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Parenting & Family

6 Quick Tips to Set Up a Family Budget

The quickest way to double your money is to fold it in half and put it in your back pocket.

Will Rogers

Let’s talk about money.

Do you know that making a budget is a key step to a strong financial foundation?

When you have your budget, it will help you to control your spending, stay out of debt and save more money.

When you’re a working mom, it only takes a few easy tricks to set up a family budget:

Create a budget.

  1. The key step to living on a budget is by tracking your family’s income and expenses.
  2. Make a note of all your bills, bank statements, and chequebook stubs.
  3. File every document that you have to show money coming in or going out.

When you are done with these, draw up a budget to manage your money.

If you are living day by day without a budget in mind, you are most likely leaving behind opportunities to address the undesirable expenses and set aside money.

Creating a budget can save you big money later for your family.

Set financial goals.
When struggling for months to pay bills, saving money might seem to be a long-term goal.

If you want to save money for your kid’s university fund or gather money away for your pension, setting goals is an ideal option for protecting your family’s future.

Don’t ignore short term goals either. Let your financial goals include a reduction in monthly outgoings like utility bills and other expenses that limits you from saving money each month.

Get out of debt.
Being in debt can be an overwhelming and frustrating experience.

Managing your debt is easy when you set realistic goals.

A plan on debt management can be built to pay off your mortgage, credit card, and eliminate your overall debt.

You may not be able to pay off all your debt in a single day (unless you win the lottery or sitting on a pot of inheritance or you discover a gold mine), but you can set up a realistic plan toward clearing off your debt.

By doing this, you realize where your money truly needs to go.

Lower your taxes.

Stop dreading tax deadline every year.

  1. A simple adjustment can reduce your taxes and save you money
  2. Selecting the right filing status, using the child tax credit, and taking advantage of child care and dependent care expenses, are among the tax rule you need to be aware every time you file your taxes.

Plan for financial emergencies.
The stress of financial emergencies can put stress on even the wealthiest family.

  1. Creating an emergency fund will help you to save for unexpected expenses.
  2. Having a will and life insurance in place can shield your family from hardship if something happens to you and your spouse.

The benefit of having a financial emergency outweigh the cost.

Control spending on food.
Try to reduce the cost of feeding your family by having a well-planned food budget.

You can save money on groceries with a simple, ready-made shopping list of your family’s favorite recipes.

You can even think outside the grocery store (like buying fruits & Vegetables from the market stalls) to archive more savings.

Look for restaurants that offer family deals like kids eat free or 25% off Kids meals. These are budget-friendly options, that will provide you with a break from the kitchen without stretching your bank account.

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