# Budgeting and Making Ends Meet



## cdan (18 Apr 2011)

Hi,

Does anyone have any recommendations about who to talk to regarding Budgeting, other than MABS? Wife and I both work but after some recent pay cuts and the USC are finding it harder and harder to make ends meet. Citizens advice recomended MABS but they weren't of much use - we're not in bad enough shape for MABS by the sounds of it. Not behind on any loans yet, although getting close, we're just looking for some bit of help with day to day budgeting to allow us to get to the end of each month. Never had to stop and think about managing the money before but different times now........ presume we're not alone.......

Thanks.


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## wbbs (18 Apr 2011)

I think the most useful thing anyone trying to budget better can do is keep a spending diary.   Any old notebook will do but write in every penny spent every day for at least a month, then have a look at where your money is going.   It won't give you more but at least you will see if you are spending carelessly.

Go through all your regular bills, esb, phone, car tax, insurances etc and see if any can be reduced, then calculate how much you need to put away each month to make sure you can meet these as they come in.   You will need to try build up a bit first to cover any due soon.   

Cut food shopping bill as much as you can, read all flyers, free sheets, ads etc for food offers and work your menu around them.  If any local butcher offers text service for specials, sign up to it and only buy the specials.

Use your freezer if you have one, I have a load of chickens in mine at the moment which I got on special last week €3 each for big chickens ( yes I know I should buy free range, organic etc but hell I'm too poor to have morals)

I could keep writing but here is a link to a good thread to show you how savings can be made

[broken link removed]


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## ShaneS (19 Apr 2011)

Would agree with wbbs that keeping a spending diary is a great way to start - that's what I had to do, although for 3 months, not 1. I retired recently and suffered a huge drop in income as a result so I had to really examine everything I was spending money on with a fine tooth comb. At the time of retiring I used a company called Eolas Money to help. They gave me sound retirement advice but they also looked at my tax and my day to day spending and made some changes for me that have helped big time.


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## wbbs (19 Apr 2011)

While I was suggesting keeping a spending diary for a minimum of a month to see where your money is going, ideally I think it is a habit that should be kept up long term.

Believe it or not I have 25 yrs worth of them!


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## Greta (19 Apr 2011)

I have been keeping a kind of spending diary, more like an income and expenditure account, for almost 15 years now, and it does help a lot. At the start it was quite detailed on the expenditure and it helped me to cut down very quickly. 

However, over the years the expenditure that I list got less and less detailed, so I have just started keeping up a separate spending diary to see where exactly our money is going. I don't intend to keep up such a detailed diary indefinitely, it's just too much effort to list every penny and split every shopping bill into categories, but 1 month is probably the minimum, 2 or 3 months is even better to capture expenses that don't occur every month.


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## horusd (20 Apr 2011)

You might find this earlier budgetting discussion and spending spreadsheets useful. 

http://www.askaboutmoney.com/showthread.php?t=148686

It will seem obvious, but planning is a key part of budgetting. You have X income per month, you have Y fixed outgoings. See what you can do without, see what you can reduce, and how to make the budget square. Also remember saving is an important aspect of budgetting, even if it's only the odd 5 or 10 e here and there.


PS: After you have sat down and done a budget, you might get some help by using the makeover template and posting that.


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## Lamorna (25 Apr 2011)

Like others, I've been keeping spending diaries all my life: I started when I was 8 and first got some pocket money (which I had to save all year long to buy Xmas presents for my relatives, I was hardly ever allowed to buy myself books or even postcards!).
Besides helping you to budget (e.g. if I've spent more than £100 on food in 1 month, I try to recoup it the next month) it also helps you to spot which prices are going up - or down, i.e. it can help you spot bargains as well!
Compared to 1 year ago, the prices of bread, tea, and coffee has gone up by 20% to 30% at my local supermarkets. I've tried to shop around, but it's everywhere the same. I was already using BOGOF and buying in bulk, so there's really no way I can save money - except by eating less bread and drinking less tea/coffee. Fruit and vegs have gone up as well.
I hardly ever manage to save anything and I had to take a credit card last November (which I pay in full every month), as some months the money was so tight, e.g. I could not afford to buy fresh food after the 15th of the month, and if I missed the shuttle to work, I could not afford the bus fare (£2.50 to £2.65 depending on the line) and had to walk 1 hour to work - and arrive 20' late.
Right now I'm applying for better paid jobs: it looks like the only way out for me is to give myself a payrise - by moving company. 
I also budget in advance every month, including for big expenses such as new shoes or a fan (getting real hot where I am).


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