Friday, 14 Aug 2009
Soon, it will be time to start thinking about next year’s budget. I took a preliminary stab earlier this week and I don’t like what I see. So what I am going to do about it? I don’t know yet.
Travel is really the budget buster but anyone who knows me knows how I love to travel. I travel as economically as possible (using FF miles and hotel points and searching out deals) but we still spend large amounts on travel. I’m thinking the solution is to refocus my efforts to pay off my car early. Once that happens, I’ll have more money left over for traveling and for saving. I have had a couple of abnormal expenses this year (tuition for two classes, unexpected medical expenses while on vacation and the purchase of a netbook) but I’ve got to do better.
Have you started putting together your budget for next year? I know it’s ‘only’ August but fall will be here before you know. Next are Thanksgiving and Christmas and you know you won’t get anything done then. So pull out your records and a piece of paper this weekend and get started!
August 20th, 2009 at 9:59 PM
We dont update our budget yearly. We do it when something big changes.
We have just refinanced to a 15 Year Mortgage (We were on a 7 year balloon ending next August). I got nervous that one of two things might happen. Interest rates would go up dramatically or one of us would loose our job – which would then make refinancing tough. Anyway so I have had to re-do our budget. This time I have also worked out which bills we need to pay at the beginning of the month and which can wait to the second half.
We have a simple goal at the moment – spend less than we are earning. That has proved a little difficult recently. I was only working part time (32 hours) and we were paying two sets of child care fees. My daughter has started Kindergarten – so now we only have to pay after school care – and I now work full time again. However we will soon move my younger daughter into a pre-school. So her day care costs will go up.
Our travel budget is also large. I am from the UK – so I like to get back home at least once year. This was our last time paying a reduced fare for my younger daughter – so next year it will be four full fares. Once we are there – it is quite cheap.