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What Does A Realistic Budget Look Like? - Money Under 30
Incorporate unplanned entertainment in your budget
Financial professionals will advise you to cut out expensive nights out. In truth, you will have night's out, even when you're dirt poor.
To incorporate unplanned entertainment, set aside an amount each month. Be realistic. You can open another savings account for fun spending or you can use cash only.
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Key Ideas
Regular monthly bills
The bulk of your budget is made up of necessities like rent, phone and internet bills, insurance, etc. If you can lower your monthly expenses, you can save a lot for unplanned events.
- Find a cheaper place to live.
- Get a cheaper phone plan
- Find a better insurance company
- Grocery show once a week, so you don't waste food.
Debt when you're on a tight budget
There are a couple of paths you can take to pay off your high-interest debt when you're on a tight budget.
- The snowball method. For those who need to see progress, pay off the lowest balance first. You'll feel inspired to keep going.
- The avalanche method. Choose the debt with the highest interest rate to pay off first. This may require larger monthly payments and will take longer to see progress, but you will save the most money in the long run.
- If you need to prioritize your credit score, focus on paying down your credit cards first. Paying the ones you are near to maxing out will improve your score quickly by a few points.
- Set up payment plans, even if you can only afford a few dollars at a time. That way, your lenders can see you're paying something.
Incorporate unplanned entertainment in your budget
Financial professionals will advise you to cut out expensive nights out. In truth, you will have night's out, even when you're dirt poor.
To incorporate unplanned entertainment, set aside an amount each month. Be realistic. You can open another savings account for fun spending or you can use cash only.
Things you don’t usually think about when budgeting
- Emergency funds are essential, even if you put a bare minimum towards it.
- Birthdays, Christmas, or car registration are expenses you should be able to plan for. Set aside some money towards it every week, and by the end of 12 months, you'll have a set amount to spend on these items.
- If you have pets, you'll need to include a portion of your budget for their food and vet bills.
Budgeting apps vs pen and paper
There are many great budgeting apps. However, apps can be frustrating and boring to use, or we may just get lazy.
Sometimes a pen and paper work best because it gives you a hand in your budget. With this method, you can also change your budget when you need to include extra expenses.
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Refinancing your home
When mortgage interest rates get low, refinancing isn't always the best choice.
Deciding when to refinance your home loan depends on several factors besides whether you...
Reasons to refinance your mortgage
The two big reasons to refinance are:
- To reduce your monthly mortgage payment
- To save on the overall interest you will pay on your house in the long run.
Refinancing does not always reduce the monthly payment or save on the overall interest.. A loan officer or mortgage broker can help you run scenarios that show you the cost and potential savings of refinancing.
How long you keep your home
Generally, it makes sense to refinance if you plan on staying in your home for many years.
If you plan to sell the property soon, don't refinance. Refinancing could take years to break even and begin saving you money.
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How much you should save every month
The popular 50/30/20 rule states that you should reserve 50 percent of your budget for essentials like rent and food, 30 percent for discretionary spending, and 20 percent for savings.
But ...
Why 20 percent is recommended
Assuming you're in your 20s or 30s and can earn an average investment return of five percent a year, you'll need to save about 20 percent of your income so you can reach financial independence when you're older.
Financial independence means that you can maintain your chosen lifestyle entirely from the interest of your investments and dividends.
The four percent rule
The four percent rule states that you could withdraw four percent of your principal balance every year and live on this indefinitely. That means you need to save 25 times your annual expenses to become financially independent.
The four percent rule is not perfect. There is no risk-free investment that yields that much today. Sudden inflation could also cause a problem.
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The snowball debt method
With this method, you pay off your debts from the smallest balance to the largest balance, regardless of interest rates.
When you pay the smallest debts first, you start to...
The avalanche debt method
In the debt avalanche method, you pay your debts from the highest interest rate to the lowest interest rate, regardless of balance.
You will pay less in interest if you pay off your debts in this order. You will also pay it off faster.
Deciding between the Snowball and Avalanche debt methods
The supporters of the two methods are both enthusiastic about which one to use. However, it barely matters which system you use. The best approach is the one that keeps you motivated.
Make the minimum payments on all of your debt. Then, focus on one debt that bothers you the most and put every dollar you can towards it until it is gone. Then move on to the next debt.