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When you have a family, you need to start budgeting for things you may not have had to when you were single, or when it was just you and your sweetie. If you\u2019re starting a family, then you really need to start building a family budget because things are going to change, fast. Luckily for you, we\u2019re going to break it down into several steps to make it easy to get started.<\/p>\n
Keep it Simple<\/b><\/p>\n
You don\u2019t need a bunch of fancy programs and technology to figure out a budget. Get a pen and paper, open up Microsoft Excel, or get started with an extensive budget calculator<\/a>.<\/p>\n Set up a Goal for the Month<\/b><\/p>\n What\u2019s your goal each month? Yes, each month, because it can be anything. Do you just want some extra cash by the end of the month? That\u2019s your goal. Are you saving for a home improvement project, want to start a college fund? That\u2019s your goal. Whatever you choose, be sure to have a goal set.<\/p>\n Categorize the Expenses<\/b><\/p>\n By now you\u2019ve probably already done this if you\u2019re using the budget calculator up above, but to reiterate the point, categorize your expenses. Not just by things like \u201cgroceries, insurance, mortgage,\u201d also separate them by their importance. What do you need<\/i> to pay, what can you cut out?<\/p>\n Have some Breathing Room<\/b><\/p>\n Once you\u2019ve factored in all of your expenses, necessary and unnecessary, don\u2019t think you have all that left over money to spend. What if there\u2019s an emergency, or your utility bill is higher than normal? Think of your highest electricity bill or the worst medical bill you had to pay, and factor that into the budget. Not necessarily to cripple your spending, but you should have some room to move around in case you need to make a sudden adjustment before the end of the month.<\/p>\n Cash vs Credit<\/b><\/p>\n Use cash whenever possible, and as you categorized your expenses, categorize your money. Make a few envelopes and label them \u201cgroceries,\u201d \u201cmovies,\u201d etc. This way not only do you have a monthly budget for managing money, but you set yourself a limit so you won\u2019t accidentally go over your budget.<\/p>\n Get out of your Debt<\/b><\/p>\n Having a family can put you into debt if you\u2019re not prepared. Plenty of families have debt at one point or another, and they usually manage to get out of it. Some do it with budgeting, some consolidate. Whatever choice you\u2019re going to make to fix your debt problems and regain control over your personal finances, it\u2019s a smart idea to go get some credit counseling from an agency that knows what they\u2019re talking about.<\/p>\n Learn to Adapt<\/b><\/p>\n As mentioned above, you\u2019re going to want to have some breathing room for unexpected expenses. You\u2019re going to also learn how to adapt to factor in these new expenses. Plan ahead for expenses that may be unforeseen, build an emergency fund (more on this below), or just adjust your budget when things come to pass. For instance, your kid might need braces and you find out about this halfway through the month. If you can adapt, no problem\u2014just factor it into next month\u2019s or this month\u2019s budget, crunch some numbers, and figure out a way to make it work.<\/p>\n Emergency Fund<\/b><\/p>\n It\u2019s been mentioned a few times in this article, emergencies happen. Instead of being caught off guard, build an emergency fund<\/a>. Remember that goal we discussed above? Maybe this can be one of your goals; put a little money aside every month to help pay for expenses incurred in case of an emergency. Let\u2019s not get into the details of an emergency involving your family, just know life is unpredictable and it\u2019s better to be prepared than to go into debt.<\/p>\n Teach Your Kids about Money Early<\/b><\/p>\n The earlier you teach your kids about money, the earlier they\u2019ll learn to appreciate the value of a dollar. If they\u2019re too young, it\u2019s understandable, but once they\u2019re of age, start talking to your kids about money and how money works. This will help you with keeping expenses under control and will benefit them in the future.<\/p>\n Now that wasn\u2019t painful was it? In 9 easy steps, you\u2019ve learned how to build a family budget.<\/p>\n Image thanks to Tax Credits on Flickr<\/a>.<\/p>\n This is a guest post by Elaine McPartland.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<\/a>