Sometimes we all have to save some money, and luckily budgetting is not that complicated. By making just a few adjustments, you’ll see that you gain more insight and it is an easy way to budget your money more efficiently. The question most people ask is: where do I start? and what do I do? To help you guide through these answers, we listed a few of our favorite budgetting tips. Your wallet will love it!
50/30/20
The 50/30/20 rule is the most common rule that most people have heard of. It makes saving a lot easier by deviding your income into catagories. The basic rule of thumb is to devide your monthly income (after tax) into three catagories. Catagory 1 is the 50 rule: this means, 50% of your income is for needs such as rent, insurance, gas bills etc. In catagory 2 you spend 30% of your money on wants, such as dining out, gym membership and holidays. The last 20% is for savings and paying of debt. By doing this each month, you will gain a lot insight. This is essential for saving money, and eventually time.
Shower Coach
You and your family can save a lot of money on water use. A shower coach will stop you from overindulging in showers. This device is suction-cupped to your shower and only allows you 5 minutes to shower. With this rigorous step, you will save up to 72 liters water per shower. This means less water, less heating and a lower bill.
Budgeting to Zero
Budgeting to zero involves keeping track of every dollar you earn and allocating it to a category in your budget until you don’t have any money left over. Let’s imagine you make $3,000 every month. You shouldn’t have any money left over after planning your set expenses, savings contributions, investments, and any other extras. Budgeting to zero can help you see where your money goes and give each dollar a purpose.
Eating/ grocery shopping pattern
Try to do grocery shopping once or twice a week. If you go to the supermarket more than twice a week, the chances of you buying unnecessary groceries will increase. If you go to the supermarket, try to use coupons or buy cheaper brands. Another great tip is to double the vegetables for your meal and half the meat or fish (if you are not a vegetarian.) This is not only good for your wallet, it is great for your health too.
Know your Finances
In order to save money it is very important to have good insight in your financial situation. Having a budget and using this as a guidance can help you gain more insight. Give yourself a limit for spending money and make sure you pay the best price for everything. If you need more financial help with this or if you need better insight, it is always a good idea to use budgeting software or to hire a professional to do it for you.
Swap Clothes and Other Things
You may have some family members on friends who have the same shoe size or clothing size. There is no need to constantly buy new clothes or shoes if you can swap them with your friends/family. Not only is swapping clothes (which your parents probably told you about) a great idea, you can also think of swapping perfume, or things that you keep in the attic or basement.
Affordable Cleaning Products
Instead of overpaying for different types of cleaning products, you can use cleaning vinegar or baking soda as a cleaning product. These low budged products can be used to make your home cleaner: you can use it for water scale, bad odor and even as an all-purpose cleaner.
Give Yourself Grace
Do not expect yourself to be the best in financial budgeting right away. Having a stable insight in your finances takes time. So be kind to yourself, mistakes are easily made. If you need more support to be in control of your finances we recommend you to gain more insight by using budgeting software or hiring a professional. You can easily find this online.