Good Lifestyle

Creating a monthly budget is not the type of thing that many of us are looking forward to. This requires boosting time to assess your income, Look at your expenses , and decide how much you can - and, more importantly, cannot spend. The practice can be uncomfortable, especially if you work on one with a partner or if the subject of money raises feelings of never being enough. However, once you have learned to create a monthly budget and stick to it for a while, you will see that the practice can be completely stimulating.

"Having a budget gives you freedom - you know exactly where each dollar goes, and it creates a plan and allows you to make 'or' no '', says easy" Erika Rasure , PHD, financial financial advisor and financial therapist of the customer at Beyond finance . "If a special expenditure is not in the budget, it's outside the table."

Continue to read to learn the best advice from financial experts to manage your accounts and create a monthly budget.

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1. Write your goals.

This helps you put your budget in perspective and give it meaning. "A budget is to help you achieve and do the things you want, not just a set of figures or a tool to restrict your expenses," said Kyle Enright , consumer finance expert and president of Make loans . "Define and note the short and long -term objectives, and include your spouse and family if necessary."

These may include everything, from the purchase of a new laptop or a vacation when you send your child to university without debt.

"Over time, you will return and modify the objectives and the budget, but adopt this approach will help you stick to the budgetary process, which ultimately leads to your ability to achieve your goals," explains Enright.

2. Follow all the expenses for a few weeks.

Before making online items on your budget, you should know exactly where your money is going.

"Follow your expenses for a few weeks, keeping and recording each receipt for online and in person expenses," suggests Enright. "Most people can identify spending models and areas where they may want to reduce." This could be particularly obvious once you see it written.

3. Determine your net income.

Here is where the budgetary process begins. "Determine your monthly net household income, which is the amount after the deduction of taxes and any other deduction of pay check, such as the contributions of the pension plan and the insurance premiums you pay, to find out how much you have to Spend, "advises Enright.

This is your reference base-so engage it in memory or enter it in your calculation table or budgeting application.

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4. Calculate your necessities.

Now you will have to add the expenses that you absolutely cannot live. "This includes items that are the same each month, such as a mortgage or rent and mobile phone payment invoice, as well as items that fluctuate, such as public services and grocery store," explains Dana Anspach , CFP, RMA, founder and CEO of Sensible money .

"For fluctuating items, start with an average: for example, in Arizona, our public service bill is double the amount in summer, around $ 400 per month, as is winter, where it costs around $ 200 per month, "she notes. In the budget, it connects it to $ 300.

5. Listed your non -essential recurring expenses.

Take a look at a few months of bank statements to find the expenses that happen again but are not necessary. AE0FCC31AE342FD3A1346EBB1F342FCB

"It can be subscriptions, memberships or automated purchases," explains Anspach. "Once you have compiled this list, start to serve - I did it recently to realize that I had signed up for the Showtime channel twice under two different accounts and that I had three monthly musical subscriptions."

6. Create a line for accessory costs.

You will also need to take into account occasional articles, such as clothing, restaurants, travel, repairs and decoration.

"I prefer a monthly approach to buckets: for example, if I have $ 3,000 of expenses authorized on a credit card which is reimbursed each month, if a car repair or a healthy health expenditure appears this month And uses $ 1,000 of $ 1,000 from that, so I know that I only got $ 2,000 on clothing, travel and entertainment, "said Anspach. "This approach allows me to stay within my global expenditure limits without having the impression of needing to detail each category."

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7. Choose your savings percentage.

Steve Walker , life and leadership coach and educational consultant in Integrity and joy , said that is where many people are mistaken with their budgets. "They think that savings is what remains, but if you think there will be money, your brain will think that it is" additional "and you will tend to spend this and more by the end of the month, "he said.

Instead, build the budget around your savings goal. "Ideally, choose a percentage as high as possible," he says. "It should be 10 to 20% of your income."

8. Follow your budget.

Now that you have established what your budget is, you will have to stand for it.

"There are many online applications and services that follow your expenses and help you budget, and some banking applications even have integrated budgetary functionalities," said Marc Henry , founder and CEO of Wealth management in alloy . "Some people may be more responsible when managing a budget manual and monitoring expenses in a spreadsheet."

You can try some options and continue with the one that works for you. "Avoid all paid budgeting applications - the last thing you want is to spend more when you try to control your finances."

9. Automatize your savings and your bills.

It makes things easy to do. "There are many public services, mortgages and other companies that allow automatic deduction plans in which they remove the funds directly from an designated bank account," explains Enright. "Some lenders and public service companies even offer reduced interest rates or other advantages for the use of their automated payment services."

You can do the same with your savings. "Configure a transfer of a current account to a savings account in your financial institution," adds Enright. "Or ask your employer the automatic deposit of a specific amount in an account you appoint."

10. Find where you lose money.

After following your finances for a while, you can spot certain places where you often lose money.

"If these are Amazon's purchases at the end of the evening, what new habits can you train to exclude you first?" said Anspach. "If you tend to spend a fixed amount each time you visit a certain store or a website, then find ways to visit less frequently - go for a walk, hit the gymnasium or take a book to build healthier habits and stay away from the things that try you to spend. "

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11. Talk to people about your goals.

They could help you stick to it! "If this arises, it is normal to tell people that you work on your financial goals and that you will be more demanding with the way you choose to spend your money," shares RASURE.

"This could include saying no to invitations to be a member of a wedding party or prepare alternatives at a lower cost to spend time with friends and family, like meeting someone compared to a dear patio for have a drink and a dinner, "she says.

12. Review your budget once a month.

Getting your budget means watching it. "Plan regularly to review the budget at least once a month with your spouse or your partner if it applies," advises Enright. "These discussions will lead you to modify your objectives, income and expenses over time, and also means that you are dedicated to a specific time for the budget, which eliminates the temptation for one or the other spouse of Make it evolve permanently. "

13. Adjust your goals.

Imagine your budget as a living document. "It is important to review these objectives that you have set for yourself," explains Enright. "If you have already bought the new device that you originally planned or decided on a different vacation, adapt to these-you will then start a process of modifying the objectives and realities of the figures."

14. Reseval after changes in life.

Other times, you need to adjust things after the big events in life. "It could move, go back to school, get married or have a baby," said Henry. "Your budget must be adjusted for one of these things, and the sooner you do, the better it is - try to adjust your budget before making the change so that you know that you can maintain your new style of life."