subject: 5 Reasons and 4 tips to create an effective budget [print this page] 5 Reasons and 4 tips to create an effective budget
If you're not able to manage your finances effectively, then you need not to rush to financial advisors straightway. Regular budgeting may help you get your finances back on track. Go through this article to know about some important reasons to create an effective budget.
Reasons to make an effective budget
You should create an effective budget for the following reasons:
1.Track your finances: An effective budget helps you track your finances and save money. Financial experts are of the opinion that a strict budget can help you track your monthly expenses. This helps you know where your hard earned money goes each month. Once you get a clear idea about your expenditures, it will be easier for you to eliminate unnecessary expenses and save thousands of dollars.
2.Reduce debt load: If you have wracked up huge amount of debt, then a proper budget can help to shrink your debt load. It is a fact that a strict budget can help you pay off your debts and increase savings. The saved money can be used to pay down your debts. The more you save, the sooner you'll become debt-free.
3.Create an emergency fund: Life is unpredictable. You never know what will come next. So, it is important to be prepared for unfortunate events in life such as health problems, job loss, etc. You'll not be able to able to survive for a long time without sufficient funds during these circumstances. You'll need emergency funds right away. Budgeting helps you to be prepared for these situations.
4.Meeting financial goals: People have various financial goals in life. The financial goals may include retirement planning, reducing debts, saving for purchasing first house, etc. An effective budget can help people to meet these financial goals easily.
Tips to make an effective budget
Here are some easy tips that can help you make an effective budget without any hassle:
1.Track your income: The first tip to make an effective budget will be to track your net income. Most people make the mistake of calculating the gross monthly income when creating a budget. You must always remember to calculate your net income (total income taxes) when developing a budget.
2.Track your expenses: Expenses fall into 3 basic categories fixed monthly expenses, variable monthly expenses and surprise expenses. You can monitor your spending for a couple of months so as to have an idea about these expenses. You can know about your expenses from your bank statements and bills. If you're spending more than your income, then you need to curb unnecessary expenses. It is advisable to spend around 90% (15% on variable expenses, 70% on fixed expenses and 5% on surprise expenses) of your income each month.
3.Build saving habits: A secret formula of creating a good budget is to maximize savings. It is possible to do that by taking few simple steps such as reducing electricity and water bills, making payments in cash, traveling in bus or cycle, etc.
Finally, you can always use a budget planner to make a proper budget. A budget planner helps you plan budget accurately. So, if you're not able to create a budget on your own, then it is wise to use a budget planner. It will assist you to manage your finances easily.
