Don't know where to start...

-taff

rozmister wrote: »

It's not quite the same as day to day budgeting which comes with a lot more unexpected costs and is harder to forecast.

But you don't have to budget day to day.
You can budget month to month for recurring bills like rent, travel costs, insurances, week to week for grocery shopping, etc.

Make a meal plan for 7 days, buy only what you need to make those meals [ go to the old style board for more help there].

If you get paid monthly, work out what bills come in each month, move the direct debits for those bills to the day or 2 days after you get paid. That leaves you with a chunk of available money you divide by roughly 4 weeks until you next get paid.

Out of that, you minus everything you need for travel costs to get to work, grocery costs, other weekly necessary expenses. Things like coffee on the way to work are not necessary expenses by the way.

When you've accounted for all those, what's left is what you have extra to spend or save as you see fit.

You could set up two or more bank accounts, one for your wages and the bills to be paid, then transfer a certain amount to your weekly spending account.

I have two spreadsheets for two bank accounts, which I fill in each month, they keep a running total of everything I spend and then I know exactly how much I have left for treats, or purchases that fall outside necessary monthly and weekly expenditure.

-taff

rozmister wrote: »

I might get an e-cigarette, my housemate has one and swears by it but I really enjoy the whole routine of a cigarette and I thought if I was still in the habit of holding a 'cigarette' type product it would be easier to fall back into real cigarettes. We'll see how well my lofty ideas work out in practice this week though!!

Personally, I'd recommend buying or getting from the library [free ] the alan carr book on stopping smoking.
The only thing with that book is though, you do have to not lie to yourself about smoking.
The main reason I didn;t stop smoking sooner was that I thought I would spend the rest of my life wanting a cigarette and being unable to have one. That's not the case at all, I never want one now. But as I said, you do have to not lie to yourself.
The only discomfot I found from stopping was that I felt hungry for about a week, even if I'd eaten, and there was an awful lot of wind for a month or so.
Not pretty, but not as ugly as my lungs were

getmore4less

rozmister wrote: »

Thanks eyes wide open, I'll start one when I get paid this month. I am quitting smoking to save money as I figure that easily accounts for £60 - £70 spending a month straight off the bat.

START NOW.

The spending diary is about finding out where your money currently goes.

The budget is the plan of where you want to allocate the money.

Make a plan for at least 12 month forward.

Track your spending is to plan if not change the plan.

Why not use the same tools and techniques you use for work.

On here you need to condense your yearly plan into the SOA format.

if rent includes things you put zero and a note to say why it is zero.

rozmister

I already do budget for my monthly expenses such as rent, bills, travel to work, insurances - I pay them all each month out of my wages and take them out as soon as my wage goes in. I have a separate account for my bills already so my wages go into one with no direct debits set up on it then all the money to pay for things goes into one specifically for direct debits. I'm never late on my bills and I've just taken over our house bills because I'm the most organised when it comes to setting up direct debits and ensuring they get paid.

I don't have any spreadsheets for spending though so I'll set one up to fill in as I buy things. I've got £8.52 in my purse for the next 8 days so I've got nothing to spend to write about in my diary so I thought it was best to wait until I had some money to start a spending diary but I could do one about how I spend that £8.52. I don't know if it'll reflect my normal spending habits though.

I couldn't tell you the last time I bought a coffee from a coffee shop and I never bother buying one on my way in because we've got a kettle in the office I think the majority of my 'missing' money is either spent on groceries that aren't in my weekly shop (whimsical £2 or £3 purchases on the way home) and socialising with friends by looking at the receipts in my purse so I suppose that's at least easy to cut back on.

My budget so far for this month is:

Wages - £1250

Outgoings:
Rent - £342
Bills - £138
Phone bill - £50 (reducing to £32 next month)
Bank costs (overdraft interest & silver account charge) - £30
Store cards - £30
Dentist - £18.50
National Trust DD - £20
Travel - £52
Debts to friends - £80
Reducing overdraft - £100
Savings - £150
Birthday party - £30
Total: £1040.50

Remaining money for food & everything else - £209.50

I need to take everything out of the cupboards and review what I have before I make a food budget as I thought I might try a month of getting creative with all the odd bits I have. Started today by making falafel out of a packet in the cupboard which I'm going to put in wraps for my lunch this week

getmore4less

rozmister wrote: »

I've got £8.52 in my purse for the next 8 days so I've got nothing to spend to write about in my diary so I thought it was best to wait until I had some money to start a spending diary but I could do one about how I spend that £8.52. I don't know if it'll reflect my normal spending habits though.

Try doing a spending diary for the last 4 months(from Jan 1st) account for every penny of income, look at your statement cash taken out etc.

See how close you get to accounting for the full amount, if that is a struggle try just April.

The next 8 days are the start of your future, start that diary.

I bet if you don't you won't remember by the end of May where that money went(try last weeks spends if all of April is a problem)

Just recording £8.52 is the start of a spending diary, remember what was in your purse at 9.58pm last Monday?

