Budgeting / saving

[Bingo-Player]

So il be straight up im completely useless with money....... never used to be but its an awfull habit ive picked up over the last 6 or 7 years

Basically i spend every penny i earn every month im not really sure how because i don’t go out much anymore and i rarely buy anything of any significance

this has been going on for a solid 18 months now and its starting to get me down because i cant do anything significant with my life because i have no money

im stuck in a constant cycle of poverty at the moment

credit isn’t an option for me at least for the next 4 years anyway

so my question to you all is how do you budget and save your money ?

any tips or ways you find usefull ?

 

[BeTheChange]

Firstly, how old are you?

Secondly the best thing to do is to take a whole afternoon and draw up a spreadsheet of all your big expenses and compare that to your income, then eliminate any non core expenditure until you arrive at a "P&L" figure you're happy with.

Saving is really not that difficult - either find a way to make money or spend less. Simple. And avoid debt where you can. Interest will destroy your ability to save.

 

[Bingo-Player]

Firstly, how old are you?

Secondly the best thing to do is to take a whole afternoon and draw up a spreadsheet of all your big expenses and compare that to your income, then eliminate any non core expenditure until you arrive at a "P&L" figure you're happy with.

Saving is really not that difficult - either find a way to make money or spend less. Simple. And avoid debt where you can. Interest will destroy your ability to save.

im 24

the only really thing i can cut from my budget is my sports bets but these provide a small stable second income so i am reluctant to do that

i think money is attracted to money and if you dont have it to begin with its very difficult to add to it

i have got an envelope in work where ive started adding too daily , but this is just cash for an emergency

i havent figurered out how too save in accounts yet lol

 

[PrettyBoyAJ]

How much do you make a month? What do you spend it on?

 

[Glumix]

Well, I have no idea how it works in the US when insurance and health care are concerned. But here's how you can get your budget done pretty easily.

What you will need is a paper and a pen. But I advise you to go on Google and create a Sheet. That will make the math a lot more easier and automatic.

First, make a list of your incomes and write them down on the sheet on a mensual and annual basis :

Salary : 5'000 - 60'000
Sport bets : 500 - 6'000
Total : 5'500 - 66'000

Second, make a list of everything you have to pay every month and year :

Rent : 1'500 - 18'000
Insurances : 200 - 2'400
Gas : ...
Leasing : ...
Taxes : ...
Food : ...
Clothes : ...
Total: 4'500

If you have no idea how much you pay for Food or Clothes, make rough estimate and write them down. You will be shocked how much we spend on those.

Third, substract the income and what you pay :

5'500 - 4'500 = 1'000$

That number is what you have left at the end of the month.

Great! Easy stuff!

You can update that list whenever you pay some bill or increase, decrease your income.

Now, come the tricky part, optimizing your budget.

Obsiously, you have to increase your income and decrease your expenses. With a budget of that kind, it's getting pretty easy to "read" your financial situation.

Also, understand the difference between assets and liabilities. I am not an accountant so those are very basic explanations.

Assets are investments in money (or time) that make you earn more money, have a return on that investment.
Liabilities are, basically, money (or time) going elsewhere for a service, or an object with no return on that investment.

For example, a rent is a liability. But if you buy a house, and you pay to reimburse the debt you made, it's an asset. The money you pay the bank to reimburse the interests for that debt is a liability.

You cannot avoid liabilities, but you can reduce them. Food, clothes, insurances are all liabilities. You can for example buy a house (yeah I know, not that easy) so you do not pay any rent anymore. But if the house starts to lose its value, it becomes a liability.

It will take a few months to adjust your budget but with a clearer vision of your situation you can only make it better.

Major expenses for me are : rent, food, taxes

At some point, the only solution will be to increase your income and that is when you have to improve yourself, get a better job, find alternative sources of money, etc...

Hope this help.

 

[Bingo-Player]

Well, I have no idea how it works in the US when insurance and health care are concerned. But here's how you can get your budget done pretty easily.

What you will need is a paper and a pen. But I advise you to go on Google and create a Sheet. That will make the math a lot more easier and automatic.

First, make a list of your incomes and write them down on the sheet on a mensual and annual basis :

Salary : 5'000 - 60'000
Sport bets : 500 - 6'000
Total : 5'500 - 66'000

Second, make a list of everything you have to pay every month and year :

Rent : 1'500 - 18'000
Insurances : 200 - 2'400
Gas : ...
Leasing : ...
Taxes : ...
Food : ...
Clothes : ...
Total: 4'500

If you have no idea how much you pay for Food or Clothes, make rough estimate and write them down. You will be shocked how much we spend on those.

Third, substract the income and what you pay :

5'500 - 4'500 = 1'000$

That number is what you have left at the end of the month.

Great! Easy stuff!

You can update that list whenever you pay some bill or increase, decrease your income.

Now, come the tricky part, optimizing your budget.

Obsiously, you have to increase your income and decrease your expenses. With a budget of that kind, it's getting pretty easy to "read" your financial situation.

Also, understand the difference between assets and liabilities. I am not an accountant so those are very basic explanations.

Assets are investments in money (or time) that make you earn more money, have a return on that investment.
Liabilities are, basically, money (or time) going elsewhere for a service, or an object with no return on that investment.

For example, a rent is a liability. But if you buy a house, and you pay to reimburse the debt you made, it's an asset. The money you pay the bank to reimburse the interests for that debt is a liability.

You cannot avoid liabilities, but you can reduce them. Food, clothes, insurances are all liabilities. You can for example buy a house (yeah I know, not that easy) so you do not pay any rent anymore. But if the house starts to lose its value, it becomes a liability.

It will take a few months to adjust your budget but with a clearer vision of your situation you can only make it better.

Major expenses for me are : rent, food, taxes

At some point, the only solution will be to increase your income and that is when you have to improve yourself, get a better job, find alternative sources of money, etc...

Hope this help.

thanks !