1. Start tracking where your money goes: It s important to track everything. If you toss a dime into a fountain,

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1 Biweekly Pay: Building a Budget: Take Control and Track Spending Created for City of Virginia Beach by Beach Municipal Federal Credit Union May 2016

2 Building a Budget Some people call it a budget; some call it a spending plan; some call it a map to spending. No matter what you call it, a budget is nothing more than a written plan for spending; and a written plan is necessary because it allows you to see the big picture in your financial situation. The big picture will move you from a paycheck-to-paycheck cycle and allow you to understand the importance of tracking cashflow, setting aside money for ongoing and anticipated expenses and maintaining an emergency fund. Remember: change is always easier when you know what you re working toward. The first step to taking control of our money is to track our spending. Most of us can easily recognize our big expenditures - rent/mortgage, grocery bills, etc. - but it's the little things, such as the coffees and candy bars, that often throw us into a tailspin. 1. Start tracking where your money goes: It s important to track everything. If you toss a dime into a fountain, write it down. If you grab a soda from the machine, write it down. Bills, regular expenses, write it all down. Your goal is to see where you're actually spending. Track your spending for at least two weeks (preferably for a month) and then evaluate your spending. Do you see any patterns? Where are your weaknesses? What needs to be controlled? This is the information you'll need when creating your budget. You can use the Spending Tracker worksheet to help you with this. Then, when you are ready to take this information and track it by category to use in a budget, there is an Actual Spending by Category worksheet online as well. 2. Overcome Temptations: Consider how you might control your spending in the areas where you are tempted. Often, we need to take a pro-active measure to avoid temptation. For example, if you are planning to cut back on eating out, you may need to take some extra effort to plan meals to fit in your routine. You can use the Temptations List worksheet to help you with this. 3. Identify Priorities: You need to determine which are controllable expenses and which are not controllable expenses. For example, your rent or mortgage is not controllable. Sure, you may be able to refinance or move to a less expensive apartment but for right this minute, it is what it is. This is important because you shouldn t waste your time and energy worrying about what you can t control. Instead, you should focus on the expenses you can control. You can use the Financial Decision Tree worksheet to help you with this. 4. Determine Wants vs. Needs: Needs are essential and must be funded. Wants can be funded with any discretionary money left after all other priorities are funded. Separating Wants and Needs Sometimes it's hard for us to tell the difference between wants and needs. We are bombarded daily with messages that tell us we simply must have a certain product or do a certain thing to be happy. Spending all our money on wants is a key reason many of us fail to achieve financial freedom. Knowing the difference between your wants and needs will help you be successful. Life is meant to be lived, not survived. Treat yourself to some wants along the way, but do so when you can afford them. Enjoy those wants as the extras that they are. 5. Plan Ahead for Periodic Expenses: Periodic Expenses (commonly known as budget busters) happen occasionally and can be expensive. Since these expenses don t happen every month, planning for these requires a little extra homework. Getting a good estimate of the cost for the item is key. For fun items like vacation and holiday spending, getting the entire family involved in saving for the event can be an opportunity to teach children about financial planning and the importance of savings. To budget for these items: Determine the timeframe of how often the expense occurs (annually, quarterly, twice per year, etc.). Figure out the total amount needed to cover the expense. Divide the estimated cost by the number of months you have to save. This will give your monthly cost. 2 Beach Municipal Federal Credit Union June 2016

