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Regular
Posts: 82
| I am looking to purchase a new (to me) truck/trailer. I graduated college just over a year ago and am wanting to be as proactive as possible in terms of money management. I don't need the Tahj Mahal right now. I want to purchase something I can be proud of, but more importantly...AFFORD. This process has made me want to create a budget that I could stick to. I was hoping some of you had examples of budgets you are using for either your general life/living expenses, as well as budgets strictly for your horses/related expenses. Any input or examples is very appreciated :) |
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 Buttered Noodles Snacker
Posts: 4377
 
Location: NC | I recently downloaded an app called Mint that I find pretty neat. helps to show me the big pictures of bills and money flow. |
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 Elite Veteran
Posts: 617
Location: London Ontario | I am sure there are some online, I have one on an excel doc. I have
Mortgage payment
Hydro/gas
RSP/Investments
Fuel
Food
Rogers(Cable)
Insurance
Credit cards |
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Elite Veteran
Posts: 883
Location: Southern Indiana | #1 I hope you have a long credit history and good credit or your going to have a very difficult time getting financing
#2 best advice don't make "quick trips" to the store whether it's for groceries or shopping. It's amazing how much money you can save by just going home and using what you have.
#3 start a spreadsheet and add up your monthly expenses and income. Set aside some "fun" money and a goal to transfer to savings every month. Use cash for spending money. It's much harder to see your $20 bills disappearing than to swipe a card. Plus when their gone you know your "broke"!
#4 open a credit card with cash back/bonuses spend a couple hundred on it a month and pay it off on time every month.
#5 open a savings account with high monthly interest (>0.50%). The ones at your local bank typically don't earn much.
#6 revisit your budget often and keep reminding yourself of that monthly goal your putting towards your savings. |
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 Undercover Amish Mafia Member
Posts: 9992
Location: Kansas | I have a pretty good idea who you are LOL, I'm around your age. I bought a truck without a co-signer and pay around $315 a month.
Now, I've found alot of budgeting ideas on pinterest as well as some print outs that I write what the most important bills are each month and highlight them once paid. If I don't need something...I won't buy it.
I avoid eating out, use coupons as much as possible, stopped hauling to barrel races for the time being, and found some ways to make a little cash on the side. I'm a single mom too, so I have my daughter to care for and pay her daycare that I fit into the budget as well.
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Elite Veteran
Posts: 672
| Some things I've learned:
• Spreadsheet of bills and expenses and when they are due – pay on time to avoid late fees – those add up!
• Check your accounts daily
• Like someone else said – make big trips to the grocery stores (I go once every 2 weeks) not little trips here and there – you’d be surprised at how much you save! Also, plan your meals = less temptation to eat out.
• Start out small and work your way up. I started out with a $3000 stock trailer sold it, bought a nicer one, sold it and worked my way up to a $18k trailer that I LOVE and no payments!
Edited by veintiocho 2015-10-29 10:08 AM
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| Try to live on 80% of your salary so knowing what your bills are is a must. Then 10% should go into savings and 10% is a tithe (depending on your belief). If you can live within these means you will not be stressed out over money.
Remember trucks and trailers are depreciable assets. Do not get oogley eyed over the big rigs. When I see a fancy rig, I think the people have huge debt and big payments. It doesn't impress me one bit! Why not use that payment money to buy a piece of property or an appreciating asset.
Buy a reliable vehicle, but do not keep up with the Jones'. The Jones' are very hard to impress and they will keep you stressed out. |
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  That's White "Man" to You
Posts: 5515
| Budgeting is very simple...Spend less than you earn!
Purchasing- if you finance a purchase, (including a house, truck, trailer, ect) you need to have a down payment of at least 20%. If you cant afford the down payment, then you cant aford it.
- Never finance a consumable good...payoff your credit card EVERY month.
-Track your expense on a spread sheet or something...you will be shocked how much the bad habbits add up. Coffee, beer, ect....Many people spend as much on junk as they do on a car in a month. Its crazy! |
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 Expert
Posts: 3815
Location: The best kept secret in TX | I cash my check. I never deposit it all at once. I then calculate up my bills and deposit exactly that much plus about $50 extra into my account. I then put my debit card in a jar at home so I can't use it.
I have a 3-ring binder that I seperate all the other cash into by clear labled zipper pouches.
The categories are:
Groceries
Other household Neccessites (Cleaning supplies, personal hygiene items, etc.)
Lunches/Money to eat out on
Tithes/Offerings to the Church
Feed/Supplies for the Horses
Misc.
I also have a pouch for coupons I find that aren't available digitally. I also write down the coupons I have digitally so that I don't miss one. (I am a visua; person and I have to have the cash in front of me or I'm no good at tracking expenses.)
