10 Household Budget Worksheet Templates
Everyone needs to know how to manage their finances. If people just spend money on whatever they want, whenever they want, that can have some serious repercussions. If they do not know how to manage their money wisely, then they could end up in debt. You may also see worksheet templates.
If you do not want this to happen to you, you need to use a budget worksheet. This article is going to focus on helping you understand how to create one for yourself and why it is important that you do so. We have also collected some great samples of budget worksheets that can help you when you are making your own, so check them out below.
Household Budget Worksheet Template
Free Home Budgeting Worksheet
aarp.org
Family Budget Worksheet
lds.org
Blank Home Budget Worksheet
rocksolidrockisland.com
Home Budget Worksheet
moneyunder30.com
Home Finance Budget Worksheet
amscot.com
How to create a household budget
By having a household budget, you will be able to save more, spend less, and get rid of any problems that concern interest payments or debts. All you have to do is document your current spending and earnings, as well as have the financial discipline to adjust your spending so that you can ensure that you are on the stable financial ground. So, here are the steps that should help you make a proper and efficient household budget:
1. Decide how you are going to document your spending, earnings, and budget
While you can stick to the traditional method and make use of a pen and paper, you can also use a spreadsheet program such as Microsoft Excel or an accounting program if you have access to one.
- Calculations in a simple accounting program are automated as they have been specially made for this type of project. This type of program also has other features that could end up being useful for whenever you have to start formulating your household budget. However, they are not free, so you have to shell out some cash if you want to make use of such a helpful tool.
- A lot of spreadsheet programs already come with budget templates that you can make use of and edit whenever you want. They will need to be customized for your specific needs, but this is much more preferable than having to start from scratch.
- You can also use electronic budgeting software to help make it easier for you to keep track of how much you are making and spending.
2. Format the columns of your spreadsheet
When you start, work from left to right. Use titles for columns such as “date of expense”, “amount of expense“, “payment method”, and “fixed/discretionary”.
- The payment method column will help you to keep track of all the records that contain your expenses. For example, if you pay your electric bills with a credit card every single month, then put down “credit card” as the payment method in the column.
- You have to remain disciplined and constantly update both your income and expense records either daily or weekly. There are a lot of budgeting software which already have apps so that it will be much more convenient for you whenever you have to update your sample spreadsheet.
3. Categorize all of your expenses
You have to categorize all of your expenses so that it will be much easier for you to determine where your money is going. Plus, this is also very helpful for when you have to put in your expenses from an organization standpoint. Common categories that you will see in a lot of household budget samples are the following:
- Utilities such as gas, electricity, and water
- Groceries
- Rent or mortgage
- Transportation
Utilizing a budgeting software to help you out with this gives you the added benefit of being able to easily categorize the type of spending as well as calculate the total of each category. If you are going to make use of a paper ledger, then it is best that you create a separate page for each category. This will also depend on the number of expenses that are in every category at the end of each month. You may also see homemade coupon template.
4. Place your biggest regular expenses in the spreadsheet
These would be things such as rent or mortgage that you have to pay for every month or the monthly bills for utilities such as water and electricity. Installation payments such as those for credit cards or for your car can also be placed in here. Make a separate row for every expense. Put in estimates as placeholders until you get the number of the final bill. You may also see Free Budget Templates.
- There are some bills whose amount remains the same at the end of every month while there are others whose figures may vary. Place an estimate of the bills that re-occur and, once you get the actual amount, that is when you have to put the number in the blank spreadsheet.
- Try to round the number up to the nearest 10 so you can gather an estimate of how much you spend on every item. You may also see Spreadsheet Examples.
- There are some utility companies that allow you to pay average amounts all year, instead of having your bills either go up or down at the end of every month. You may want to apply for this option if you think that paying a certain amount regularly is a must for you. You may also see work sheet templates.
5. Calculate all of your regular expenses
You have to know what you spend on and how much you are spending on that particular item. How much do you pay your monthly rent? How much do you usually spend on groceries? Think of the expenses that you need to make and not the ones that you can forego every now and then. After you have made a row for this particular category, place an estimate of how much you spend on each item. Once you have the total amount of each item, then you may replace the estimated number with the actual number.
- Whenever you start spending, it is best that you keep the sample receipts or at least take note of the amount you spend. At the end of the day, tally up all of your expenses through your computer, phone, or even on paper. Be sure to take note of the exact thing that you spent on and not just a generic term such as food or sample transportation.
6. Include any luxury expenses
These are the expenses that you usually make because you really want them. Basically, these are your wants that you can cut out of your budget should you feel that they are no longer worth the price or if you need to make adjustments to your budget. This can be anything from those expensive dinners that you have every night, to movie tickets that you treat yourself to every now and then.
7. Insert a row for savings
Although there may be times when you are not able to save anything at the end of the day, week or even month, it is still important to have it as a smart goal and make sure that it is accomplished if possible.