3 Building a Budget For example, if your expense is annual, take the estimated cost and divide by 12. That is how much you need to save each month (assuming that your expense is a full year away). For quarterly expenses, divide the estimated expense by 3 so that you can save each month and have the full amount by the end of the quarter. Identify cost and timeframe for your goal: What is the total cost of your goal and how long do you have to complete this goal? EXAMPLE #1: I have to pay personal property taxes in June each year. Estimated cost is 360. Calculate monthly cost: months = 30 per month EXAMPLE #2: I have to pay 180 quarterly for auto insurance. Calculate monthly cost: months = 60 per month Cont. Without a plan for periodic expenses, you will find yourself either depleting other savings or incurring additional debt just to cover expenses. Just because they don t happen every month doesn't mean they are not important. Regular periodic expenses are easier to plan for because you know when and about how much those expenses will be. Irregular periodic expenses may require more research. For example, how much should you plan for maintenance and repairs on your car? You may be able to rely on historical averages or you might choose to do an Internet search to find out average costs for your make and model. No matter how you choose to estimate, it is important to plan for these expenses so they don't catch you unaware. The goal is to set aside regular savings each month to cover periodic expenses. Once you have a list of all your estimated expenses, you can add up how much you should be saving monthly. With this information in hand, you know how much to save and can consider how to minimize the impact of periodic expenses when they occur. You can use the Periodic Expense Planner to organize them. Once you ve gathered together these pieces of your financial puzzle, you re ready to build your budget. You can use the Spending Plan worksheet to get started. As you discover more categories for your own budget, add to this list and tailor it to your spending. Beach Municipal Federal Credit Union June

4 Spending Tracker Purchase Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Purchase Purchase Purchase TOTAL TOTAL TOTAL TOTAL Purchase Thursday Friday Saturday WEEK TOTAL Purchase Purchase Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday TOTAL TOTAL TOTAL TOTAL 4 Beach Municipal Federal Credit Union June 2016

5 Actual Spending by Category Category Gross Income Week 1 Week 2 Week 3 Week 4 Total WITHHOLDINGS Federal Taxes State Taxes FICA/FUTA Net Income Savings Housing Transportation Debt Groceries PERSONAL EXPENSES Entertainment Insurance Clothing Medical Miscellaneous Investments Education/Childcare Charitable Donations Beach Municipal Federal Credit Union June

6 Temptations List Example: My Temptations Spending too much on groceries Ways to Reduce/Avoid - Don t shop when hungry - Write down and stick with a grocery list 6 Beach Municipal Federal Credit Union June 2016

7 Financial Decision Tree Use this decision tree to help you identify the budget items that you can control within your spending plan. Go through your budget and list each item as a controllable or a not controllable item. Then go through the controllable items and prioritize which ones are easiest to control and will create the greatest benefit to your budget. Example: Controllable Items Groceries Not Controllable Items Rent Beach Municipal Federal Credit Union June

8 Periodic Expense Planner Periodic Expense Frequency (quarterly, annually, etc.) Total Monthly Property Taxes Home Insurance Auto Insurance Life Insurance Medical Insurance Furniture & Appliances Home Repairs Landscaping Memberships & Dues Holidays Subscriptions Vacations Gifts Weddings Tuition and Books Car Maintenance/Repairs Back to School Supplies Clothing Birthdays 8 Beach Municipal Federal Credit Union June 2016

9 Spending Plan (For an interactive budget, visit bankonhr.org under Worksheets. ) INCOME INCOME PER MONTH WITHHOLDINGS PER MONTH Salary 1 Federal Tax Salary 2 State Tax Social Security Social Security/Medicare Child Support Total Income Total Withholdings NET SPENDABLE INCOME (Total Income Total Withholdings) = EXPENSES EXPENSE PER MONTH EXPENSE PER MONTH SAVINGS GROCERIES Emergency ENTERTAINMENT Periodic Eating Out Special/Goal Vacation/Trips HOUSING Movies/Events Mortgage/Rent Babysitter Property Tax INSURANCE Insurance Life Electric/Gas Disability Water/Sewer CLOTHING Phone MEDICAL Internet Insurance Cable Doctor/Dentist Maintenance Prescriptions TRANSPORTATION Copays Loan Payment MISCELLANEOUS Insurance Postage Gas/oil Allowances Maintenance Gifts Repair Personal Care DEBTS Credit Card 1 Credit Card 2 INVESTMENT/RETIREMENT Loan 1 EDUCATION Loan 2 CHARITY/DONATIONS CHILDCARE TOTAL EXPENSES LEFTOVER (Net Income Total Expenses) = Beach Municipal Federal Credit Union June

Money Management 1: Building Your Spending Plan. Participant s Guide

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