way I can experiment with how I make payments and do what-if scenarios.
I save £50.00 a month out of my salary. It goes to a different bank, so it's safely out of the way. But as other posters have mentioned, saving is hard in today's economy, and some months I have to transfer the cash back to my normal bank account. Times are extremely hard, and saving is a luxury, and not a given, for the majority of people right now.
I don't have a budget but I try to limit my spending and I will not buy something if I don't think it is good value, even if I need the item. A budget is a good idea for a family but I don't live in a family, it's just my flatmate and I.
Hubby has always had a budget made out for our family. H's more responsible spender while I'm the impulse buyer. We always make sure we pay our expenses for the month and whatever is left over, half goes into savings and the rest goes to something we want for ourselves or our daughter. Our budget is pretty lenient though. We always overestimate our expenses so that we have more left over than we anticipated.
One of the bigest ways I save a good amount of money is by having my own coffee maker. This saves me time and a lot of money, rather than going to a Starbucks or Dunkin paying around 3 dollars a coffee. But the biggest way I save money and budget myself is to make my own lunch at least 4 times a week. Making a sandwhich with fruit is a great way to save money and also keep me from overeating and eating healthy.
I always plan everything, and some people end up giving me flak for it, but in the end of the day, the same people end up asking me for money. I only go with a certain amount of money in my pocket, so i never overspent, even if i want to, i have to make choices.
I like the idea of overestimating your expenses while making your budget so that you have more money left over than expected. That's a great idea. In the past, I didn't see the importance of budgeting and saving, but the global economic downturn has taught me to be more financially responsible, saving, and investing money. I do ensure that I budget everything now. An online financial tool which I use to help me with this is learnvest.com. There's also readyforzero.com, and there's also mint has somebody else mentioned.
Right now, everything that doesn't go to bills or living expenses is going into my savings account because I need to move into a better apartment soon. A budget is definitely important under normal circumstances, but when you're pushing towards a major life goal, sometimes you have to just cut back on everything and put as much money away as possible.
