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Anyone here like to budget?? I need your help.

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Anonymous
Not applicable

Anyone here like to budget?? I need your help.

Hello-

 

I need to come up with a budget with the hopes of paying off my debt.   I just have a hard time coming up with one.  So I thought I would throw out my data here and see if any of you can provide a budget for me that will help me achieve my goal of paying off my debts.   Keep in mind that I live alone so my grocery/food bill will be for one person. 

 

Mortgage  840

Utilities    300

Cell phone  200  (I know I need to reduce this but this is an easy fix)

HELOC     120

Personal Loan 170

Car 1    540

Car 2    200 (I am also paying for my mom's car)

Citicard   Bal - 900       Min pmt   -  40

HSBC      Bal - 400      Min pmt -   20

Merrick Bank    Bal - 1800    Min pmt - 55

Target     Bal - 3400        Min pmt - 90

Home Depot      Bal - 1000      Min pmt - 33

Discover       Bal - 70      Min pmt - 70

AMX       Bal - 600    Min pmt - 15

Gasoline (Car)   -   130

Car Insurance - 185

Groceries  -   ??????    How much should I budget for one person

Extra payments toward debt reduction   -    ????????????

 

My take home pay is $4,500 per month.  Taking into account my minimum payments what budget would you put together?   Thanks so much for any help!!

 

Message Edited by gigi09 on 10-21-2009 05:18 PM
Message 1 of 10
9 REPLIES 9
cygnusdrache
Member

Re: Anyone here like to budget?? I need your help.

After everything you've listed you've got over $1600 left for food +.  I would start out by budgeting at least $200 for food (that's cooking at home and not eating out).  I would put aside at least another $200 for miscellaneous and as a cushion - after budgeting for a few months you'll be able to refine your budget to be more specific and precise.

 

You should have over $1200 left over at this point. 

 

First - I would save at least $1,000 and put it aside for an emergency fund, that way you won't have to charge things that come up, like unexpected car repairs, etc.  Then, take what's left the first month and smack your smallest debt with it (i.e. the HSBC account). 

 

Then next month you should have over $1,200 all to throw at debt - pay off the HSBC in full, and then also kill the Amex card.  They're out of your life forever that way, and you have more money from those minumum payments to put towards your larger debts.

 

It will feel good to pay off your smallest debts first, and then work your way up to the largest one. That way, when you finally get to it, you're able to focus all your extra money on that one debt without the smaller ones nickle and diming you at the same time.

Message 2 of 10
Anonymous
Not applicable

Re: Anyone here like to budget?? I need your help.

Thanks!  Very helpful.   A couple of questions/comments:

 

  1. I forgot my car insurance of 185 per month - I edited my post to include that.
  2. Regarding the initial $1000 for emergency fund -  you would save this before paying anything towards debt?
  3. $200 per month for ALL food/groceries?  This includes eating out, toiletries, cleaning supplies, etc?  I track my expenses and I know that I have been spending approximately $700-$800 per month on food.   I know that this is WAY too much for one person which is part of the reason I need help.   This is one area that I can improve on quickly so I just want to make sure that I fully understand your suggestion.

Again, thanks for any help!

Message 3 of 10
Anonymous
Not applicable

Re: Anyone here like to budget?? I need your help.

Hey gigi!

 

Try this. I took some time and came up with something. Here goes nothing.

 

If you haven't already, go entirely paperless with your billing. You'll save gas, time, and postage money by doing your bills online. I saved almost fifty bucks a month by doing this! Smiley Happy

 

Mortgage: Non-negotiable. Perhaps try a refi?

Utilities: There are a multitude of articles online that explain in detail about how to lower your utility bills each month. Read 'em. I lowered/raised my thermostat by a mere two degrees from normal and it saved me about 5% each month. I now use that money as an emergency fund.

Cell phone: 200 - You've already said you can reduce this. Try Cricket. Unlimited everything for just $45.00/month. That's $155.00/month freed up right there.

HELOC: 120 - Perhaps you could include this in a mortgage refi? It might save you a few dollars a month, plus it would eliminate a $120/month payment.

Personal loan: 170 - Try using the $155/month you were spending on your cell phone to knock this puppy out. Then when that's paid, use that $325 ($155 for the cell phone plus $170 for the personal loan) to pay off your car loans.

Car 1: 540 - No getting around this one, unless you'd try a refi, or a trade for something less hideously expensive. Might be worth it...

Car 2: 200 - You've stated that this is your mother's car payment. Might not be able to get around this one. Not to be nosy, but I assume you are paying this because of personal reasons with her (health, age, etc.)?

 

On credit cards, you've heard the advice: cut them up, see which one has the highest interest rate and pay it off ASAP. Well, I think you'd be better off to pay off the smallest balances first, maybe using the $275.00 we've already freed up (cell phone and HELOC refi) to tackle them. I'd start by cutting up half of your cards (ones that aren't needed or used very often), and pay them off going from the smallest to the largest balances. Don't close the accounts, just remove the temptation to whip out the plastic by removing the actual plastic completely.

 

Citicard   Bal - 900       Min pmt   -  40

HSBC      Bal - 400      Min pmt -   20

Merrick Bank    Bal - 1800    Min pmt - 55

Target     Bal - 3400        Min pmt - 90

Home Depot      Bal - 1000      Min pmt - 33

Discover       Bal - 70      Min pmt - 70 -

AMX       Bal - 600    Min pmt - 15

Gasoline (Car)   -   130 - Hard to debate this one, as gas prices rise and fall like the tides. Maybe try a weekly allotment of $20 - $25 and look for the shortest route to work, school, stores, etc. Another way to cut back is by going to shopping centers that have most of what you need there, so you can save gas money by making one trip a week instead of stopping off every day after work or whatever, y'know? I schedule my grocery shopping for Monday night around midnight (second-shifter) after I leave work. No crowds, plus I save gas by stopping off on my way home one day a week instead of three or four.

