5 Steps To Successful Family Budget Planning

No two families are alike. Depending on the size of the family, its lifestyle, the country of residence and thousands of other tiny factors, the budgets of two seemingly similar families can be completely different. Thus, there is no universal family budget common for all people. Yet, there are some ground rules that help thousands of families manage their monthly incomes wisely and avoid possible financial pitfalls. Here are 5 easy steps how to plan our family budget successfully.

Step #1 Make a list of all your regular expenses.

These include food, clothes, and any other additional services that your family uses. Add all household expenses in the list as well. These would include your telephone fees, water, fuel and electricity costs. If you hire a babysitter or house cleaner on a regular basis, include their fees in the list, too. Do not forget about transportation expenses and health bills. If you have a credit to pay off or a credit card to top up, make sure to put those monthly installments on the list as well. Then, add all the costs and calculate the total monthly expenditure.

Step #2 Consider the additional items you wish to obtain this month.

This could be a new sofa you have been meaning to buy for months that just went on sale, or a tile replacement in the bathroom. You can research the costs of such one-time purchases and add it to the total calculation made in the previous step.

Step #3 Calculate the total expected income for the month.

Remember to include here all the income sources, both possible and certain. It is much easier to perform this step on a monthly basis if your income is regular and stable.

Step #4 Subtract the total expenditure...