Budget time!

[CrazyKell]

This year I haven't exactly been following a budget but I haven't used any credit or debit cards and pay cash for everything. It's been tight being unemployed but I have still managed to squeak by.

I know this has probably been asked before but....do you do a budget? More importantly, do you stick to the budget you draw up?

Is your budget more of a list of what you spend on certain things or do you follow certain widely recognized formulas (for instance, 30% on living, etc.)?

Just curious.

[azoomm]

I have an expected amount to spend on things... and try to stay within them. First step for that was to track what I was spending, then to take those amounts and find a reasonable amount to maintain each month.

Some of the categories were amazing.... I mean, once you see what you ACTUALLY spend on things, it's so much easier to budget.

[Apoc]

I have a budget...

I get paid every wednesday. I pay all bills that are due that week, and I spend the rest, weather its 100$ or 1000$.

[Tmall]

Originally Posted by Apoc

I have a budget...

I get paid every wednesday. I pay all bills that are due that week, and I spend the rest, weather its 100$ or 1000$.

I have almost the same one. Except I get paid on the 1st and 15th.

[Quick281]

I am sort of the same way as the others but ideally I will get better control of things this summer. I signed up for Quicken Online since I got a free use of it thanks to Turbo Tax.

I am hoping to use that so that I can see what I am spending and where I am spending it. After that I will attempt to budget.

[Lamnidae]

i tend to budget, we've got 3 large dogs, and there's always something coming up, so if I do n't budget I start eating into the "buffer" we have....

Once in a while we end up having a decent surplus that we then decide to spend on, or move to savings, or pay for a trip/vacation or something....

[ericr]

I've been on a survival budget the last couple years. In other words nothing to budget, but when I am making more money than I need I do budget how I spend the excess.

[Tsunami]

i budget loosely, like Zoomy i have a certain amount that i plan to spend on things. I really dont' budget for luxury anymore

For a month i tracked everything i spent and holy crap do i spend a lot eating out! Next was clothes so both has been scaled back and then i draw my budget from looking at how much i spend and what i can cut back on.

I don't always meet or stick to my budget but i try to come as close as possible and i still track everything i spend so i know where my money is going.

[CrazyKell]

http://static.oprah.com/download/pdf..._pie_chart.pdf

This is the formula that I was looking for and am hoping to follow to keep my spending intact.

For the first few months I have some things to pay back right away (snow tires, etc.). After that I plan on saving as much as possible so that I can be set if something happened again. A number of months ago I contacted a debt counsellor (some of you might remember the thread on CF) and have been steadily paying down my credit card debt so I'm on track with that one at least. I'll be throwing extra money that way when I can though.

[Phenix_Rider]

Nope. I just make sure my register is always up to date. I pay the bills, and buy what I need when I need it. If I find a great deal on something I only want, I'll buy that if I have the cash. If I'm good for a while, and don't spend too much on unnecessary stuff (movies, eating out, moto mags, new gear, etc.), I'll bleed off extra money into the savings or make an extra payment on my school loans.

Over the winter, I've been buying a lot of moto goodies (new chain and sprockets, brake pads, riding jeans, helmet, gloves), but I'm not spending money on other things (moto tires, fuel from extra riding, movies). Had enough difference to make an extra payment on the loans. I actually saved 50% on the gloves, 27% on the helmet, 20% on the pads, etc, etc. It all works out. As long as I know what I have, I don't have to worry about spotting my friends cash or taking them out once in a while.

Looking at that chart, my splits vary constantly, but debt is always the biggest chunk. Transportation (if you only consider commuting) increases in the winter, and Other increases in the summer.