How to Make a Basic Family Budget

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By Amy Kuncaitis
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Today, most families are trying to save money. The first step to saving money each month is to have a monthly budget in place. Being intentional about each dollar you spend really adds up to big savings each month. Here are some simple steps to starting a family budget.

Difficulty: Moderate

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

notebook/pen
a budget worksheet (can be printed online)
about an hour a month

Step 1

Gather your budget information. Gather all your last months bills, you last month of pay stubs, and any other paper work that might pertain to your budget
Step 2

Print out a basic budget worksheet. There are many sites online that offer a free, budget worksheet. Enter: "Free Budget worksheet" in your search engine and you will find many different budget worksheets to choose from.
Step 3

Fill out your worksheet. You will want to add up your total income from last month and add up all your expenses from last month. This will give you a realistic idea of your income to spending ratio is.
Step 4

Make adjustments. Look over your worksheet. If there are areas that can be trimmed, write them down as a goal. Over the next few months, try to cut the expense down. For instance, if you have $200.00 per month in your entertainment area, write down $100.00 next to it as a goal. Over the next three months, try to cut around $35.00 each month until you have reached your goal.

Comments

PandiaPen said

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on 11/14/2009 If you use a spreadsheet and maintain it on your computer, it will do any necessary computation for you (such as adding up columns of expenses). Microsoft has free budget templates for Xcel spreadsheets. Great article, thank you.