Setting a Family Budget
Every Family Needs a Budget
Creating a family budget is within everyone’s reach, but creating a successful one requires careful planning. Here are some tips on setting a family budget that you will be able to maintain for the long term.
7 Helpful Hints on Setting a Family Budget
1) Get everyone on the same page. The more you include everyone in the planning, the more likely it is that your budget will work well for your family. Every family member who is old enough to understand should be in on the discussion. A budget affects everyone, and it’s a always good idea to listen to input from the whole family.
2) Leave some room to treat yourself. Some budgets are so tight that it seems like there’s no room for any luxury. But if you get a bit creative about what constitutes a luxury, you will probably find you can in fact afford some kind of privilege or luxury.
It could be something like buying your favorite brand name item at the store instead of settling for the store brand, or maybe buying fresh fish instead of frozen once a month. Maybe ordering a pizza or Chinese food is a luxury for your family that you can include in your budget.
If you are budgeting with more money, your treat could be a family vacation or new piece of electronic equipment. The point is to include some kind of luxury in your budget. This helps keep family members motivated and makes the budget easier to deal with.
3) Have a good understanding of what you need to live on. To do this, it’s a good idea to take your last three to six months worth of income and expenses and create an average.
Don’t forget to budget for things that you might pay only once a year.
When in doubt, assume that you will need more money rather than less to pay your bills. There will always be unplanned expenses in your life.
4) Be patient! It usually takes several months for a budget to become habit. Also, there will be changes that need to be made. Understanding this can help you stick with it as it needs tweaking and adjusting.
5) There’s an app for that. Software can help. For some, using software to lay out the family budget can be very helpful. Software that is designed for the purpose may help you create a more comprehensive and workable.
6) Distinguish between optional and necessary expenses. This distinction is harder to make for some people than others, and it’s tougher in some family dynamics than others.
What one person thinks of as a “necessity” might be looked at as a luxury by someone else. If you’re in doubt, check budget formats and accepted principles in this regard that come from a third party.
7) Pay off your debts. It’s unpleasant, but paying off debts needs to be high on the priority list when setting your family budget. The sooner they’re paid off, the sooner you’ll have more money to spend or save.
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