Budgeting-Great Advice On Budgeting Worksheets, Personal Budgeting, And Budgeting Tips

alenehan1 asked:

Absolutely hilarious,Jake Stevens from the ***** Camera renting a Budget Car in Helsinki

Casey Oerther

Ryder asked:


My research topic is dealing with personal financing and budgeting – managing one’s own money, and dealing with their personal expenses, etc…. basically the PROBLEMS that they run into, but I am focusing on hospital staff. 10 points goes to the best answer.

Francesco Zwickl

One you can afford – seriously. 

 

Look at how much you earn. What can you put aside for a trip? What are you prepared to sacrifice to make your trip a reality? Maybe you’ve been saving for a while and have a few thousand dollars in the bank. You do? Great. Well that’s your realistic budget. If you want to fly to Europe tomorrow and you only have ten dollars in the bank then you are not being realistic. But it might be enough to get you in to the local museum for a few hours escape.

 

When you are setting your budget, be practical. Everyone has different needs for their travel experience and if your travel plans include overseas flights, you will need to budget accordingly. Sure you can find great deals and get there cheaper than you might have expected, but make sure you have enough money in your budget to not only get you there but to travel around, find a place to sleep, oh and have enough money to be able to eat! 

 

So how do you go about setting a budget? Following these steps might help:

1. Draw up a table with two columns.

2. Column A is for Expense Items. Column B is for Approximate Costs.

3. In column A write down all the things you can think of that will cost you money while traveling. These might include: air flights, car hire/fuel allowance, travel passes, sight-seeing tours, accommodation, food, insurance, immunizations, and souvenirs.

4. In column B write an estimate of how much you think these things will cost while on your trip. You can research your travel costs quite easily on the Internet. Food allowance might be a bit more difficult. If you are traveling alone, as a couple or in a family you will need to budget food costs accordingly.

5. Now add up the costs. This will give you an estimate of how much your trip will cost. Can you afford it? Yes – then this is a realistic budget for you. If not, then you may have to rethink your destination and the type of travel experience you want.

 

Remember that this table will only be an estimate of your travel costs. You must also budget for incidentals and prepare yourself for things to not go to plan. For example, have you got enough money in your budget to buy new clothes if your luggage goes missing? A realistic travel budget will have extra built in to it to cover emergencies. Setting yourself a budget of about sixty-five dollars a day, if traveling alone, is a reasonable amount. If you are traveling as a family or in a group, this number will be vastly different. 

 

Also consider if you will be traveling and working. If this is the case, then you may not need as much to start with, just enough money to get you to your destination and a place to live while you look for work. (And enough money to buy you food until you begin earning a wage.)

 

Start making your travel plans with your budget in mind. Don’t exceed your budget, always keep a little in reserve so you can buy that fantastic Italian leather handbag or go jet-skiing in Hawaii if the desire takes you!

 

This article is brought to you by: Stuart S. Travel – Your Online Travel Guru

www.stuartstravel.com



By: Stuart S. Travel

About the Author:

Keila Woods

julianna76301 asked:


I am not a wealthy woman, but maintain an above average salary, but seem to always be living from pay check to pay check. I understand that I have to stop impulse buying etc… but is there a sound equation that I could apply to my budget and follow it? Any help would be appreciated.

Alden Nappi

When forming your wedding budget, decide first how much to spend for the wedding, then how the expenses will be divided. If you search around, you will be able to find other sample wedding budgets and wedding budget worksheets. Paying for wedding expenses can be handled in a variety of ways. The responsibility can be:

(a) assumed primarily by the brides parents

(b) assumes primarily by the grooms parents

(c) shared equally by both sets of parents

(d) shared by both families together with the bride and groom

(e) assumed entirely by the bride and groom themselves

Wedding Budget

Final responsibility for wedding costs has been stated by tradition, but there is really no right or wrong way to handle the costs. It is a matter of choice. It is appropriate to discuss the budget with both sets of parents, especially when they bear some or all of the financial responsibility. Be sure everyone involved agrees on the budget.

Wedding Budget Worksheet

A spirit of compromise should lessen the possibility of hurt feelings as your families agree together on the wedding budget. When setting your budget priorities, compromise on quantity, not quality. The amount of your budget will not necessarily determine the style of your wedding; you can have a formal wedding and reception on a limited budget with careful planning and a smaller guest list. You do not need a wedding budget worksheet to get an idea on how much to spend. The following percentage estimates may be useful in breaking down your total wedding budget into categories:

reception 48%

bridal attire 13%

flowers 10%

photography 9%

dj entertainment 8%

rentals 3%

miscellaneous fees 3%

bridesmaids gifts 2%

transportation 2%

stationary 2%

These percentages are a starting point for developing your budget and can be used as a tool when selecting various wedding vendors. To determine a guideline figure for each category in your budget, use this equation:

Your total budget x each items estimated percentage

Sample Wedding Budget

Okay, here is a sample wedding budget. Assume that your total budget is $10,000 (below the national average for how much a wedding costs, and you want to know a guideline for determining how much to spend for DJ entertainment. Using the formula above, you multiply $10,000 times .08 = $800. Therefore, as a guideline for a $10,000 wedding budget, $800 would be an appropriate amount to spend on DJ entertainment.

You can change the percentages given above, depending on what you want to emphasize in your wedding. Be sure to prioritize the following aspects of a wedding according to what is most important to you:

- number of guests to be invited

- wedding site (church, synagogue, hotel, club, at home)

- reception location (church hall, hotel, club, at home)

- bridal attire (what you will wear)

- food and beverages (what kind, and how will they be served)

- flowers (what kind and how many)

- photographs (which professional photographer company to choose)

- music (soloists, live music, DJ entertainment, dancing)

- transportation (a limousine, a luxury rental car, friends new car, or family car)

After having computed the amounts for each category, you may want to reevaluate your priorities. Make whatever adjustments are necessary to more closely meet your expectations. Once you have determined the amounts for each category, keep track of them with wedding planning forms. For some expenses that are traditionally the groom’s responsibility – such as certain flowers and his wedding attire – the cost will be determined by the overall wedding style. Other items in his budget will reflect his own preferences.

Your budget should be flexible enough so that unexpected costs will not ruin it. You can usually expect to pay from 10 to 50 percent as a deposit for services. This deposit is often required in cash. You may want to consider opening a new checking account allotted for your wedding and reception expenses.

Wedding Budget Planning

Together you and your fiancé can use the ideas and formulas mentioned in this article for healthy wedding budget planning. You should keep a close tab on the budgeted amounts, total costs, deposits made, and the balance due in each category.



By: Robert Reno

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Cynthia

kd_lifer asked:


Ideally just something to track expenses, financial planning etc. Thanks for any replies.

Cary Italiano