Budgeting can seem complex or even daunting, especially if personal finance isn’t your favourite pastime. That being said, making a budget has never been easier. With transaction statements just a few clicks away and a range of digital tools available, such as the My Budget tool on the FÉRIQUE app, budgeting can be done in no time.
How do you go about it?
Why make a budget?
To save money and use your hard-earned dollars effectively, a budget is the tool par excellence. The goal is simple: to provide a detailed view of your income and expenses. With this in-depth knowledge of your past, present and future inflows and outflows, you’ll particularly able to:
- check whether you spend more than you earn
- identify and prioritize expenses according to your goals
- assess the relevance of some expenses
- find sources of savings
- track what you actually spend
List your income and expenses
Step one, the quickest and easiest part: your income. List your salaries, bonuses, rental income, government benefits, etc. Simply enter the amounts and their frequency in the Income section of your budget.
Step two: your fixed expenses. Once again, this step isn’t too complicated. Fixed expenses include your mortgage or rental payment, car payment, insurance, digital subscriptions and so on. These amounts are constant and recurring. Just take your bank statement, find the latest amounts and add them in the Fixed Expenses section of your budget.
Step three: your variable expenses. This may seem the most complex step. But don't worry, increased use of card payments and online access to your bank statements simplify the process. Get out your calculator and statements for the past six to 12 months, then compute any expenses you still haven’t listed. The Variable Expenses section typically includes groceries, gasoline, clothing, outings and entertainment.
Categorize your expenses
You’ll probably do this naturally while making your lists. It’s quick and easy: group your outlays by expense item. In this way, you can identify the main items at a glance. The categories include the following:
- Housing
- Transportation
- Food Savings
- Personal care
- Leisure
Feel free to subcategorize to get an even clearer picture. For example, for the “Transportation” category, you can create subcategories, such as monthly payments, gasoline, insurance, maintenance, registration, driver’s licence and unexpected repairs.
Include savings in your expenses
If your income exceeds your expenses, all the better! Your budget is filled with good news. That extra money represents potential savings you can use to work toward your financial goals, such as buying a home, taking the trip of a lifetime, going back to school or achieving financial independence.
Include these savings as an expense item in your budget. Then take one extra step: automate your savings just as you’ve already automated the payments for your digital subscriptions, cell phone or gym membership. In this way, you assign a specific function to every dollar you earn, in this instance savings, and also apply the proven savings strategy of paying yourself first.
If you your current savings aren’t enough to reach your financial goals, or your expenses exceed your income, don’t be discouraged! Every small step counts, especially the ones described below.
Prioritize and optimize your expenses
No matter what results you get from your budgeting exercise, you must prioritize and optimize your spending. It’s a safe bet you’ll have a sudden irresistible urge to check flyers for specials, renegotiate your insurance or walk to the store to pick up that litre of milk, so that you can save a little more. If so, the budget is fulfilling its mission of helping you take control of your finances!
This step has the potential to free savings so that you can achieve your financial goals and enjoy the lifestyle you want. Perhaps you’d like to buy your first home, pay for your children’s education, retire at 50, ski every winter, travel every spring or fill a wall with a collection of books.
Analyze each of your expenses with such goals in mind. Scrutinize every dollar that doesn’t actually contribute to your goals and overall well-being. It goes without saying that saving money and paying off high-interest debt should be your top priorities. The higher your net worth, the more freedom of choice you’ll enjoy.
Revisit your budget
Now it’s time to put your budget to the test. Make a point of reviewing each of your expenses periodically to make sure you stay within the budget you’ve set for yourself. To that end, your account statements are your best friends.
But don’t turn your budget into a straitjacket. Instead, think of it as a guide. You may find you’ve underestimated some expenses or you’re uncomfortable with some of your decisions. That’s normal. You can always adjust your budget accordingly.
Need an extra boost?
The FÉRIQUE My Budget tool available on your FÉRIQUE app and on the client portal allows you to create a complete budget in a short time. Simply enter your income, your expenses and their frequency. All the calculations will be done for you. The My Budget tool also allows you to:
- break down your savings by goal
- create as many expense subcategories as you need
- assess the weight of your budget items at a glance
- identify your budget surplus and invest it with a few clicks
The FÉRIQUE application is also your investments, your financial balance sheet and virtual assistance at your fingertips.
