|
Insight from author and parent advocate Brenda Jenkins
Tiffany D. Tilley
An essential part of a family’s capacity to endure through rough economical times is their ability to develop a cost-effective system in which their expenses can be effectively managed.
The willingness to stick to a budget and trim the fat where necessary, are key factors to helping families during financial crunches. Parent advocate and author, Brenda Jenkins, agrees that it is important for a family to create a budget in order to live within their means and for the care of basic responsibilities.
“The key for implementing a budget is accepting the truth about what you have coming in, the truth about what are your basic needs, the ability to determine the need versus the want. I think the last one is unique to each person,” Jenkins said.
Budgets will differ tremendously in each household not only because of income levels, but priorities and goals are also key factors. What is important for some may be minute to others. For instance, two households with the same income could have totally different lifestyles. For one family, a house in the suburbs with a luxury car and children in public school could be a very sufficient existence. Another family could prefer to live in the city, own a compact car and send their children to private school. It is important for the family to decide what qualities of life are most important to them.
Everyone wants to be able to budget while living their dream. Jenkins believes this is attainable, “Their dream is in the vision of where they want to go. You need to know what that costs. Then based on the income you have right now, the budget will help you save toward the dream that you want.”
Creating a financial plan is a great way to show children the value of a hard-earned dollar. Not only is it a great tool that will be an asset to them throughout their lifetime, it is a wonderful family activity. Knowing how to balance expenditures can aid them in becoming wealth-building adults. “Depending on their age you can even help them do a budget on their own. If they’re younger and get an allowance, you can help them budget their necessities. If they’re older teenagers you can actually share the budget and how you would budget a household to teach them.” Jenkins said.
Knowing and adhering to your financial limitations set people apart. Decipher through your necessities and be realistic when making your decisions. What are the basics that you must have now and what are the extras that can wait until later? Sustainability really comes down to taking responsibility for getting what you need versus getting what you want.
For more information on Brenda Jenkins please go to: www.mannaentertainmentgroup.com.
Tips for Structuring a Family Budget
Regardless of what system you use to classify your expenses, you should observe a few basic guidelines. Keep similar expenses in the same category and set up enough different categories to provide a meaningful record for your expenses. Following are basic budget categories to consider:
• Food (food eaten at home, food away from home, snacks, coffee breaks, school lunches, home food production)
• Housing (mortgage payments or rent)
• Utilities (gas, electricity, garbage pickup, water, television cable, telephone, cell phone, internet connection)
• Housing operation or household expenditures (laundry/cleaning supplies, paper goods, postage, home insurance, property taxes, yard care, hired help)
• Household repairs (roof, painting, plumbing)
• Health (medical and hospital insurance premiums, doctor and dentist bills, medicine, eyeglasses, hearing aids, first aid supplies, treatments or therapy, transportation to receive medical care)
• Equipment and Furnishings (furniture, rugs, curtains, pictures, vases, mirror, appliances, kitchen utensils, bedding, linens, china, silver, glassware, equipment repair)
• Transportation (car purchase, car expenses - gas, oil, repairs, tires, licenses, insurance, maintenance, taxes - parking fees, bus, plane or train tickets, taxi fares or rentals)
• Clothing (ready to wear, footwear, cleaning and repair, sewing supplies, accessories, alterations)
• Personal Care (haircuts, beauty shop, allowances, cosmetics, toiletries, shaving supplies and other personal care items)
• Gifts (holiday and special occasion purchases, including wrapping paper, flowers, cards)
• Contributions (charitable donations, i.e. church, civic and educational organizations)
• Education (school supplies, books and supplies, magazines, newspapers, lessons)
• Business related expenses (union dues, professional dues, business licenses and insurance, tools required for the job)
• Child Care (babysitting, daycare)
• Recreation (social club dues, sports, admission, equipment, movies, records, tapes, tobacco, liquor, hobby supplies)
• Pet (food, licenses, supplies, veterinarian fees)
• Banking & credit cost (fees for service & interest charged on any credit purchase)
• Insurance (life, disability, liability - insurance not included in other categories)
• Savings and investments (might include savings for emergency fund as well as for goals or could have a separate category)
• Miscellaneous (legal fees, income taxes)
|
