Over the past few years managing your money has become increasingly important. With the demands of the family rising and spending power shrinking, it’s more important than ever to invest in an online budget manager to know where your money is going. Personal finance expert Robin Poulin, co-founder of www.calendarbudget.com, says there are five things every mom should know about how to manage her money.
5 things every mom should know about financial budgeting
Learn the Difference Between Needs and Wants
Food, clothing, shelter, and education: these are pretty much our basic needs. Our wants are just about everything else, and they can seem endless at times. We must also make choices about fulfilling our needs: “food” can be a home cooked meal or dinner in a fancy restaurant. Our resources are limited. It’s smart to do budgeting at home to figure out which wants to fulfill, and how best to manage our needs.
Use a Budget Planner to Manage Credit Card Debt
According to CardWeb.com, the typical American family carries almost $10,700 in credit-card balances. Interest rates run in the mid- to late teens. If you can’t afford to fully pay off your credit card bill in a month or two, don’t use the card. Especially to purchase things you use up quickly, for example vacations and meals.
Find Areas to Cut Costs
Figure out the patterns to your spending by using budgeting software programs to track the money you spend. You might find out you spend more than you thought on clothes or car expenses. Create and follow a plan to spend less. You might pledge to carpool for three months, for example, or to hold off on buying new clothes for the rest of the year.
Prioritize Your Bills
Go over all your bills and decide which ones to pay first and then establish a payment timetable based on your paydays. You should give yourself a grace period if you’re already late with some of your bill payments. You might need to give the bill companies a call to determine how much you need to pay now, and if you can set up a payment schedule for the outstanding balances.
Come up with a Spending Plan and a Saving Plan
Examine all your utility bills and also your everyday expenditure for fuel, meals and other extras. Work out how much you’ll need to survive each month based on the paycheck you currently earn. Figure out how much you can afford to put aside monthly and fit it into your financial budgeting. Decide under what conditions you will use money from your savings (should be for emergencies only).