Car Insurance - 185 - Shop around. I called up three insurance companies in one day and had prices varying by as much as 40%. Use the saved cash to knock out your HELOC and personal loans.

Groceries - ???? You've stated that you spend almost $700 - $800/month on food, toiletries, cleaning supplies, etc. Join Costco and get your non-food items like cleaning supplies and toiletries in bulk. Think about it: how many times per year do you really consider changing toiletries or cleaning supplies? Might as well save a few bucks for other purposes, right?

Extra payments toward debt reduction   -    ???????????? First, automatically save at least 10% of your take-home pay for emergencies and a cushion. That was easily the best financial decision I ever made. When I get my paycheck, I'm the first one paid, not the bills. I earned it, they didn't, you know?

Whatever else is left over, apply that to your credit cards. The interest rates these sharks charge would make the Mafia blush. Brown bag your lunch at work and good luck!

Message 4 of 10
Anonymous
Not applicable

Re: Anyone here like to budget?? I need your help.

Hi gigi - When I decided to finally make a budget, clean up my credit and be debt free, I purchased a budgeting software (I use Money but all of them are pretty much the same).  It allowed me to enter all of my bills, including an estimate of things that vary like groceries, drug store items, etc, as well as items that come up yearly or quarterly (taxes, car registrations, annual fees for CC's, membership dues). 

 

It also allowed me to do cash flow projections.....that's where I really got a dose of reality.....no money left over if I continued the was I was going!  It forced me to choose...dinner with friends?  or Credit card payment? 

 

You can also pull in directly from your bank account and most credit cards (at least the major ones).  That showed me the horror that I was spending 50 bucks on hair care products at the salon...when I could have been going to the drugstore...not the same I know...but some things are worth sacrificing.  I was also spending 15 - 20 bucks a week on take out coffee......and upwards of 40 per month on ATM fees!  OUCH.   You can't dispute it when it is black and white in front of you. 

 

Just my two cents, which I hope was helpful.   Good luck on your journey and congratulations on your decision to budget and take control of your credit.  : )

 

 

Message 5 of 10
Tons_of_Debt
Established Contributor

Re: Anyone here like to budget?? I need your help.

Gigi,

 

I love putting together budgets, and would happy to help if you still need it, but I need some additional info.

 

You mentioned take home pay is $4500 a month. How often are you paid and when? Also, you've included the balances and min payments for the CCs, that's great, but when are the due dates?

08/01/2008 - 472 EQ; 523 TU; 454 EX
03/01/2009 - 574 EQ
08/08/2009 - 648 EQ
01/27/2010 - 671 EQ
07/04/2010 - 713 EQ
01/05/2011 - 730 EQ
05/14/16 - 762 EX
Message 6 of 10
angie204
Contributor

Re: Anyone here like to budget?? I need your help.

I actually love budgeting, but it seems like you have a lot of great help here!

 

I just wanted to chime in on the food budget.  I have seven kids, six of whom live with me.  My husband and I spend $125 a week at Walmart, which includes food and non-food items (toilet paper, cleaners, etc.).  I just wanted to say that if we can make it on that (sometimes even less when things get tight), then I know you can do it for much less.  We just have a strict policy...if it goes over the limit, we put stuff back until it is under - no exceptions.  It really forces us to stay in budget and it helps our waistlines as well.  No ice cream or cookies, LOL!  If we want that stuff we have to get it in on the weekly shopping.

 

Best of luck!

 

 

My Scores:
10/09: EQ 653, TU 656; 8/09 FICO Lender: EQ 652, TU 646, EX 659 10/11: EQ 672, TU 679 EXP Lender 680


Chapter 7 BK Discharged Aug 29, 2007.
Message 7 of 10
RobertEG
Legendary Contributor

Re: Anyone here like to budget?? I need your help.

There are numerous, free budgeting programs available on the internet that may help you.
Message 8 of 10
MattH
Senior Contributor

Re: Anyone here like to budget?? I need your help.

Excellent suggestions from various people, but there is a key aspect of budgeting that many people forget: what I call "unsurprising surprises."  I own a car, and my wife and I own our residence. In most years, some things come up with each: the car needs a new water pump, or the furnace has to be replaced, or something. We cannot predict when home or car will need sudden cash, but we know such things happen every year. The best way I know to account for such things is estimate how much you have spent on them over the past three years, grand total for all of them, and divide that total by 24 and include a line item for that in your budget. I say divide by 24 so the line item will be more than sufficient. Now, in most months there will be no sudden repairs so you will not spend that money, but in those months you've got to be saving for the months in which there is a major repair.

 

TU 791 02/11/2013, EQ 800 1/29/2011 , EX Plus FAKO 812, EX Vantage Score 955 3/19/2010 wife's EQ 9/23/2009 803
EX always was my highest when we could pull all three
Always remember: big print giveth, small print taketh away
If you dunno what tanstaafl means you must Google it
Message 9 of 10
Anonymous
Not applicable

Re: Anyone here like to budget?? I need your help.

When I want to budget, I immediately pay off my smallest debts and that way I don't hemmorage money. Also, take a persoanl inventory of your non-esenntials (quiting smoking is always a good idea). Sometimes you have to go without.
Message 10 of 10
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