A budget can be intimidating at first; So let's start simple. ( you will need Microsoft excel)
There are multiple templates you can use. I chose the Personal Budget because it gives me a month by month breakdown for the next 12 months.
1. Browse to vertex42.com
2. Click on the excel templates at the upper left hand corner
3. Select budget templates
4. I suggest starting simple with the "Personal Budget"
5. Click Personal Budget
6. Scroll down - in the middle of the page you'll find the link to download
6a. There are two options - if you have Microsoft Excel click the Green link
6b. The second option is for Open Office - which is an open source product that gives you a free alternative for office products. They include a Word Processor, Spreadsheet etc.
7. Click Continue to Download
8. <Just a few more clicks :) > On the next page you'll need to click download again. Be careful there are ads on this page that make you think you're downloading something. The official download is located on the left hand side of the page. Click Download - it should be a green bar.
9. You should notice that the download is now at the bottom of your browser page. The download is quick!
10. Click on the file - once you click Excel should open up.
They hard part is done!
Start simple......
Let's walk through getting started.
In the "Starting Balance" section, input you existing checking account balance. ( you will modify this as your checking account balance goes up and down)
In the "Wages and Tips" area you'll input you salary. If you work hourly, then you'll want to input the lowest average that you've had over the past few months.
This is calculated monthly, so you'll need to add two paychecks together to get the total.
If you are getting paid bi-weekly ( every other week) you get three paychecks in a month twice a year! Nice bonus.
Like I said start simple. The next thing I would add is your rent or mortgage payment.
Put in your payment and then click the lower left hand corner of the cell and then drag it across. This allows you to populate all the fields in a category without having to type it twelve times. There you go!
Now you have a simple budget!
The two places to pay attention to are the "Projected End Balance". This is the amount of money left in your account at the end of the after all income is earned and expenses are withdrawn. The goal is to be above 0 ! This will let you know if you're living within your means. It provides you a way to see how much money you can save. If you are below zero you'll need to take a look and see what expenses you can cut. Otherwise you'll need to use credit or you'll be incurring NSF Fees in your account!
The second number to pay attention to is the last "Projected End Balance". This is the amount left in your account at the end of 12 months. This figure is what you'll begin with if you decide to create another spreadsheet. This is a more advanced when you want to see past the next twelve months. You can save this until later.
Using this will allow you to feel confident. You can afford to live and create a savings account. Using this should allow you to get out of the living paycheck to paycheck cycle.
Now that you have started, feel free to fill in the rest of your expenses. This will give you the most accurate view
There are demo videos available to help you on vertex42.com. If you feel you need some more personalized help; leave me a comment and your email. I will be glad to help. I can offer assistance for $10 for an hours worth of time. I'll connect to your machine and walk you through. Make sure you have all your monthly expenses so we can make the most of the time.
Again I'm not an official financial advisor, I'm just someone who has figured out a way to live with a budget.
No comments:
Post a Comment