Once each category is out of money, it's gone. If at the end of the month I have extra cash, I put it into my bank account. If my child or my SO's little girls need clothes, shoes, school supplies, etc I use that extra money at the end of the month to purchase those items for them unless I have money left in the Misc. category, then I use that. I always end up with extra to save. Money is tight but at least I can save money here and there by doing my finances this way. Otherwise I overspend in areas and underspend in others. The binder is easily hidden in the safe when I'm not home and the pouches fit in my purse when I go to town.  |
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Buttered Noodles Snacker
Posts: 4377
Location: NC | TheDutchMan01 - 2015-10-29 8:42 AM #1 I hope you have a long credit history and good credit or your going to have a very difficult time getting financing #2 best advice don't make "quick trips" to the store whether it's for groceries or shopping. It's amazing how much money you can save by just going home and using what you have. #3 start a spreadsheet and add up your monthly expenses and income. Set aside some "fun" money and a goal to transfer to savings every month. Use cash for spending money. It's much harder to see your $20 bills disappearing than to swipe a card. Plus when their gone you know your "broke"! #4 open a credit card with cash back/bonuses spend a couple hundred on it a month and pay it off on time every month. #5 open a savings account with high monthly interest (>0.50%). The ones at your local bank typically don't earn much. #6 revisit your budget often and keep reminding yourself of that monthly goal your putting towards your savings.
This is a good point. |
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Meanest Teacher!!!
Posts: 8555
Location: sunny california | TheDutchMan01 - 2015-10-29 6:42 AM #1 I hope you have a long credit history and good credit or your going to have a very difficult time getting financing #2 best advice don't make "quick trips" to the store whether it's for groceries or shopping. It's amazing how much money you can save by just going home and using what you have. #3 start a spreadsheet and add up your monthly expenses and income. Set aside some "fun" money and a goal to transfer to savings every month. Use cash for spending money. It's much harder to see your $20 bills disappearing than to swipe a card. Plus when their gone you know your "broke"! #4 open a credit card with cash back/bonuses spend a couple hundred on it a month and pay it off on time every month. #5 open a savings account with high monthly interest (>0.50%). The ones at your local bank typically don't earn much. #6 revisit your budget often and keep reminding yourself of that monthly goal your putting towards your savings.
some great adivice here. When hubby and I first started we were pretty darn poor. we had to scrape from the food budget to buy clothes and most of them came from garage sales or the thrift store. Most people these days think stopping starbucks is budgeting. Eating oatmeal, beans and carrots is budgeting.
I think spending a whole month eating very limited cheap food helps to put things into perspective and makes you realize that most of what we spend is a luxury.
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 Money Eating Baggage Owner
Posts: 9586
Location: Phoenix | I follow the Dave Ramsey zero-based budget method--allocate EVERY dollar in your budget. I have a spreadsheet I can send you that I set up if you like. It's nothing fancy but it helps me tremendously.
I set up all my bills payment dates in my calendar on my phone. I budget a week before payday to plan things out. I take a look at what is due during that period and put it in the budget. I also plan out what I'll need to spend that month besides bills (food, gas, misc., horse shoer, savings, chiropractor, birthday gifts) and take that out in CASH. Using cash has been key. Using Dave Ramsey's envelope system has been KEY. Figuring out how many of each bill I need at the bank has been key in making the envelopes work FOR me, not against me.
I will say this on financing a vehicle: I'll never do it again on a new car. Before we knew it, we were upside down. And then it got totaled. Had they decided to FIX the car, it would have made me sick because we'd be even MORE upside down and making payments on a repaired car worth nothing. Luckily, it was a complete loss and we're starting over. Now I've got myself a little car, with low payments for just 2 years. I hope to have it paid off early. The next car we buy we plan on doing it in cash. That $500 payment will SUCK the life out of you. Yes, it sucks not having a truck and trailer. But if feels better than being strapped down with more debt. Hoping to be debt free in 2-3 years. |
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Money Eating Baggage Owner
Posts: 9586
Location: Phoenix | Food is where I struggle in budgeting. I allocate $600-700 a month for food ($300-350 each paycheck for 2 people)--it goes fast!!. And we use every penny. We could be better, but this is where we are at right now. I try to make big pasta/meat dishes that will last a couple of days for dinner and lunch. We don't go out to sit down restaurant but once in a while. |
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Regular
Posts: 82
| hammer_time - 2015-11-01 10:40 AM
 I follow the Dave Ramsey zero-based budget method--allocate EVERY dollar in your budget.  I have a spreadsheet I can send you that I set up if you like.  It's nothing fancy but it helps me tremendously.
