By Allen Hudson, president of the Dallas Banking Center at NDBT.
According to Forbes
, 78% of workers in the U.S. are living paycheck-to-paycheck. This stress is often a result of poor planning
and spending beyond a family’s means. Check out these 3 simple strategies to kick-start healthy spending
habits for your household.
- Create a monthly family budget - Having a simple set plan for your family’s budget
provides you with a roadmap of your monthly income vs. your monthly expenses. This allows you to visualize
where you can expect to spend your money, and where you can spend freely without feeling guilty. This
strategy also gives you a synopsis of your spending patterns and assists you with how to budget future
months accordingly.
- Organize your set budget – When creating your family’s budget, map out all of your
sources of income and subtract your expenses accordingly. Prioritize the essentials: food, housing,
clothing, and transportation, and then budget for paying off debts and miscellaneous expenses that’ll occur
during the month. Finally, make a zero-based budget by subtracting your desired savings amount and your
planned expenses from your income.
- Regularly review your budget - Reviewing your budget regularly and seeing how well you
stick to it will allow you to set financial goals accordingly. When budgeting for a family, it’s important
that you and your spouse are on the same page regarding your current spending and future goals. With
communication, consistency and time, you’ll see the value and liberation that comes with budgeting!
Need help getting started? Check out The Federal Trade Commission's budget form at consumer.gov/budget
, or talk to one of our bankers at NDBT today!