- The greatest target that you could possibly hope to achieve is at least 10% of your paycheck stub. This is just the right kind of amount to ensure that you have steady savings while making sure that it does not affect the other areas of your life. Do not wait to see if you can save anything; make sure that you set aside money that you will put in your savings account.
- Adjust the savings amount if you think that you cannot save the same number every single month. An even better option is for you to adjust just how much you are spending. Money that you can save is something that you can use to treat yourself every now and then, or it can be used to serve other purposes such as buying a home, paying your child’s tuition, or booking a long vacation sample that you deserve.
- There are some banks that offer customers a savings program option. This program rounds up each transaction you make with your debit card and then it transfers the difference into your savings account. It will also try to match a percentage of your savings. It ensures that you have something saved up at the end of every month.
8. Add up all of the expenditures at the end of every month
Add up each section of rows individually and then add everything together to get the total amount. This way, you will be able to see the percentage of your income that you spend on every category as well as the total amount of all your expenses. You may also see sheet template.
9. Record all of your sources of income
Make sure that this is everything from the salary you get from your job to the money you find lying on the floor. Record all the income you gain from every source in the same level of detail that you would with how you record your expenses. Sum these up monthly or weekly expenses, as appropriate.
10. Place the total amount of income and the total amount of expenses side-by-side
If you see that the total amount of expenses exceeds the total amount of income, then you have to greatly reconsider your budgeting plan and think of ways to save more money and cut down on expenses you do not really need to make.
- If you want to cut back on those expenses that you think you do not need, then it is best that you have detailed information on the different things that you spend on every single month. You should also determine which of these expenses are a priority so that you know which of them you have to keep and which of them you can easily get rid off to save more money.
- On the other hand, if your monthly income is higher than the number of sample expenses, then you should definitely put some away into your savings. This kind of money is going to be very helpful in the event that an emergency situation arises, or if you just want to spend on things like a day at the spa or a trip that you have been planning for a while.
11. Target specific areas of spending that you need to decrease
You have to pick out those expenses that you think you go overboard with. Set a limit for each of them and make sure that you do not go over the spending limit at the end of every month.
- It is fine if you have a free budget for your luxury items, but you have to make sure that you have a set budget and that you stick to it. If you already set a specific amount for a particular item and you have already met the limit for that month, then you cannot spend more on it until the next month.
- You should also keep a good eye on how much you spend on the essentials. Regular expenditures can only take so much of your income. For example, the amount you spend on food should take up only five to 15 percent of your budget. If you go any higher than that, then you should seriously rethink what you are spending on and try to cut back until you hit the five to 15 percent mark. You may also see worksheet templates in a word.
- Your expenses are going to vary depending on certain factors such as the size of your family, the number of items that you have to buy, and the needs of those living under the same roof as you. The point of budgeting is to simply make sure that you do not spend more money than you need to. If there are ways for you to cut back on certain expenses, then do so. Find alternatives to guarantee that you are able to save more money than what you initially intended. You may also see daily worksheet templates.
12. Estimate and include contingency expenses in your budget
It is always better for you to be prepared than not at all. By incorporating expenses for possible emergencies into your budget, unexpected medical, car, or house maintenance costs will not have much of an impact in terms of your sample financial health and your overall budget.
- Estimate how much you might have to spend on these within the year and then divide that number by 12 so you can set a monthly budget for each.
- If by the end of the year, you did not have to make use of this particular saving, then that is obviously very good news. This means that you have extra money that you can put in your savings account or money that you can use for other things that are important like rent or investment samples.
13. Calculate the cost of your short-term, medium-term, and long-term goals
These should always be a part of your plan as you need to know how much you’re going to save for each by the end of every month. Are there things that you need to replace the household? Are there repairs that need to be seen to? Sample plan for all of these in advance so that you will not have to worry about dipping into your long-term savings. You may also see project worksheet template.
14. Draw up a new budget
Combine your buffers and goals with your total amount of expenses and income statement. This exercise will help guarantee that you are able to save a decent amount of money, making life much easier and a little less hectic on your end. It will also motivate you to cut down on expenses so that you can achieve certain goals and make the purchases that you want without having to go into debt.
Home Improvement Budget Worksheet
practicalmoneyskills.com
Home Renovation Budgeting Worksheet
myyp.com
Home Construction Budget Worksheet
firstcircle.ca
Weekly Home Budget Worksheet
balancetrack.org
Monthly Home Budget Worksheet
mortgagecenter.com
The steps that should help you make a efficient household budget:
You do not necessarily have to make huge changes to your home budget in order for you to save more. Even some of the smallest changes can have a huge effect when it comes to budgeting. All you have to do is know what these changes should be and what expenses you have to cut if you want to stick to your budget. You may also see worksheet sample templates.
If you would like to know more about budgeting or other related topics (such as how you can make a proper budget sheet), then take some time to read our other articles.
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