Are you one of those people that pay your bills no matter what? That
is an admirable trait to have when managing your money. You made the
bill and you feel you are responsible for paying it. Good for you.
Now let's talk about how much money you have to cover your household
expenses after you pay all of those bills. Your household expenses
would include your groceries, car gas, school lunches, and all of the
other stuff that it takes to run a household. Do you have enough to
pay this bill?
All to often, people tend to pay their bills and try to live on
what's left. This never works unless you have enough money left to
cover these at home expenses. The grocery bill will always run about
the same, you will always need about the same money for gas, etc. In
other words, you need enough to live on.
I have seen this time and time again. Another bill is made and the
money comes out of the household budget because there is no money
available in any other category. Then what happens?
Many people resort to using their credit cards to cover their regular
expenses. Since there is no other money available to pay their
increased credit card payments, that also has to come out of their
household expenses. This is how many people find themselves in over
their heads.
There is only one way to change this cycle. You have to allow enough
money in your budget to cover the things you need. You must do this
even at the expense of your other bills. That could put you in a
position that you can't make some of your payments, but at lease you
won't be increasing your debt, except for possibly late fees. If
this is your situation you need to seek help to reduce the payments
on your other bills.
Naturally, there are many ways to cut your household expenses that
will allow you to pay more toward your other bills. You can save a
lot of money on groceries by using coupons, buying generic, not using
processed foods, etc. The internet is full of ideas and tips to help
you save. I would start by visiting The Frugal Shopper at
http://www.thefrugalshopper.com.
When you develop or revise your budget, always put the emphasis on
your household needs. Once you have determined how much you need to
get by, then you can see what is left for other bills.
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About The Author
Terry Rigg is the author of Living Within Your Means - The Easy Way
http://www.homemoneyhelp.com/ebookadpage.html and editor of The FREE
Budget Stretcher Newsletter and Budget Stretcher web site
http://www.homemoneyhelp.com. He has 25 years of experience
counseling individuals and families concerning their personal finances
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