I set up all my bills payment dates in my calendar on my phone. Â I budget a week before payday to plan things out. Â I take a look at what is due during that period and put it in the budget. Â I also plan out what I'll need to spend that month besides bills (food, gas, misc., horse shoer, savings, chiropractor, birthday gifts) and take that out in CASH. Â Using cash has been key. Â Using Dave Ramsey's envelope system has been KEY. Â Figuring out how many of each bill I need at the bank has been key in making the envelopes work FOR me, not against me. Â
I will say this on financing a vehicle: I'll never do it again on a new car. Â Before we knew it, we were upside down. Â And then it got totaled. Â Had they decided to FIX the car, it would have made me sick because we'd be even MORE upside down and making payments on a repaired car worth nothing. Â Luckily, it was a complete loss and we're starting over. Â Now I've got myself a little car, with low payments for just 2 years. Â I hope to have it paid off early. Â The next car we buy we plan on doing it in cash. Â That $500 payment will SUCK the life out of you. Â Yes, it sucks not having a truck and trailer. Â But if feels better than being strapped down with more debt. Â Hoping to be debt free in 2-3 years. Â
1 - Thank you EVERYONE for the ideas and advice!
2 - YES! If you don't mind, I would love to see your spreadsheet. That's what I was after with this post. I have made a very detailed one myself, but feel as if I'm forgetting something or need a reality check in regards to how much to allocate for horse expenses.
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 Expert
Posts: 2457
| Two Nickles - 2015-11-01 5:18 PM hammer_time - 2015-11-01 10:40 AM I follow the Dave Ramsey zero-based budget method--allocate EVERY dollar in your budget. I have a spreadsheet I can send you that I set up if you like. It's nothing fancy but it helps me tremendously.
I set up all my bills payment dates in my calendar on my phone. I budget a week before payday to plan things out. I take a look at what is due during that period and put it in the budget. I also plan out what I'll need to spend that month besides bills (food, gas, misc., horse shoer, savings, chiropractor, birthday gifts) and take that out in CASH. Using cash has been key. Using Dave Ramsey's envelope system has been KEY. Figuring out how many of each bill I need at the bank has been key in making the envelopes work FOR me, not against me.
I will say this on financing a vehicle: I'll never do it again on a new car. Before we knew it, we were upside down. And then it got totaled. Had they decided to FIX the car, it would have made me sick because we'd be even MORE upside down and making payments on a repaired car worth nothing. Luckily, it was a complete loss and we're starting over. Now I've got myself a little car, with low payments for just 2 years. I hope to have it paid off early. The next car we buy we plan on doing it in cash. That $500 payment will SUCK the life out of you. Yes, it sucks not having a truck and trailer. But if feels better than being strapped down with more debt. Hoping to be debt free in 2-3 years. 1 - Thank you EVERYONE for the ideas and advice! 2 - YES! If you don't mind, I would love to see your spreadsheet. That's what I was after with this post. I have made a very detailed one myself, but feel as if I'm forgetting something or need a reality check in regards to how much to allocate for horse expenses.
Dave Ramsey's principles are a great way to start budgeting and "telling your money what to do"
We also use Dave's envelope system and an excel sheet to budget our lives. We have envelopes for everything from play/beer money, to feed, to fuel, to lunch out ... we have found that setting aside the cash and only spending what is in that envelope helped us.
Lots of good advice on here - high fives and you can do it!! Chin up; you're not alone! |
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Veteran
Posts: 106
| When you guys are laying out your budgets for your bills are you increasing the amount of your bills that have interest rates so that you are paying above the minimum payment? If not, why? I'm trying to figure out a budget too :) |
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Undercover Amish Mafia Member
Posts: 9992
Location: Kansas | Wishful - 2015-11-02 2:46 PM When you guys are laying out your budgets for your bills are you increasing the amount of your bills that have interest rates so that you are paying above the minimum payment? If not, why? I'm trying to figure out a budget too :)
I pay above minimum every month, and I pay that same amount monthly so I work it in the budget. |
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Veteran
Posts: 106
| Do you have a percentage that you try to go above with or dollar amount? I am not trying to get in your business...I'm just trying to see realistic examples... |
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Undercover Amish Mafia Member
Posts: 9992
Location: Kansas | Wishful - 2015-11-02 3:13 PM Do you have a percentage that you try to go above with or dollar amount? I am not trying to get in your business...I'm just trying to see realistic examples...
I typically pay about $15-$20 extra on that amount say if it's a truck payment, or credit card payment. I just use dollar amounts rather than a certain percentage to get it paid off quicker. |
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Porta Potty Pants
Posts: 2600
| everydollar.com I think is Dave Ramsay's recommended site for budgeting. |
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