...

getmore4less

rozmister wrote: »

My budget so far for this month is:

Wages - £1250

Outgoings:
Rent - £342
Bills - £138
Phone bill - £50 (reducing to £32 next month)
Bank costs (overdraft interest & silver account charge) - £30
Store cards - £30
Dentist - £18.50
National Trust DD - £20
Travel - £52
Debts to friends - £80
Reducing overdraft - £100
Savings - £150
Birthday party - £30
Total: £1040.50

Remaining money for food & everything else - £209.50

I need to take everything out of the cupboards and review what I have before I make a food budget as I thought I might try a month of getting creative with all the odd bits I have. Started today by making falafel out of a packet in the cupboard which I'm going to put in wraps for my lunch this week

You need to be thinking for full year, you need the averages per month for things, using up the food this months just means more next month, no clothes for few months then need to buy stuff. nothing for insurance it come in one month


How realistic is this you are prioritizing optional/discretionary before essentials like food.

rozmister

getmore4less wrote: »

You need to be thinking for full year, you need the averages per month for things, using up the food this months just means more next month, no clothes for few months then need to buy stuff. nothing for insurance it come in one month


How realistic is this you are prioritizing optional/discretionary before essentials like food.

I don't pay for any insurance as an annual lump - we have contents insurance included in our bills as a monthly payment and I don't run a car. The money I pay for my silver bank account covers phone insurance, travel insurance and handbag insurance which are the only additional insurances I need.

I'm not failing to prioritise food there's so much food in my cupboards and freezer no more will fit in, what's the point in buying more food to cram in there when some of it probably should be eaten? Yes, eventually I'll need to replenish the cupboards and freezer but maybe after it reaches a more manageable level?

I've got so many clothes it's untrue, I think I probably will eventually need to buy some more but not for at least three months and my main focus this month was on clearing my debts to friends & getting through the month without borrowing again so that next month that £80 is in my pocket rather than taken out at the beginning of the month to pay people back. I can see the benefit of budgeting for clothes and birthdays/holidays/christmas so I'm happy to incorporate it in after I've managed to make my wages stretch a full month.

rozmister

getmore4less wrote: »

Try doing a spending diary for the last 4 months(from Jan 1st) account for every penny of income, look at your statement cash taken out etc.

See how close you get to accounting for the full amount, if that is a struggle try just April.

The next 8 days are the start of your future, start that diary.

I bet if you don't you won't remember by the end of May where that money went(try last weeks spends if all of April is a problem)

Just recording £8.52 is the start of a spending diary, remember what was in your purse at 9.58pm last Monday?

...

I can account for last weeks spending and last Monday in my purse at 9.58pm there was no money whatsoever. I'd poured my pennies into a jar and I'd spent all my bigger change in the shop the night before. I definitely couldn't go back to the beginning of January though! About 1/4 - 1/3 of my money has been withdrawn as cash and I couldn't tell you where it ended up.

I'll set up a spreadsheet tomorrow to monitor my costs from now on!

-taff

rozmister wrote: »

My budget so far for this month is:

Wages - £1250

Outgoings:
Rent - £342
Bills - £138 - what bills? Can you change any of them to different providers more cheaply?
Phone bill - £50 (reducing to £32 next month)
Bank costs (overdraft interest & silver account charge) - £30 - do you really need a monthly travel insurance? You can get that for £10 for a whole year. Do you not have insurance with your contract for your phone? Or can you shop around for a cheaper mobile insurance?
Store cards - £30 Are these 0%? Are you paying insurance on outstanding amounts?
Dentist - £18.50 Every month?
National Trust DD - £20
Travel - £52
Debts to friends - £80 -
Reducing overdraft - £100
Savings - £150 -Use your savings to reduce your overdraft unless it's a 0% overdraft otherwise you'l be paying more in interest on your overdraft than you'll get on your savings.
Birthday party - £30 - Every month?
Total: £1040.50

Remaining money for food & everything else - £209.50

I need to take everything out of the cupboards and review what I have before I make a food budget as I thought I might try a month of getting creative with all the odd bits I have. Started today by making falafel out of a packet in the cupboard which I'm going to put in wraps for my lunch this week

Like I said the old style board will help with a food planner, or the blog of 'A girl called Jack'.

getmore4less

rozmister wrote: »

I can account for last weeks spending and last Monday in my purse at 9.58pm there was no money whatsoever. I'd poured my pennies into a jar and I'd spent all my bigger change in the shop the night before. I definitely couldn't go back to the beginning of January though! About 1/4 - 1/3 of my money has been withdrawn as cash and I couldn't tell you where it ended up.

I'll set up a spreadsheet tomorrow to monitor my costs from now on!

The tracking will help, often just having to record things stops the spending, but you need a plan for the year

Without it you will continue to go month to month not really knowing what's what.

Do a forward plan for the financial year up to March 2015.

OK you won't need clothes for three month but how much do you plan to spend between now and end of march, do this for everything and make sure it all adds up to how much is coming in.

When you have a plan that balance for the year you can then review the cash flow to make sure that the money lasts to the end of the month.